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2
Supreme Court 6 July 2000

R v SETTE

[2000] NSWSC 648

Homicide
CRIMINAL LAW SENTENCING MANSLAUGHTER

Citation: R v Sette [2000] NSWSC 648
Court: Supreme Court of New South Wales (Common Law Division)
Date: 6 July 2000
Judge(s): Barr J

Background

The offender was convicted of the manslaughter of her infant son, born in November 1997. Following a difficult pregnancy, intense family pressure, and significant psychological distress, she had consented to the child's adoption. The adoptive placement was nearly finalised when, in February 1999, she attended a scheduled access visit with the child and his prospective adoptive parents at a picnic in Victoria.

At that access visit, the offender removed the child from the gathering on a pretext, placed him in her car, stabbed him to death, and concealed his body in a dam near Moama, New South Wales. The charge was ultimately resolved as manslaughter rather than murder on the basis of substantial impairment by abnormality of mind.

The sentencing hearing took place in July 2000. The court heard extensive evidence about the offender's personal history, psychiatric condition, and the circumstances bearing on her moral culpability.

  • What sentence was appropriate for manslaughter where the offender's criminal responsibility was substantially impaired by an abnormality of mind at the time of the killing?
  • What weight should be given to the offender's personal history, psychological vulnerability, and lack of prior criminal record in determining the nature and length of the sentence?
  • Was a non-custodial or suspended sentence open on the facts, given the objective seriousness of the conduct?

Decision

Barr J accepted the psychiatric evidence that the offender was suffering from a significant abnormality of mind at the time of the killing, substantially impairing her capacity to reason and to control her actions. The court received evidence from forensic psychiatrist Professor Mullen, whose opinion about the offender's mental state at the time of the offence and her continuing psychological condition was accepted. The offender's personal history was extensive and troubling: she had been the subject of family shame and coercion following her pregnancy, had twice attempted suicide, had suffered a sexual assault, and had endured sustained psychological deterioration over several years.

The court found that, while the objective facts of the killing were grave, the offender's moral culpability was substantially reduced by her mental state. The sentencing judgment drew on the principle from Regina v Georgina Marie Hill (1981) that where substantial impairment is established, it carries significant weight in mitigation of sentence.

Barr J accepted that the offender was genuinely remorseful, noting her difficulty in speaking about the killing and her expressed feelings of overwhelming guilt, and that her amnesia concerning the events was genuine. The court also expressly acknowledged the suffering of the adoptive parents, who had cared for the child for a year and endured the trauma of his abduction and death.

Having regard to all these factors, Barr J concluded that this was a sufficiently unusual case to warrant a suspended sentence rather than full-time custody. The court emphasised that the sentence imposed should include a condition supporting the offender's ongoing psychiatric treatment and rehabilitation.

Orders Made

  • The offender was sentenced to imprisonment for two years, commencing 6 July 2000 and expiring 5 July 2002.
  • Execution of the sentence was suspended for the same two-year period.
  • The offender was released from custody on condition that she enter into a two-year good behaviour bond.
  • Bond conditions included: appearing before the court if called upon; being of good behaviour; notifying the Registrar of any change of residential address; and continuing to consult Dr Leitmanis, accepting any advice and treatment offered, including referrals to other medical practitioners.

Key Takeaways

  • A finding of manslaughter on the basis of substantial impairment by abnormality of mind can, in sufficiently exceptional circumstances, support a wholly suspended sentence even where the objective conduct is serious.
  • Barr J treated the psychiatric evidence of substantially impaired reasoning and self-control as carrying significant mitigating weight, consistent with the principle in Regina v Georgina Marie Hill (1981) 3 A Crim R 397.
  • The sentencing court gave detailed attention to the offender's extended personal history, including family coercion, prior suicide attempts, sexual assault, and longstanding psychological deterioration, as context bearing directly on moral culpability.
  • Genuine remorse, an absence of prior convictions, and prospects for rehabilitation through ongoing psychiatric treatment were identified as factors supporting a non-custodial disposition.
  • The judgment included formal acknowledgment of the harm suffered by the adoptive parents, reflecting the court's recognition of the wider human consequences of the offence beyond the immediate parties to the proceedings.

Legislation and Cases Referenced

Cases:
- Regina v Georgina Marie Hill (1981) 3 A Crim R 397

Legislation:
No specific legislation was cited in the judgment text or metadata. The sentencing took place under the general criminal sentencing jurisdiction of the Supreme Court of New South Wales, with manslaughter by substantial impairment being a recognised partial defence under New South Wales criminal law.