Boy lived like he was ‘bulletproof’
Brooklyn Taylor was still a boy but he lived like he was ‘‘bulletproof’’.
He wasn’t. The 13-year-old died on Sunday night when the stolen car he was in, raced through Christchurch, fleeing police before hitting a tree and exploding in a fireball.
As police appeal for witnesses to the high-speed chase ending in the crash that killed three young people, Brooklyn’s family spoke out about his short life.
Stealing cars was his hobby, and the high-speed bid to escape from police that killed him and his friends was not his first.
Family say the 13-year-old’s life went into a downward spiral after his father died nine years ago and he was removed from his mother’s care. In the following years, he lived with various relatives and was in and out of Child Youth and Family – now Oranga Tamariki – facilities.
The troubled teen fell into the wrong crowd, began to commit crimes, and developed a penchant for stealing cars. He had a reputation with some police officers.
On Sunday night, he and his best mate Craig McAllister, also 13, and Craig’s older brother, Glen McAllister, 16, stole a Mazda Familia from a property in Wigram.
According to one of Taylor’s caregivers, his older brother Damian Diedrichs’ partner, Alana Gilchrist, Brooklyn had been involved in several high-speed police chases. They usually ended with police arresting the older people in the car and, because of his age, taking Brooklyn back to his caregiver or to CYF.
Nothing deterred him. On Sunday, he was riding in another stolen car. The driver, thought to be Glen, reached speeds of 130kmh while running red lights. Police made chase for just over a minute before calling off the pursuit.
The car continued to Blenheim Rd, where two officers laid road spikes – designed to make tyres go flat. The car hit the spikes, then the driver lost control. The car hit a tree, rupturing the fuel tank, then exploded in what police described as a ‘‘ball of fire’’. The heat was too intense for the officers to rescue the teens.
Gilchrist said the system that was supposed to help Brooklyn failed him instead.
‘‘We knew this was coming and that’s why we approached [Oranga Tamariki]. These are young teenage boys, full of adrenaline thinking they’re bulletproof.’’
After his grandmother’s death in April, a family group conference was held to decide what was best for Brooklyn. The family learned he was hanging out with people in their 20s committing crimes.
His older sister wanted him to move to Wellington, while Gilchrist and Diedrichs offered to have him at their home.
‘‘He really wanted to just come and live with his family immediately but the system doesn’t work like that.’’
The decision was made for Brooklyn to get treatment at special centres then move in with Gilchrist and Diedrichs. It did not eventuate. He lasted a day at the first centre before running away with a friend.
Oranga Tamariki Canterbury manager Blair McKenzie refused to comment about Brooklyn’s care.