Republic v Thomas - sentence [2006] KIHC 49; Criminal Case 54 of 2005 (2 March 2006)

IN THE HIGH COURT OF KIRIBATI
CRIMINAL JURISDICTION
HELD AT BETIO
REPUBLIC OF KIRIBATI

High Court Criminal Case No. 54 of 2005

THE REPUBLIC

vs

MEAMEA THOMAS

For the Republic: Ms Pauline Beiatau
For the Accused: Mr Glenn Boswell

Date of Hearing: 1 March 2006

SENTENCE

Meamea Thomas: you have pleaded guilty to manslaughter.

Between 11 and 12 o’clock on 10 December last year you came to your grandmother’s house. Sitting at a table was Mwakei Kourabi. You immediately punched him in the face. He fell off the chair, hit his head, was injured so seriously that he died. You did not mean this to happen. Mr Boswell told me that Mwakei was an effeminate man, some relative of the family. Mwakei had previously touched you on the genitals. This had greatly upset you but you had kept the anger inside yourself. On this morning you were drunk. Perhaps this caused you to lose some control and to punch Mwakei. You are a very powerful young man, a champion weight lifter who has won many medals and represented Kiribati at the Pacific Games, the Oceanic Games and at the Athens Olympics. You may have hit Mwakei more forcefully than you realized. You should not have hit him at all, however much you had been repulsed by him and by his actions.

You have no previous convictions. That is in your favour and will mean a shorter term of imprisonment than otherwise.

You are 20 years old. You left school in Form III to concentrate on weight lifting.

You will be imprisoned for four years to run from 27 January when you went into custody.

Dated the 2^nd day of March 2006

THE HON ROBIN MILLHOUSE QC
Chief Justice