Yes.
P
Have you any idea, what, what time did you go to bed last night?
N
About quarter to 10.
P
OK. So you both went to bed together sometime after 10?
N
Yeah, yeah. I got up about 2. I’m a diabetic and I (inaudible) and I got up about 2 and I fell asleep on the couch and the alarm’s just gone.
P
OK. Alright, OK.
N
(inaudible)
P
Is there anyone, is there anyone I can ring to sit with you? Is there anyone you want me to call to come help you?
N
(inaudible)
P
OK. Alright, just, I know it’s, it’s too hard to answer questions. OK. OK. Is there anyone else in the house? Is it …
N
No.
P
Just, just the two of you, OK.
N
Mmm.
P
Look we’re coming to help you there. We’ll help you look after all the details and, and we’ll have someone look, look after him for you. You just stay on the phone with me until the ambulance arrives.
Now Helen, I didn’t catch his first name because you were crying there. Can you just give me his first name?
N
It’s Philip.
P
Philip, so he’s Philip MILNER, OK.
N
NISBET.
P
Sorry?
N
NISBET.
P
NISBET. And you’re Helen NISBET?
N
Yes.
P
OK.
N
N.I.S.B.E.T.
P
OK, fine. OK.
N
And I’ll have to phone his work he should be there.
P
I’m sorry? Say that again.
N
He, he, he should be at work by now.
P
Oh don’t worry about that. We’ll look after everything and we’ll help you let people know. Where does he work?
N
Oh ———.
P
OK, alright. OK.
N
(inaudible)
P
So Helen, I asked you before, is there anyone I can ring to sit with you? Is there anyone I can get to come and sit with you there?
N
No, the only person I (inaudible) my son (inaudible). He doesn’t have a car and he’s on curfew.
P
OK. So there’s no neighbour that you’re close to?
N
No, they’ve already gone to work.
P
OK, alright.
N
One of them actually works with Phil.
P
Alright, alright well we’ll just wait until the ambulance come and then we’ll sort things out for you.
N
(inaudible)
P
OK. Yeah. Helen would you like me to send some Victim Support to help you?
N
(inaudible)
P
I can get someone to sit with you and help you through this.
N
(inaudible)
P
OK.
N
(inaudible)
P
So there’s no family I can ring that can get round to you now is there not?
N
No.
P
No family.
N
There’s only my son. The rest of the family are in Australia.
P
OK, alright.
N
(inaudible)
P
Alright, so your, your, your son is in Christchurch?
N
My son is yes.
P
Alright and can I give him a ring?
N
Ah umm (inaudible).
P
Sorry I didn’t, I didn’t understand that Helen. What …
N
Yeah he’s, he’s, he’s only, only got a cell phone.
P
Alright, if you give me his number we’ll try and get in touch with him.
N
02
P
Yeah.
N
XX
P
Yeah.
N
XX
P
Yeah.
N
X
P
Yeah.
N
XXX
P
Alright, and his name is?
N
Adam.
P
Adam, OK.
N
Yeah.
P
Alright, we’ll try and get hold of …
N
(inaudible) he can’t come round at the moment because he’s on curfew.
P
Oh I see, well we might be able to help with that, OK.
N
Yeah and he doesn’t, he doesn’t have transport either. Oh God.
P
Whereabouts does he live?
N
In, in Churchill Street.
P
OK, alright. I’m just getting a message here, OK. OK. Hopefully it’s not going to be long now and there’ll be an ambulance with you. Is there any chance that we could resuscitate your husband or is he cold?
N
I don’t think so.
P
You don’t so, OK.
N
(inaudible)
P
OK, OK.
N
(inaudible)
P
OK. OK. So he wasn’t on any medication or they just didn’t know what was wrong with him did they not?
N
They didn’t know (inaudible) and they said he’d had a stroke.
P
Alright.
N
And they did all the tests and (inaudible) basically they really didn’t know and they just sent him home to rest and, and go back to work when he felt up to it.
