The Supreme Court allowed a Crown appeal against a sentence of eight months' imprisonment (suspended after 181 days) for aggravated recklessly endangering serious harm involving a prolonged tomahawk axe attack, finding it manifestly inadequate. The respondent was resentenced to 18 months' imprisonment with a six-month non-parole period, reduced from a notional two years with 12 months non-parole to account for 181 days already served. The Court confirmed that Local Court sentencing must have regard to the same factors as the Supreme Court including the statutory maximum penalty, and that Supreme Court comparative sentences are appropriate benchmarks; the Court also held that the prosecution's failure to specifically submit against a suspended sentence did not amount to a concession that a non-parole period was unavailable, and did not enliven the residual discretion to dismiss the appeal.
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