Kingsley Alley Jr’s killers in court for sentencing as lawyer flags shock clemency plea
A shock clemency plea rocked the first day of sentencing for the killers of Palmerston teenager Kingsley Alley. Read what happened.
Northern Territory
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Lawyers for a woman found guilty of murder will appeal for clemency in a last-minute bid to keep her out of jail.
David Edwardson KC told Darwin Supreme Court on Wednesday that he would seek executive clemency for Melissa Clancy, one of four people found guilty of murdering Palmerston teenager Kingsley Alley in October 2022.
Mr Edwardson told the court that Ms Clancy’s sentence was disproportionate in relation to her role in the murder.
“We say a 20-year non-parole period in the circumstances of my client’s alleged offending is to say the least, disproportionate to her alleged involvement in the death of Kingsley Alley,” he said.
“Having regards to the directions given by the court to the jury, the only rational explanation for the verdict must be the jury was prepared to be satisfied beyond reasonable doubt.
“This will be very much the focus of (Ms Clancy’s) appeal on the grounds of which I can say should be filed this week.
“In my submission the starting point is that a sentence of life imprisonment for the minimum non-parole period for 20 years is extraordinary when one has regard for the following facts.”
First among those was the lack of “direct evidence” of any conversation involving Ms Clancy and others involved in the murder that pointed to a desire to harm or even kill Mr Alley.
Earlier, the court had heard victim impact statements from Mr Alley’s loved ones with Madeline Roe, the teenager’s girlfriend and mother of his daughter, calling for justice.
“Kingsley invested a lot of time trying to overcome his rough upbringing and to improve himself and his circumstances,” Miss Roe said.
“Kingsley wanted to live to really create changes in his life and change the narrative for his daughter and siblings.
“It’s been two years since my daughter has seen her father. It’s been two years since we shared a conversation and how we wanted to raise our daughter and the distance is growing.
“I no longer have my support person here to make those decisions in parenting. I’ll never be able to call him again.
“I’ll never be able to tell our daughter why her dad isn’t around.
“Her father was stolen and a crucial relationship for our daughter was destroyed. A true victim of crime before she could even walk, talk or even get to know her dad.”
Ms Roe reflected on the brutality of the crime committed on her daughter’s father.
“Four people left my daughter’s father laying on the ground as though his life meant nothing, as though our lives meant nothing,” she said.
“His death was cold-blooded and wasn’t finished after they’d left him to die. He lives in each of those of us who love Kingsley.”
In November following a month-long Supreme Court trial, a jury took only 10 hours to convict Madison Butler, Melissa Clancy, Dechlan Wurramarra and an unnamed teenager for Kingsley Alley Jr’s murder in the early hours of October 8, 2022.
About 10 members of Mr Alley’s family were in court on Wednesday for the sentencing hearing.
Mr Alley was 18 when he was killed.
Under the Northern Territory’s mandatory sentencing laws, offenders convicted of murder receive a minimum 20-year mandatory sentence.
Ms Butler’s defence lawyer David Hallowes put the case to Justice Barr that his client deserved a lesser sentence because of her age.
He produced a number of certificates she had received through completing courses while in custody to highlight the unlikelihood of her reoffending.
Julie O’Brien, defence lawyer for the unanmed teenager, sought a reduced sentence on behalf of his age.
This was rejected by prosecuter James Moore, who said the teenager was 17-and-a-half-years at the time of the crime, making him only months younger than co-accused Madison Butler.
The hearing continues on Thursday.
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