STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:
The man convicted of the Christchurch Mosque shootings in New Zealand is asking a court to withdraw his guilty plea. He was sentenced on murder and terrorism charges for killing 51 people and injuring dozens more. Kristina Kukolja reports.
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UNIDENTIFIED MUSICAL ARTIST: (Singing in non-English language).
KRISTINA KUKOLJA, BYLINE: A moving tribute in New Zealand's traditional Maori language - the victims remembered at a national memorial in March 2019.
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UNIDENTIFIED PERSON: Muse Nur Awale, Zakaria Bhuiyan.
KUKOLJA: Weeks earlier, Australian Brenton Tarrant had opened fire on worshippers during Friday prayers at two mosques in the city of Christchurch. All the victims were Muslim and included children. But now, years later, Tarrant is asking the court for more time for his appeal filed in 2022, well after the legislative deadline. He told the court of appeal via video link from prison this week he wasn't of sound mind when he pleaded guilty. John Pratt is emeritus professor of criminology at the Victoria University of Wellington. He says Tarrant claims, quote, "inhumane prison conditions" affected his decision-making.
JOHN PRATT: On the grounds that he was disorientated (ph) in 2019 and having been apprehended by the police and having spent time in solitary confinement in custody pending trial, he dismissed his lawyers and pleaded guilty.
KUKOLJA: In making its decision, the court is hearing evidence from prison officers, psychologists, Tarrant's former lawyers and other experts. Professor Pratt says ultimately Tarrant wants the court to reconsider his conviction and sentence, which could lead to retrial. A panel of three judges is expected to deliver its ruling later this year.
For NPR News, I'm Kristina Kukolja in Melbourne, Australia.
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