P
Oh OK.
N
(inaudible)
P
OK. Alright, the ambulance won’t be long.
N
Yes.
P
And Police are on the way and I’ll just stay with you on the phone.
N
(inaudible)
P
OK.
N
Oh they’ve arrived.
P
They’ve arrived, OK.
N
(inaudible)
P
OK, I’ll leave you with them, OK.
N
(inaudible)
P
OK Helen, OK, OK, bye.
Appendix Two
HELEN MILNER’S STATEMENTS TO POLICE
I requested these statements and managed to obtain them before access to them was shut down, when the new investigation into Phil’s death began following the release of the inquest results.
I told Detective Inspector Greg Murton that I had the file, and he advised me against reading any of the statements. I heeded his warning, looking only at the official documents from the hospital, pathologist and police. It was only after Helen’s conviction and my return to Australia that I have delved further into this file.
Helen made two statements to police. The first, as follows, was taken nine days after she murdered Phil. It is reproduced here exactly as supplied, but with some personal details withheld.
Tuesday 12th May 2009
1.20 p.m.
Hornby Police Station
My name is Helen Elizabeth NISBET. That is my full name. I was also known as Helen Elizabeth MILNER before I was married and Helen Elizabeth KEARNS while I was married to my first husband.
; I was born on 11th November 1963 at Christchurch.
I am making this statement to Detective Prosser of the Hornby Police about my husband Philip James NISBET.
I live at — Checketts Avenue, Halswell, Christchurch.
My home phone number is ——— and my cell phone number is ———.
My email address is ———.
Phil died on the 4th May 2009.
I believe he took an overdose of tablets.
Phil and I have been married for three and a half years. We have known each other for seven and a half years.
We lived together at — Checketts Avenue for four years before we got married.
Phil and I got on very well with all our neighbours at Checketts Avenue.
We met through a mutual friend, ———, who we call JP.
I have lived at — Checketts Avenue for seventeen and a half years and lived there with my boys Gregory KEARNS and Adam KEARNS before Phil moved in with us.
The house is just in my name. We made this decision on the advice of our lawyer because Phil had some tax debts.
Gregory was born in 1989 and moved out of home when he was about seventeen years old.
Phil and Gregory got on really well. Gregory worked with Phil at ——— from when he was fifteen until Phil left when Gregory was about eighteen years old.
Gregory now works for ———.
Adam was born in 1991 and he didn’t get on with Phil at all. He got on with the rest of us when it suited him. Adam is a control freak and, as long as you are doing what he wants, he loves you. Otherwise he is impossible. He is volatile and has caused thousands of dollars worth of damage to our home. We have had to have him removed from the home numerous times by the Police. On one occasion I refused to cook tea for Adam at ten o’clock at night and so he took a swing at me. Phil got between us and ended up in hospital.
Gregory and Adam’s dad is Mark KEARNS. He lives in Christchurch, in ——— Street. I last spoke to him about two years ago I suppose. It was a reasonable break-up.
We had been married for five years before we broke up, about sixteen years ago.
Phil and I had what I would call a normal marriage. We had our ups and downs. The main thing we fought about was kids.
On the whole we were very happy.
We did have one break from each other about November 2006, when I turfed him out because everything seemed to be getting on top of us. His ex partner, my boys, my health, and I wasn’t coping. I thought he would be better off on his own and away from the hassles we were bringing into his life.
He had enough hassles with his ex partner and son.
We were apart for four months but we still saw each other on a regular basis. We attended counselling together and sorted a lot out.
Since then we only ever really fought about the kids.
Phil’s family all live in Australia except for his two boys who live in New Zealand.
His eldest son Zak BELL lives with his mum Vicky ANDREWS in Rakaia. He is sixteen and Phil and I have always had quite a distant relationship with Zak because he has his own life down in Rakaia.
However, Zak has really come to the fore in the last few days and been so supportive. He has been ringing to see I am okay. He has asked to come and stay in a few weeks time when I am ready.
