Lesley Elliott said her family's life had fallen apart and would never be the same.
Victim impact statements have started to be read at the sentencing of Clayton Weatherston, who in July was found guilty by a Christchurch jury of killing his former girlfriend and student Dunedin woman Sophie Elliott(22), in the High Court at Christchurch.
Mrs Elliot talked of the day of her daughter's death and seeing her daughter being stabbed even after she was dead.
"My beautiful daughter had been butchered. I saw her bloodied body lying there that only minutes before had been warm and given me a hug."
Mrs Elliott was then locked out by Weatherston, who continued stabbing her daughter's lifeless body.
"I will never forget the terror."
They were lucky to have so many photos of her. "all now stopped at the age of 22," Mrs Elliott said.
She had had many hours of counselling for flashbacks to her death and hopes in time she will be able to think of her as she was and not as she died.
She cried herslf to sleep every night, took medication to keep her functioning on a daily basis, had taken all her leave and reduced her hours of work.
"Clayton Weatherston this is what you have done to us . . . I hope her screams of agony ring in your ears as they do in mine."
"Everything I had existed for stopped that day," Sophie Elliott's father has told a Christchurch court of the day his daughter was brutally stabbed to death.
Gil Elliott said he was still struggling to come to terms with his daughter's death.
"Can you imagine what it feels like? She was so badly mutilated they were advising us not to see her," he said of organising his daughter's funeral.
He spoke directly to Weatherston several times, closing his statement by looking at Weatherston and saying: "Clayton you are the epitomy of evil".
Mr Elliott also read out a statement from his son Nicholas, who said since his sister's death had suffered deep depression and struggled with his physical and mental health each day.
Weatherston looked down, taking glances at Mr Elliott as the first statement was read.
Weatherston's father read a brief statement to the court on behalf of his son.
Weatherston had grown up in a honest, law-abiding family and was a normal child and a high achiever, Roger Weatherston said.
"I never thought for one minute he would be capable of such a travesty that unfolded on January 09, 2008."
He had never seen any evidence of this behaviour before.
"I hope Clayton can find it in himself to publicly show remorse," Mr Weatherston said.
Weatherston is not allowed to be photographed while victim impact statements are being read or while he is sentenced.
At least four victim impact statements will be read out in court, three of them in person from members of the Elliott family.
There are about 80 people in the public gallery, including the Elliott and Weatherston families, supporters and police
Miss Elliott, who had been Weatherston's girlfriend, was stabbed in her Dunedin home 216 times on January 9 last year.
Read a full report in tomorrow's Otago Daily Times newspaper.
