Murdered Liam had been due to have fortnight in custody

Liam Ashley

Slain teenager Liam Ashley would have spent another two weeks in prison until his next appearance on 10 criminal charges.

The 17-year-old who had attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and reading and writing difficulties, had admitted seven of the charges but denied three when he appeared in North Shore District Court last week.

>> Read the transcript of Liam's last court hearing

He was remanded in custody after his parents wanted to send him a "tough love" message and "let him experience first-hand the serious affects of breaking the law as an adult".

By the time the prison van taking him from North Shore District Court had reached the Auckland Central Remand prison in Mt Eden, Ashley was unconscious.

He died the next day in hospital when his parents, Ian and Lorraine Ashley, allowed doctors to turn off his life support system.

His funeral is due to be held tomorrow as the man charged with his murder makes his second appearance in court.

The 25-year-old was granted name suppression today when he briefly appeared in Auckland District Court as Ashley's parents sat in the public gallery.

Court documents revealed the 17-year-old faced 10 charges when he appeared last Thursday and was remanded in custody until September 8 to appear again for a probation officer's report and sentence.

The charges included burglary, trespassing, possessing a knife, being unlawfully in a yard, being an unlicensed driver, failing to answer police bail, possession of a cannabis pipe, and unlawfully taking a motor vehicle.

Some of the charges related to events which occurred at his North Shore home.

He had admitted seven of the charges but had pleaded not guilty to one of the burglaries at his own home, the charge possessing a knife and the charge of possessing a pipe.

He was on a final court warning for breaching bail several times.

He had been in custody for several days before his appearance last Thursday after he failed to appear and an arrest warrant was issued.

During his time in custody he complained he was being "picked on" but those close to him also believed he was safe.

A number of inquiries began when he died but questions have been raised about a justice system which allowed him to be put in a police van with older inmates.

Two other prisoners were in the same cage as Ashley for the trip to Mt Eden.

Yesterday Corrections Minister Damien O'Connor ordered that youth offenders and adults be kept separately.

The Corrections Association also said today the only way to guarantee prisoner safety during transport was to have them in separate cages in the back of prison vans.

Association president Beven Hanlon, said dangerous prisoners could also be shackled to the floor but that was likely to create "all sorts of complaints".

He said prison vans were not allowed to stop for any reason if there was trouble in the rear of the van and were under strict instructions to head for the nearest prison or police station.

Security officers would lose their jobs if they stopped the van, he said.

"The only real solution to this is single cages for everyone."

He said it was a practical solution but would require an initial outlay to pay for the modifications.

It was a "horrible feeling" for security officers who knew something was happening in the back of the van yet they could not stop.

"It is an absolute horrible feeling because there is nothing to be done."

He said it was not known if the Chubb guards who were transporting the prisoners knew Ashley was being assaulted in the back of the van.

- NZPA