He has claimed dozens of lives and filmed their racially motivated murders with a helmet camera: now the Christchurch attacker wants to challenge his life sentence without the possibility of parole. As the competent appeals court in New Zealand’s capital Wellington announced on Tuesday, 32-year-old right-wing extremist Brenton Tarrant has filed a formal objection to the August 2020 judgment.
The Australian attacked two mosques on March 15, 2019, killing 51 people. 50 others were injured, some of them seriously. The perpetrator broadcast the meticulously planned massacre to the Internet using a helmet camera. Prior to that, he had emailed a “manifesto” with racist and right-wing extremist slogans and posted it online.
The Court of Appeal did not give a date for a possible hearing in the case or a substantive justification for the terrorist’s legal action. He had pleaded guilty in the case at the time. It was the first time a defendant was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole in New Zealand. As a result, the government tightened gun laws.
The crime in Christchurch, on the South Island of New Zealand, is considered the bloodiest in the recent history of the Pacific state. Many survivors still suffer the consequences today, are unable to work or have to live in severe pain. The trial gave more than 80 survivors and missed the opportunity to make statements. With emotional and sometimes angry statements, they often turned directly to the abuser.
“I promised a long time ago not to publicly name the March 15 terrorist,” Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said. “Your story of his must not be told and his name must not be repeated.” Ardern had already emphasized after the verdict about two years ago: “He deserves absolute silence for a lifetime.” Tarrant is being held in solitary confinement in a maximum security prison in Auckland.
The Federation of Islamic Associations of New Zealand (FIANZ) spoke of yet another attempt by the shooter to gain notoriety. He just wants to use the judiciary as a platform for hate speech and try to win new supporters for his cause. “This is a very brazen and calculated attempt to re-traumatize the victims of Christchurch in particular and the nation as a whole. It shows that the March 15 terrorist has no remorse,” FIANZ said. (pa/dpa)