Warning: This content is distressing and contains the names of Aboriginal people who have passed away.
A 25-year-old man who called his Aboriginal victims "dogs" and an "oxygen thief" has had his home detention sentence increased to two years on appeal.
In September, Jake Phillip Danby, who was 24 at the time, was sentenced by the Northern Territory's Supreme Court to five months in home detention and a 12-month community corrections order.
Danby pleaded guilty to charges related to failing to stop a vehicle at the scene of an incident, which resulted in death, after hitting two Aboriginal pedestrians with his car in Darwin's northern suburbs in June 2024 and fleeing the scene.
A 39-year-old man — known as 'Mr Whitehurst' for cultural reasons — died from his injuries in Royal Darwin Hospital when his family withdrew life support.
The NT's Court of Criminal Appeal judgement handed down on Friday said the offence at hand did "not involve criminal liability for causing the death of the person".
The incident was captured on CCTV, which shows bystanders rendering assistance and calling emergency services.
NT prosecutors filed an appeal after the sentence last year, following public outcry, saying the original 12-month community corrections order was "manifestly inadequate".
Three judges from the Court of Criminal Appeal in Darwin on Friday upheld the application and increased Danby's home detention period from five months to two years under an extended community corrections order.
That means Danby will now return to home detention. Delivering their decision, Chief Justice Michael Grant said Danby was also required to wear an electronic monitoring device.
The prosecution argued on appeal on 11 December that the text messages elevated Danby's crime to the aggravated level.
Prosecutor Pat Williams said a jail term of more than two years was required, given the seriousness of the offending and public expectations.
The lack of jail time triggered outrage from the victim's family and wider First Nations communities in September, who say it was inconsistent with the "tough on crime" approach of the Country Liberal Party government.
Matthew Connop, the deputy chief executive officer of the North Australia Aboriginal Justice Agency (NAAJA), told SBS News in September 2025 that Danby's text messages were shocking and racist.
"In terms of this case, it demonstrates the broader systemic issues that exist in the Northern Territory. You look at the comments and the language used by the offender, the racist comments and dehumanising comments. It's a total disregard for human life.
"NAAJA has been contacted by many Aboriginal people who have said that the sentence did not reflect the seriousness of the offending, nor did it value the life that was lost."
Defence counsel Jon Tippett in December 2025 argued that the sentencing judge had taken note of Danby's text messages and, while being appalled by them, gave them appropriate weight.
Tippett said Justice Sonia Brownhill had given his client a chance of rehabilitation and counselling, and he was abiding by his corrections order amid public condemnation of his actions.
Tippett also said in December 2025 that courts shouldn't sentence people on the basis of their stupidity or vile comments.
Danby was not in court on Friday, and Tippett declined to comment on the revised sentence outside court.
In the judgement delivered on Friday the NT's Criminal Court of Appeal further explained: "The sentencing Judge expressly acknowledged the vile and abhorrent nature of the respondent’s communications, but he did not stand to be sentenced on the basis that the collision with the victims was racially motivated."
NT Attorney-General Marie-Clare Boothby also came under fire over the Danby case, accused of not reporting a conflict of interest after it emerged he was her sister's stepson.
Boothby said in September 2025 that she never attempted to hide the fact Danby was an extended family member, and at no time was she or her office involved in the criminal matter.
— With additional reporting from the Australian Associated Press.
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