‘Despicable’ behaviour doesn’t make Hayden Tasker guilty of murder, lawyer says

Source: Radio New Zealand

Content warning: This story discusses suicide

A man who drove at police officers in Nelson and killed Senior Sergeant Lyn Fleming was drunk, depressed and suicidal but his despicable behaviour does not make him guilty of murder, his lawyer has told the High Court.

Hayden Tasker, 33, is accused of murdering Fleming and critically injuring Senior Sergeant Adam Ramsay when he drove into them in the early hours of New Year’s Day 2025.

In closing arguments at Tasker’s High Court trial in Christchurch, defence lawyer Marcus Zintl said the crash was a “terrible, terrible, terrible tragedy” that “should not have happened”.

He said Tasker was driven by a desire to end his own life in a police chase rather than intending to kill or hurt police.

“He was suicidal, he was on medication for depression, he was living in his car,” Zintl told the jury.

“He was alone, he had no close family support and virtually no actual friends.”

Zintl said Tasker’s father died when he was 16. His long-time girlfriend had recently dumped him, he was unemployed, on a benefit and had nothing going for him.

“He wanted to end the painful, pointlessness and pitifulness of his life that he was experiencing at that time, which is why he wanted to end up himself in a police chase,” he said.

Zintl said Tasker “drank himself silly” with a bottle-and-a-half of red wine, he was three-and-a-half times over the breath alcohol limit and filled his car with petrol before arriving in the car park that night.

The first collision, when Tasker drove into Fleming and Ramsay, happened six seconds after he started his car.

The second collision, when he rammed the white police patrol car, was around 26 seconds later in what Zintl said was a moment of madness, desperation, stupidity and empty-headedness.

The court was earlier played footage of Tasker’s first police interview around 11 hours after the crash.

Zintl said Tasker’s state of mind could be ascertained from his admission to police in that interview.

“I didn’t think of the consequences. I was in a bad headspace but that doesn’t give me an excuse, Tasker said.

The jury saw how he broke down in tears and vomited during that interview after learning Fleming had died.

Tasker said it “should have been me that died that day”.

“I never thought I’d kill anyone … didn’t really think it through,” he said in the interview.

Zintl told the jury Tasker’s actions were “despicable, deplorable, and dreadful” but that did not make him guilty of murder.

He said the jury needed to be sure Tasker intended to cause the officers harm, knew it was likely his actions would cause death and that he was reckless as to whether that occurred, in order to find him guilty of murder.

“All those mental elements, while intoxicated, depressed, suicidal, and in a six-second period.”

Tasker had earlier admitted three charges of dangerous driving.

A ‘grandiose fantasy’

Crown prosecutor Jackson Webber told the jury Fleming was “senselessly and needlessly” killed when Tasker deliberately used his Honda Odyssey as a weapon, accelerating as hard as he could towards the officers at an estimated speed of 45 kilometres per hour, shortly after 2am.

“Hayden Tasker sitting in his car, drinking wine saw the two police officers. He watched them. He was angry at the police and he made a series of conscious decisions. To start his car, to leave his headlights off, to pull out of that parking space and manoeuvre his car around to the south, then to the west to accelerate, to drive straight into Lynn Fleming and Adam Ramsay,” he said.

Webber said the pair had done nothing to provoke or antagonise Tasker, apart from the fact that they were police officers in uniform.

“They were on duty, doing their job, keeping others safe and ironically, one of the risks that they had been considering that night was the risk of a vehicle intrusion attack,” he said.

Webber said Tasker’s actions did not fit the claim that he did not intend to hurt or kill the officers but wanted to take his own life.

“[He] didn’t stop, he didn’t jump out to see what had happened or to check on the people he had just hit,” he said.

Tasker’s behaviour during and after the collisions was inconsistent with a suicide attempt, he said.

“It was going to be glorious, like a movie. It was a rather grandiose fantasy that he might talk about, but had no real intention of ever carrying out,” he said.

Chaos among Buxton Square New Year’s Eve revellers

Over two weeks, the jury heard from more than 40 witnesses, members of the public and police officers who were in the central Nelson car park in the early hours of New Year’s Day.

The jury heard how Tasker drove into the Buxton Square car park in his White Honda Odyssey at 2.05am.

What unfolded shortly afterwards was documented by CCTV footage, cellphone videos taken by members of the public and eyewitness accounts.

At 2.09am, Tasker pulled out of a parking space and with his headlights off, made a tight u-turn, driving towards Fleming and Ramsay who were standing on a raised pedestrian crossing near the toilets in the centre of the car park.

Members of the public were forced to jump out of the way before the vehicle scraped past a red police car and hit the two officers, sending Ramsay into the air and landing around eight metres away towards another patrol car.

Fleming was carried with the vehicle and projected forward, landing around 20 metres from where she was hit.

“If there’s one glimmer of light in this otherwise very dark case, it is that so many decent people rushed in to help,” Webber told the jury.

Constable Molly Inman was the first to get to Fleming. She began CPR and was helped by other officers and members of the public before paramedics arrived.

Inman and another officer dragged Fleming towards the toilet block in Buxton Square when they saw Tasker’s car loop around the car park after the first collision and come back towards them.

Tasker then turned his headlights on and drove back to where he had hit the officers, ramming into the back of a white police car, shunting it several metres forward.

The impact knocked over Sergeant Craig Barker who had gone to Ramsay’s aid, left Constable Jemma Radcliffe who had been inside the car with a concussion and struck Tasman Cook, who was also helping Ramsay, with enough force it broke her arm.

Both collisions happened within 30 seconds of Tasker starting his engine.

A member of the public ran towards the car and took the keys out of the ignition. Tasker was pulled from the passenger side of the vehicle, arrested and taken to the Nelson Police Station where he was later charged with murder.

Fleming was taken to Nelson Hospital and placed on life support but died shortly after it was turned off.

Justice Cameron Mander will sum up the case on Monday before the jury retires to consider its verdict.

Where to get help:

• Need to Talk? Free call or text 1737 any time to speak to a trained counsellor, for any reason
• Lifeline: 0800 543 354 or text HELP to 4357
• Suicide Crisis Helpline: 0508 828 865 / 0508 TAUTOKO. This is a service for people who may be thinking about suicide, or those who are concerned about family or friends
• Depression Helpline: 0800 111 757 or text 4202
• Samaritans: 0800 726 666
• Youthline: 0800 376 633 or text 234 or email talk@youthline.co.nz
• What’s Up: 0800 WHATSUP / 0800 9428 787. This is free counselling for 5 to 19-year-olds
• Asian Family Services: 0800 862 342 or text 832. Languages spoken: Mandarin, Cantonese, Korean, Vietnamese, Thai, Japanese, Hindi, and English.
• Rural Support Trust Helpline: 0800 787 254
• Healthline: 0800 611 116
• Rainbow Youth: (09) 376 4155
• OUTLine: 0800 688 5463
• Aoake te Rā bereaved by suicide service: or call 0800 000 053

If it is an emergency and you feel like you or someone else is at risk, call 111.

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand