During the second week of the trial against Lauren Dickason, who stands accused of killing her three daughters, evidence presented in court suggests that the prosecution is aiming to establish premeditated murder to some extent.
The prosecution is asserting that Dickason was fully aware of her actions at the time of the murders, while the defense argues that she experienced a depressive episode and believed she had to harm the children.
Copies of the court proceedings posted online by Stuff.NZ provide details of the case. On Monday, Joshua Locke, a digital forensic analyst for the police, testified about certain messages and search history discovered on Lauren's mobile phone.
During the trial, Lauren's lawyer, Abbie Hollingworth, cross-examined the forensic analyst, Joshua Locke, who had examined Dickason's phone on the day and night of the murder, including tracking her movements and GPS location.
Locke informed the court that between 6 pm and 10 pm on the night of the murders, Lauren received several messages from friends in South Africa. Notably, at 10:47 am on the morning of the murders, the twins' preschool manager, Bronwyn Davies, sent Lauren a photograph of the girls sitting at their desks, captioned "Karla and Maya are having a great time" while eating snacks.
Messages like "How did school go today and how are you doing?" at 7:47 pm and "Hey. How are you doing?" at 9:29 pm were also sent by other friends but remained unread.
The court heard that searches were conducted on Lauren's phone in July and August 2021, but they were later deleted. These searches included queries such as "Lethal dosage alprazolam in children" on July 31, "Ambien lethal dose" on August 14, "Most effective overdose in children" on August 20, and "Drugs to overdose kids" in late August.
In July, Lauren received a video link from a friend titled "Mom needs a minute," depicting a woman expressing difficulties with motherhood and her need for a break. Lauren replied, stating that she felt the same way.
During cross-examination, Lauren's lawyer, Hollingworth, questioned the validity of some evidence related to the search history. She inquired if the phone indicated who conducted the online searches and if it could show what Lauren was thinking at the time. The forensic analyst, Locke, confirmed that this information was not accessible.
Hollingworth also asked if Safari on an iPhone automatically deleted its search history after 30 days, which Locke confirmed. She further questioned whether certain search results were omitted from Locke's final report, specifically regarding the use of liquorice as poison. Locke confirmed that this search was excluded from the report based on instructions from the officer in charge of the case, who deemed it irrelevant.
Forensic pathologist Martin Sage also provided evidence, but due to the graphic nature of his findings, it was not published. His testimony will continue on Tuesday morning.