Billings intends to appeal 28-year sentence

The Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP) will not appeal the 28-year sentence handed down to murderer Daniel Billings. The killer of Forbes mum Molly Ticehurst, however, now intends to appeal his sentence, the NSW Supreme Court has confirmed. Billings pleaded guilty to murdering his former partner in her Forbes home in April 2024, while he was on bail for offences against Ms Ticehurst and under an apprehended domestic violence order. He was sentenced to 28 years, with a non-parole period of 20 years, in the Orange Supreme Court last month. The ODPP said in a statement it would not appeal the judgment of Judge Natalie Adams. "Having carefully considered the sentence imposed and the circumstances of this case, the ODPP has determined not to institute an appeal against Mr Billings’ sentence," the spokesperson said. "This decision was made in accordance with the prosecution guidelines." The ODPP had 28 days after the sentencing to appeal. Billings also had 28 days from the date of sentencing to indicate his intention to appeal, which he did at the 11th hour. "Daniel Billings filed a notice of intention to appeal (NIA) against the sentence imposed by Justice Adams in Orange on 11 September," the Supreme Court said in a statement. "The NIA was lodged on the afternoon of Friday 9 October." The Supreme Court said the NIA provides Billings one year to lodge an appeal, under its criminal appeal rules. State Member for Orange Phil Donato expressed his frustration and disappointment over both decisions, in what has been criticised as a lenient sentence. Ms Ticehurst's murder has prompted Mr Donato's Crimes Amendment (Mandatory Life Sentences) Bill 2026, which would mandate life without parole for defined domestic and family violence murders, where the offender kills a current or former partner while on bail or subject to an AVO. Mr Donato said Billings' appeal means more uncertainty and more trauma for Ms Ticehurst's family, friends and community. He acknowledged the law allows Billings the right to appeal but said the community was entitled to ask why the prosecution won't challenge a sentence "widely seen as too lenient, while the convicted murderer can". "If you're on bail or under an AVO to protect someone, you're already on the strictest warning," Mr Donato said. "Ignore it and murder that person, and you deserve to be jailed for life. "Molly should have been safe in her own home. She deserved to watch her son grow up. We can't bring her back, but we can decide what happens next. "Her death must not become another tragedy we mourn and then forget. "Molly's life mattered. Her family matters. The fight for justice continues."