Both sides mull next step in Bali policeman killing case

Australian Sara Connor and Bali prosecutors will now decide whether to launch an appeal following her sentencing for the death of a local police officer.

Sara Connor

Australian woman Sara Connor speaks to media after her trial at Denpasar Court in Denpasar, Bali, Indonesia on Tuesday, Feb. 7, 2017. Source: AAP

Australian woman Sara Connor and Bali prosecutors are set to weigh up whether to appeal her four-year sentence over the fatal assault of a local police officer.

The 46-year-old mother of two from Byron Bay stood still with her eyes closed as Bali judges handed down their decision on Monday, almost seven months after her arrest.

They found both she and her British boyfriend David Taylor were culpable for the death of Wayan Sudarsa whose battered body was discovered on Kuta Beach in the early hours of August 17.

His face was covered in blood and he had dozens of wounds across his chest, neck and head.

In the hours before Connor heard her fate, Taylor was sentenced to six years.

Watch Sara Connor receive her sentence:



Both terms were under the eight years prosecutors had requested for the offence of fatal assault in company, having preferenced this over the alternate charges of murder and fatal assault.

The sentence will include the seven months they have already served. If they show good behaviour while in Kerobokan prison, the terms may be reduced further.

While Taylor's father John Taylor said they were "content" at the sentence and the 34-year-old former DJ said he would not be appealing - what Connor or prosecutors will do next is unclear.

Watch David Taylor hug his family after hearing the verdict:



The jail term was a blow to Connor who proclaimed her innocence from the very start.

Her legal team argued she should be charged with eliminating evidence - an offence that carries a maximum nine months imprisonment.

A statement released by Connor's friends late on Monday spoke of the "devastation" they felt at the decision.

"The whole trial has been traumatic for the family, especially for Sara's two boys. At least we have certainty now."

Taylor, the court heard, became embroiled in a fight with Mr Sudarsa after confronting him over Connor's lost purse on Kuta Beach, which contained around $A300.

While Connor has maintained she did nothing but try to separate Mr Sudarsa and Taylor during this melee, Chief Judge Made Pasek found she effectively pinned him down.

"The defendant's action was not intended to separate (them) but to help David Taylor so that the victim could not fight back."

She later cut up Mr Sudarsa's cards, which Taylor had taken from his motionless body, not in a bid to protect the police officer from identity fraud as she claimed - but because of the "guilt over what she did", Judge Pasek added.

Both she and Taylor have maintained they had no idea Mr Sudarsa was so seriously injured when they left him on Kuta Beach.

When they did hear news of his death on August 19, they burnt their clothes before going to the Australian consulate in Bali.

Connor and prosecutors have a week to decide whether to appeal the decision.

Watch Sara Connor arriving at the Bali court:




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3 min read
Published 14 March 2017 6:20am
Updated 14 March 2017 7:01am
Source: AAP

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