Death in the street: The murder of Connor Morris

In August 2014 Connor Morris was fatally injured during a street fight in West Auckland. He was struck in the head with a sickle-like tool and died instantly.

Morris, 27, was a patched gang member, the son of a senior leader and was in a relationship with the daughter of one of New Zealand's most prominent broadcasters. 

His murder and the trial for the man responsible, was high profile. A Moment In Crime writer and host Anna Leask covered the trial and sentencing for the Herald and looks back a the case 10 years on, as the killer becomes eligible for parole. 

Michael Thrift Murry admitted he killed Connor. But, he claimed there was no murderous intent, that he was trying to defend his younger brother from being attacked.

After a two-week trial a jury of eight men and four women found him guilty. He was jailed for life with a minimum non-parole period of 10 years.

The Morris family were contacted before the podcast aired. They did not want to comment publicly but wanted to ensure people knew how much their son, brother and partner was loved by them.

For more on this case, visit nzherald.co.nz or click in the links above.

If you have a case you'd like us to consider covering - email [e-mail]

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
This month marks my nineteenth year in journalism, with all
but the first three months of that time covering crime
and justice and significant disasters in New Zealand. Over that time,
I've written about almost eighty homicides, hundreds of victims and
their families, and spent countless hours in court at trials
and sentencing, appeal and parole hearings. Recently, a number of

(00:21):
cases I covered earlier in my career are coming back
into the spotlight as offenders reached their parole eligibility date.
People jailed for murder in ordered to serve a minimum
of seven, ten and even seventeen years are coming back
on my radar as they enter the next phase of
the justice process. These offenders coming back into the spotlight
reminds me that there's no end point for the victims

(00:42):
of crime. Grief and hurt does not relinquish its grip
on them when a killer or abuser is sent to prism.
They live with their heartbreak forever, and it's always exacerbated
when it comes time to start the parole process or
when the offender is released back into the community. One
of these offenders is a man named Michael Thrift Murray

(01:03):
in twenty fifteen, he was convicted of murdering Connor Morris
in a West Auckland street during a random street brawl
between groups from separate parties. Connor's death was extremely high profile.
He was a patched gang member, the son of a
feared senior gang member, and his partner and her family were,
for lack of a better word, celebrities in New Zealand.

(01:24):
I covered the trial of Connor's killer. I was there
when a jury found him guilty of murder and when
a judge sentenced him to life in prison. This case
is one I've never forgotten. Connor was no angel, and
his family were not perfect, but he and they were victims.
On the night he died, Connor was an innocent and

(01:44):
unsuspecting victim, and every day after that his family had
suffered a pain no sibling or parent deserves. Regardless of
your lifestyle or life choices, you have the right to live.
As I'm recording this episode of a Moment in Crime,
Connor's family are going through their first encounter with the
parole board, which has undoubtedly had a massive impact on them.

(02:08):
Michael Thrift Murray was ordered to serve a minimum of
ten years behind bars, taking into account the time he
spent on remand before his trial and sentencing. He became
eligible for parole on October thirteenth, twenty twenty four. This
episode of A Moment in Crime was published around the
same time as the Parole Board hearing. To find out

(02:28):
what happened at that hearing and whether Michael Murray was released,
go to ends at Herald dot co dot enzed. But
for now I'll take you back to the night Connor
was killed, who was there, what happened, and why Michael
Murray did what he did. I'll then tell you about
the trial, the Crown case in Murray's defense, what happened
when the jury returned their verdict, and what happened at sentencing.

(02:51):
As always, I'll include links to the previous stories I've
published in the show notes for those who want to
read more about this case. From the whodunnits in cold
cases to the strange and quirky, crime is one of
the most fascinating corners of society and the news. From
the New Zealand Herald newsroom comes A Moment in Crime,

(03:13):
a podcast delving into some of New Zealand's most high
profile cases, offenses, and Offenders. Each month, I'll take you
inside some of our most infamous incidents, notorious offenders, and
behind the scenes of high profile trials and events to
show you what's really happening in your backyard. In July

(03:40):
twenty fourteen, Simeon Morris and her partner moved into a
new house with their kids on don Buck Road in
West Auckland. They spent a couple of weeks getting settled
and then embarted family and friends over for a housewarming
party on the second of August, a Saturday. Most people
came for a drink, stayed for the barbecue, and then
headed off. By late evening, just ten guests left, among

(04:02):
them Simeon's brother Connor and his partner Milly, and three
of their friends, Obi, John and Josh. Just before midnight,
they ran out of mixes for their drinks, and Obi,
John and Josh volunteered to walk to a nearby service
station and buy some more. Connor asked them to grab
him a packet of cigarettes. Absolutely nothing was amiss. Five

(04:23):
houses along the street, another party was under way. Ayosha
Tahoe was living at number four hundred and three C
with a young child and seventeen year old brother, Trevor Moranger.
Her place was the fourth down a long driveway. She
had organized a twenty first birthday party for another brother, Karl,
and his girlfriend, who share a birthday. People started showing

(04:45):
up to her place from seven pm. Like the housewarming
at Simeon's, there was drinking and music. Unlike the housewarming,
the twenty first became violent. Trevor was drunk and started
to play up wrestling with his older brother. Soon after,
he got a punch in the face from his older cousin,
Seamous Wedder, who felt the teen needed pulling into line.

(05:06):
At that point, Asha decided she'd had enough and shut
the party down. She kicked her brothers and cousin out
and went inside. The party was over as far as
she was concerned. The men didn't want to end their
nights early, so they walked up the driveway, stopping at
the house at the top. Michael Murray and his younger
brother Stanley, more cousins of Seamus, lived in a sleep

(05:28):
out at the back of the house. They joined the
group for a few drinks on the deck. They chatted,
some got more intoxicated, and eventually they became too noisy
and the people in the main house told them to
move along. They walked to the street and seconds later
saw three men walking towards them. Obie, John and Josh

(05:48):
Karl said to Trevor, look watch this. I'll kick them,
but Trevor's brother got in first. He shouted out to
the men something like what's up, before walking towards them,
saying he wanted to share hands. Trevor then approached Obi
and kicked him in the face, causing him to stumble backwards.
Obi was bleeding and as John went to him, Josh

(06:09):
ran back to Simeon's place, shouting that he was going
to get help. He sprinted down the driveway and said
the group had been jumped. Connor was the first to
run towards the road. Millie followed him and was fifteen
meters behind him when they reached the group. Within seconds,
the men were brawling. Millie tried to stop Connor, Obi
dragged her away to the footpath. He then ran back

(06:31):
in to help John, who was fighting two men. What
happened next happened fast. Michael Murray had decided he needed
a weapon. He'd heard someone mention the eighty eighths, another
name for the notorious Headhunter's gang. He felt his group
were outnumbered and overpowered by the men from up the road,
so he ran back to his place and grabbed a

(06:52):
long handled cutting tool he'd been using earlier to slash
grass around the side of the sleepout.

Speaker 2 (06:57):
It would later be described as a sickle.

Speaker 1 (07:01):
When he got back to the road, he saw his
younger brother Stanley under attack, being thrown around and punched.
He worried that Stanley was going to be seriously hurt,
and he raised the garden tool. He shouted, leave my
brother alone, and when the attacker ignored his plea, he
closed his eyes and swung the sickle. The point and

(07:21):
the blade of the sickle entered the side of Connor
Morris's head just behind the ear. The point broke through
his skull. Connor collapsed immediately. Milly saw him drop and
ran to him. Obie had turned in that direction seconds
before and also saw Connor go down. Murray helped Stanley up,
and they ran back to the sleeper, throwing the sickle

(07:43):
back into the garden on their way. I think I've
just killed someone, Murray said. Then they heard a woman's scream.
When Milly got to Connor, she could tell he was
in a bad way. She sat and cradled his head,
trying to stem the blood gushing from his wound. Someone
called emergency services, and the first police to arrive at

(08:05):
the scene said it was like a war zone.

