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DANIEL HINES / SUNLIVE
Tehiritanga Hill is not guilty of murder because of his madness. (File photo)
A man who killed his father’s partner with a hammer was found not guilty of insanity.
Tehiritanga Hill, who was 24 years old when she appeared in court in July, told police that she believed Pania Melrose was performing satanic rituals and was preventing her from leaving Te Teko’s address on June 12, 2020.
In a written judgment issued Wednesday, Judge Brewer said that in the weeks leading up to the incident there were multiple times Hill had been aggressive toward Melrose.
The morning of the incident, Hill was at the house where his father lived with Melrose, yet his father had gone off to play golf.
At around 10:30 a.m., Melrose called her partner and told her that her son was getting aggressive towards her. A short time later he phoned again about his behavior.
At this point, Hill took the phone from her and told her father “she’s the culprit, it’s all her fault, she’s getting ugly.”
A physical confrontation occurred in the front field, where Hill hit Melrose with a hammer eight or nine times to the head and face.
Melrose died of his injuries shortly after.
When Hill’s father arrived at the house, he found Melrose lying on the lawn with the bloody hammer nearby.
Hill was at the house after taking a shower, he was immobilized by his father and another relative until police arrived.
A medical report commissioned by the Crown said that Hill appeared to have been experiencing symptoms of psychosis for several months prior to the murder.
A general practitioner referred him to Community Mental Health Services and prescribed risperidone.
After Hill’s arrest, he was seen by the Prison Mental Health Service, where he was diagnosed with psychosis and began taking antipsychotic medications.
Hill told the doctor that he believed he was being controlled by the devil, that the animals were looking at him and could feel the devil in him.
He thought that the devil was trying to get him and Satan would come from earth and take him to hell, he believed that television was directed at him.
“In particular, he believed that his father’s partner was a witch, could read his thoughts and was taking control of his body. He started hearing voices, which got worse after he started taking medication. The voice was often indistinct and spoke in tongues, so I couldn’t understand what was being said. “
Brewer wrote that he did not find Hill guilty of the murder charge due to his insanity.
Regarding Hill’s arrest, Brewer said that Hill had been diagnosed with schizophrenia, and while he had progressed well with the treatment he was receiving, his current condition, when considered against his history of mental health problems, meant that it represented a serious risk to the health and safety of others.
Brewer ordered Hill to be detained in a hospital as a special patient under the Mental Health Act.
