ABC News https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-09-21/mother-escapes-jail-wynnum-stabbing-teenage-daughter-court/12685192
A mother who told her teenage daughter to “die you dog” after repeatedly stabbing her during an alcohol-fuelled fight on Brisbane’s bayside last year has escaped a jail sentence.
Key points:
- The woman’s attempted murder charge was downgraded to a domestic violence offence
- The court heard she did not attempt first aid after stabbing her daughter in the face, neck and back
- Justice Glenn Martin told the woman she was “very lucky” not to be facing murder charges
The 39-year-old, who cannot be named for legal reasons, was originally charged with attempted murder after she used a kitchen knife to attack the 17-year-old in February 2019 in her Wynnum townhouse.
During what would have been the first day of a Supreme Court trial in Brisbane, the woman pleaded guilty to a downgraded domestic violence charge of acts intended to cause grievous bodily harm.
During sentencing submissions, the court heard on the morning of the stabbing the pair were heavily intoxicated after drinking a “ridiculous” amount of alcohol, when they began arguing.
The court was told the fight escalated when the teenager threw two mugs at her mother, hitting her once in the head and causing her to bleed heavily.
The court heard the woman continued to be physically assaulted by her daughter before she took a knife and threatened her.
During the attack, the teenager was stabbed five times in the face, neck and back and suffered a serious wound to her lung, causing it to collapse.
Woman ‘very lucky’ to avoid jail time
The court heard the woman had not tried to provide first aid to her daughter, but did call triple zero on two occasions, which was credited to saving her life.
Justice Glenn Martin said both women had acted “appallingly” but conceded the teenager was violent to her mother during the fight and that the woman’s intent to injure her daughter was “momentary”.
After spending just under a year in custody, the woman was sentenced to five years in prison, wholly suspended.
Justice Martin said the woman had a “dysfunctional” family life and a “violent relationship” with her daughter but the court needed to take her actions “very seriously”.
“The use of a knife is extremely worrying,” he told the woman.
“You would be spending a long time in jail had that come to pass.”
Justice Martin warned the woman not to commit any further crimes and told her she must begin “self-policing” when she left court on Monday.
“If you stay out of trouble, you’ll stay out of jail,” he said.