Editorial: Dickason jurors had to think the unthinkable

Family and friends paid tribute to slain sisters Liané, Maya and Karla Dickason in their hometown of Pretoria.

EDITORIAL

A succinct letter to the NZ Herald summed up how many of us would have felt: “Who would kill their three young daughters and be in their right mind?”

The sub-text to that letter is that South African doctor Lauren Dickason could not possibly have been capable of rational thought when she murdered her daughters Liané, 6, and twins Maya and Karla, 2.

For most of us, such a crime is unfathomable. Ergo, the Christchurch High Court jury’s decision of finding her guilty of three counts of murder must be wrong.

However, it must be borne in mind that the jury sat through four gruelling weeks of testimony from witnesses and considered opinions from experts. While many of us would have been assiduously following media coverage of the trial, none of us outside the courtroom would have gained the picture the jury did.

The harrowing evidence explored complex legal arguments and Dickason’s long history of mental health and fertility struggles. It analysed in great detail her statements to police after the horrific events of September 16, 2021, in Timaru.

This is a highly charged and emotional case, cutting to the very heart of what we consider natural maternal instincts to preserve and nurture. It is also, in view of all jurors but one, murder.

Our Crimes Act defines murder as a culpable homicide where the offender means to cause death. Lauren Dickason did this. Three times.

It is unthinkable. But it is what Dickason has been convicted of, by a jury of her peers who considered all of the evidence submitted.