Man who fatally mowed down brother of NRL star Tom Opacic over love triangle dispute fails in appeal over 10-year sentence
A man who struck and killed the brother of an NRL star in a “brutal and senseless” act over a relationship dispute has suffered a major court setback.
A man jailed for fatally mowing down the brother of an NRL star in a “brutal and senseless” killing, all over a relationship dispute, has been refused an appeal over what he claims is a “grievance” in his sentence.
Steven Dale Latter is serving a 10 year jail term – imposed in May last year – for the manslaughter of Jake Opacic, 28, outside a prison in the Gold Coast Hinterland region back in July 2021.
Jake Opacic was the brother of former Brisbane Broncos, North Queensland Cowboys and Parramatta Eels star Tom Opacic.
Latter and his co-accused, Benjamin Charles Johnson, both pleaded guilty to the unlawful killing of Jake Opacic on July 2, 2021 after he went to Numinbah Correctional Centre to pick up his then-girlfriend, Rheannon Rowe.
During the resulting pursuit, Latter and Johnson collided with Mr Opacic’s motorcycle, causing “severe” injuries which led to his death.
Latter also pleaded guilty to a charge of stealing property – with a court being told he took Mr Opacic’s backpack from the scene of the crash.
The bag contained $9200 in cash.
Latter sought leave to appeal his sentence on the ground Supreme Court Justice Glenn Martin erred in law and failed to apply the principle of parity – where similar sentences should be imposed on people who commit an offence together – during his sentencing.
At the time Latter’s manslaughter offence was declared a “serious violent offence”, meaning he needed to serve 80 per cent of his sentence before being considered eligible for parole.
Johnson was jailed for nine years.
But Justice Martin did not set a parole eligibility date for him, meaning he would be eligible for parole the day after serving half the time of imprisonment.
“The applicant argues that as the applicant is unable to apply for parole for eight years and his co-accused is able to apply for parole after four-and-a-half years, there is a disparity between the sentences of the two co-accused, such as to give rise to a justifiable sense of grievance,” the Court of Appeal judgment states.
In their decision, Court of Appeal Justices David Boddice, Susan Brown and Graeme Crow noted Latter had been driving the vehicle which struck Mr Opacic’s motorcycle.
“It was his driving, at high speed, in deliberate pursuit of Mr Opacic, that caused the death,” the Court of Appeal judgment states.
All three justices said Latter had only been on parole for several weeks after serving a different jail term for unrelated offending.
They said there was “no basis” to conclude Justice Martin’s sentence was unjust as the deferral of parole eligibility was a “consequence”.
“Although the time in custody is more onerous for the applicant, the difference between the sentences does not give rise to an unjustified disparity when the circumstances are looked at as a whole,” the judgment states.
Latter’s application for leave to appeal was refused.
During last year’s sentencing, Brisbane Supreme Court was told Johnson and Latter spent the day before Mr Opacic’s death consuming drugs.
The pair spoke of Johnson’s “perceived slight” with Ms Rowe – who had previously been in a relationship for 12 years with Johnson – continuing her current relationship with Mr Opacic.
The conversation included Johnson saying: “I’m going to get Rheannon, and I’ll have a crack at Opacic” while Latter discussed going there to watch and promising to “step in” if Johnson started “losing”.
On the day Ms Rowe was released and picked up by her family, with Mr Opacic following on his bike, Johnson and Latter’s car broke down close to the prison.
While Ms Rowe’s family stopped to help them, the pair almost got into a physical confrontation with Mr Opacic, who rode his motorcycle away.
Latter drove their car – with Johnson in the passenger seat – in pursuit, leading to the crash.
Rhonda Opacic, Jake’s mother, told Brisbane Supreme Court of her heartbreak at losing her “wild, fun-loving, loyal and loving” son in such a “brutal” act.
“He was chased down, left to die alone in the dirt on the side of the road,” Ms Opacic read from her victim impact statement.
“Did he suffer? Did he regain consciousness? Did he call out for me?
“My mind is spinning around these questions. I try to make sense of why they tried to hit him.”