Speaker 2 (08:08):
It was chaos.

Speaker 1 (08:09):
People were running around, yelling, screaming. Milly was bereft. An
ambulance arrived and a paramedic went to assess Connor. His
heart had stopped, and the paramedic knew there was a
little chance he would survive. It was dark in the
street and little could be done for Connor there, so
they loaded him into an ambulance and rushed him to
Auckland City Hospital. By then, Connor's dad.

Speaker 2 (08:32):
Chris, was at the scene.

Speaker 1 (08:34):
He had been at Simeon's early but had gone home.
He raced back to Donbuck Road when he heard what
had happened. Chris jumped in the ambulance with his boy
and Millie climbed into the front seat. The paramedic would
later say, we put monitoring leads on the patient. His
heart wasn't beating. We were then in a cardiac arrest situation. Generally,

(08:55):
the outcome in that situation is not very good, the
paramedics said, Chris focused on talking to his son the
whole way to the hospital. He also tried to calm
a very distressed Milly, at one time, telling her to
sit down and keep quiet in her seat. They arrived
at the hospital, but there was nothing anyone could do
to help Connor. He was pronounced dead about ten minutes later.

(09:19):
Within hours, news of Connor's death was being reported by
the media. Any murder, particularly one resulting from a violent
public brawl, as a significant news event, but given the
victim was Connor Morris, this was a massive story. Connor
Morris was a patched member of the Headhunter's Motorcycle Club,
one of the main gangs in Auckland. His father, Chris Morris,

(09:43):
was a senior member of the same gang, and of course, Milly,
his partner of six years, was the daughter of prominent
and brilliant broadcaster Sir Paul Holmes and children's television presenter
turned youth forensic psychiatrist Henemoa Alder. Her parents' fame resulted
in Millie being on the spotlight for much of her life.
Milly and Connor's relationship also made the news, as did

(10:06):
their relationship with the drug p pure meth emphetamine. Both
struggled with addiction, and I actually began reporting on the
couple in twenty ten when they were facing various criminal charges.
Milly later admitted that she smoked meth for the first
time around her eighteenth birthday, and she had been using
for about five years. At one point she had one

(10:26):
thousand dollars a day drug habit. Connor was also hooked
on meth. They eventually dealt with all of their charges,
Millie narrowly avoiding prison at one stage, and they got clean.
The couple gave up meth together and without professional help,
by living a hermit like existence, eating, sleeping, and watching
TV in their west Auckland flat. By twenty fourteen, they

(10:49):
had turned their lives around. Connor was working as a
site manager for a concrete construction company. Millie had launched
herself as a health and lifestyle influencer, setting up a
Facebook page where she promoted recipes and workout ideas.

Speaker 2 (11:02):
In line with her outlook unhealthy living.

Speaker 1 (11:05):
The couple had even traveled to Asia, Dubai, Italy, Paris, Amsterdam,
and Greece, where Milly's biological father lives on an oe.
In February twenty thirteen, Sir Paul Holmes passed away aged
just sixty two. He had been in poor health since
having heart surgery earlier in the year. In the months
before his death, he had also been suffering from a

(11:26):
resurgence of prostate cancer. His death came just two weeks
after he was knighted. Photos of Milli and Connor at
his investiture showed a happy, healthy and relaxed looking young couple,
a far cry from photos captured of them outside Auckland
court houses years earlier. In June twenty fourteen, they celebrated
their sixth anniversary, and it was reported around that time

(11:49):
that they were looking forward to a future filled with
new opportunities, with talk of children on the cards. But
early on that cold Sunday morning in August, their love
story came to a crushing end. Hours after Connor died,
police issued a statement they acknowledged the link to the
Headhunter's gang, but were very clear that what had happened
to Connor had nothing to do with that. Detective Inspector

(12:13):
Greg Kramer said Connor was the victim of a random attack.
He said a post mortem confirmed Connor had sustained a
fatal head injury. He said a weapon is believed to
be involved, but exactly what type of weapon is yet
to be determined. When police arrived at last night's scene,
there were around fifteen people on the road, and it's
believed that up to another fifteen were at a nearby address.

(12:35):
One of the key elements of the investigation is to
determine exactly who and how many people were involved. Police
are speaking to a number of people in order to
build a full picture of last night's events and will
not be drawn on any interactions with individuals at this
stage of the investigation. Police believed this was a random
attack and the victim was not specifically targeted. There is

(12:58):
currently nothing to suggest the fight was the result of
any gang tensions, and police can confirm it did not
occur at a gang address. Mister Morris's family are understandably traumatized.
After the post mortem, Connor's body was released to his family.
He was taken to Lyon's state at the headquarters of
the East chapter of the Headhunters in Allesley, a site

(13:21):
which doubled as a community boxing gym. His funeral was
held there four days after he died. Hundreds of gang
members of different patches and their associates mingled with high society.
Millie's stepmother, Lady Deborah Holmes, and friends of her father,
including a former deputy Prime minister, attended. A powerful hucker

(13:42):
was performed before a roaring motorcade escorted the hearse carrying
Connor's body to a west Auckland crematorium.

Speaker 2 (13:49):
After the wake, Millie.

Speaker 1 (13:50):
Spoke for the first time about Connor's death, posting a
tribute on social media.

Speaker 2 (13:55):
This is what she wrote.

Speaker 1 (13:58):
When you meet that person you're meant to be with
for the rest of your life, you just know you
get drawn towards someone, so it's hard not to notice.

Speaker 2 (14:06):
I felt this happened when I first met Connor.

Speaker 1 (14:09):
He came into my life at a time when no
one mattered to me, not even myself, and changed everything.
He was not only my strength, but my weakness. I
could never say no to him. He was my best friend,
my protector, and for a while there, my Clyde. He
taught me so much about life. He always encouraged and
pushed me to reach my goals and aspirations and gave

(14:31):
me the best advice. We went through so much together,
grew so much together during the years we shared, and
now he's gone. I feel like I have lost a
part of me. I will miss every little thing about him,
especially his laugh. He made me feel so safe and loved.
Every memory I have worth having is with him, and

(14:52):
I still can't believe he's been taken from me like this.
He was everything to me. Rest easy, baby. I love
you more than I can say. You took my heart
with you when you were taken from us, but there's
no one else I'd rather have it. Connor's dad, Cress,

(15:12):
also posted a public message to his boy. He wrote, Connor,
you made me proud. You were the perfect son, my
best friend. You grew into a man of honor with
high morals, a man who will always be love and missed.
So go on your journey until we meet again. Love
from Mum and Dad and his sister Simeon. I never

(15:33):
thought i'd lose you. We were meant to grow old together,
enjoy life together, and eventually you were meant to give
my daughters some cousins to play with. The Police investigation
into Connor's death, dubbed Operation Venice, continued and on August eighteen,
police announced an arrest had been made. A thirty three
year old man had appeared in the Kakaya District Court

(15:55):
charged with murder. He'd been arrested in the Far North
town earlier that day. He was granted interim name suppression
and remanded in custody until his next appearance in the
High Court at Auckland the next month. Anyone charge with
criminal offending in New Zealand makes their first appearance in
the district court closest to where they have been arrested.
For the most serious charges, including murder and manslaughter, the

(16:17):
case is transferred to the High Court. On September three,
the accused killer was led into the dock again as
Connor's parents, Milly, and other family and friends watched on
from the public gallery. He was represented by Marie Dieberg,
one of the most experienced defense lawyers in the country.
She told the court that the man would be defending
the charge, and his plea of not guilty was formally entered.

