A Perth woman’s attempt to have her conviction overturned after she was found guilty of murdering her grandmother has been rejected by WA’s Court of Appeal.
Alaine Sturniolo, 41, was found guilty in 2021 of killing her 91-year-old grandmother by tampering with her medication.
Alaine Sturniolo tried to have her conviction thrown out by WA’s Court of Appeal but on Friday found her attempt was unsuccessful.Credit: Nine News
Dawn Baldwin was found collapsed in her Wembley Downs home in 2012 and died in hospital a week later.
A jury found her granddaughter killed the elderly woman by swapping her pills with morphine tablets prescribed for her uncle before he died of cancer.
During the trial two years ago, the court heard Sturniolo bragged about the crime to relatives including her sister and former brother-in-law, who dobbed her into the police in 2017.
Seven months before the murder, the mother-of-two posted on Facebook, “What is the one thing you wish you could change about your life – Debt, and my grandmother’s life status mwahahahahahaha”.
Alaine Sturniolo will remain behind bars until atleast 2038.Credit: Nine News
A month later, she wrote “Something I hate – Grandma”.
In 2021 she was given a life sentence with a minimum term of 20 years but the following year began an appeal, claiming the verdict was unreasonable, that there had been a miscarriage of justice and that the trial judge’s directions to the jury were “deficient”.
She also appealed her sentence, claiming that it was “manifestly excessive”.
On Friday, Sturniolo appeared at WA’s Supreme Court via video link from Bandyup Prison to hear that her appeal had been unsuccessful.
During sentencing, Justice Fiannaca said Sturniolo’s crime was “morally inexcusable” and criticised the fact she had never expressed any remorse.