NRL star's mum to claim mental health defence over crash that killed three people
Updated . First published at
The mother of premiership-winning NRL star Payne Haas will claim a mental-health defence over the deaths of three people in a head-on collision during a police pursuit.
Uiatu "Joan" Taufua faced Queensland Supreme Court today for an arraignment on the three counts of manslaughter stemming from the devastating crash on a narrow rural road in the Gold Coast hinterland on December 30, 2022.
Taufua was due to enter pleas to the charges but her barrister Martin Longhurst instead sought to have the matter referred to the Mental Health Court.
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Payne Haas at Queensland Country Bank Stadium. Getty
"This matter has a long history ... a psychiatric report has been a very long time coming," Longhurst said.
"I received the report yesterday afternoon. That has been disclosed to (prosecutors). It does give a reference to a potential section 27 defence."
Section 27 of the Queensland criminal code is an insanity defence that a person is not criminally responsible for an act if they were delusional or did not have the mental capacity to control their actions or know they were wrong.
Taufua's case should be immediately referred to the Mental Health Court, Longhurst told Justice Elizabeth Wilson.
That court decides whether an alleged offender was of unsound mind.
Taufua stood in the dock wearing gold-rimmed glasses and a black dress with a yellow flower pattern.
Police will allege that she was fleeing police before ploughing into an oncoming vehicle, killing Chris Fawcett, 79, Susan Zimmer, 70, and her 35-year-old daughter Steffanie.
Longhurst told the Supreme Court in October Taufua had struggled to accept the death of her child.
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Joan Taufua will a claim mental health defence. Nine
"In the time leading up to the driving, the defendant had been displaying very aberrant behaviour," Longhurst said.
Chace Haas, 21, died in Gold Coast Hospital in August 2020.
He had lived his entire life using a wheelchair after breaking his neck in a car accident at just five months of age.
It would be extraordinary for a case that has been running since December 2022 to have a referral to the Mental Health Court at this stage, crown prosecutor Dejana Kovac said.
"It's very unfortunate for the parents of the deceased," Ms Kovac said.
"It's a position that could have been avoided had these issues been sorted out earlier than yesterday at 4.58pm. The prolonged process has already had an impact on the families."
Taufua - the mother of Brisbane Broncos forward Payne and Gold Coast Titans rising star Klese Haas - was the crash's sole survivor.
Taufua was on parole at the time of the crash after being sentenced to nine months in prison for assaulting two security guards at The Star casino.
She was subsequently returned to custody after the collision.
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Christopher Fawcett, Susan Zimmer and their daughter Stephanie died in the crash. 9News
In November 2024, Taufua was committed to stand trial after conceding she had a prima facie case to answer.
Justice Wilson said she would suspend Taufua's Supreme Court matter.
Taufua was remanded in custody and her case will return to the Supreme Court in February for an update on the Mental Health Court's progress.
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