“I loved Liané, Maya and Karla with all my heart. I failed them, I failed Graham, and I failed our families. I take responsibility for taking our three beautiful girls from this world.”

These are the words of Dr Lauren Dickason who released a statement after she was sentenced for the brutal murders of her three daughters: Liané (6) and twins Karla and Maya (2). Judge Cameron Mander from the High Court in Christchurch this morning sentenced her to 18 years’ imprisonment.

According to Otago Daily Times, she will begin the first part of her sentence at a mental health hospital in the custody of the state. Newshub reported that she will stay in hospital until ‘relevant medical authorities’ deem her fit for prison.

“No apology will ever be enough, and words will seem hollow to many. I want people to know our girls brought me so much joy and were the centre of my world. I am horrified by my actions and the pain, distress and trauma I have caused everyone who loved them. Like many others, I miss them every single day,” reads Dickason’s statement.

Tragedy in New Zealand

Pretoria Rekord reported that Dickason’s husband Graham, an orthopaedic surgeon, and Lauren, a doctor in the same field, previously worked at Netcare Pretoria East Hospital.

The tragedy unfolded in 2021, shortly after the couple moved into their new home in New Zealand. They started working at a hospital near their home in Timaru.

The Citizen reported that Dickason confessed that she strangled her daughters with interconnected cable ties on September 16 that year. She then smothered them, one by one, and tucked them into bed with their soft toys. Dickason then took a cocktail of pills and used a knife in an attempt to take her life.

Graham found the children’s bodies when he came home from work after a function.

Sentencing and parole

Dickason escaped life imprisonment for the murders. According to Otago Daily Times, the judge imposed no minimum non-parole period. This means Dickason can apply for parole after serving a third of her sentence.

The publication states that Mander said Dickason’s severe mental illness ‘was not only a contributing factor to her actions, but the cause’.

Dickason’s statement adds: “I continue to undergo treatment for severe mental illness, and I owe it to everyone and myself to get mentally healthier. I will do whatever it takes, although I know that will never change the past.”

Otago Daily Times states that Graham said he forgives his wife, but that ‘her actions had robbed of him of the life he knew and the joy his future held’.