The then 42-year-old tied Downey up and strangled her. He used her own car to move her body before dumping it down a bank on the Port Hills.
Peach’s recent parole hearing revelation that he committed the murder to harm someone else in prison was a surprise to Thomson and the league.
Peach told the Parole Board he wasn’t trying to kill the 52-year-old, he just wanted to commit a crime that would see him sent to prison so he could confront a man who had allegedly wronged him.
He was sentenced to life in prison with a minimum non-parole period of 13 years in 2009 for Downey’s murder.
Peach wasn’t seeking to be paroled when he appeared last month. Parole was declined and he will next come before the board in May 2026.
Thomson told The Star she thought "oh, thank goodness" when she found out Peach would not be paroled this year.
“It did affect us all terribly. We don’t want him walking around,” she said.
Thomson said Peach's revelation about the murder was a surprise.
"That’s the first we’d ever heard of it. It doesn’t make any sense," she said.
"To take a lovely girl’s life for something like that. To be honest, I think he was probably just crazy."
Downey worked for the charity for about five years, running the main office on Worcester St in Linwood.
She often visited the homes of unwanted or neglected cats and took them back to the cattery for possible adoption.
Thomson returned as the charity’s president for several years after Downey’s death.
“It was a terrible time. Kerry was a good person and didn’t deserve what happened to her. She was only trying to save a cat,” she said.
Since Downey’s death the league has improved safety procedures, requiring workers to inform someone of addresses they are visiting and encouraging two-person visits where possible.
The league’s office moved to its adoption centre and cattery in Woolston a year ago.
Downey had a kitten run named in her honour with a remembrance plaque nearby.
“We don’t want Kerry to ever be forgotten,” said Thomson.
Leaving behind a father, who has since died, two sisters and a brother, Thomson said Downey’s death left the family “shattered”.
