NZ Herald
  • Home
  • Latest news
  • Herald NOW
  • Video
  • New Zealand
  • Sport
  • World
  • Business
  • Entertainment
  • Podcasts
  • Quizzes
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
  • Viva
  • Weather

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • New Zealand
    • All New Zealand
    • Crime
    • Politics
    • Education
    • Open Justice
    • Scam Update
  • Herald NOW
  • On The Up
  • World
    • All World
    • Australia
    • Asia
    • UK
    • United States
    • Middle East
    • Europe
    • Pacific
  • Business
    • All Business
    • MarketsSharesCurrencyCommoditiesStock TakesCrypto
    • Markets with Madison
    • Media Insider
    • Business analysis
    • Personal financeKiwiSaverInterest ratesTaxInvestment
    • EconomyInflationGDPOfficial cash rateEmployment
    • Small business
    • Business reportsMood of the BoardroomProject AucklandSustainable business and financeCapital markets reportAgribusiness reportInfrastructure reportDynamic business
    • Deloitte Top 200 Awards
    • CompaniesAged CareAgribusinessAirlinesBanking and financeConstructionEnergyFreight and logisticsHealthcareManufacturingMedia and MarketingRetailTelecommunicationsTourism
  • Opinion
    • All Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Editorials
    • Business analysis
    • Premium opinion
    • Letters to the editor
  • Politics
  • Sport
    • All Sport
    • OlympicsParalympics
    • RugbySuper RugbyNPCAll BlacksBlack FernsRugby sevensSchool rugby
    • CricketBlack CapsWhite Ferns
    • Racing
    • NetballSilver Ferns
    • LeagueWarriorsNRL
    • FootballWellington PhoenixAuckland FCAll WhitesFootball FernsEnglish Premier League
    • GolfNZ Open
    • MotorsportFormula 1
    • Boxing
    • UFC
    • BasketballNBABreakersTall BlacksTall Ferns
    • Tennis
    • Cycling
    • Athletics
    • SailingAmerica's CupSailGP
    • Rowing
  • Lifestyle
    • All Lifestyle
    • Viva - Food, fashion & beauty
    • Society Insider
    • Royals
    • Sex & relationships
    • Food & drinkRecipesRecipe collectionsRestaurant reviewsRestaurant bookings
    • Health & wellbeing
    • Fashion & beauty
    • Pets & animals
    • The Selection - Shop the trendsShop fashionShop beautyShop entertainmentShop giftsShop home & living
    • Milford's Investing Place
  • Entertainment
    • All Entertainment
    • TV
    • MoviesMovie reviews
    • MusicMusic reviews
    • BooksBook reviews
    • Culture
    • ReviewsBook reviewsMovie reviewsMusic reviewsRestaurant reviews
  • Travel
    • All Travel
    • News
    • New ZealandNorthlandAucklandWellingtonCanterburyOtago / QueenstownNelson-TasmanBest NZ beaches
    • International travelAustraliaPacific IslandsEuropeUKUSAAfricaAsia
    • Rail holidays
    • Cruise holidays
    • Ski holidays
    • Luxury travel
    • Adventure travel
  • Kāhu Māori news
  • Environment
    • All Environment
    • Our Green Future
  • Talanoa Pacific news
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Property Insider
    • Interest rates tracker
    • Residential property listings
    • Commercial property listings
  • Health
  • Technology
    • All Technology
    • AI
    • Social media
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
    • Opinion
    • Audio & podcasts
  • Weather forecasts
    • All Weather forecasts
    • Kaitaia
    • Whangārei
    • Dargaville
    • Auckland
    • Thames
    • Tauranga
    • Hamilton
    • Whakatāne
    • Rotorua
    • Tokoroa
    • Te Kuiti
    • Taumaranui
    • Taupō
    • Gisborne
    • New Plymouth
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Dannevirke
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Levin
    • Paraparaumu
    • Masterton
    • Wellington
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Blenheim
    • Westport
    • Reefton
    • Kaikōura
    • Greymouth
    • Hokitika
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
    • Wānaka
    • Oamaru
    • Queenstown
    • Dunedin
    • Gore
    • Invercargill
  • Meet the journalists
  • Promotions & competitions
  • OneRoof property listings
  • Driven car news

