Karen Edwards says she and her family have been living a life sentence after her daughter Ashlee was murdered. Photo / File
Jimmy Akuhata might have been sentenced to life in jail for murdering 21-year-old Ashlee Louise Anne Edwards, but her family feel as if they are serving time as well.
Karen Edwards, mother of murdered Ashlee, says the latest round of legal battles had been draining and very stressful for the family.
Akuhata, who has been serving a life sentence with a minimum non-parole period of 15 years after pleading guilty to the 2012 murder of Ashlee, has had his appeal against sentence and conviction dismissed.
In November last year the 31-year-old went to the Court of Appeal to have his conviction overturned on the basis he suffered a brain injury before pleading to the charge.
When the appeal was lodged, Edwards was shocked but not surprised, saying Akuhata was highly manipulative and was never prepared to take responsibility for his actions.
She described the appeal hearing as worse than sitting through sentencing and came away thinking her daughter's killer was going to have his sentence reduced or even face another trial.
She said in the lead up to the original trial, police and the Crown lawyers had left no stone unturned, so to hear during the appeal Akuhata claiming Ashlee was clumsy and fell off the bridge and drowned was "gut wrenching".
"To hear the things they were saying about Ashlee and the way they spoke about her, it was gruelling. He plead guilty and admitted he killed her in cold blood."
News of the appeal dismissal was delivered last week.
"I really believed we were headed to another hearing so I went into shock. I really couldn't believe the judges had dismissed the appeal. For days after I've been pinching myself that it was real," Edwards said.
"There was a huge cloud hanging over me right through Christmas and New Year just thinking about what the judges' decision might be."
She wanted to speak out to help other families going through the same pain or experiencing family violence.
The family, including Ashlee's two children, had been riding an emotional roller coaster since the life-changing incident on a Whangārei bridge on July 26, 2012.
"We need to really learn what victims go through and what a homicide does to families. It feels like we are living the sentence because it's just been a long, drawn out process which now seems to have been offender-orientated rather than helping victims.
"This is with us for the rest of our lives ... it will never go away," Edwards said.
There was a chance Akuhata could lodge an appeal with the Supreme Court. If he didn't the next major hearing would be his first parole hearing in seven-and-a-half years.
"He should never be able to come out, he's too dangerous and not showing any signs of remorse."
The court heard that Akuhata was bashed by a "fight club" gang member drunk on moonshine while on remand at Mt Eden prison for Edwards' murder, leaving him with a brain injury.
He was declared fit to plead by the Court of Appeal before admitting the charge of killing Ashlee. Akuhata had four previous convictions for male assaults female, three of which involved Ashlee.
Akuhata and Edwards had been in an "on again, off again" relationship for about six-and-a-half years.
But when Akuhata murdered her, they were apart and there was a protection order in place for Ashlee and her two daughters.
One night in July 2012, Edwards agreed to go to an event at a bar with Akuhata. During the night, he became angry at Edwards about text messages she had received.
According to facts accepted at the time, they left the bar about 1.55am and were arguing on the Lower Tarewa Rd bridge when he lifted her up and over the railing into Waiarohia Stream, in central Whangārei.
He grabbed her hair and held her head under the water until she stopped showing signs of life and went home where he told a family member Ashlee was dead.
His appeal last year focused on numerous points, including an argument his previous lawyer, Catherine Cull, did not handle his case correctly, given his brain injury.
Human rights lawyer Tony Ellis questioned whether there had been some pressure on "a brain injured person" to plead guilty.
But Cull said she had several discussions with Akuhata about the guilty plea and he was "keen" to enter it. She said she gave him plenty of time to think about it first.
In their written decision, the Court of Appeal judges said no criticism could be made out against Cull or the court process.
"Mr Akuhata should now be satisfied that the criminal justice system has served him well and that he rightly faces the sentence imposed on him," the decision said.
"What has happened emerges with tolerable clarity from the mass of material placed before us. In a fit of jealous rage Mr Akuhata threw or pushed Ms Edwards over the parapet of the bridge into the stream below. He then climbed down or jumped into the stream and held Ms Edwards' head under the water until she was lifeless.
"He made his way home, soaking wet and very upset, and admitted what he had done to his cousin, his friend and his neighbour. He admitted it again to a fellow inmate in prison the next day. But he declined to say anything to the police.
"As Mr Akuhata recovered from the traumatic head injury inflicted on him in prison four months after he murdered Ms Edwards, Mr Akuhata began struggling, increasingly, with the enormity of what he had done and its consequences ... after pleading guilty, Mr Akuhata knew he had done the right thing. He said as much to the probation officer."
Now, confronted with the "bleak prospect of 15 years in prison", Akuhata had changed his mind, the judges said.
"He has compared his sentence with those imposed on another or other prisoners convicted of manslaughter. This has led him again to try and convince himself that he killed Ms Edwards accidentally."
Domestic violence: Do you need help?
If you're in danger now:
• Phone for police on 111 or ask neighbours of friends to ring for you.
• Run outside to where there are other people.
• Scream for help so that your neighbours can hear you.
• Take the children with you.
• Don't stop to get anything else.
• If you are being abused, remember it's not your fault. Violence is never okay.
Where to go for help or more information:
• Shine, free national helpline 9am-11pm every day - 0508 744 633; 2shine.org.nz
• Women's Refuge: Free national crisis line operates 24/7 - 0800 refuge or 0800 733 843; womensrefuge.org.nz
• Shakti: Providing specialist cultural services for African, Asian and Middle Eastern women and their children. Crisis line 24/7 0800 742 584
• It's Not Ok: Information line 0800 456 450; areyouok.org.nz
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