For Palmerston North woman Val Burr, 71, the parole hearing process is one sheโs used to. She dreads each August as she once again faces begging a panel of people not to let her daughterโs killer out of jail.
On September 15, 2002, 16-year-old John Wharekura knocked on the door of Tanya Burrโs Hilda St. flat and asked her for a piece of paper and pen, supposedly to write a note for a friend in a neighbouring flat.
When the 21-year-old turned, he went inside and stabbed her 15 times. At the time, he was one of New Zealandโs youngest killers and had an undiagnosed psychosis.
John Wharekura was 16 when he killed Tanya Burr, making him one of New Zealand's youngest killers at the time.
He was freed in 2018 following his 14-year non-parole period but recalled the following year after problems with adhering to parole conditions and his mental health. He has since been convicted of assault offences in prison.
In 2021, he was charged with wounding with intent to cause grievous ****** harm relating to an assault on another prisoner. The Auckland District Court confirmed to the Rotorua Daily Post no conviction was entered because he had an insanity defence.