Inmate Dennis Colin Graham pleads guilty to bashing Hillier triple murderer Steven Graham Peet in prison assault
A prison inmate has admitted bashing Steven Peet — who murdered a woman and two children at Hillier almost three years ago — in a vicious jailhouse assault.
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- Hillier triple murderer’s jail term increased to 36 years
- ‘Vicious prison assault’ leaves Hillier triple murderer injured
- Triple murderer ‘being checked for brain damage’ after assault
A prison inmate has admitted bashing Steven Peet — who murdered a woman and two children at Hillier almost three years ago — in a vicious jailhouse assault.
Dennis Colin Graham, 25, faced the Adelaide Magistrates Court on Friday charged with one aggravated count of causing serious harm.
However, in a plea bargain deal struck with prosecutors, he instead pleaded guilty to the lesser — yet still aggravated — charge of causing serious harm with intent to do so.
The change in charge reflects the severity of Peet’s injuries — at one time, he was thought to have suffered brain damage.
It also encompasses the fact Graham used an offensive weapon in his attack, which took place inside Yatala Labour Prison on May 9, 2018.
However, it remains a major indictable offence, meaning Graham faces a maximum penalty of up to 25 years’ jail when sentenced in the District Court.
Peet, 33, is serving a minimum 36-year prison term for murdering Adeline Yvette Wilson-Rigney and her children, Amber and Korey, at Hillier in May 2016.
His prosecution was plagued by delay, much of which was caused by his baseless claims of having suffered from a disassociative state during the children’s murders.
He was originally jailed for 30 years, prompting outcry from the community, the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions and the children’s grieving grandparents.
The Court of Criminal Appeal increased his term, saying the initial sentence “barely betrayed the repulsion felt by the community” and failed to accord dignity to the victims.
The decision brought little comfort to the children’s paternal grandfather, Steven Egberts, who said both they and their entire family had been robbed of any dignity by the court process.
On Friday, Magistrate Simon Smart remanded Graham in custody to face the District Court in May, when a date for sentencing submissions will be set.
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