KEY POINTS:
Society has to take action to stem the tide of youth drinking, a spokesman for the family of Rarua Edwardson said after the Turangi teenager was convicted of manslaughter today.
After a 13-day trial at the High Court in Rotorua the jury of eight women and four men
took 3-1/2 hours to find Edwardson not guilty of murdering her former friend Melissa Puhi but guilty of manslaughter. Both were 16-years-old when they fought on a Turangi street late on a Saturday night last May.
They had been consuming alco-pop drinks when they clashed outside a 21st birthday party.
"What is tragic is every Friday and Saturday night, it is a menu for murder and mayhem dished up on a bed of alcohol," said Des Baker, speaking on behalf of the Edwardson whanau.
Manufacturers and marketers of ready mixed spirit drinks were getting rich while young teenagers had easy access to reasonably priced but potent booze, he said.
"The prevalence of alcohol has never been so great."
It was socially acceptable for young teens to drink top shelf alco-pops at weekends and changes needed to be made, Mr Baker said.
Edwardson, now 17, stabbed Miss Puhi in the neck with a small wine knife and Miss Puhi bled to death in an ambulance on the way to Taupo Hospital.
Justice Lyn Stevens told the court it was a very difficult trial in a number of ways.
"It is an absolute tragedy for all concerned," he said.
He told family and supporters of both Edwardson and Miss Puhi who packed the public gallery: "I am sensitive to what you have all been through."
Justice Stevens remanded Edwardson for sentence on April 27 and excused the jurors from serving on another jury for another year.
Defence counsel John Rowan QC argued Edwardson was acting in self-defence.
But crown solicitor Fletcher Pilditch said Edwardson knew the consequences when she stabbed Miss Puhi.
Edwardson had taken a wine knife with a retractable blade and "plunged" it into Miss Puhi's neck after receiving a "hard punch" to her face.
Mr Baker, from Raglan, and Edwardson's uncle Don Edwardson, from Hamilton, said the family was happy she had not been found guilty of murder.
They revealed an offer had earlier been made to the Crown of a guilty plea to manslaughter but the prosecution insisted on sticking with the murder count.
"We knew there was no intent," Mr Baker said.
The Edwardson family was also trying to alleviate the suffering of Miss Puhi's whanau by making the plea offer to speed up court proceedings.
Miss Puhi's weeping relatives would not speak to reporters after the verdict but her mother made a conciliatory approach to the Edwardsons.
Mr Baker said Rarua Edwardson -- who took the jury's verdict calmly but began to cry as she was led from the dock -- was articulate, bright and intelligent.
"She is a wonderful girl."
She had expressed remorse for what had happened and maintained it wasn't intentional.
He said now she had been convicted her life was "no longer in limbo".
She could move on once sentencing was over.
Mr Edwardson echoed the sentiments about his niece. "She's a good girl," he said.
He said that, to his knowledge, she had only had "a couple of beers" at her grandfather's birthday party since last year's tragedy.
She knew now that drinking alcohol was unacceptable and her focus was on her future.
- NZPA
