Life sentence for Leeding's killer

THE gunman who murdered Gold Coast detective Damian Leeding will remain in jail until 2031 but that is cold comfort for his grieving family.

The police officer's mother wept in court on Tuesday as the man who shot her son in the head was handed a life sentence, with a minimum of 20 years without parole.

Supreme Court Justice James Douglas said Phillip Graeme Abell had shown no remorse for gunning down an officer in the line of duty.

He said Abell had a history of violent armed robberies and deserved to spend a long time in jail for taking the detective's life.

"Your killing of a brave young police officer acting in the course of his duty has grievously affected his young family, his colleagues and the wider community," Justice Douglas told Abell.

Abell shot the 35-year-old detective with a sawn-off shotgun after he and his accomplice Donna Lee McAvoy were disturbed as they held up the Pacific Pines Tavern in May 2011.

Snr Const Leeding died in hospital three days later.

Abell, 41, showed no emotion when his sentence was handed down but the court was charged with emotion as the Leeding family told of the unbearable pain his crime had caused.

In her victim impact statement, Snr Const Leeding's mother Julie Waters said she'd suffered post-traumatic stress disorder and anxiety since her son's death, and had isolated herself from the world.

His killers' trial had also taken a toll on her.

"To see the offenders who took my Damian's life for a paltry sum of money is overwhelming," she said through tears.

His sisters also cried when they told the court how their lives had been turned upside down.

"I lost my ... best friend that night and no one and nothing will ever replace him," Chantelle Leeding said in her statement.

Two Pacific Pines Tavern staff told the court they suffered anxiety and post-traumatic stress following the armed robbery.

Sen Const Leeding's wife and two young children were not in court for the sentencing.

Prosecutors had asked for a minimum non-parole period of 20 to 25 years for Abell.

Justice Douglas said Abell's criminal history, his lack of remorse and his killing of a police officer in the line of duty warranted a longer than normal non-parole period.

The court heard Abell had been jailed twice for two earlier armed robberies and was awaiting sentencing for an armed home invasion in 2010.

Abell had shot a high-powered firearm through a wall when robbing a bank in the 1990s, Crown Prosecutor Todd Fuller told the court.

He and a co-offender had terrified three people including a three-year-old in a 2010 home invasion in Carina, in Brisbane's south, using the same shotgun that killed Snr Const Leeding.

Justice Douglas sentenced Abell to 18 years' prison for the Pacific Pines Tavern armed robbery and three years for deprivation of liberty, to be served concurrently with the murder sentence.

He ordered the two-and-a-half years Abell has already served in custody be taken into account.

McAvoy, 39, and getaway driver Benjamin Ernest Power, 39, are to be sentenced for their roles in the crime at a later date.

Power has pleaded guilty to manslaughter.

Outside the court, the Leeding family thanked Justice Douglas for the sentence he imposed.

"We are grateful to the judge and the courts for the lengthy sentence but obviously it's not going to bring Damian back," his mother said.

Sisters Chantelle and Hayley said they would work to move on in their own way.

Snr Const Leeding's widow Sonya, who was said to be too upset to attend the hearing, appreciated the sentence, police Assistant Commissioner Paul Wilson said.

Mr Wilson said Sonya Leeding was with her father and two children.

The widow's father Garry O'Brien had described the sentence was "awesome", Mr Wilson said.

Queensland Police Union president Ian Leavers said Abell's sentence meant the detective's family and friends could start to rebuild their lives in earnest.

"All Damian did on this day was turn up to work and he paid the ultimate sacrifice," he told reporters.

Queensland Police Minister Jack Dempsey said justice had been served.

"My thoughts are with Mr Leeding's family," Mr Dempsey said in a statement.

"It's good to see justice delivered today."

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