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WARNING: DISTURBING CONTENT 

A long-running dispute over personal property was the impetus behind a gruesome driveway death last year in which a man was dragged underneath a car. 

Details of the incident, in which a hydraulic jack was needed to recover his body, have been revealed for the first time following Elizabeth Lynn Smith’s guilty plea today to manslaughter. 

Smith, 41, was charged with murder in June last year, following the death of father-of-three Dean Fifield. 

She appeared via audio-video link from Arohata Prison in Wellington today as she admitted guilt to the reduced charge. Both offences carry a maximum possible sentence of life imprisonment, but that sentence is mandatory in the vast majority of murder cases while very rare for manslaughter. 

Court documents state that Smith and Fifield had at one point lived at the same Moire Rd address in Massey, West Auckland, where the incident occurred. 

Smith returned to the address at about 11pm on June 13, 2024, “with the intention of recovering property”, according to the agreed summary of facts for the case. She brought with her two associates to assist with the task. 

Auckland accountant Elizabeth Lynn Smith appears in the High Court at Auckland, charged with the June 2024 murder of Dean Fifield in Massey. The charge was later downgraded to manslaughter. Photo / Michael Craig 

Things quickly escalated. 

Fifield came out of the house to confront the group, and the associates pulled out of the driveway and onto the road. 

“Mr Fifield followed their vehicle on foot and angered by the situation began punching the associate’s stationary vehicle with his closed fist, causing damage to the windscreen,” documents state. 

Smith, in her own car, a Mazda Axela, then drove out of the driveway and directly into Fifield. 

“Ms Smith’s vehicle struck Mr Fifield, which propelled him onto the bonnet initially before he fell under the front of Ms Smith’s vehicle,” the agreed summary continues. “Ms Smith continued driving a short distance with Mr Fifield wedged underneath her vehicle. 

“Mr Fifield was trapped under the vehicle when it came to a stop on Moire Road.” 

Fifield was pronounced dead at the scene, after emergency responders took measures to lift the car. 

Auckland resident Dean Fifield was fatally struck by a car in Massey in June 2024. Elizabeth Lynn Smith was charged with murder but instead pleaded guilty today to manslaughter. Photo / Supplied 

Fifield previously described himself online as an avid amateur athlete with a background and passion for nutrition and food science. 

“I believe you are what you eat, which reflects on happiness and wellbeing in our communities, providing the well-being to be and perform to everyone’s best,” he wrote on his LinkedIn profile. “Developing tasty consumer demanding healthy products which bump off the junk food products is one of my next big goals.” 

In online tributes after his death, friends described him as “a lovely chap” and “a force to be reckoned with”. 

“A big heart, you couldn´t help but want to help anyone that you passed paths with,” one person wrote. 

Smith’s murder trial had been set to begin in September. She will instead be sentenced next month. 

Justice Mathew Downs accepted the guilty plea today, ordering her to remain in custody until sentencing. 

Craig Kapitan is an Auckland-based journalist covering courts and justice. He joined the Herald in 2021 and has reported on courts since 2002 in three newsrooms in the US and New Zealand.