Thu, 12 Nov 2009 5:54p.m.
Graeme Burton
By Michael Morrah
One of the country's most notorious murderers has been found guilty of trying again, this time inside Paremoremo jail.
Graeme Burton used a steel rod to stab a Headhunters gang associate, who almost died in the attack – but the jury clearly wrestled with its decision.
Burton has more than 100 previous convictions, and police say the 38-year-old had nothing to lose when he attacked a fellow inmate.
His victim was Dwayne Marsh, who was in the same wing as Burton in the country's highest security prison.
CCTV footage of the attack showed Burton hobbling down a landing on his artificial leg, chasing Marsh and then stabbing him seven times with a sharpened metal rod.
It is thought Burton made the weapon from part of a medical trolley.
Crown prosecutor Deb Bell told the court that one of the blows to Marsh's chest was two to three centimetres deep. The steel rod went through his ribs and pierced his heart. She says Burton had intended to not just harm Marsh, but to kill him.
But the jury clearly struggled to convict Burton, taking more than 12 hours to deliver a verdict.
Burton was jailed for the murder of Wainuiomata man Karl Kuchenbecker, who he shot while on parole for another murder. Burton also injured two mountain bikers during his rampage. He was only stopped when police shot him in the leg.
"I don't think we've seen the worst of Burton yet," says Garth McVicar of lobby group the Sensible Sentencing Trust.
Despite his violent background, Burton's lawyer says his client has been pleasant to deal with.
"He's perfectly lucid and rational, and has been one of the easiest clients to deal with, I suppose," says Peter Tomlinson. "I didn't know what he was like before, so I'm not surprised."
Burton got 26 years for Kuchenbecker's murder and he will again be placed before a judge for sentencing next month.
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