(16:40):
A four week trial was scheduled for August the next year.
Dieberg asked for a continuation of her client's name suppression
on the basis of significant danger to him and his family.
The judge refused the application, but the lawyer indicated she
would appeal against that decision extending suppression. On September twenty,
the Court of Appeal firmed to hearing would be held

(17:01):
to decide the suppression issue. Three days later, though the
appeal was abandoned and the order lapsed. We could now
name the man charged with murdering Connor Morris Michael Thrift Murray.
There was little else we could publish about him, though,
until his trial, so headlines about Connor's death in the
aftermath slowly faded. In July twenty fifteen, the trial date

(17:24):
was confirmed. It would begin on August three, the first
anniversary of Conner's death. His family were devastated, but little
could be done about the date. Days before, they planned
a memorial ride for Connor, where they would travel in
convoy with friends and associates from Swanson and West Auckland
to the Fight Club eighty eight building where his funeral

(17:44):
was held, stopping on don Buck Road near where he
died to pay their respects. A memorial garden had been
erected on the road side where Connor took his last breath,
with a plaque bearing his name and dates of birth
and death. Family and friends regularly visited the site, which
became known as Connor's Corner to remember him. Chris Morris

(18:05):
led the ride atop Connor's bike, which had been freshly
painted with his name and portrait. Chris told The Herald
that he didn't want the occasion to be a sad day,
but instead a celebration of his son's life. He said afterwards,
the day went well. It was a good turnout and
that's pretty much it really. It was a good day,
not a sad day. It's a celebration. The New Zealand

(18:27):
public has been awesome. There's a lot of nice people
in this country without prejudice. Hundreds of people turned out
for the event, either as part of the convoy all
meeting at the club or Connor's Corner. Milly was there
but didn't speak to media, understandably, but she later posted
on Facebook and losing him I also discovered how strong

(18:49):
I really am. I'm not saying it's been easy finding
out how to just be me and be alone. It's
been hard, and I'm not perfect, but I think I'm
doing pretty damn good. I hope that I can inspires
to do the same. I wasn't going to lose myself
as well as him. I'll mention here that before producing
this podcast episode, I reached out to Connor's family and

(19:10):
let them know i'd be retelling his story as I
always have. I offered them an opportunity to speak about Connor.
His mum appreciated being told about the podcast, but no
one in the family wanted to speak publicly. Murder trials

(19:49):
are almost nothing like you see on television. They progress
at a much slower pace and they're much less dramatic.
The trial begins with jury selection. Names of summons men
and women pulled at random until twelve people are impaneled.
Once they selected, they retire to a special room and
they have the final chance to advise the court if
there are any issues that will prevent them from carrying

(20:10):
out their duty. Only when the jury is finalized does
the trial proper begin. The presiding judge addresses the jury
briefly explaining his or her role, the role of jurors,
and what they can expect from the crown and defense.
The crown then opens its case, usually with their narrative
of the alleged crime and an outline of witnesses they'll

(20:30):
call and evidence they'll present. They will also tell the
jury why they are sure the person on trial is guilty.
The defense then have an opportunity to make an opening statement,
which is usually along the lines of reminding jurors there
are two sides to a story, that they accused is
innocent until proven guilty, and that they must keep an
open mind. Then the Crown begin to call witnesses. On

(20:55):
day one of Michael Thrift Murray's trial, the mood in
the courtroom was tense. The public gallery was packed Connor's
parents and sister, other family and friends, and members of
the public. Anyone can go and sit in a trial,
and often random people do show up for high profile cases.
Security at the High Court was beefed up given Connor's

(21:15):
gang connections, and entry screening was mandatory at the time.
Outside this trial that really took place, a jury of
eight men and four women were selected. When everyone was ready,
Justice Edwin Wiley began proceedings. He urged the jurors to
put aside any sympathy or prejudice they may have, including

(21:35):
any feelings they had about gangs. He noted there have
been extensive media coverage of Connor's death, but directed the
jury to put that entirely out of their minds. He said,
avoid watching, listening, and reading any media coverage. Any such
coverage will be selective and not cover everything. Mister Murray
is entitled to a fair trial based solely on what

(21:58):
you hear in this courtroom. Crown Prosecutor David Johnston stood
to open the case against Murray. The courtroom was silent
as he began to speak about Connor's last moments. He said,
on this day, one year ago, in a situation where
there was a street fight about to start, or perhaps
just starting, that man in the dock went and got

(22:21):
from his property a weapon. He then, quite unexpectedly produced
the weapon. Murray allegedly used a large sickle with a
wooden handle. Connor's family gasped loudly, and his mother buried
her face in her hands, sobbing. His father looked stunned.
Johnston carried on. Mister Murray swung the weapon with some

(22:42):
force at the head of another man, Connor Morris, point first.
The point and blade of the sickle entered the side
of mister Morris's head, just behind his left ear. The
damage was so severe and immediate that mister Morris seems
to have died almost instantly, perhaps before he hit the ground.

Speaker 2 (23:01):
The Crown this was murder. Johnston explained to.

Speaker 1 (23:04):
The jury that the force applied to the weapon was
such that it fractured Connor's skull and pushed his brainstep
to the right side of his head. The sickle went
five centimeters into his skull. Johnston said forensic evidence proved
that Murray was the one to swing the sickle at Connor.
That DNA found on the handle was five million times

(23:24):
more likely to be his than another person's. Johnston ran
through the timeline of the night the two parties and
how the groups of men chanced upon each other on
Donbuck Road. He assured the jury that the Crown would
prove that Murray had murderous intent. He said, it's quite
clear he felt the need to bash someone. Whatever degree

(23:45):
of threat that Michael Murray thought he and his friends
were facing, he was not acting to defend himself or
any of his friends when he came straight in with
a sickle and fell the man who was involved.

Speaker 2 (23:57):
At best in a fist fight.

Speaker 1 (24:00):
Johnston said, for Murray to go in with such a
weapon and use the force he did against a man
who was not armed was not reasonable and he could
not claim self defense. The Crown case put simply as
Michael Murray was just not defending himself or anyone else.
The prosecutor also acknowledged the gang connection to the trial

(24:21):
and that there were members of the Headhunters on the
scene that night. He said, the Headhunters that were there
were real people with human frailties alongside human qualities, just
like us. Echoing Justice Wiley, Johnston urged jurors to put
aside their personal feelings about the Headhunters and their lifestyle
and look at the evidence calmly and dispassionately. He said,

(24:43):
if the jury thought the gang connection had bearing on
Murray's thought process on the night of the murder, they
should consider it. If not, they should disregard it completely.
Murray's lawyer, Marie Diiberg told the jury a very different
story of the knight Connor died. He said, do not
make the mistake of thinking that because Michael Murray is
sitting here, that he is there for doing something wrong.

(25:06):
The reason he's there is because on August three last year,
he struck Connor Morris with this garden tool that we
have seen the sickle, and so caused Connor Morris's death.
He accepts it was him, and he did so when
one of those on the road was being badly assaulted. However,
whether he's culpable by law is a matter for you,

(25:26):
as the jury. Die Berg claimed the street fight was raging,
not just starting. When Murray retreated to get the weapon,
he came back to find Connor beating his younger brother.
He began to wave the sickle around merely to try
and scare Connor off. He was worried for his brother
and trying to protect him.

