Assize murder with magic beans: accused interrogated
The defense does not dispute that De Lauwenaar was guilty of the poison murder of his partner Dana Van Laeken (36) in October 2018. The lawyers for the accused ask the jurors to help look for an appropriate sentence.
Pieter P. is assisted in his assize process by master Jan Leysen, master Kris Vincke and master Elisabeth Vanpeteghem. Their defense statement immediately indicated on Friday that they will plead guilty. “It’s the worst thing he’s ever done in his life,” he said. The defense emphasized that the accused can no longer make amends. “His first and heaviest punishment is not prison, but the unbearable burden of living with the truth that he killed his child’s mother. The difficult question is the sentence. What is appropriate as the suffering, as the punishment he should receive ?”
“Don’t judge too quickly”
Master Leysen also explained that the accused and Dana Van Laeken found happiness again after their first marriage. According to the defense, they had underestimated the situation with the two sons from P.’s first marriage. “There were tensions. There were quarrels. Unfortunately, there was also aggression. The bad relationship between Dana and her stepson went from bad to worse.” Talks about the matter were no longer helpful. “And Pieter didn’t like a new divorce. What if he had to fight for his children again. What if he hardly ever saw their common daughter. We hope to learn during this process how he came to make the miserable decision. take to kill his wife.” Finally, the jurors were asked not to judge too quickly. “Just as life is not black and white, neither is this case.”
Master Jef Vermassen filed a civil suit for Dana Van Laeken’s mother and sister. “I have prepared them for what they will hear here. Because the way Dana died is described in the file as inhumane.” In addition, it was emphasized that the victim himself can no longer refute the defense’s claims. “That’s why I have to stand up for her. And I’ll see to it that hopefully they won’t kill her a second time. She’s the victim, not him.”
“Do not use daughter as an argument”
Master Francis De Decker was appointed by the chairman as ad hoc guardian for the seven-year-old daughter of those involved. “Mom obviously can’t do it anymore and dad is sitting there. That’s why a neutral outsider is appointed,” he clarified to the jury. According to her ad hoc guardian, the girl barely knows that the assize process is about to start. Master De Decker also realized that a difficult balancing act awaits him when defending her interests. “I especially ask that she not be used as an argument or as a defense. She should not be a reason to distort the facts here in this trial.”
The verdict is not expected until Tuesday 20 December. Pieter P. risks life imprisonment for poison murder.