Lauren Dickason: Mum who murdered her three little girls by smothering them to death passes cold-hearted note to her supporters after dodging a life sentence

A mother jailed for strangling her three young daughters has coolly described her 18-year sentence for triple murder as “a victory for sanity”.

Lauren Dickason, 41, murdered her two-year-old twin daughters Maya and Karla and their six-year-old sister Lianè at their home in Timaru, New Zealand, on September 16, 2021.

Dickason admitted to killing the children but denied the charges, saying she could not be held responsible because she was mentally unwell.

She faced a grueling five-week trial before a jury found her guilty of three counts of murder in August.

Judge Cameron Mander said on Wednesday that her mental health problems were a reason not to jail her for life.

He said the “systematic and methodical” approach to the brutal killings reflected Dickason’s belief that the girls were “better off dead”.

After being sentenced to six years in prison for each of the girls, Dickason released a statement saying she “owed it to everyone and to me to become mentally healthy.”

“I will do whatever it takes, even though I know it will never change the past,” she added.

That wasn’t all she had to say, though. Dickason also sent out a series of messages to her supporters, which were shared in a Facebook group campaigning for the murderous mother.

In the most recent ‘Note from Lauren’, seen By the New Zealand HeraldDickason thanked those who advocated for her release for their “love and support.”

“Yesterday was a victory for maternal mental health,” the letter reads.

‘Judge Mander has heard me. His decision is fair and just.

‘Thank you all for your love and support this past year.

“Thank you for believing my version of events: that I am not an angry, jealous, selfish person, but a mother suffering from a serious mental illness, trying to raise my three beautiful daughters and supporting my husband in all his endeavors.”

‘I believe you can have it all, but not all at once.

“Be kind to yourself and talk until someone hears you. Don’t be ashamed to admit that you can’t handle it.

“There is a way out that doesn’t have to end in tragedy.”

Dickason first tried to kill her children using zip ties, then suffocated them with pillows, then placed them in their bed under the covers and attempted suicide.

Judge Mander told Dickason during her sentencing that her children were not only vulnerable because of their age, but also because they ‘completely dependent on you as a mother, whom they look up to for care and protection.

“They would have seen you as an unconditional source of security and love… The ending is a fundamental breach of trust.”

He sentenced her to three fixed prison terms of 18 years, to be served concurrently. No minimum prison sentence was imposed.

Judge Mander also ordered that Dickason be held in a psychiatric institution for involuntary treatment until she recovers mentally and can be transferred to prison.

Dickason will be eligible for parole after serving six years of her sentence.

Through her lawyer, the mother of three took responsibility for the deaths and apologized for the pain she caused her husband Graham.

“I loved Liané, Maya and Karla with all my heart. No apology will ever be enough, and words will seem hollow to many,” she said.

“I want people to know that our girls brought me so much joy and were the center of my world. I am horrified by my actions and the pain, suffering and trauma I have caused everyone who loved them. Like so many others, I miss them every day.”

Dickason, a former physician, said she wanted to educate people about the risks of postpartum depression and is committed to improving her mental health.

‘We urge other families to look out for unhealthy signs and take action. We urge women who experience symptoms of postpartum depression to tell their loved ones.

‘This pain and sorrow cannot happen to any other family.’

Judge Mander said Dickason had struggled with poor mental health for most of her life and had been diagnosed with major depressive disorder in her teenage years.

Her mental state deteriorated after the birth of her daughters and she went to a psychiatrist to treat her postpartum depression.

According to Judge Mander, in the months leading up to the triple murder, Dickason began to suffer from intrusive thoughts about the harm she would do to her children.

After her murder trial last August, the judge said he had received three expert reports on Dickason’s current mental health.

The reports found she “recognised the impact the offence had on others” and had shown “regret and remorse” for the murders of her three daughters.

Some experts said Dickason continued to suffer from mental disorders.

Judge Mander said Mr Dickason, who is also a doctor, had conducted himself with grace and stoicism despite the “incomprehensible loss”.

She and her husband had moved to New Zealand from South Africa a few days before the murders, seeking a more stable lifestyle for their family.

Her husband, an orthopedic surgeon, returned from a work dinner to find his children dead. He later told police that he knew his wife was struggling with her mental health and motherhood, but he had no idea she was capable of killing.

The guilty verdict came after a four-week trial. The jury – eight women and four men – rejected Dickason’s legal defences under New Zealand’s insanity and infanticide laws and voted 11-1 to find her guilty.