KEY POINTS:
Liam James Reid - described by the judge as "an evil and dangerous predator" - bowed and waved to the clapping crowd as he began one of New Zealand's longest terms for murder, rape, and attempted murder.
Justice Lester Chisholm said Reid's arrogance was unbelievable. He imposed a
minimum non-parole term of 26 years as well as preventive detention for the murder and rapes in Christchurch and Dunedin.
The gallery in the No 1 High Court at Christchurch was packed to see the sentencing of the man convicted of the rape and murder of deaf woman Emma Agnew, and the rape, sexual violation, attempted murder and robbery of a 21-year-old student in Dunedin.
Many of the audience were members of the deaf community and the sentencing session was interpreted with sign language.
The public gallery broke into applause as sentence was finally imposed. Reid, 36, shaven headed, tattooed and flanked by three prison officers, bowed to the crowd and then raised both arms in a kind of victory salute as he was led away.
In one sense, he has fulfilled his life's ambition. The medical reports prepared on him before sentencing say he wanted to be a serial murderer and rapist.
He raped and murdered Emma Agnew at Spencer Park on November 15, 2007, and then attacked a Dunedin student nine days later, raping her and trying to strangle her before she belted him in the testicles and got away.
Outside the court, the family of Miss Agnew said they believed the judge had made the right decision, but it would not bring Emma back. Her brother said: "We can finally have peace. We can finally be left alone. We can think about our sister."
Garth McVicar of the Sensible Sentencing Trust was in court, and said on the steps of the courthouse: "We have got to be ecstatic about the sentence. Congratulations to the judge. He has sent a message to New Zealand that we won't accept this type of behaviour. It's one of the best sentencings we have seen."
Crown prosecutor Pip Currie said the Crown sought up to 22 years non-parole term for the rape and murder of Miss Agnew, and an uplift for the Dunedin attack.
She said the reports revealed Reid's sadistic sexual fantasies about rape and murder, and how he became blind with rage when he was angry. He could picture himself squeezing people's heads until they popped.
He had reported in detail that he would like to rape and murder and dispose of female victims. He spoke of a childhood desire to kill animals because he found that satisfying, but he thought killing a person would be better.
He had 61 previous convictions for threats, assaults and two aggravated robberies, but none were for sexual offending.
Defence counsel David Bunce urged that a minimum non-parole term of no more than 20 years be imposed.
He said preventive detention was not an additional penalty but was imposed for the continuing safety of the community. But it was inherently difficult to predict the likelihood of further offending so many years in advance. The Parole Board would be in a better position to decide the matter at the time.
Justice Chisholm said it would have been immediately obvious to Reid, when he met Miss Agnew, that she was "deaf and vulnerable to your evil designs". He had not been deterred.
The later Dunedin attack had been premeditated, on a woman who was drunk and vulnerable, because Reid had with him the rope that was used to choke her during the sexual assault.
The judge said he had no doubt that he had strangled her and meant to leave her for dead.
Reid still denies all the offending and refuses to take treatment. Attempts at treatment have been stopped because of his hostility.
Justice Chisholm told him: "You are arrogant. You seek to dominate, particularly women. You are not lacking in intelligence and that is one of the dangers that underlie your activities. Sadly, there is not the slightest flicker of remorse. To sum up, you are an evil and dangerous predator."
He said there was not the slightest doubt that the jury had got it right.
Reid will be 62 when he becomes eligible for consideration for parole.
Locked up
Highest non-parole periods
* Feb 2003: William Bell, 25, jailed for a minimum non-parole period of 33 years, later reduced to 30 years on appeal, for killing three people at the Mt Wellington-Panmure Returned Services Association on December 8, 2001.
* Dec 2002: Bruce Thomas Howse, 40, 28 years non-parole on his life sentence for the murders of his stepdaughters Saliel Aplin and Olympia Jetson in their Masterton sleepout on December 4, 2001.
* April 2007: Convicted double killer Graeme Burton given a sentence of preventive detention with a non-parole period of 26 years, after pleading guilty to all 11 charges arising from his rampage on Wainuiomata Hill in January, which left quad biker Karl Kuchenbecker dead and four others injured.
* Dec 2008: Liam Reid, 36, given preventive detention with a minimum non-parole period of 26 years for murdering and raping deaf Christchurch woman Emma Agnew, and raping, sexually violating, attempting to murder and robbing a Dunedin woman nine days later.
- NZPA
