One-punch killer Kieran Loveridge to get prison release

Kieran Loveridge, who killed Thomas Kelly in a one-punch attack, is to be released from jail. Photo: AAP
The man whose unprovoked attack killed a teenager and helped trigger years-long lockout laws in Sydney has been granted parole and is set to be released from prison.
The NSW State Parole Authority on Thursday determined it would release Kieran Loveridge on supervised parole no later than April 25.
Parole authority chair Geoffrey Bellew acknowledged there would always be some risk to community safety with the 30-year-old’s release, but that was mitigated by several factors.
They include his completion of a violent offenders program, his positive progress in custody, an agreed post-release plan and strict conditions upon his release.
“A substantially greater risk is posed to community safety if the offender was released at a later time with a shorter period of released supervision or no supervision at all,” he told a Parramatta courtroom.
Loveridge killed Thomas Kelly, 18, during an alcohol-fuelled rampage through the inner-city entertainment precinct of Kings Cross in July 2012.
Loveridge, who was also 18 at the time, punched Kelly in the face, knocking him to the ground and causing a severe brain injury when his head struck the ground.
Bellew said Kelly “had no reason to be on the lookout for trouble and was entirely unsuspecting of danger”.
“As Thomas and his friends passed by, the offender stepped out from the wall that he was standing against and punched Thomas in the face with sufficient force to knock him down,” he said.
Appearing via a video link, Thomas’s parents Ralph and Kathy Kelly said they “continue to grieve every day” but supported Loveridge’s release before the end of his sentence in order to “reintegrate him into lawful community life”.
“For us, we have been handed a double life sentence,” Kelly said.
Loveridge was initially jailed for seven years and two months after pleading guilty to manslaughter and the assaults of four other men on that same night.
But his sentence was increased following a prosecution appeal, after which he was handed a maximum term of 13 years and eight months with a non-parole period of 10 years and two months.
Bellew said he was satisfied Loveridge should be released given the need for him to have a period of supervision in the community.
Loveridge appeared via video link from prison and agreed to the parole conditions, including not to stalk or intimidate any of the victim’s family, to refrain from contact with any bikie gang members and to stay clear of the Sydney city, Neutral Bay and Shoalhaven areas.
He is also to undertake regular drug analysis and submit to electronic monitoring, which he will also be placed on a mental health care plan or referred to a psychologist.
Following Kelly’s death and in response to campaigning from his parents and the media, the NSW government introduced legislation that included mandatory sentences for some offences involving alcohol and the since-repealed lockout laws for central Sydney venues.
His family started the Thomas Kelly Youth Foundation aimed at reducing street violence in 2013.
Kelly’s younger brother Stuart took his own life in 2016 and the foundation has since evolved into a registered company, Stay Kind, incorporating the initials of both teenagers and aimed at promoting harm reduction through kindness.
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– AAP