At the funeral he was the one supporting me. He kept putting his arm around me. I told his Mum he was a credit to her.
His youngest son is Ben PORTER, who lives with his Mum Karen PORTER in Christchurch.
Ben is 14 but is very immature for his age. Ben has been manipulative towards both Phil and me but we can see it was his mother behind him.
Phil and I got on well with Ben but his mother is a nasty piece of work. We could see Ben when it suited her.
She always played the poor downtrodden mother and would try and fleece us for everything she could. On Monday she rang me to find out what was going on. She didn’t believe me and claimed the Police she had spoken to had all been set up by me.
On Tuesday she finally believed Phil had died and was back on the phone asking me when she could come and get Ben’s things and what she could get out of Phil’s Estate.
She has been back on the phone today asking the same things. When I told her it was too soon she told me I was being an ‘unreasonable cow’.
Phil has his parents and three siblings in Australia.
They are all around the Brisbane area.
His parents are Jim and Yvonne NISBET.
I get on extremely well with them. The first time I met them they stayed with us for six weeks, two weeks after Phil and I moved in together.
I have always said that, if I could have chosen my family, I would have chosen his family.
Phil’s brother is Andrew NISBET, who is forty five years old. Andrew lives with his son Rhys, who is eleven.
Phil’s other brother is Roger NISBET, who is about forty three years old and lives in a flat.
Phil’s young sister is Lee-Anne CARTIER. She is forty and lives with her three children, Aaron, Rajon and Lecoure. Her ex husband is French.
The girls Rajon and Lecore are nine. They are gorgeous and their birthday is the same day as Phil’s.
My mother Anne MILNER lives in Papanui. We don’t get on though. The last time I spoke to her was about four years ago. We fell out when I had Adam put into child care because I couldn’t cope with him. She didn’t approve.
Phil’s doctor is at the Moorhouse Medical Centre. He sees Dr —— or something like that.
The last time he went to the doctor’s was when he went earlier this year because he had had an accident at work and crashed his knee.
Phil was on natural fish oil and glucosamine for joints. Other than that he was not on any regular medication that I was aware of.
Phil went to the Doctor’s when he needed to or if I needed him to. He did go through a really rough patch at his previous job where he ended up on anti depressants but went to a naturopath and went onto a natural anti-depressant after that because he didn’t want to get addicted to anything.
He stopped using that probably about a year ago.
I go to Dr —— at the Upper Riccarton Medical Centre.
I am a diabetic. I am on Insulin for this.
I am also on an anti-depressant but I can’t remember the name. I have been on them for about six months.
I am also on all the various heart medications that go with being a diabetic.
I’ve been diabetic for eight years. I have to blood test five times daily.
Phil worked for ———, a food distribution company based in Port Hills Road. He was a truck driver.
He started working for ——— in August last year. He seemed to enjoy it there and got on with the staff.
I am not aware of any issues there at all.
Phil and I just got back from a holiday in Brisbane with his family.
We were planning on selling up and moving over there. We even had jobs lined up.
Phil was offered a job at ——— doing van sales and I had been offered a position at a kitchen giftware shop although Phil was worried I would spend all may pay there!
We went to Brisbane on eighteenth March and came back on the 29th March.
I am very allergic to insect stings and bites. I don’t like to carry an adrenaline epipen because of all the needles I already carry for my diabetes. Instead I got Phenergan tablets which help with the insect bites and stings. It prolongs the time it takes for my body to go into anaphylactic shock.
Phenergan are not prescribed. Some chemists ask for details but some of them don’t.
I get mine from the Pharmacy at Hornby. I usually have some at home just in case. One packet would usually last me past their two year expiry date.
The Phenergan tablets also make you sleepy. While we were away Phil got a mosquito bite on the back of his knee and was going crazy with that swelling up and itching so he took one of my tablets.
Black Widow, The: How One Woman Got Justice for Her Murdered Brother Page 19