Officer Tells Christchurch Trial She Thought She Would Die After Colleague Murdered in Nelson

A police officer has told a Christchurch court she believed she was going to die moments after watching a car strike and kill Senior Sergeant Lyn Fleming during Nelson's New Year's Eve policing operation.

The Details

Constable Kirsten Moir testified before the High Court in Christchurch that she thought she was going to die after seeing Hayden Tasker's white Honda Odyssey speed back through Nelson's Buxton Square moments after it struck Senior Sergeant Lyn Fleming and Senior Sergeant Adam Ramsay in the early hours of New Year's Day 2025.

"I'd just seen how fast this car had gone, so I was expecting it to hit me at any second and I thought I was going to die," Moir told the court.

The trial concerns the death of Senior Sergeant Fleming and the injuries sustained by Senior Sergeant Ramsay after Tasker drove into them in central Nelson. Tasker, 33, has pleaded not guilty to murder and not guilty to intentionally causing grievous bodily injury. He admits charges of dangerous driving and argues Fleming's death should be classified as manslaughter rather than murder.

The Crown, in its opening address, asserted that Tasker intentionally accelerated toward the officers. Crown prosecutor Mark O'Donoghue told the jury: "The Crown case in a nutshell is that Mr Tasker intentionally drove into those two police officers."

The prosecution further contends that Tasker appreciated death was a likely consequence of his actions and later admitted he was aiming for police after brooding over his circumstances and anger toward police.

Context

Senior Sergeant Adam Ramsay, who survived the incident, testified that he heard the car's engine, saw headlights approaching, and had time to form a thought before impact. In a police interview played to the court, Ramsay said: "I just looked in the direction of the sound and just saw a set of headlights and had enough time to sort of formulate the thought, you know, this this could be bad." He later learned that Fleming's injuries were unsurvivable.

Fellow officer Jude Yeoman described the collision as sounding like a landmine explosion and told the court Fleming was thrown 20 to 30 metres by the impact.

Constable Moir also gave evidence about Tasker's conduct following his arrest, testifying that he appeared to fake seizures before stopping when another officer informed him that he knew Tasker "fakes seizures all the time."

Senior Sergeant Ramsay told the court that Fleming had been concerned the night of the incident that vehicle controls in Nelson's central business district were inadequate and had intended to raise the issue. The trial, which is expected to run for roughly three weeks with more than 40 witnesses, is being heard in Christchurch High Court.

What's Next

The trial of Hayden Tasker continues in Christchurch High Court, with more than 40 witnesses expected to be called over its three-week duration.