A neighbour who came to the aid of an ex-Wallaby's family during a horror home invasion has demanded change amid a push to appeal the teenage offenders' sentences.
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Ben Cannon took a back seat with the advocate group he founded after the attack - Voice for Victims - as he dealt with its aftermath but had a "fire back in the belly" after Thursday's sentencing.
Mr Cannon called for a system overhaul after Attorney-General Yvette D'Ath sought advice regarding an appeal of the boys' sentences.
But Youth Justice Minister Di Farmer insisted there were positive signs, despite a Queensland audit report on Friday finding more had to be done to reduce crime by serious repeat juvenile offenders.
Mr Cannon sprang into action after two boys - then aged 15 - broke into former Australian rugby player Toutai Kefu's Brisbane house armed with knives in August 2021.
Mr Kefu suffered a life-threatening wound, his wife was cut to the bone by a sickle and two of their children were injured in a confrontation with the boys.
Mr Cannon arrived and tackled a teen, detaining him until police arrived at the blood-splattered home that resembled a "war zone".
One boy received eight years and the other seven in Brisbane Supreme Court on Thursday, with both to serve half their sentence before being released and no convictions recorded.
Mr Cannon said the sentences were disappointing, claiming more consideration was given to the offenders' troubled background than the "ongoing misery and hardship" of the victims.
"I had to cut most of my victim impact statement out. Why not let me say what I feel as a victim?" he told AAP.
"Unless both sides have equal say in advising the judge how to sentence then we have a system that is unbalanced."
Asked if the sentences had provided some closure, Mr Cannon said: "The actual end of the process has because we can leave the system. But the actual pain and hardship is a long way from gone."
Mr Cannon said Voice for Victims would continue to push for youth crime action.
"I have taken a back seat but this has put the fire back in the belly," he said.
Police Minister Mark Ryan on Friday confirmed Ms D'Ath was seeking advice from the Director of Public Prosecutions regarding a sentence appeal.
"I don't think anyone should be immune to criticism, particularly the courts," Mr Ryan told reporters.
"And in respect of this particular decision ... I find it a little bit peculiar that the judge has ordered that there be no conviction recorded."
Opposition leader David Crisafulli said: "This is not what consequences for actions look like".
The Queensland auditor-general on Friday released a report that found the number of serious repeat youth offenders had increased from 278 to 457 from 2018 to 2023.
It said young offenders were "not always" receiving the rehabilitation or education they needed.
The report noted factors such as "constant" government restructures and law changes had hindered efforts to reduce crime by serious repeat offenders.
But Ms Farmer said there were positive signs after launching a new four-year youth justice strategy targeting intervention.
"We have seen a 14 per cent drop in the number of serious repeat (youth) offenders since October last year," she told reporters.
She said there was a 31 per cent reduction in the number of youth offenders in the past 10 years.
Australian Associated Press
