Sentencing of a young woman who admitted stabbing a former friend in a fight was pushed back so that she could prove to the court her intentions to study overseas.

Nyree Turner, 22, pleaded guilty in April to a charge that she wounded Aliyah McCaskie in an altercation on the evening of March 20, 2025.

Counsel for both the Crown and the defence proposed a two-year suspended sentence considering her personal circumstances, but questions were raised about whether probation should be included in the sentence given Turner’s intention of pursuing further education.

At a sentencing hearing yesterday, Puisne Judge Alan Richards said that Turner was fortunate that the wounds suffered by Ms McCaskie in the incident were not more serious.

Mr Justice Richards added: “I hope that you understand just how close to disaster you have come.

“To put it bluntly, you could have killed her. If you had, you would now be looking at spending many years behind bars.”

After hearing submissions, he said he would adjourn the sentencing decision until December so that Turner could demonstrate her commitment to her studies.

Mr Justice Richards said that if she does so, he would give her a two-year suspended sentence.

However, if she does not, or if she fails to attend the hearing remotely, he warned Turner that she can expect to be sentenced in her absence to an immediate two-year custodial sentence with a recommendation for the Crown to seek extradition.

The court previously heard that Turner and Ms McCaskie were at one time friends who had a falling-out several years ago.

At about 10.40pm on the night of the attack, Turner attended Champs Variety where Ms McCaskie was working. She then sat outside the business on a bike talking with others in the area.

While Turner was outside, Ms McCaskie twice stepped out of the business and confronted Turner, instructing her to leave, but the defendant appeared to ignore her demands.

The situation escalated when Ms McCaskie came outside a third time.

CCTV footage from the incident showed Turner put on her helmet, place her right hand in her pocket and began to step off her bike when Ms McCaskie stepped towards her and began throwing punches.

Turner was seen to make a stabbing motion to Ms McCaskie’s abdomen with an object, later confirmed to be a butterfly knife, in her right hand.

The fight came to an end after Ms McCaskie took possession of the knife and the pair separated, with Turner leaving on a bike and the complainant walking into the store with the weapon.

Ms McCaskie suffered two stab wounds to her upper abdomen and one stab wound to her back, which penetrated her liver.

The court heard that Turner was initially also charged with possession of a prohibited weapon, but butterfly knives were not added to the list of prohibited weapons until months after the incident.

Susan Mulligan, for Turner, said the defendant had found the knife on the day of the altercation and decided to keep it because she thought it was “cool”, but had not brought the weapon to the store with the intention of doing any harm.

However, Mr Justice Richards told the court he did not believe Turner’s explanation of how she came to have the knife.

He said that after reviewing the CCTV footage of the altercation, it was clear that she had made the decision to pull out the knife before the fight turned physical, although he could not say if Turner had intended to use the knife or threaten Ms McCaskie with it.

Mr Justice Richards said: “Understandably, perhaps, she didn’t wait to find out what your intentions were when you started to go towards her. She reacted and she was the first of the two of you to use force.”

He told Turner that her decision to carry the knife is what had landed her in the Supreme Court.

Mr Justice Richards said: “Your possession and use of that knife is what has put you where you are today.

“We have offences, such as those that prohibit the carrying of knives, precisely so that people don’t resort to using them as you did.

“If you had not had it with you, you could not have produced it and, had you been charged, it would have been with something that could have been dealt with in Magistrates’ Court.”

However, he also noted the element of provocation in the case and Turner’s circumstances, including her desire to continue her education, which he said may amount to a reason to suspend her sentence.

Mr Justice Richards adjourned the sentencing until December 15, stating that Turner could attend that hearing remotely by audio-video link.

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