Dunne-Powell on Veitch: Innocent people don't plead guilty

Kristin Dunne-Powell leaves court with her husband Morgan Powell yesterday after telling a judge how Tony Veitch's assault has changed her life. Photo / Glenn Jeffrey

HER STORY:

Kristin Dunne-Powell says agreeing to a plea bargain that resulted in her former partner, television personality Tony Veitch, pleading guilty to the most serious of the seven charges in exchange for evidence not being brought in the others was a difficult decision.

"Agreeing to the plea bargain was a real compromise," she told the Herald yesterday. "But it was thought the best outcome for both parties."

Veitch, 35, was fined $10,000, placed on supervision for nine months and ordered to do 300 hours of community work after pleading guilty in Auckland District Court to injuring Ms Dunne-Powell with reckless disregard for her safety.

Six other charges of assault were dismissed when the Crown offered no evidence.

Ms Dunne-Powell said there was an imbalance of power in her on-again off-again relationship with the sports presenter and she felt powerless during the eight months since the story became public.

She had remained silent despite what seemed to her a media campaign giving a false impression of her.

Her side of the story had not been heard, she said.

Their relationship was characterised by Veitch's need for power and control, and influenced by his mood swings from highs to lows. There was the energetic, bubbly Tony Veitch the public saw and a private one who suffered crises of confidence, she said.

Her own confidence was affected and so was her ability to quit the relationship, until after she was hospitalised with a broken back.

Of the decision not to pursue the other charges, she said: "When I thought about it, it was much more powerful to me that he admits being guilty of domestic violence. Much more powerful than 12 strangers on a jury who weren't there."

She hoped that after Veitch's guilty plea to the highest charge, "people would realise that innocent people don't plead guilty".

"Police didn't lay these seven charges willy nilly. They did a very thorough investigation and there is file on file on file of documents relating to them."

She says the charges that were laid related to incidents where she was able to indicate a date when they occurred.

She said "the one-sided" media coverage had effectively put the victim on trial in the public eye.

"When it first started I was just so shocked that it was allowed. I couldn't see how it could possibly be part of the process. I was told that it would stop once the charges were laid and it didn't.

"The first six to eight weeks were just horrendous. Particularly on Sundays. Sometimes I couldn't get out of bed. I couldn't believe the things, the lies that were being told ..."

In her victim impact statement read out to the court, Ms Dunne-Powell said: "My name is Kristin, I am 35 years of age, married, and not currently working. In January 2006 when this happened I was 32 years old and I was employed by Vodafone New Zealand as the manager of marketing.

"I had been in an on-and-off relationship with Tony between 2002 and 2006. My physical injuries included bruising and a fracture of my spine in two places.

"I experienced intense pain at the time of the assault and endured extreme discomfort for months afterwards.

It was necessary to use a wheelchair and crutches for several weeks so I could manage the discomfort and remain somewhat mobile.

"The damage to my back has resulted in muscle atrophy and loss and that has caused a physical disfigurement. The disfigurement was so apparent that when I got married in 2007, it was necessary for my dressmaker to pad out my dress.

"The muscle loss also resulted in nerve damage which has affected my central nervous system, my balance and my co-ordination.

"I have since undergone extensive physiotherapy and this is ongoing today. I have been unable to return to my favourite sports. Being unable to exercise due to my injuries and not being able to continue working contributed to me becoming depressed.

"As a direct result of my injuries and the way in which they occurred I was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder."

She added: "Tony made me feel to blame, helpless, isolated, threatened and ashamed. I felt at the time my life was at risk.

"I have not slept adequately since January 29, 2006, and I become exhausted easily. This exhaustion affects me deeply.

"The ongoing impact of my injuries and the stress of the last nine months has delayed the ability of my husband and I to start our own family.

"The injuries and stress have aged me prematurely and affected, it seems, every part of me and my life."