Jim Sprott, the scientist whose work helped free Arthur Allan Thomas, has died.
Dr Sprott came to prominence in the successful campaign to overturn the conviction of Mr Thomas for the murders of Jeanette and Harvey Crewe in 1970.
Arthur Allan Thomas Photo: RNZ
His analysis of the bullet cartridges used in the murder was critical evidence.
Dr Sprott later attracted controversy for his views that mattresses were to blame for cot death and that nuclear ships should be allowed to visit New Zealand.
Dr Sprott died last month. He was 89 and is survived by his three children.
Thomas James Sprott was born in Auckland in 1924 and educated at Auckland University, taking a PhD in Chemistry in 1949. He worked as a chemist, public analyst, consultant and forensic scientists and at one stage had his own analystical chemistry company.
In the 1980s he was appointed New Zealand's first honorary consul for Canada and subsequently lived there for some years.
Dr Sprott came to national attention in the 1970s as a leading figure in the drive to overturn the conviction of Arthur Allan Thomas for the murders of Jeanette and Harvey Crewe.
He was a principal witness before the Royal Commission of Inquiry on the case, presenting his analysis of the bullet cartridges that formed an important part of the evidence.
He later became involved with the notorious cases of Murray Kestle - who was convicted of murdering his newlywed wife in 1973 - and of serial rapist Mark Stephens, the Parnell Panther.
His work on the Stephens case led to a warning in 1988 by the New Zealand Institute of Chemistry that he risked struck from the register if he didn't stop making accusations that reflected badly on a fellow chemist.
Crime was not the only field that drew Dr Sprott's attention. He was involved in road safety research, arterial disease treatment and, in 1996, a petition calling for the Government to maintain New Zealand's membership of ANZUS and abandon the country's anti-nuclear stance.
Dr Sprott was awarded an OBE in the 1995 New Year Honours for his services to forensic science and the community.
