Warning: The following article discusses an incident involving harm to children.
During court proceedings held at the High Court in Christchurch, New Zealand, on Monday, the prosecution team claimed that Lauren Dickason, a woman accused of killing her three daughters, was not delusional or psychotic at the time of the murders, contrary to previous statements made by expert witness Dr Susan Hatters-Friedman.
Also read: Lauren Dickason killed her children out of love, court hears
According to IOL, prosecutor Andrew McRae referred to Dr Hatters-Friedman’s report on Dickason, compiled 18 months after the incident, and questioned whether the passage of time could have influenced her findings. Dr Hatters-Friedman responded that she would have preferred to interview Dickason earlier but still believed her diagnosis to be comprehensive.
Hatters-Friedman is a clinical psychologist who has focused on the issue of infanticide, on which the defence has built its case. McRae acknowledged that Dickason had undergone two psychiatric assessments soon after the murder, but neither assessment identified signs of psychosis or delusions. However, Dr Hatters-Friedman asserted that psychosis could not be ruled out and suggested further evaluations.
During cross-examination, McRae queried Dr Hatters-Friedman about the presence of psychotic features from November to January, approximately three to four months after the tragic deaths. Dr Hatters-Friedman contested the semantics, pointing out that the report referred to ‘no clear’ presence rather than categorically ‘no’ psychosis.
In the defence’s evidence, Dr Hatters-Friedman had previously stated that she believed Dickason was delusional and psychotic at the time of the murders. McRae raised questions about how Dickason could perform daily activities, such as taking the children to school and doing their hair if she was delusional. He mentioned that on the day of the murder, Dickason had also managed various tasks, including responding to immigration-related emails, taking the children to the park, cooking dinner and washing the dishes.
The paramedic who responded to the incident on the night of the murders had described Dickason as catatonic. However, Dr Hatters-Friedman clarified that she did not recall anyone suggesting that Dickason was catatonic. She affirmed that Dickason could carry out minimal activities during that time.
‘She was actually not catatonic. Wasn’t she able to do activities purposefully during the day?’ McRae asked Hatters-Friedman.
Hatters-Friedman responded: ‘I don’t remember anyone suggesting she was catatonic. Yes, she was able to do the minimum activities.’
Regarding Dickason’s state of mind during the murder of her six-year-old daughter, Liané, and two-year-old twins, Maya and Karla, Dr Hatters-Friedman expressed her belief that Dickason was out of touch with reality. Dickason apparently held the false impression that she needed to protect her beloved children from the perceived unsafe environment in New Zealand.
‘That she was out of touch with reality… that she (thought she) was taking her children, whom she cared for and loved so much, out of this unsafe New Zealand… That is obviously out of touch with reality,’ Hatters-Friedman said.
The court also heard that Dickason’s husband, Graham, had found their daughters dead in their beds after returning from a work function on the night of the murders. The evidence suggested that Dickason had used cable ties to strangle the children before resorting to smothering.
Further details revealed that a urinary test conducted on Dickason a day after the murders showed the presence of antidepressants, anti-anxiety medication, anti-nausea medication and tramadol in her system. Testimony from Dickason’s mother, Wendy Fawkes, portrayed her as a caring mother who displayed occasional neurotic behaviour in her caregiving.
The court also learned of incidents in which Dickason had expressed a desire to harm the children, dating back to their time in Pretoria, South Africa, while speaking to her husband, Graham.
Also read:
Unsettling details reveal how Lauren Dickason killed her children
Picture: Kelly Sikkema / Unsplash