The other two were found not guilty of murder, but were convicted of manslaughter, a charge they had admitted earlier. <\/p>\n
Today, Taylor\u2019s sister, Catherine Spooner, told his killers that they would be freed from prison one day, and would be able to reconnect with loved ones and family. <\/p>\n
\u201cFor my wh\u0101nau, there will be no ending, no reconnection, no future time with our Boy. <\/p>\n
\u201cThe thought of this is unbearable, and yet I have to go on \u2013 all of us in Boy\u2019s wh\u0101nau have to go on \u2013 with our lives, knowing he leaves such an enormous hole in our hearts, in our future without him.\u201d<\/p>\n
Despite this, Spooner said she was trying to find a place in her heart to forgive the men who had taken her brother\u2019s life. <\/p>\n
\u201cI wish you wellness, peace and safety in your future journey. We forgive you,\u201d she told them across the courtroom. <\/p>\n
Attack captured on CCTV cameras<\/p>\n
The attack on Taylor was captured on CCTV cameras, including one in a shop on the other side of the street.<\/p>\n
The footage was played to the jury repeatedly during the two-week trial. <\/p>\n
It showed the four men punching, kicking and stomping on the man who chose to live on the streets despite offers of help and support from his family. <\/p>\n
The four men who killed Boy Taylor (from left): Trizarn Henare, Rua Hune, Tuarima Alexander, and Takarangi Kumar. Photo \/ Ric Stevens<\/p>\n
Trizarn Henare, 20, and Takarangi Kumar, 19, were found guilty of murder.<\/p>\n
Today, Henare \u2013 described in court as the \u201cmost involved\u201d in the attack \u2013 was jailed for life with a minimum non-parole period of 10 years.<\/p>\n
Kumar, a first-time offender, was sentenced to 18 years of imprisonment with no minimum term without parole. <\/p>\n
The sentencing judge, Justice David Boldt, said he had taken into account Kumar\u2019s youth, his \u201csad and challenging\u201d personal history and his potential for rehabilitation in deciding that a life sentence would be \u201cmanifestly unjust\u201d. <\/p>\n
The two convicted of manslaughter were Rua Hune, 34, and Tuarima Alexander, 22.<\/p>\n
Hune was jailed for seven years and two months, while Alexander was given four years and five months. <\/p>\n
During the trial, Hune\u2019s lawyer, Matthew Phelps, pointed out to the jury that his client stepped away from the fracas for periods of time while he attended to a cut on his forehead.<\/p>\n
Alexander\u2019s counsel, Nicola Graham, said her client was the \u201cleast involved\u201d in what happened, generally trailing the others and on the periphery.<\/p>\n
Verdicts decided on definition of murder<\/p>\n
The defence case for all the accused turned on a provision of the Crimes Act that defines murder: to be guilty of murder, a person must intend to cause another\u2019s death or be \u201creckless\u201d about whether their actions are likely to cause that person to die.<\/p>\n
Lawyers for all four men argued that these conditions had been absent.<\/p>\n
The four had also been charged with injuring with intent to do grievous bodily harm, in relation to another man they attacked about two hours earlier.<\/p>\n
The jury delivered split verdicts in relation to that incident. Henare and Kumar were guilty, but Hune and Alexander were convicted on the lesser charge of injuring with intent to injure.<\/p>\n
Boy Taylor, a street-dweller who died in Napier’s Emerson St shopping precinct a week before Christmas 2024.<\/p>\n
Taylor armed himself with bottles<\/p>\n