SA mother's sentencing postponed again in NZ

The sentencing of SA doctor and convicted triple-murderer Lauren Dickason was again postponed last week. Dickason was found guilty of murdering her three children in their New Zealand home by the High Court in Christchurch in August 2023. Dickason's sentencing date was initially set down for 19 December, before a nominal sentencing date of 20 March was set down, a News24 report says. However, the High Court said yesterday that sentencing would not take place next week and a new date will be determined ‘as soon as possible’. Dickason was found guilty of murder after strangling and smothering Liané (six) and two-year-old twins Maya and Karla on 16 September 2021. She pleaded not guilty to the charges, but a jury of eight women and four men returned a majority guilty verdict. Judge Cameron Mander is expected to sentence Dickason to life imprisonment, the minimum term of imprisonment for murder under New Zealand law. He will also determine if there is a minimum non-parole period, as well as if Dickason will serve her sentence in prison or at a forensic psychiatric facility. Dickason has been in custody in a secure psychiatric unit at Hillmorton Hospital, where she is under 24/7 supervision, heavily medicated and receiving ongoing intensive treatment for her mental health.