Child killer gets parole
A man who killed his two-yearold daughter will be released from prison this month on parole after serving one third of his sentence
Philip Murray Kinraid, formerly of Taranaki, was imprisoned for four years and three months after he pleaded guilty to manslaughter. He became eligible for parole in July.
Esme Claire Kinraid died on June 26, 2015 after her father held her down with enough force to stop her from getting up as he tried to settle her for bed.
Kinraid continued to restrain the child and held her face down on a pillow. When he left the room, he believed the toddler was breathing normally but when he checked on her hours later, the child was not moving. Attempts to resuscitate Esme were unsuccessful.
On the day he became eligible for release, Kinraid appeared at a Parole Board hearing held at Tongariro Prison.
The report prepared for board members was described as ‘‘favourable’’ and outlined how Kinraid was deemed a low risk and had a new partner, an approved place to stay and a strong network of support in the community.
A psychological report completed on Kinraid in May said ‘‘he had made exemplary progress through one-to-one counselling’’ and did not require any further treatment. The report stated Kinraid had also completed anger management, grief counselling and parenting courses.
‘‘Mr Kinraid has no previous convictions and the offence was inexplicable,’’ the Parole Board report said. ‘‘Although, as he says, the death of his daughter was ‘an accident’, his actions, which caused that death, were unlawful and very serious.’’
The Parole Board said after weighing up all the factors, Kinraid met the statutory criteria for release and did not pose an undue risk to the community, ‘‘provided he faithfully complies with the conditions of parole.’’
Kinraid will leave prison at an undisclosed date in November, and be paroled to an address in the South Island.
Once out of prison, Kinraid will have to abide by a series of special conditions for six months. This includes living at an approved address and not having any contact with the victims of his offending. A monitoring report about Kinraid’s progress will also be provided to the Parole Board in March 2019.
In October 2017, the Court of Appeal dismissed Kinraid’s appeal against the length of his sentence. A bid to the Supreme Court to challenge a Court of Appeal ruling which upheld a judicial decision to lift suppression on an aspect of the case – namely that Kinraid had faced a murder charge at one stage of his prosecution – also failed.
After Esme’s death Kinraid was initially charged with manslaughter but during the police investigation, a murder charge was laid. However, a February 2016 pre-trial hearing in the High Court, ruled the evidence used to elevate the charge as inadmissible.
As the Crown had relied heavily on this material, it decided to reduce the charge to manslaughter, to which Kinraid pleaded guilty.