Today was the last day of Coroner Alexander Ho’s inquest into the 3-year-old’s death.
The hearing in Invercargill lasted about five weeks and was split between two sessions.
In 2019, Lachie was found 1.2km from his Gore home, face up in an oxidation pond. Police quickly concluded the boy had drowned, but later confessed they "missed some steps" in the investigation.
Lachie’s father Paul Jones never believed his son drowned and suspected foul play.
Today members of the public gallery wept as the court heard the lawyers involved sum up the case.
Counsel for police Robin Bates said the police admitted shortcomings in their investigation, but had since done everything they could to rectify those.
“No stone has been left unturned, as far as that can be done at this point,” Mr Bates said.
“Everybody involved in this case would like to be able to turn back the clock to prior to Lachies death and prevent that.”
He said the coroner would have to be careful when taking into account the evidence of Karen Smith, a retired major crime detective from the United States.
“Ms Smith's evidence should come with a warning to read the label carefully.
"Ms Smith does not have a unique skill as she describes herself, but rather the time and motivation to review cases with the hope she will find something that others have missed.”
Mr Bates said the witness had become an advocate for one position rather than a neutral expert.
But Lachie’s father disagreed, and thought Ms Smith did a more thorough job than the police.
“My son idolised the police, but they have hugely let him down,” Mr Jones said.
“The police investigation’s been that bad, [they’ve] had to count ducks to get to sleep.”
He thanked his supporters and legal team for their commitment to fighting for justice for Lachie and said his death continued to affect him.
“I now spend all [of Lachie’s] Christmases and birthdays at a headstone."
Beatrix Woodhouse, counsel for Lachie’s mother Michelle Officer, said her client had to deal with false accusations of neglect and foul play.
“[Lachie] is and always will be sorely missed by his family, who are still grieving five years on."
Ms Woodhouse there was no evidence of Ms Officer being neglectful and in fact many witnesses said she was a loving, caring mother.
“This is a case where the evidence speaks for itself."
She urged the court to issue its findings as soon as possible to shut down “ongoing and unreasonable rumours or suspicions that have surrounded this case”.
In a statement, Ms Officer said Lachie's death continues to impact her.
“Our whole world has been shattered since Lachie's passing."
She now wanted to be able to grieve in private with her family.
Max Simpkins, counsel for Lachie’s father, urged Coroner Ho to find Lachie’s cause of death to be “undetermined” and recommend police should complete a “proper” investigation.
He said some of the evidence to support a diagnosis of drowning was “unconvincing” and the dog failing to track Lachie’s scent if he had been there was “complete nonsense”.
Mr Simpkins said police, medical professionals and the community had let down the vulnerable 3-year-old and the investigation was not given the care and attention it deserved.
He placed weight on the condition of Lachie’s body at post mortem and said the lack of water in his lungs, his unmarked body and his face-up position in the water meant drowning was not a safe diagnosis.
Adam Holloway, counsel for the pathologist who completed Lachie’s autopsy, said there was little evidence that pointed to a diagnosis other than drowning.
“Drowning is utterly consistent with what can be seen."
Coroner Ho said his task of making a finding could be a lengthy process as there was a lot of evidence to consider.
“It is hard to be asked to wait and to have faith in the process.
“No matter how Lachie came to be in the pond... the death of a 3-year-old boy in a situation like this is a tragedy.”
He reminded the court that the inquest was not about proving anyone right or wrong, but rather finding out what happened to Lachie.
“I will work as hard as I can... to try and cast some light into the shadows [about] what happened to Lachie that day."
