One punch does kill: that's the message from a mum whose 37-year-old son died days after a single blow on Melbourne Cup day three years ago.
Happy-go-lucky Shannon Finemore had never been a fighter, his mother Selina Finemore says.
He and friend Scott McGillivrey were walking home in Brisbane's Fortitude Valley when they got into an alcohol-fuelled verbal altercation with Michael Trevor Royce Collins, who was on the balcony of his first floor apartment.
It is unclear how the interaction started.
Collins' version was the men downstairs mimicked him mocking his partner during an argument the couple were having.
Mr McGillivrey says he and Mr Finemore were joking amongst themselves and Collins misconstrued what was said, wrongly taking offence.
Collins headed downstairs, grabbing a crowbar from his garage, and was followed by his mate Harley James Raithby Hoodless.
The decision to go downstairs was "alcohol-fuelled, testosterone, like mine's bigger", Collins later told police.
"But for that decision to engage in ego-measuring, the night might have ended with nothing more than a bit of immature and unnecessary verbal slanging between the group, perhaps with regretful hangovers in the morning," Justice Melanie Hindman said on Thursday.
While the crowbar wasn't used it set the tone for a serious assault.
Collins' behaviour de-escalated on the street, but Hoodless - without apparent warning - rushed at Mr Finemore and king hit him in the head.
Mr Finemore fell to the ground unconscious and died in hospital six days later when family turned off his life support.
"The hit was completely excessive and unjustified - Finemore was unarmed and posed no threat," Brisbane Supreme Court Justice Hindman said.
She said his final moments must have been scary as he was threatened and chased by men, one armed.
The unlawful striking affected many people and was a tragedy that could easily have been avoided if Collins and Hoodless stayed on the balcony.
"I hope you might both find your way to understanding for yourself and then teaching others that aggression and violence is never an acceptable outcome," Justice Hindman told the men.
"The message of one punch can kill has been so widely published and yet this type of offending still persists."
Collins was the instigator of the common purpose to assault Mr Finemore while Hoodless was the principal offender.
Justice Hindman sentenced Hoodless - who pleaded guilty to one count of unlawful striking causing death - to nine years behind bars.
The 31-year-old has been in custody since November 3, 2020 and will be eligible for parole after serving 80 per cent of the sentence.
Collins, 32, was sentenced to six years in jail and will be eligible for parole after serving 80 per cent.
He was bailed about a year ago after spending about two years in custody on remand.
A jury found him guilty of unlawful striking causing death and he admitted going armed so as to cause fear.
