Mother of killer says system failed him

By PATRICK GOWER

The family of a schizophrenic man who admitted slitting a stranger's throat have criticised the justice and mental health systems after he was last night convicted of murder.

A jury in the High Court at Hamilton found Dion Mark McQueen guilty of murdering Paropkari Lal in September last year.

McQueen had admitted cutting Mr Lal's throat from ear to ear and afterwards castrating him.

He had pleaded not guilty on the grounds of insanity.

Justice Mark O'Regan sentenced the 32-year-old to life imprisonment.

Outside the court, a large group of supporters were tearful as they told of their fears for McQueen's safety and mental health now he will be transferred to prison from the psychiatric ward where he has mainly been since the murder.

His mother, Sissy McQueen, expressed the family's sympathy for the Lal family and told the Herald: "What happened on that night was not my Dion.

"Justice has not been done because my son clearly has a mental illness that we now do not know will get the proper care and attention."

Mrs McQueen said she was angry at the justice system's inflexibility when dealing with the mentally ill. The family believed the legal definition of insane was too strict.

They also wanted answers from staff at the Henry Bennett Centre, who had turned McQueen away when he tried to commit himself in the days before the killing, saying "it was not a hostel".

"Dion knew something was wrong and went looking for help," Mrs McQueen said. "He didn't get it in time."

The centre's clinical director, Dr David Simpson, gave evidence for the defence at the trial. He said he believed McQueen was a schizophrenic and was insane at the time of the killing, 17 days after his rejection.

McQueen has been suicidal for the past three years. He committed several assaults while he was in custody awaiting trial.

They included assaults on an inmate and a prison officer at Waikeria prison and on a police officer who put him in a cell during a court appearance.

Justice O'Regan had directed the jury to discard any sympathy for McQueen's "predicament" when making its decision.

Mr Lal's son-in-law Vijay Sharma said the verdict was a relief for the victim's family.

"I have been hiding the papers from my wife for the last two days because it just sends her into shock," he said.

"Murders always seem to happen to other people's families but last year it happened to mine. If he is found guilty then he should be put in prison."

McQueen had, in his own words, "gone on the rampage" on the night of the killing by the Grantham St band rotunda.

He accosted four other strangers in the central city before and after murdering Mr Lal because, he said, "voices commanded him to".

His family said McQueen was a semi-professional rugby league player in the early 1990s with the Gold Coast Seagulls, playing stand-off in a grade lower than the legendary Wally Lewis.

His behaviour had deteriorated rapidly since then, especially following the death of his father in March last year, when "he never got the chance to say goodbye".

The Crown argued that McQueen was sane when he chose his moment to kill Mr Lal and did not show symptoms of schizophrenia at the time, but was instead depressed, marginalised and influenced by cannabis.

Senior Sergeant John Kelly said the team policing unit had been sent to the court in case any members of the large family group supporting McQueen became upset with the verdict.

The only small disturbance came as McQueen was led away, and his brother Albert addressed the court in Maori.

His speech, directed at the crown prosecutors, was later translated as "anger with both the criminal justice and mental health services".

Inquiry head Detective Senior Sergeant Glenn Dunbier said police were pleased with the verdict after hard work by a large team of investigators.