Speaker 2 (25:45):
Die Berg said.

Speaker 1 (25:47):
Michael Murray had made it clear at the beginning of
this incident that he did not want any trouble, and
when he saw Connor Morris assaulting his brother, he still
tried to placate and soothe the situation. He said to
mister Morris that act's my brother, please don't hurt him.
But Connor Morris was not listening. He kept going, so
Michael Murray acted. He swung the sickle with no real

(26:09):
thought of what he was doing at the time. He
was just wanting to do something to stop what he
saw as a bad attack on his little brother. The
sickle struck Connor Morris once that was enough to stop
the assault. As soon as Connor Morris dropped. That was it,
She said, Murray didn't mean to kill Connor. Michael Murray

(26:31):
did no more. He achieved the one thing that he wanted.
He'd stopped the attack on his brother. Nothing more. This
is a case of the big brother defending the little brother.
It is a case of defense of another. The defense
opening was brief, ending with Dieberg appealing to the twelve
jurors to consider all of the evidence before making a decision,

(26:52):
and then the Crown began.

Speaker 2 (26:54):
To call witnesses.

Speaker 1 (26:56):
Ayesha Teho, who organized the twenty first her brother Trevan Murranger,
who admitted starting the fight, their cousin Shamus Witter, who
was with Moranger, Connor's mate Obi, who was kicked in
the face, a security guard who was patrolling the area
when the fight kicked off and pulled over to call
one one one, the paramedic who tended to Connor at

(27:17):
the scene and in the back of the ambulance, and Millie.
She took the stand on the fourth day of the trail,
speaking publicly for the first time about the night Connor died.
Here is part of what Melli told the court. This
is part of her actual evidence, which Justice, Wiley allowed
the media to record.

Speaker 3 (27:36):
It was crazy, like there was like a fight going
on to my right. Fight in the middle, there was
like a dog running around biting people. There was a
scuffle to my left. The fight in front of me
was quite close to me, so it was quite distracting.
I literally got out onto the road noticed that there
were people fighting in front of me, so I stopped
moving forward. And then I saw Connor drop to my left.

(27:57):
Like that's how fast it happened. I just remember seeing
him drop out of the corner of my eye, and
like the way that he fell, like I knew something
was really wrong. He didn't put his hands out or
anything like, he fell back like he was unconscious, and
he hit his head like quite hard on the ground,
like when he fell.

Speaker 1 (28:18):
Lillie became distressed as she recalled the night her partner died.
Connor's mum and dad were also visibly upset hearing what
she told the jury. After taking a moment to collect herself,
she carried on and said, when I saw Connor drop,
nothing else mattered.

Speaker 2 (28:34):
I just ran to him.

Speaker 1 (28:35):
He was my only concern. I wasn't looking around to
see who hit him or what anyone else was doing
the way he fell. I was so worried, I screamed.
I ran to him and jumped on top of him.
I had my knees on either side of his hips
and I put my hand under his head. I felt
the blood rushing out of his head. I was trying
to put my hands to stop the bleeding, but it
was so strong it was pushing against my hands. I

(28:57):
could feel his pulse throbbing, screaming. I was fucking hysterical.
The next day, the Crown played a video recording of
Murray's first police interview to the jury. Detective Simon Woodhams
told him, the reason that you're here is we need
to speak to you about your role and the death
of Connor Morris. Because of Connor Morris's death, a homicide

(29:18):
investigation was started.

Speaker 2 (29:20):
Just so you know you are a suspect.

Speaker 1 (29:23):
Murray is polite and speaks clearly to Woodham's He said
police were looking in the wrong place, that he had
nothing to do with Connor's death. Murray said on the
day of the murder, he went to Rainbow's End theme
park in South Auckland with his partner and children. They
left at about five pm and headed home, stopping at
McDonald's to pick up dinner. They went to the sleepout

(29:43):
at four oh one don Buck Road, where Murray lived
part time. He stayed there when he had his children visiting,
and lived at his partner's home the rest of the time.
He told police that as he arrived home, he saw
his brother Stan and Zane Williams, who lived in the
main house Tara's day had been, and he chatted to
them briefly. Other than the two men, he claimed he

(30:04):
didn't see or speak to anyone else that night. He
said his family ate dinner in the sleepout, played a
video game, and then he went to sleep. About eight o'clock,
he was drained after a long day at the amusement park.
At midnight, he was woken by smashing glass. He said,
I peered out the window and saw a car getting smashed.
My partner had gone out there and someone said to

(30:25):
her everyone in this house was going to die.

Speaker 2 (30:29):
Murray said.

Speaker 1 (30:29):
He then barricaded himself and his family in the sleepout
and his partner called one one one Police came and
spoke with them later, and then they were picked up
by Murray's uncle and left the area. Williams listened to
Murray's story and then told him what other witnesses had
already said. One had said in a police interview, Mike

(30:49):
got a stick and hit a Mail around the head
with it. Mail was knocked out and went to ground.
Mike then ran Mail never gets up again. Connor Morris
he didn't get up because he was dead. Woodhams urged
Murray to tell the truth. He said, you've given us
your version of events, and we've listened to you and
recorded it. But unfortunately what you say is different to

(31:11):
the evidence we've got in a big way. What you've
told us doesn't make sense. This is the opportunity for
you to give us what happened. Did you kill Connor Morris?
Murray replied, no, I didn't kill Connor Morris. These people
are lying. I never went out and did anything.

Speaker 2 (31:29):
I was with my kids.

Speaker 1 (31:31):
Murray then asked to speak to his lawyer. Over the
next few days, the jury heard from more witnesses, including
police who worked on Operation Venice and pathologist doctor Simon Stables,
who spoke in detail about Connor's death. Stables first saw
Connor in the mortuary at Auckland City Hospital, who was
fully clothed with his hands, feet and head covered with

(31:51):
bags to preserve evidence. Everything was photographed, each item of
clothing and Connor's body. The autopsy consisted of an externally
examination and then an internal examination, during which specimens were
taken for toxicology. Stable said Connor had a number of
external injuries, including bruising to his arms consistent with falling,

(32:11):
a graze and cut to his lip which could have
been the result of resuscitation efforts, and the fatal injury
on his head. Connor's mum and sister were in court
to hear the forensic evidence, but his dad left while
details of the autopsy were discussed. The jury was shown
photos of what Stables was discussing in court, including the
stab wound to Connor's head, which he described as unusual

(32:32):
because it had features of being a blunt wound and
a sharp wound. Stable said the injury was extremely severe
and confirmed the weapon the prosecutor had shown the court
on the first day of the trial was capable of
inflicting the fatal wound. Stables was the last of the
forty six crime witnesses. When he finished giving evidence, prosecutor
David Johnston handed the floor to Murray's lawyer. Dieberg then

(32:56):
began to give a full outline of his defense. Michael
Thrift Murray, she said, would give anything to turn back
the clock to August three, twenty fourteen, but that could
not be done and he had to face what he
had done. Dieberg reminded the jury that Murray admitted hid
in Connor and causing his death, but that he denied
the charge of murder.

Speaker 2 (33:18):
She said.

