GRAPHIC CONTENT: A man who subjected his girlfriend s little sister to sickening abuse for five and a half years was supported by his partner in court as he was sentenced over the horrific abuse.
Brae Taylor Lewis was originally jailed for 11 years in 2018 after he was convicted of maiming his then-girlfriend by setting her on fire on May 27, 2016, but that was slashed on appeal.
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Rockhampton’s District Court had a challenging year as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, recording the state’s lowest clearance rates for regional courts for criminal matters.
The busy court had a clearance rate of just 69.8 per cent in the 2019/2020 period for criminal matters, with 341 new cases lodged and 238 cleared.
It is a far cry from the 2016-17 financial year clearance rate of 103.6 per cent, meaning there was a 33.8 per cent drop in Rockhampton district court matters finalised.
This is in comparison to the state’s other regional District Courts clearance rates – Beenleigh (99.5 per cent), Cairns (89 per cent), Ipswich (96.4 per cent), Maroochydore (80.6 per cent), Southport (91.1 per cent) and Townsville (88.1 per cent).