Man who beat his partner to death found 'not criminally responsible'

Man found not criminally responsible for killing partner in Bourke In short: A NSW Supreme Court has found Andrew Charles Smith not criminally responsible, by reason of mental impairment, for killing his partner in Bourke in October 2024. Mavis Stanley, 47, was beaten multiple times with a rod-like object before her body was left on a road outside their home. Justice Peter Hamill found Mr Smith was probably suffering from schizophrenia with a delusional belief system at the time of the killing. The daughter of an Indigenous woman beaten to death by her partner in outback New South Wales says the killing has "dismantled" her family forever. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander readers are advised this article contains the name of a person who has died and the details may be distressing. Andrew Charles Smith, 50, faced the NSW Supreme Court in Dubbo, where he was found not criminally responsible for the murder of 47-year-old Mavis Stanley in October 2024 due to a mental health impairment. Justice Peter Hamill found Mr Smith was probably suffering from schizophrenia with a delusional belief system, which meant he could not reason about whether his actions were wrong. Ms Stanley's daughter Jennah-Leigh Dungay told the court there were no words in the English dictionary that could describe the "pain, sorrow, hurt and brokenness" caused by her mother's death. "You have stolen a future that none of us will ever get to experience," she said. "My mother was the matriarchal protector of our family, the strength when it was needed and not needed." Ms Dungay addressed Mr Smith, who appeared in the Dubbo courtroom via audio-visual link. "The extent of the damage caused is unforgivable, unjust, uncultured and in its shortest form a pure evil," she said. "We are told it took 15 minutes of brutality using weapons to end my mother's life. "Fifteen minutes to dismantle our family's and friends' hearts forever." Ms Dungay said she had experienced significant mental health impacts since her mother's death and wanted to see laws strengthened to protect women and children, particularly Indigenous people. "When a woman has a daughter, she creates a version of her heart that walks in physical form," she told the court. "So long as I breathe and live, she will speak and live through me. "Her physical body you may have taken from us, but you will never take her spirit, soul and memory and laughter she left within each of us." Accused suffering delusional beliefs The court heard Mr Smith and Ms Stanley were living in Bourke when, some time between October 26 and 29, he struck her multiple times with a rod-like object, inflicting blunt force injuries that caused her death. Mr Smith later moved Ms Stanley's body from the home and left her on the roadway. Two forensic psychiatrists assessed Mr Smith and agreed he was experiencing delusions around the time of Ms Stanley's death. Listening-device recordings from his prison cell captured Mr Smith speaking to a deity and, on other occasions, apparently to his dead partner. "Lord you set my life up for failure … I love my wife my Lord … then the devil came up and ripped the heart right out of my chest," he was recorded saying. Justice Hamill said the recordings showed Mr Smith was "very unwell", thought-disordered and delusional, and may have been experiencing auditory hallucinations. The judge said he had carefully considered the couple's history of domestic violence and Mr Smith's controlling behaviour. But he accepted the psychiatrists' evidence that his beliefs about Ms Stanley's infidelity were driven by delusions. "I am satisfied that his preoccupation with Ms Stanley's perceived infidelity was born not of a rational but wicked jealousy, but rather was … the product of his disordered thought processes and delusions at the time of the killing," Justice Hamill said. He found Mr Smith did not understand his actions were wrong and entered the special verdict. Justice Hamill acknowledged the words "not criminally responsible" could appear difficult or unjust to Ms Stanley's family, but stressed the verdict did not mean Mr Smith would be released. 'Our hearts are broken' Several members of Ms Stanley's family travelled to court to deliver victim impact statements, describing her as a strong and fiercely loyal woman who was deeply connected to her family. Her relatives told the court they had struggled with grief, sleeplessness and fear since her death, and had become increasingly vigilant about the safety of women in their family. In one statement, Ms Stanley was remembered as "one of a kind" with a "big heart", whose death had left a piece of the family's hearts that would never mend. Another statement described the 47-year-old as the "rock" of her family, with a "wicked sense of humour" and a laugh her loved ones could still hear. The court heard her family had been unable to prepare and farewell Ms Stanley's body in accordance with their cultural practices because of the extent of her injuries. Justice Hamill praised the family's courage and dignity throughout the proceedings. "These statements will remain on the court's records and archives as an enduring testament to a remarkable woman whose life was taken too soon and by violence," he said. [Image text:] In Loving enony M