Puzzles & Quizzes

  • Puzzles
    • All Puzzles
    • Sudoku
    • Code Cracker
    • Crosswords
    • Cryptic crossword
    • Wordsearch
  • Quizzes
    • All Quizzes
    • Morning quiz
    • Afternoon quiz
    • Sports quiz

Regions

  • Northland
    • All Northland
    • Far North
    • Kaitaia
    • Kerikeri
    • Kaikohe
    • Bay of Islands
    • Whangarei
    • Dargaville
    • Kaipara
    • Mangawhai
  • Auckland
  • Waikato
    • All Waikato
    • Hamilton
    • Coromandel & Hauraki
    • Matamata & Piako
    • Cambridge
    • Te Awamutu
    • Tokoroa & South Waikato
    • Taupō & Tūrangi
  • Bay of Plenty
    • All Bay of Plenty
    • Katikati
    • Tauranga
    • Mount Maunganui
    • Pāpāmoa
    • Te Puke
    • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua
  • Hawke's Bay
    • All Hawke's Bay
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Havelock North
    • Central Hawke's Bay
    • Wairoa
  • Taranaki
    • All Taranaki
    • Stratford
    • New Plymouth
    • Hāwera
  • Manawatū - Whanganui
    • All Manawatū - Whanganui
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Manawatū
    • Tararua
    • Horowhenua
  • Wellington
    • All Wellington
    • Kapiti
    • Wairarapa
    • Upper Hutt
    • Lower Hutt
  • Nelson & Tasman
    • All Nelson & Tasman
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Tasman
  • Marlborough
  • West Coast
  • Canterbury
    • All Canterbury
    • Kaikōura
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
  • Otago
    • All Otago
    • Oamaru
    • Dunedin
    • Balclutha
    • Alexandra
    • Queenstown
    • Wanaka
  • Southland
    • All Southland
    • Invercargill
    • Gore
    • Stewart Island
  • Gisborne

Media

  • Video
    • All Video
    • NZ news video
    • Herald NOW
    • Business news video
    • Politics news video
    • Sport video
    • World news video
    • Lifestyle video
    • Entertainment video
    • Travel video
    • Markets with Madison
    • Kea Kids news
  • Podcasts
    • All Podcasts
    • The Front Page
    • On the Tiles
    • Ask me Anything
    • The Little Things
  • Cartoons
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / New Zealand

Let us give sperm to become fathers: Murderer petitions Parliament

Nicholas Jones
By Nicholas Jones
Investigative Reporter·NZ Herald·
3 May, 2017 05:00 PM5 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

Karl Nuku (left) and Mikhail Pandey-Johnson are sentenced in 2011. Photo / Rob Tucker

Karl Nuku (left) and Mikhail Pandey-Johnson are sentenced in 2011. Photo / Rob Tucker

A murderer who bashed his victim with a hammer has petitioned Parliament for prisoners to be able to father a child from behind bars via artificial insemination.

The petition by Karl Teangiotau Nuku also calls for prisoners to be able to give blood and donate organs.

It has been presented to Parliament by Hutt South MP and Labour veteran Trevor Mallard, who says he did so because he believes every citizen has the right to petition Parliament and he deliberately stayed in the dark on Nuku's convictions.

Nuku is serving life in prison with a non-parole period of 18 years for the murder of Dean Browne, 38, in Wellington in 2010.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

He was part of a group calling itself the Killer Clown Fiends, who beat Browne to death in an Oriental Bay flat and then dumped his body in a New Plymouth garage.

Mikhail Pandey-Johnson, the leader of the group, and Nuku received life sentences with a minimum non-parole period of 18 years.

Nuku has now petitioned for legislation to be passed to give prisoners the opportunity to make organ and blood donations, and that "long-serving/life prisoners should have the opportunity to make seminal donations to registered agencies, so as to father a child".

Bronwyn Donaldson, director of offender health for Corrections, said no legal restrictions prevent the donation of blood, organs or sperm by prisoners.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

"However, Corrections does not facilitate or support prisoners participating in [such donations] as part of their primary health care requirements. Consideration would be given on a case-by-case basis by the prison director, who is required to ensure the safety of all involved."

In 2014, the Herald reported a message from Nuku was posted on a Facebook page where prison inmates are able to advertise for female pen pals, calling himself an "out-spoken kind of guy" who loves piercings and bright coloured hair.

