An intoxicated young man who shot his brother through the front window of the family home has pleaded guilty to criminal negligence.
Dimitri Gatis, 22, has spent 18 months behind bars after shooting his younger brother Alex, leaving the 16-year-old with serious chest and abdomen injuries.
The plea brings to an end more than a year of legal negotiations, which saw a charge of attempted murder dropped in the magistrates court.
On Friday, David Edwardson QC, for Gatis, guided his client through the process of pleading not guilty to aggravated recklessly causing serious harm, but entering a guilty plea to causing serious harm by criminal negligence.
The guilty plea was accepted by the prosecution and Gatis will now face sentencing submissions in the District Court.
The legal manoeuvre reduces the maximum penalty Gatis is facing from 19 years in prison to four years.
FULL STORY: The Advertiser.
