Mother Tried To Kill Child, Self (Press, 12 June 1985)

Soraya Pohatu, a 19-year-old unemployed mother, was sentenced to a year in prison for the attempted murder of her two-year-old daughter in February 1985 in Wellington. Pohatu had pleaded guilty to the charges, with her legal representative, Mr Mike Bungay, revealing that she had a history of drug use and supported herself through prostitution. Following a custody arrangement, her transvestite uncle was granted interim custody of her daughter last August, which deeply troubled Pohatu. On the day before she was set to be sentenced for various offences in the District Court, she took her daughter to a motel in Kilbirnie. The following morning, both were discovered with serious injuries. A suicide note, read to the court, indicated Pohatu's desire for her and her child to be buried together. The judge noted that Pohatu's actions occurred in a state of severe distress, putting her behaviour on the verge of criminality while highlighting her need for rehabilitation. Ultimately, Mr Justice Jeffries decided that a community-based sentence was not appropriate considering her mental health issues. In addition to the year for attempted murder, Pohatu received concurrent sentences for other offences: nine months for burglary, six months for two counts of fraud, six months for theft, and three months for assault.

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