Court upholds teen's sentence for killing young pregnant couple on Australia Day
A Brisbane court has upheld a teenager's sentence over a horror Australia Day crash that killed a young couple and their unborn child.
Matthew Field, Kate Leadbetter and their unborn son Miles were killed when they were struck by a stolen car that sped through a red light while the couple was walking dogs in Alexandra Hills on January 26, 2021.
The car was driven by a 17-year-old boy, who can't be named for legal reasons.
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Matthew Field, Kate Leadbetter and their unborn child were killed in the crash. Nine
The teenage driver pleaded guilty to manslaughter and several other charges.
The now 19-year-old was sentenced to 10 years in prison, which is the maximum sentence for a child unless it can be shown the crime was particularly heinous.
The teen only needs to serve six years of the sentence before he is eligible for parole.
The prosecution argued the sentence of 10 years and the eligibility of parole after six is too lenient while the defence argued it was too harsh.
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A court decided to uphold the sentence for the convicted teen. Supplied
Both the prosecution and defence were unsuccessful in shifting the teen's sentence.
The court of appeal judges at the Brisbane Supreme Court decided the convicted youth will continue the sentence given to him of a maximum of 10 years and a minimum of six years.
Field's family said outside court they hoped common sense would prevail however expressed more frustration at the government over youth crime in the state.
"The premier has never spoken to us to this day, two and a half years after the event," Matthew's father Russell Field said.
"(She) has not had the decency to make contact with us."
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