A Perth pensioner who stabbed his son to death, then watched the AFL grand final while two of his other children buried the body in the backyard and cleaned up the blood, has been jailed for a minimum of 18 years.
Ernest Albert Fisher, 67, was found guilty after a Supreme Court of WA trial last month of murdering Matthew Kyle Fisher-Turner, 23, in October 2016.
Joshua Douglas Fisher-Turner, 28, and Hannah Jayde Fisher-Turner, 21, were both convicted of being accessories to murder.
Fisher argued self-defence at the trial, claiming his son was violent and abusive, particularly towards him.
The court heard the family had been unravelling since the death of its matriarch in 2014, and the final straw for Fisher was when Matthew insisted on borrowing his car, which triggered an argument because he wanted to drive to friends to watch the AFL grand final.
After puncturing Matthew's lung and aorta with knives bought specifically for the killing, Fisher started digging a grave in the rear garden, then left the house to watch the match, leaving it up to Joshua to bury his brother, while Hannah helped carry the body outside on a ladder.
When friends and police became concerned about Matthew's sudden disappearance, Fisher initially claimed his son was "over east with a chicky babe".
But after about 90 minutes of questioning by detectives, he admitted he'd killed his son weeks earlier and told them he was buried in the backyard of the family's Parmelia home.
Justice Stephen Hall said he accepted there were disputes and confrontations with Matthew, but whatever violence occurred was not of the severity or frequency to justify Fisher's actions.
When detectives interviewed Fisher, he rejected suggestions he could have taken actions such as obtaining a violence restraining order against his son.
"There were obvious alternative ways of dealing with that (violence) as you must have known," Justice Hall said.
"You did not act out of fear but out of hatred, frustration and anger."
Justice Hall said Fisher had shown no regret or remorse, noting he told police the sensation of killing his son wasn't pleasant, but also remarked he'd "done the right thing" and continued to say derogatory things about Matthew.
The judge described Fisher's reasoning and actions as disturbing and callous.
"Having done the unthinkable, you were apparently not emotionally affected," Justice Hall said.
"You even tried to sell his car for your own benefit. It is also reprehensible that you chose to involve Joshua and Hannah."
