Bid for preventive detention after Cameron verdicts

Marie Davis murder trial, Day 15. By David Clarkson and Anne Clarkson

Dean Stewart Cameron has begun his life sentence for the rape and murder of teenager Marie Davis and the crown is pressing for preventive detention because of a rape conviction on his record from 2004.

Justice Lester Chisholm sentenced him to life virtually on the spot as the jury returned its guilty verdicts in the High Court at Christchurch at 3.40pm today, after spending the day deliberating.

But crown prosecutor Chris Lange asked for the open-ended preventive detention to be considered and Justice Chisholm remanded Cameron to August 24 for the necessary health assessors reports to be prepared.

Cameron was jailed for four years for rape after pleading guilty at a retrial in 2004. The verdict had been annulled after the first trial.

Trial Judge Stephen Erber said Cameron had unnecessarily put his victim through the ordeal of giving her evidence a second time at the second trial, before changing his plea.

For the past four weeks the 39-year-old road worker has denied charges of raping and murdering the Papanui 15-year-old, but did not give evidence in his defence.

His defence team raised the possibility that the girl had gone to an early morning sexual encounter on the banks of the Waimakariri but later fell or jumped into the river where her naked body was discovered 11 days later.

The crown’s scientific evidence showed Cameron’s blood was in the house where Marie disappeared, and his DNA was in semen found on her body.

“He didn’t have a defence story,” the family said outside the Court House after the verdicts.

Marie’s mother, Janet Davis, said: “She was a beautiful daughter and we loved her so much. She was so precious to all of us.”

She said she was relieved that the right verdicts had been reached and at least Cameron was getting the sentence he deserved. “It will never bring Marie back.”

She said the defence had been “clutching at straws the whole way through”.

The family thanked the police “who have been wonderful throughout this whole thing”.

Two of the jurors stood across the road from the Court House and waited to see the Davis family emerge from the building to speak to the media.

The jury went home last night after a day of addresses, and began its deliberations when it returned to court at 9.45am today.

 It returned to court for a time to see a video of the recovery of bedding from the river — the crown said Marie’s body had been wrapped in it when it was put into the water.

It also listened again to a secretly recorded conversation between Cameron and a friend.

It signalled about 3.30pm that it was ready to deliver its verdicts and the courtroom was full, with people standing, to see the outcome of the trial.

There were cries of “Yes”, and people clapping as the verdicts were spoken by the jury foreperson, and Davis family members were in tears.

Cameron remained impassive as his fate was decided.