By CASEY NEILL
A HALLAM mother of four has been jailed for four years after bashing her Noble Park landlord to death in his own home.
Kristy Robb, 28, was on 25 September convicted of the manslaughter of Alan Matthews, 69, on 30 January last year.
Justice Jack Rush on Wednesday 28 October sentenced her to four years in jail with a two and a half year non-parole period.
The judge said Robb rented a bungalow at the rear of Mr Matthews’ Henry Street property for “a matter of days” in January last year.
Justice Rush said Mr Matthews “claimed you owed him rent and, as a consequence of this, he retained some of your property”.
Robb shared a bottle of vodka and two to three cannabis joints with her boyfriend Gino Rachele, 42, before attending Mr Matthews’ property about 2.45am on 30 January to retrieve school uniform items for her children.
Justice Rush accepted the timing was to avoid Mr Matthews and “there was no planning in your actions”.
Mr Matthews heard Robb and Rachele break into the bungalow and confronted Robb in the lounge room.
They argued and fought before Rachele grabbed the victim from behind and took him to the floor.
Robb left the property and Rachele soon followed.
Mr Matthews suffered several lacerations to his head and a fractured sternum, called triple zero at 2.53am and stated he had been “bashed by a woman and a bloke”.
Police found him dead in his bathroom at 3.32am.
Justice Rush said Mr Matthews “suffered cardiac arrest as a consequence of the stress of the assaults and potentially from loss of blood”.
He said the injuries from Robb’s assault were not in themselves life-threatening, plus there was evidence that Rachele played a greater role in Mr Matthews’ injuries than he admitted at trial.
“I am not satisfied beyond reasonable doubt that you are responsible for the fractured sternum,” he told Robb.
Justice Rush said Robb had a “tumultuous upbringing”.
Forensic psychologist Pamela Matthews diagnosed her with partial post-traumatic stress disorder and major depressive disorder.
“It was her view that your outbursts of volatile anger, anxiety and distress arising from this mental condition were significant contributing factors of your offending,” Justice Rush said.
Robb has prior convictions for theft, threats to kill, assault and resisting police and has four children, including four-month-old Alexander.
“Your prospects of rehabilitation are reasonably strong, but they are highly dependent upon and strengthened if you were to be granted continued custody of Alexander,” Justice Rush said.
He took into account Robb’s recent attendance at an anger management course and drug and alcohol counselling in reaching his sentence.
Rachele was on 3 September sentenced to a one-year community corrections order after pleading guilty to one charge of recklessly causing injury and false imprisonment.
