Charlotte Varcoe
MILLICENT man Cody James Edwards, 27, will spend at least eight years behind bars for killing his partner Synamin Bell.
Family members of Ms Bell stormed out of Mount Gambier Supreme Court this afternoon as the sentencing was handed down.
Ms Bell was found dead in her home in March 2022 after Edwards contacted family and friends of hers claiming to have killed her.
The two were believed to be in a relationship and, according to the defence, had consumed the illicit drug known as DOI the night of her death.
Edwards initially pleaded not guilty to murder but during the seven-day trial held in Mount Gambier/Berrin earlier this year, Edwards pleaded guilty to manslaughter.
At the time, the trial was suspended with Edwards’ sentencing occuring in the Mount Gambier Supreme Court this week.
During sentencing submissions, the court heard Edwards’s version of events with his defence lawyer Steven Milsteed stating the claims during his submission statement.
Mr Milsteed said the two took an equal amount of the drug from a previous batch Edwards had purchased the year before.
He said Edwards claimed Ms Bell had told him she “wanted to take some trips” and after consuming the drugs, the two sat on her bed in her home and began rolling some cigarettes.
Edwards had stated to Mr Milsteed he did not know when the paranoia had set in but did recall Ms Bell claiming she did not trust him.
He said over the course of the evening, some of Ms Bell’s actions, including “poking around the corner and looking at him”, standing near a knife block and allegedly striking him with a pencil made him believe that she was a threat.
The court heard the two began wrestling each other before falling onto the floor, at which point Mr Edwards killed Ms Bell.
The court also heard Edwards had a history of drugs and had previously experienced paranoia or fear while taking drugs generally.
Mr Milsteed stated Edwards had previously taken the DOI drug from the same batch himself and Ms Bell had consumed on the night of the offending, and experienced “fear and paranoia” in late 2021.
Justice Adam Kimber responded to the statement claiming he was interested in how the use of the drug previously impacted upon Edwards’ moral culpability for the offence.
Justice Kimber stated Edwards had voluntarily taken the drug which he believed had reason to cause him fear and paranoia.
“It seems to me this is an important aspect of his moral blameworthiness because not only did he take a drug which was illegal, he took a drug with the expectation that it would substantially alter his mental state,” Justice Kimber said.
“He did not anticipate this tragic outcome but he anticipated that when he voluntarily altered his mental state he would feel paranoid.”
The prosecution stated the drugs were taken deliberately to induce hallucination and to alter one’s state of perception and one’s mental state.
“These substances are unlawful and if you take them there are consequences not just in terms of impact of the law but personally and for the community generally,” the prosecution told the court.
“He (Mr Edwards) rolled the dice.”
It was also stated Edwards “had the chance to leave” or seek refuge elsewhere in the house on the night.
“He chose to engage and most importantly initiated the attack,” they said.
“The reasonable person would not have taken that next step, would not have responded to the extent that he did in the way that he did.
“This man suffered a psychotic episode at the time…induced by taking DOI.
“He knowingly used it to experience hallucinations, he wanted the effect of altering his mental state, he had done that in the past knowing it induced paranoia in him…he took the risk of the impact of taking a mind-altering drug upon the risk of altering his conduct and his behaviour in those circumstances towards other people exposed.”
The court also heard Edwards was diagnosed with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder at the age of six and had been medicated for the condition since his early teenage years and was previously diagnosed with conduct disorders – particularly in relation to authorities.
The defence stated Edwards had previously knowingly abused the drug, being prescribed six tablets per day yet sometimes taking up to 20 in one day to gain a “strong stimulant effect” from the drug.
It was also stated Edwards had admitted to using both cannabis and methamphetamine during his teenage years.
Mr Edwards was sentenced to 11 years with a non parole period of eight years, 10 months, backdated to 2022.