Speaker 1 (33:19):
The defense case is that Michael Murray acted as he
did in defense of his younger brother. You will hear
that Michael Murray is very close to his brother Stanley,
and even though they are twelve years apart, Michael Murray
will tell you he took on an almost fatherly roll,
a protector role of his younger brother. That is a
solid bond. There was no murderous intent. Mister Murray believed

(33:40):
that Connor Morris was seriously assaulting his little brother and
that the only thing he could do to stop this
potentially serious assault was to lash out with a sickle.
The defense case for mister Murray is that he neither
intended to kill or cause any bodily injury that he
knew was likely to cause death. He didn't contemplate for
one moment moment that death was something that could eventuate.

(34:02):
When he swung the sickle, he reacted instinctively in the
heat of the moment. Dieberg told the court Murray did
the only thing he could think of when he saw,
in her words, waves of big men, including head Hunter's
gang members, who were clearly intent on physical retribution of
a serious kind. She said, Michael Murray saw his cousin

(34:24):
get knocked down by a group of these rampaging men.
Michael Murray and his group were seriously outnumbered. He grabbed
that rusty old sickle. This is something that looks in
his panic mind that it might make the group stop
their fighting. It was a bad decision in hindsight. When
he returned from picking up the sickle, he saw a
man who later turned out to be Connor Morris beating

(34:45):
up Stanley. The one thought that went through his mind
was he's going to seriously hurt him. He might have
been Callum. Stanley can't protect himself. I have to stop
this attack on him, plain and simple. He reacts instinctively.
He swings the sickle. Michael Murray reacted in the heat
of the moment to what he perceived as a clear

(35:05):
and present danger to his brother, and that was it.
Dieberg spoke to the jury about reasonable force, explaining the
concept and the law.

Speaker 2 (35:13):
New Zealand's Crimes.

Speaker 1 (35:14):
Act states that everyone is justified in using in the
defense of himself or another such force as in the
circumstances as he believes them to be, is reasonable to use.
This means you're allowed to defend yourself from attack, but
use your common sense. Wrapping up her opening address, Dieberg
acknowledged it was only natural that jurors would feel sympathy

(35:35):
towards Connor and his family, or even towards the accused,
but they had to base their decision on the evidence alone.
She said, this is not a case of who do
you believe. It's not a case for mister Murray to
prove his innocence. You must act judicially. Any sympathy or
prejudice you feel creeping in you must be staunch, you

(35:56):
must be strong and put it aside. She then called
the first defense witness, Michael Thrift Murray. Before hearing his
version of events, the jury heard more about the accused
murderer as a person. While of four children, he grew
up in West Auckland and attended Wellsford College. After school,
Murray worked as a laborer but studied automotive engineering, study

(36:18):
he completed alongside his younger brother Stanley. Stanley's twelve years
younger than Murray, and the pair were very close. The
court heard Murray helped their mother when Stanley was a baby,
changing nappies and caring for him. Later, he would take
him to rugby league and church. In August twenty thirteen,
Murray's mother died from cancer. She had been sick for

(36:39):
several years, but her diagnosis became terminal about six months
before she died. During that time, Murray and Stanley took
on the role of caregivers. They lived with their mother
until she died, and afterwards, when Housing New Zealand evicted
the boys, they moved to four oh one don Buck Road.
They lived in separate rooms of a sleep out at
the back of the main house. Murray has three children

(37:01):
of his own, two daughters and a son, who were
with him for the week end and staying in the
sleep out the night Connor was killed.

Speaker 2 (37:08):
Murray told the jury.

Speaker 1 (37:09):
When the twenty first down the driveway was shut down,
he joined Murranga Wudra and Tahoe for a beer on
the deck of the main house at his place. They
also smoked some cannabis. The boos ran out, and Murray
decided he wanted to go to bed. He told his
mates they should leave, and he walked them to the
top of the driveway. He was there when Murranga kicked
out at Obi. Murray claimed that immediately after, one of

(37:32):
Obi's mates started running down the street yelling that he
was going to get head hunters. Soon after the fight began,
Murray told the court he could see Wedder getting bashed.
He said, I thought he's fucked. I turned around and
ran back to my property and retrieved the sickle. I
thought if I got something, maybe it would scare them
and stop them from attacking us. Murray claimed he only

(37:54):
wanted to show the other men the tool, in his words,
brandish it and maybe scare them off stop them from attacking.
Murray claims he then saw a bigger man pick his
brother up, swing him like a rag doll, and give
him several uppercuts. He told the court, I yelled at
the man to stop. That's my little brother. He just
looked like he was going to continue to smash him.
I'd already seen Seamus get smashed. I was quite fearful

(38:17):
for Stanley's life. I didn't want Stanley to get seriously
injured or killed. I've stepped forward to the vicinity of
where the man was, closed my eyes and swung the sickle.
I wasn't thinking at that time. Everything was just happening
so fast. Murray said he didn't know where the circle
had hit.

Speaker 2 (38:34):
The other man. He saw him fall to the ground.
He grabbed his brother and ran. He threw the sickle
in a bush.

Speaker 1 (38:40):
And then went to his room. He could hear a
woman screaming. He said he could hear men say if
he dies, everyone in that.

Speaker 2 (38:48):
House will die.

Speaker 1 (38:50):
He said he thought the men were headhunters, and he
was scared for his safety and for his children and partner.

Speaker 2 (38:56):
In court, Murray told the.

Speaker 1 (38:57):
Jury why he had lied to police, why he had
told them that he was not on the street during
the fight.

Speaker 2 (39:02):
He said that was not true.

Speaker 1 (39:05):
Prior to me going to the police station, I've been
watching the news and I was aware that the retribution
seeked from the headhunters, that they would seek revenge. I
was scared. I feared for my life. Stanley Murray was

(39:41):
called to give evidence. Next as he began to speak,
his older brother began to cry in the dock. Stanley
told the jury that he was being beaten up by
a man when he heard his older brother yelling. He said,
he was saying, get off my brother, Get off my brother.
He had a sickle in his hand. He held it
with two hands. He didn't see what happened next, but
the alleged assault stopped. I got up and ran with Michael,

(40:04):
he said.

Speaker 2 (40:05):
Stanley.

Speaker 1 (40:06):
Murray explained that after the incident, he too lied to police.
He told the jury why this was. He said, I
didn't want anything to happen to me from the victim's family.

Speaker 2 (40:16):
I feared for my life.

Speaker 1 (40:18):
On August thirteen, the Crown delivered its final closing address
to the jury. It took Crown Prosecutor David Johnston just
one hour to summarize his case. He said, members of
the jury, it's trite, but I'm going to say it.
You've heard the expression about not taking a knife to
a fist fight. Even if you believe Michael Murray, he
still left what he saw was a fist fight to

(40:40):
go and get not just a knife, but a deadly item,
and allowing for that possibility, he thought a large man
with his bare hands was assaulting his brother. Not only
did mister Murray us a sickle against that man, he
directed the blow so the point of the sickle entered
the man's head with enough force to break the skull.
By taking in this action, Michael Murray was not defending anyone.

(41:03):
He had gone beyond the realm of what could properly
be described as defense. He was attacking. He used a
degree of plainly lethal force. It was beyond the realm
of what would be reasonable. In taking that action. Michael
Murray must have either intended to kill mister Morris, or
he must have intended to hurt him in a way
that he knew could quite possibly cause death. I'm going

(41:27):
to invite you to find Michael Murray guilty as charged.

Speaker 2 (41:31):
Johnson said.

