A 14-year-old boy has been jailed for killing Enere McLaren-Taana at Dunedin’s bus hub.
The then-13-year-old, who has permanent name suppression, was charged with murder after stabbing the 16-year-old Trinity Catholic College student with a large kitchen knife in May last year.
He was acquitted of murder but found guilty of manslaughter by a jury in the Dunedin High Court earlier this year.
Justice Osborne, who oversaw the jury trial, sentenced the teenager to three-years-and-three months in prison, refusing the defence’s application not to enter a conviction.
During his sentencing, he told the defendant that aggravating factors included carrying and concealing a long knife, that McLaren-Taana was unarmed and there was nothing to suggest he was threatening the defendant’s life.
The video evidence showed the defendant immediately chased the victim once pulling out the knife, which was an aggressive attack against someone who was vulnerable as he did not want to be seen as “sackless”, Osborne said.
It was not self defence, he said.
There was a risk of deportation to both the boy, his mother and sister due to his conviction, but the defendant had a history of carrying a knife with the knowledge it could impact his immigration status, he said.
He granted permanent name suppression.
He acknowledged Enere McLaren-Taana’s family pain and grief after losing a “young man of great promise” who was loved.
Emotions were raw as victim impact statements were read out to the packed court, with many wearing matching shirts and hoodies with Enere McLaren-Taana’s face, pictures of him playing rugby and his name on it.
McLaren-Taana’s father, John McLaren, described his death as “soul-crushing”, saying he would never forget seeing his son on a trolley at the hospital and hearing his mum scream.
“Having my son taken from me is the hardest, most painful thing (that’s) ever happened to me in my life and I will never be the same,” he said.
“I have closed off to everybody. It is sad I have lost my son and I won’t get to see the man and the father he was going to be.”
Voice breaking, he said he last saw his son alive on the morning of the stabbing, telling him “love you” as McLaren-Taana headed off to school.
His son was a loving brother and uncle, who loved his sport and was a natural at rugby, he said.
“All I do is cry. I can’t move on, it’s too hard.”
His brother, Rick McLaren, said it broke his heart to explain to his children that their uncle was killed.
He said he struggled with horrible dreams, reliving the phone call when he discovered his brother was dead.
He would never forgive the defendant and had spent the last year dealing with his anger and frustration, McLaren said.
“You ruined our lives forever.”
His aunt read out his grandmother Tere Taana’s statement, telling the court that she was never going to hear his voice, spend time, hold or cuddle him again.
His death was so unnecessary and tragic, and she was angry, Taana said.
She told the defendant that this was always going to be pinned on his heart and he would have to live with it for the rest of his life.
Throughout the trial, the jury was shown graphic CCTV footage showing the 60 seconds it took for the boy to get off the bus, to McLaren-Taana clutching a stab wound after security intervened.
The court heard the victim verbally accosted the younger boy who was walking past, telling him to pull his socks up “bitch boy”.
The younger boy gave him the middle finger, walking back towards him after there were more insults.
They squared off, with the younger boy telling the court that he told the victim he had a knife in his bag who then taunted him to get it out.
His defence lawyer Anne Stevens KC said he carried the knife for protection and was hypersensitive to threats after an earlier assault and was trying to defend himself against a bigger, older boy who looked ready to fight.
“It was a David-and-Goliath situation. David did not have a slingshot, he had a knife,” she said.
Crown prosecutor Richard Smith said he chose to brandish the large kitchen knife and run after the victim because he did not want to look like a coward, later telling a psychiatrist that he did not want to be a “sackless c***”.
“There was no need for the defendant to even walk back towards Enere, let alone resort to the use of the knife,” Smith said.
The footage showed McLaren-Taana retreating onto the road before aiming a kick at the younger boy’s head.
They grappled and the younger boy made two swings.
The second swing hit McLaren-Taana in the stomach, stabbing at least 10 centimetres through to the muscles near his spine.
He died in hospital later that day.
rnz.co.nz
