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A woman sentenced this week to 12 months' jail for helping convicted murderer Nathan Fenton evade police is due to be released from prison on Wednesday.
Eileen Everitt, 29, has been in custody since September 7, when she and Fenton were caught.
Her lawyer Dave Sayes said under Ministry of Justice rules she will get out of jail on March 7, having served half her sentence.
The Sentencing and Parole Reform Act 2001 states that offenders sent to prison for 12 months or less can be released once they have served half their time.
Everitt was sentenced this week, having earlier pleaded guilty to being an accessory after the fact to murder.
She helped Fenton dodge police for 11 days after he killed Whangarei teenager Mairina Dunn.
Mr Sayes would not reveal where Everitt was being held, or where she planned to go when she got out. But he said she felt "the safest she's ever felt" while locked up in prison.
"Eileen Everitt clearly suffered from and continues to suffer from battered women's syndrome. There's never been a clearer case," he said.
Along with details of beatings that put her in hospital five times - with injuries including a broken jaw, arm and shattered pelvis - it was revealed in court on Wednesday that Fenton had previously bitten off the end of Everitt's finger. It was later sewn back on.
The pair broke up after a four-year-long relationship about three months before Mairina was murdered. After they separated, Everitt found out she was pregnant with Fenton's twins, but miscarried last July 31.
Mr Sayes said Everitt had had to carry the babies until August 8, when she had an operation to remove them. The bodies were returned to her on August 24 in two black boxes, and three days later she buried them. That day, Fenton had beaten Miss Dunn to death.
Everitt had found out about the murder the following day, tried to kill herself four days later, then got in touch with Fenton to offer her help on September 2.
While they were on the run, Mr Sayes said, Fenton had pulled a knife on her and subjected her to violence. Before she joined him on the run, she had left two goodbye notes for family.
Mr Sayes told the court the twins' deaths had left Everitt psychologically stunted.
- NORTHERN ADVOCATE