Speaker 1 (41:32):
There was no question Murray went into the night looking
for an opportunity to undertake some kind of violence. He continued,
we wish these events hadn't happened, but matters like the
ones we are dealing with develop quickly. The way our
society and in particular, our justice system, can respond to
the sort of situation we're dealing with in this case

(41:52):
is to invite people like you to consider these events
and make a judgment. It wouldn't be right for you
simply to look at the mallet on the street, the
inappropriate and excessive behavior shown by a number of people
and simply throw your hands up. It is your heavy
responsibility to make a judgment about the moments when Michael
Murray chose to swing the sickle. Everyone agrees that mister

(42:14):
Murray killed Connor Morris, and it will soon be up
to you to decide whether he may have been acting
unreasonably and whether he intended to hurt mister Morris in
a way that was likely to cause death. You can't
particularly trust mister Murray's evidence. The question is what was
in mister Murray's mind at the moment which he literally
took matters into his own hands. The most important part

(42:36):
of the evidence is what mister Murray actually did. Johnson
said Murray had numerous opportunities to take alternative action. He
could have run away with his brother. He could have
taken Connor on with his own fists, but he chose
a weapon one he knew was capable of causing significant damage,
and he swung it with force. In the defense closing address,

(42:59):
Murray Died refuted evidence given by Headhunter's Game members and
associates during the trial, describing their testimony as nonsense and
carefully scripted to mislead the jury. She said, you can't
look at the point of impact and isolation in this
case because what has gone on before that point formed
the fear and assessment made in Michael Murray's mind. At

(43:19):
the point of impact. You cannot ignore that and be fair.
The defense says, Michael Murray is not guilty of murder.
Michael Murray described what was happening when he made that
split second decision to go and get the sickle. When
he returned with the sickle, he saw to his left
his brother Stanley stepped forward and say he didn't want
any trouble. What happened next in a matter of seconds

(43:43):
and a panic, Mister Murray said, stop, that's my brother.
But as plea was ignored, it looked to mister Murray
that the man was going to continue to smash Stanley,
and the law allows preventive action. Unfortunately, that one strike
proved fatal and so we have a homicide. So where
to from here? The charge did he cause the death

(44:07):
of Connor Marris, Yes, he did, but as he culpable,
that is, is he guilty in law if self defense
is not considered an unlawful action when he struck Connormorris.
In these circumstances, he's not guilty. Was he acting in
defense of Stanley?

Speaker 2 (44:24):
Yes he was.

Speaker 1 (44:25):
He didn't swing that sickle for no reason. Was the
force reasonable? The defense says yes, the law allows in
these circumstances people to intervene. The last part of the trial,
before the jury was sent to deliberate, failed to justice
Edwin Wiley. He summed up the cases for the Crown
and defense, spoke about reasonable force and told the jury

(44:47):
they had to decide whether Murray had murderous intent when
he swung the sickle or not. The judge explained that
murderous intent did not need premeditation. It could be instant
and immediately. He regretted if the jury could not find
Murray guilty of murdering Connormorris, it could find him guilty
of an alternative charge of manslaughter, or if they determined

(45:10):
he had acted in self defense and had done so
within the law, he was not criminally culpable, and they
could acquit him entirely. Justice Wiley reminded the jury that
the onus of proof lay with the Crown. It was
for the Crown to prove Murray's guilt, It was not
for Murray to prove his innocence. He said, your starting

(45:30):
point is the presumption of innocence. You must treat Michael
Murray as innocent of the charge until you were satisfied
that the Crown has proven him to be guilty. The
Crown must prove each element of the charge beyond reasonable doubt.
That is a very high standard of proof which the
Crown will have to meet. It is not enough that
Michael Murray is probably guilty or likely guilty. Justice Wiley

(45:53):
advised the jury on the criteria of a reasonable doubt.
A doubt could not be vague or fanciful, or a
case of the jury finding it too hard and unpleasant
to convict Murray of murder. The judge told them reasonable
doubt is an honest and reasonable question left in your
minds about the guilt of a defendant after you have
given careful and impartial consideration of the evidence. If you're

(46:16):
not sure that he's guilty, you must find them not guilty.
You must not speculate or guess. It must be a
reasoned and logical conclusion. You must be sure on the evidence.
You do not have to accept everything a witness said.
You may think part of what somebody said is credible
and reliable. You may have doubts about some other parts.

(46:37):
Justice Wiley directed the jury to ignore what was said
about Murray's character. He told them, rather, you must assess
whether the evidence proves his guilt. Frequently, feelings of sympathy
or prejudice can be aroused in criminal trials. You must
ignore these feelings. This is particularly important in this case,
with gang overtones in the background. You may feel some

(46:58):
sympathy towards mister Morris or mister Murray. All such emotions, feelings,
or views must play no part in your deliberations. Justice
Wiley said the deliberations must be fair, calm, and dispassionate.
He then sent the jury up to begin making their decision.

(47:20):
Four hours after the jury retired, there was a knock
on the courtroom door. The knock indicated one of two things.
Either the jury had a question for the judge or
that had reached a verdict. Everyone made their way back
into the courtroom lawyers, media, Connor's family and friends, Police
and security lined up the middle of the public gallery,

(47:41):
separating Connor's supporters and those there for Murray. The atmosphere
was more than tense. The whole room felt like it
was pulsing with anticipation, nerves, hope, fear. Murray was led
into the dock, flanked by a team of guards. Justice
Wiley returned to the bench and instructure that the jury
be called back in. The four person confirmed a verdict

(48:04):
had been reached. It was unanimous. It was decided. The
registrar asked the four person on the charge of murder,
do you find the defendant guilty or not guilty? The
four person replied guilty. Connor's mum, Julie, burst into tears
and turned to a daughter, hugging her tightly. His dad, Chris,

(48:26):
had attended every day of the trial, but left when
the jury retired to deliberate, preferring to hear the verdict
by phone. Millie was also given the news in a
phone call. As the jury were dismissed, one of Connor's
relatives called out, thank you from our family. He then
yelled across to the dock, Murray, your time is coming,
he was quickly shut down by security staff. Murray remained

(48:50):
silent through the short end to his trial. He stood
very still as the verdict was read. His eyes welled up,
but he did not cry. Just as Wiley reminded the
convicted murderer and custody to await sentencing and the trial
was over. Outside court, none of Connor's family were ready
to speak about the verdict, but they did stop as
they left to thank police who had worked on the case.

(49:13):
Later that afternoon, Connor's loved ones posted their thoughts about
the verdict on social media. Millie directed her words to
her Slam partner.

Speaker 2 (49:22):
She wrote, we all knew it.

Speaker 1 (49:24):
Glad the justice system came through for you. Can't believe
I'm happy about something so sad. Doesn't bring you back
or change our reality now. Doesn't change how much we
will miss you, but you got justice and for everyone
who knew you, it means a little bit of closure.
Chris Morris wrote, thank you to everybody for the good wishes.

(49:46):
My son Connor can now rest in peace. On September eleven,

(50:17):
twenty fifteen, Michael Thrift Murray was back in the dock
in the High Court at Auckland for sentencing. Connor's mum
and sister took their seats in the back of the courtroom,
along with Milly's mother. Milly was overseas at the time
and Connor's dad chose not to attend the hearing. A
sentencing usually begins with the reading of victim impact statements.
The judge then hears submissions from the Crown and defense

(50:39):
about what they believe the sentence should be before a
decision is made. Before the hearing, parties provide a significant
amount of further information to the judge for consideration, including
reports about the offender, describing their personal life, previous offending
and psychological state. A judge doesn't just walk into a
courtroom on the day and decide what the sentence should be.

(51:01):
Under New Zealand legislation, they have to come to their
decision using specific processes and calculations. They also take into
account previous similar cases. Connor's family wrote victim impact statements
that were given to Justice Wiley, but they requested that
their words were not read out loud in court. Prosecuted
David Johnston said the statements outlined a deep and inevitable,

(51:23):
ongoing personal impact as a consequence of the offending. He
then began as submissions describing Murray's actions towards Connor as
drastically inappropriate. He said, when he went to go and
get his weapon, the proposition that it was simply to
have available for scaring people is fanciful. There must have
been some awareness. Johnston said a sentence of life in

(51:45):
prison was appropriate and would not be manifestly unjust. He
said aggravating features of the offending included the use of
a weapon, which and deliberately retrieving suggested there was an
element of premeditation in Murray's actions. He said Murray then
used more force than was reasonably necessary. Johnston submitted that
a life sentence with a minimum non parole period of

(52:07):
ten years was appropriate for Murray's offending. As I've explained
in previous episodes of A Moment in Crime, a life
sentence does mean life. The minimum non parole period simply
sets a term and offender must spend behind bars before
they can begin the parole process. Even when they're eligible
for parole, they may never be released. They can only

(52:27):
return to the community when they've satisfied the parole board
that they're no longer a risk that they're no longer dangerous,
and if that time comes, they're subject to a range
of conditions and monitoring for the rest of their life,
meaning if they break the rules or reoffend, they can
be recalled to prism. Murray's lawyer, still Mariy Dieberg, at sentencing,
acknowledged the grief and lost Connor's family were experiencing, describing

(52:51):
it as profound. She said Murray was remorseful and maintained
that he never meant to kill or even hurt Connor.
Accept did his actions were reckless and even excessive in
terms of defense, but still claimed there was no murderous intent.
The court heard that Judah threats to his life. Murray
had volunteered to be held in isolation in prison, and

(53:12):
it was likely had remained there for the entirety of
his sentence. Given that his lawyer said any term of
imprisonment would be disproportionately more difficult for Murray, she implored
the judge to consider a life sentence as manifestly unjust
for her client, and submitted a fixed sentence would be
more appropriate. It was then time for Justice Wiley to
address the court. He outlined the offending and then began

(53:35):
to discuss Murray's personal circumstances. He revealed that then thirty
four year old had a number of prior convictions, including
one for common assault in two thousand and seven and
of possession of an offensive weapon in two thousand and eight.
In both cases, sentences of community work were imposed at
relatively low levels. Given the previous offending was not serious

(53:56):
and Murray had never been sentenced to jail time, he
would not factor the earlier convictions into his decision. Justice
Wiley outlined Murray's life up until the murder, reading from
pre sentence reports compiled after specialist interviews with the offender.
He left school at sixteen and worked for family members
building retaining walls and trenches. In twenty ten, he enrolled

(54:17):
in and passed an automotive and mechanical engineering course. He
was unable to get an apprenticeship in that field, though,
so engaged in further study, But when his mother, whom
he was close to, was diagnosed with cancer, Murray put
his studies on hold. The court heard that he spent
the last six months of her life supporting her. At
the time of the murder, Murray was living with his
partner and daughter, He had two older children from a

(54:40):
previous relationship. Murray was involved in rugby league and cackboxing,
and told pre sentence report writers that he endeavored to
spend as much time as possible with his kids and family.
He said he didn't drink regularly, but consumed cannabis daily.
He was first introduced to the drug when he was
just thirteen. He had no gang affiliations or associations. Justice

(55:02):
Wiley said, you have expressed remorse for your offending. You
told the report writer that you're sorry for the emotional
harm that you've caused to the Morris family and also
the impact on your own family. You stated that you
were trying to save your younger brother and that you
understand that you cannot turn back time. The report writer
identified two factors as contributing to your offending, namely your

(55:25):
use of cannabis and your propensity for violence. You didn't
agree with this assessment and stated that your use of
cannabis did not affet your decision making on the night
in question. You did, however, agree that your daily use
of cannabis is of concern, and you've indicated that you're
open to engaging in a rehabilitative program for drug use
while in custody. You also told the report writer that

(55:47):
you do not see yourself as a violent person and
that you are simply defending your brother. You are, however,
open to undertaking an assessment with the departmental psychologist. The
report stated Murray had been compliant in prison, demonstrated an
appropriate attitude, and was drug free. He appeared to be
motivated to improve his well being, education and self understanding

(56:09):
while in prison. The judge said, you were nevertheless assessed
as presenting a medium likelihood of reoffending due to the
frequency of your offending, albeit at a relatively minor level
since nineteen ninety nine.

Speaker 2 (56:22):
Your risk of harm to others is.

Speaker 1 (56:23):
Assessed is very high due to the nature of your
attack on mister Morris. Justice Wiley explained in court that
in sentencing Murray he had to hold him accountable for
his offending, promote in him a sense of responsibility for
an acknowledgment of that offending, and importantly, he needed to
denounce the conduct in which Murray was involved. There was

(56:46):
also a need to deter others from committing the same
or similar offenses. The judge said, I've taken into account
the gravity of the offending which you were involved, including
your culpability. I've considered the seriousness of this time offending
and the general desirability of consistency of appropriate sentencing levels
between similar offenders committing similar offenses.

Speaker 2 (57:08):
I've also been.

Speaker 1 (57:08):
Mindful that I must impose the least restrictive outcome that
is appropriate in the circumstances. There may be cases where
the circumstances of a murder, absent issues of future risk
to public safety, would be manifestly unjust to impose a
sentence of life imprisonment. Excessive self defense can constitute a
situation where life imprisonment may be manifestly unjust. Despite these

(57:31):
various observations, the threshold of manifest unjustice has been met
in very few cases. The threshold has only been met
in four cases. One case involved a mercy killing, where
an elderly man killed his wife who was suffering from dementia.
Another involved a man suffering from a major psychiatric illness
accompanied by psychotic delusions who killed his elderly neighbour, whom

(57:54):
he believed was spying on him. The third case involved
a mentally impaired woman who had been abused by the
desire ceased in others, and the fourth a secondary party
with a peripheral role in the killing. All of these
cases differ markedly from your situation. I do not consider
that it would be manifestly unjust to impose a sentence
of life imprisonment in your case. Justice Wiley explained his

(58:17):
reasons for that decision. He told Murray, your case is
all the characteristics that are frequently associated with serious assaults
and killings, young men who have been drinking too much
and who have become involved in provocative and threatening conduct
which is quickly escalated into physical violence and on occasion death.
While I accept you were just trying to assist your

(58:38):
younger brother, the force you used was clearly excessive.

Speaker 2 (58:42):
That was the jury's view. It is also my view.

Speaker 1 (58:45):
When you went back to your property to get the sickle,
you could have simply wrung the police. The evidence established
that you had a cell phone. You could have simply
stayed on your property. At that stage, your brother was not,
to your knowledge, being attacked. There was premeditation, albeit relatively limited.
You went to get the sickle, You brought it back
to what was at that stage a fistfight. You introduced

(59:09):
the sickle into the confrontation. You were not a callow
intoxicated youth. You were thirty four years old, and unlike
others involved, you were not grossly intoxicated. While there was
clearly evidence that your brother was being attacked, I suspect
that your description of the attack on him was significantly overstated.
The evidence at trial suggested that he only suffered relatively

(59:32):
minor injuries. The evidence of an eye witness who had
not been drinking and who had no relationship with any
of the parties involved was that you did not pause,
that you did not do anything to indicate that you
were first trying to get mister Morris's attention, and that
it looked like you knew what you were going to do.
In my view, a sentence short of life imprisonment would

(59:53):
undermine the purposes of denunciation and deterrence and failed to
recognize the seriousness of your offending and the degree.

