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Name suppression has been lifted for the 51-year-old sickness beneficiary arrested for the murder and rape of Auckland hairdresser Marie Jamieson, but an appeal by the man's lawyer will keep his name secret for at least two more days.
The accused stood in the dock and at one stage took deep breaths as his lawyer Barry Hart put forward arguments to continue name suppression.
Ms Jamieson, 23, was last seen at a service station in Kingsland on February 10, 2001. Her naked body was found nine days later behind factory buildings in Ranui.
Mr Hart asked for interim name suppression to be continued in the Waitakere District Court today.
He said his client had an elderly mother currently in Auckland Hospital suffering from lung cancer and pneumonia.
Mr Hart said she has also been suffering anxiety attacks.
"She is aware my client is facing charges but not aware of the nature of those charges," he said.
Mr Hart said there were also "fair trial issues" given the amount of media coverage the case has already attracted, and while open justice was important, media coverage could compromise the his client's right to a fair trial.
"Once it's out, it is very difficult to tell jury to just disregard that. There have been studies and so on but people remember the parts the press focus on," Mr Hart said.
He said there was also one of the accused's daughters to be considered. Mr Hart said she had recently had a family tragedy which resulted in the death of her mother.
Crown prosecutor Aaron Perkins said police were taking a neutral stance but that their attitude could change on Friday.
Judge Tremewan rejected the application for name suppression, saying there was sufficient public interest in the case to warrant publication of the accused's name.
She added that the matter has been before the court for five days so there was enough time for family to tell the accused's mother about the charges he was facing.
However once name suppression was lifted, Mr Hart indicated he would be appealing the decision to the High Court.
This means, for legal reasons, nzherald.co.nz cannot name the accused.
He is due to reappear in the Waitakere District Court on Friday when an application for bail will be made.
