A man who killed a respected Otago-trained heart surgeon with a single punch at a Melbourne hospital will serve at least a decade behind bars after becoming the first person sentenced under the Victoria's 'coward punch' laws. Patrick Pritzwald-Stegmann (41) suffered fatal head injuries when punched by Joseph Esmaili at Box Hill Hospital in May 2017. Esmaili is the first person to receive a mandatory minimum decade-long prison term under Victoria's 'coward punch' laws, meaning he must serve at least 10 years before becoming eligible for release on parole. Mr Pritzwald-Stegmann was leaving the hospital when he stopped to tell a group - including Esmaili - to stop smoking near the entrance. Esmaili punched the surgeon with such force he was knocked unconscious and suffered "catastrophic" injuries when his head hit the floor.

Source: Otago Daily Times April 17, 2019 00:45 UTC