Speaker 2 (59:59):
Of your culpability.

Speaker 1 (01:00:01):
It would also fail to acknowledge that a society governed
by the rule of law cannot let its citizens take
the law into their own hands, except in very limited circumstances.
This was not one of those exceptional cases. Justice Wiley
said the minimum non parole period could not be less
than ten years. He accepted prison would be hard for

(01:00:22):
Murray given the threats made to a safety and that
it was likely the offender would be kept apart from
many other prisoners. He said that was unfortunate, but it
was not unique.

Speaker 2 (01:00:32):
He told Murray.

Speaker 1 (01:00:34):
In my view, a minimum term of imprisonment of ten
years is necessary to hold you accountable, to denounce your conduct,
to deter importantly in this case, others from committing the
same more similar offenses, and given the pre sentence report,
to protect the community from you. You are sentenced to
a term of imprisonment for life for the murder of
Connor Marris. I impose a minimum term of imprisonment of

(01:00:56):
ten years. Mister Murray, you have of express willingness to
improve yourself while you're in custody. You have said you
will take advantage of the rehabilitator of programs that will
be offered to you. I trust that you will make
good on this and ultimately you will be able to
make amends to the community for your offending. Outside court,
Murray's lawyer told the media that a sentence was fair,

(01:01:19):
but she would consider whether there were grounds for an appeal.
She said, we have twenty eight days to do that.
If we find grounds, we will appeal. He's being well
looked after by corrections. He fears for his life every day.
Detective Senior Sergeant Stan Brown, who led the investigation into
Connor's death, had no opinion on the sentence. He said,

(01:01:40):
we are just there for the victims. Victims come from
everywhere in society. Our hearts go up to both families,
but particularly the Morris family, the grief that they are feeling.
They are a family, a mother, a father, and a sister.
They have lost a member of that family, a son,
a brother. They are hurting a menay. Not long after,

(01:02:02):
an appeal was filed against Murray's conviction, as lawyers told
the Court of Appeal that media interest in Connor's death
led to an unfair trial because his partner was the
daughter of a high profile broadcaster. They submitted more than
two hundred and seventy stories about Connor's death that were
published in the media in the year leading up to
the trial, many sympathetic towards Milly. It was also submitted

(01:02:25):
that the jury was at risk of being intimidated into
convicting Murray by the involvement of the Headhunters. The Court
of Appeal was told there were large numbers of gang
members in court during the trial. The appeal was dismissed
the Panel of seeing you judge's rejecting claims that the
widespread media coverage would have swayed the jury either for
or against Murray. They noted Justice Wiley clearly put precautions

(01:02:48):
in place to avoid bias on the part of the jury,
and they conceded that while the public would have had
a degree of morbid curiosity in such a prominent murder
in prosecution, that would not necessarily translate to such a
degree of sympathy for Millie that it would prejudice Murray's
right to a fair trial.

Speaker 2 (01:03:06):
The defense's argument that the jury.

Speaker 1 (01:03:08):
Would have been unduly intimidated by gay members or fears
of retribution, and their claims that the trial judge misdirected
the jury over the details of self defense, were also rejected.
Murray's prison sentence stood life with.

Speaker 2 (01:03:22):
A minimum of ten years.

Speaker 1 (01:03:26):
As I was writing this episode of A Moment in Crime,
there were just days until Michael Murray's first parole hearing.
He appeared before a panel of probable members in his
future was closely considered. The full details of the hearing
and the board's decision are available on enzid herold dot
co dot inzied. In the lead up to the hearing,
Connor's loved ones shared their feelings about the next chapter.

(01:03:47):
For ten years, they have lived without Connor, trying to
rebuild their lives and grab whatever happiness they can. His
parents and sisters still live in west Auckland. Millias spent
time overseas, including living in Greece and connect with that
part of her culture. She's firmly established herself as a
content creator and lifestyle influencer, sharing her life with her
followers on her terms. Connor's family often post tributes and

(01:04:12):
their memories of him on social media. On the tenth
anniversary of his death in August twenty twenty four, his
mum marked the day, she wrote, every day for the
past ten years, I've thought about what I've lost by
the hand of a coward. We have been notified by
the Parole Board that a hearing is scheduled this year.
Our nightmare continues. I cannot begin to explain the impact

(01:04:35):
as death has had on our lives. The court case,
appeals and now parole, it's never ending. My beautiful granddaughters
include Connor in whatever occasion they're celebrating, and they've made
this journey of being a homicide survivor a little less daunting.
In a year earlier, the family posted on a Facebook
page set up to remember Connor after he died.

Speaker 2 (01:04:56):
They said, nine frigin years, how is this possible?

Speaker 1 (01:05:00):
The lead up to the day that changed our lives
truver does not get any easier, more so because we're
edging closer to having to relive our nightmare at parole hearing, however,
I see Connor's beautiful eyes and remember his wicked sense
of humor and laugh, and his love for his family.
I get so angry thinking of Connor's killer going to
get a weapon when it was a fist fight. Such

(01:05:22):
a coward. He didn't face Connor, but rather swung the
scythe at the back of his head, piercing his skin, muscle, bone,
and brain matter with a depth of five centimeters.

Speaker 2 (01:05:33):
It was fatal.

Speaker 1 (01:05:34):
If this had been a punch, it would have been
called a sucker punch, a coward's punch. Never once has
he taken responsibility for his actions, instead blaming everyone but himself.
Then came a plea of self defense, defense of his
little brother. You Connor are a hero and Michael Thrift

(01:05:54):
Murray is a good for nothing, yellow belly coward.

Speaker 2 (01:05:59):
The murder of Morris as a case that stuck with me.

Speaker 1 (01:06:02):
He may have been a gang member, he may have
had a high profile family, He may have been in
trouble in the past, But on the night he died,
Connor was not in the wrong. His life was taken
violently and unnecessarily. He had no chance against Murray and
that weapon. After he died, his family were like any
other in that situation, victims, grieving parents, a heartbreaking sister,

(01:06:27):
and a partner devastated beyond measure. During the trial, his
family were polite, calm, and dignified. They were respectful and
friendly to the media and police. They were not there
seeking attention. They did not want the spotlight. They were
there for Connor, to see justice for Connor. There were
no outbursts, there was no intimidation, There were no gang patches,

(01:06:50):
just a group of people broken by what happened on
don Buck Road that night. Many people were judgmental about
Connor's death and the trial because of the gang connection.
But at the end of the day, in that courtroom,
Connor was an innocent victim. His family were innocent victims,
and they all deserve justice. A Moment in Crime is

(01:07:15):
an nzedme podcast written and hosted by me Annalisque, senior
crime and justice reporter for The New Zealand Herald. The
podcast is produced by myself, enzed me, audio engineer James
Irwin and podcast production manager Ethan Sells. The information in
this episode came entirely from published coverage of Connor's death
and the trial of Michael Murray. The information was either

(01:07:39):
presented in court or published by Connor's loved ones as
tributes meant for sharing my thoughts as always are with
Connor's family and friends, particularly his parents and sister, his
nieces and Millie. Episodes of A Moment in Crime are
usually released monthly on ensidherld, dot co, dot zed iHeartRadio.

Speaker 2 (01:07:58):
And all of your usual podcast steps.

Speaker 1 (01:08:01):
If you have a crimal case you'd like me to
consider covering email and a dot least get insidmee dot
co dot inzid