Isaac William Powell loses manslaughter sentence appeal

An ice-fuelled fight at a Hervey Bay home, fuelled by jealousy and resulting in the death of a 45-year-old father, resulted in a nine-year jail sentence for the mate responsible. Now that mate has tried to get his sentence reduced.

A man’s appeal for a lighter jail sentence after killing his friend at a Hervey Bay home has been refused.

Isaac William Powell was sentenced to nine years jail on December 13, 2021, in Bundaberg Supreme Court after being found guilty of the manslaughter of Paul Herdman, 45.

An afternoon ‘ice’ party at the home ended in a deadly fight, a panicked attempt to hide what had happened and a wild manhunt.

A published Supreme Court ruling has revealed that Powell appealed the sentence on the grounds that it was “manifestly excessive”.

Justice Graeme Crow had fixed Powell’s parole eligibility date at September 10, 2023, after serving four years.

According to the court documents, Powell, who was 32 years old at the time, and his partner Jodie Bailey were taking meth at a house in Torquay on September 4, 2019.

While at the house, Powell overheard Ms Bailey tell another person that Mr Herdman had made a pass at her while Powell was serving time in jail.

As stated in the published court ruling, sometime later in the afternoon, Powell “struck” Mr Herdman out of jealousy that he had made a pass at his partner.

The blow to Mr Herdman’s jaw caused him to fall to the ground and hit his head, according to the court documents.

Mr Herdman was found lying on the ground with blood on his face, and despite attempts to wake him, he was unresponsive.

According to the court documents, Powell and Ms Bailey were hesitant to call 000 at the time because they were wanted for questioning by police.

Powell then fled the scene and lied as to why he had struck Mr Herdman, telling witnesses that the pair were “sparring” when his friend fell backwards.

On September 16, 2019, Mr Herdman died in the Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital from head and brain injuries.

According to the court documents, Powell had a “15 page Queensland criminal history”.

The court documents revealed he had abused drugs, including meth, since his early 20s.

In the published court ruling, Justice Peter Flanagan highlighted Justice Crow’s sentencing remarks which included Powell leaving the scene after striking Mr Herdman and not calling 000, and Powell’s lengthy criminal history.

Justice Flanagan said a head sentence of nine years jail for the manslaughter charge was not “manifestly excessive” given the circumstances of the case, as stated in the court documents.

He said Justice Crow “correctly considered” Powell’s “lengthy criminal history, his history of violence” and “how his violence was linked to drug use and his age”.

Justice Flanagan also said Justice Crow considered that Powell’s actions were “fuelled by jealousy”.

“Given these circumstances, the sentencing outcome does not indicate that there has been any misapplication of principle,” Justice Flanagan said.

“His Honour stated the reasons for delaying the applicant’s parole date, setting it as less than the halfway mark in recognition of those considerations which included the applicant’s criminal history, his antecedents and his timely plea of guilty,” he said.

“Again, the outcome does not bespeak error.”