Mallard said he had a very brief exchange with Nuku, after the prisoner had sent the petition to National MP and Hutt South candidate Chris Bishop, when Bishop was promoting his organ donation member's bill that passed in December.

"It did not get presented," Mallard said. "Whether you agree with stuff or not, it is every citizen's right to petition Parliament. And people should do it automatically as a Member of Parliament, whether they agree with it or not."

Discover more

New Zealand|crime

Killer Clown Fiends face trial

14 May 05:30 PM
New Zealand

Stepdad: 'I hope they rot in hell'

29 Jul 01:35 AM
New Zealand|crime

Prison sperm donors: 2 different situations

03 May 07:18 PM
Opinion

Editorial: Prisoners' sperm donor rights

05 May 05:00 PM

Mallard said he didn't know if Nuku wanted to have a baby with a partner, or any other motivation for the petition. He didn't have a firm view on the issues raised.

"I've never met him. I've never spoken to him. And I made a deliberate decision not to look into his background of the reason he is in prison. Because I don't think it is relevant to the right to make a petition."

Browne's parents were shocked to learn of the petition yesterday, but did not want to comment.

NZ Blood Service chief executive Sam Cliffe said mobile clinics used to be sent to prisons more than 20 years ago, but that stopped because of issues like the high level of communicable disease in the prison population, including hepatitis.

"Things like intravenous drug use would permanently exclude you. You have to wait at least six months after receiving a tattoo before you can donate."

Janice Langlands from Organ Donation NZ said there were clear guidelines about assessing potential risk factors for donors. She was not aware of prisoners having donated organs.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

"If a prisoner was in an intensive care unit with a non-survivable brain injury or expected to die, then at the time their risk would be assessed and the [transplant service would] determine whether they would accept the risk or not.

"I don't recall any prisoners being in that situation, but that's not to say they wouldn't be in the future."

In Britain, an inmate was granted the right to father a child from jail in 2011 after a landmark case in which Kirk Dickson, serving life for kicking a man to death, unsuccessfully applied to have an IVF baby with his partner, whom he met through a pen pal scheme.

Dickson successfully appealed to the Strasbourg human rights tribunal, which ruled blocking the couple's request was a denial of their right to become parents.

Prisoner rights have been in the spotlight recently after Corrections last month allowed convicted murderer Phillip John Smith to wear his hairpiece in prison, after Smith took the department to court.

Human rights lawyer Dr Tony Ellis, who is not representing Nuku and spoke to the Herald about the issue generally, said he didn't see any reason for prisoners not to be able to give blood, given it could be screened.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Ellis said Corrections should consider each request for sperm donation so prisoners could have a baby with their partner. The same case-by-case approach should be taken if any situation arose when organs could be donated.

Garth McVicar of the Sensible Sentencing Trust (SST) said he hoped any select committee that considers the petition treat the seminal donor aspect with disdain.

"I think that is appalling and shows there's no remorse. I know the family concerned, I know the hurt he has caused them."

Save

    Share this article

Latest from New Zealand

New Zealand

'Big, scary number': Trump tariffs could hike to 20% for NZ goods

Watch
Premium
Editorial

Editorial: Hoons in cars and on bikes have no place in our communities

New Zealand

'Added pain': Funeral directors urge review as cemetery fees soar across NZ


Sponsored

Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from New Zealand

'Big, scary number': Trump tariffs could hike to 20% for NZ goods
New Zealand

'Big, scary number': Trump tariffs could hike to 20% for NZ goods

The Front Page talks to Liam Dann ahead of the looming August 1 deadline for Trump's tariffs.

Watch
14 Jul 05:00 PM
Premium
Premium
Editorial: Hoons in cars and on bikes have no place in our communities
Editorial

Editorial: Hoons in cars and on bikes have no place in our communities

14 Jul 05:00 PM
'Added pain': Funeral directors urge review as cemetery fees soar across NZ
New Zealand

'Added pain': Funeral directors urge review as cemetery fees soar across NZ

14 Jul 05:00 PM


Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky
Sponsored

Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky

06 Jul 09:47 PM
NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • NZ Herald e-editions
  • Daily puzzles & quizzes
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Subscribe to the NZ Herald newspaper
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP