What Happened to Paul?

Our beloved community member, Paul Grapsas, was a dedicated father and a respected individual in the Geelong community.

Paul's untimely demise has left an unfillable void in our community and has devastated his family. Paul's young son will never have the chance to meet his father, and his two daughters are now left to grow up without him.

On September 14, 2023, while returning home from a walk with his dog, Paul saw Bailey Clifford, rummaging through his car. Paul walked up to the car and confronted Clifford, where an altercation followed.

Clifford, who was on a community corrections order for assault with a weapon three months earlier, produced a knife and attacked Paul, stabbing him seven times.

Three of those wounds were of significant depth and the last was the fatal, piercing 13cm deep with a 15cm filleting knife through his upper back, passing into the chest cavity and the lung.

Paul was unarmed, defenceless and was stabbed instantly, and severely as a first resort. 

Despite Paul's critical condition, Clifford made no effort to call for help and despite his friend pleading over the phone to call an ambulance, he refused.  

Hours later, Paul's pregnant wife, Jessica, found his lifeless body when she realised he hadn't returned home.

Clifford then confessed his crime to his friend, changed his clothes, took the weapon with him, disposed of the weapon and changed his phone. He refused to come forward and make any admissions to the crime.

On his arrest, Clifford attempted to flee, and gave false identifying information to police.

The sentence for the manslaughter of Paul

In the hours prior to beginning of the trial, the Office of Public Prosecutions  accepted a plea offer from the accused for guilty to manslaughter.

Justice Inserti sentenced Clifford to eight years and six months behind bars with a non-parole period of five years. With more than a year already served, he could be paroled in less than four years. 

This pain of losing Paul is further compounded by the inadequate, lenient sentence given to Bailey Clifford, the perpetrator of this heinous crime. Clifford was handed a sentence that failed to match the gravity of his actions. 

What are we demanding?

Re-evaluation of the sentence of Bailey Clifford for the manslaughter of Paul Grapsas

We demand the Director of Public Prosecutions to re- evaluate the sentence as it is manifestly inadequate.  Justice Incerti claimed this was a “serious example of manslaughter”, yet the sentence does not reflect the gravity of the crime. This was an opportunity for the courts to set precedent due to the facts that Paul was unarmed, defenceless and killed at such severity in the vicinity of his own home.

We plea for a stricter penalty that not only delivers justice for Paul Grapsas, his family, and the Geelong community, but also serves as a deterrent to future violent crimes.

Stricter sentences to combat rising crime in Australia and restore public judicial confidence
Public demand for harsher sentencing continues to dominate media coverage, with case after case fuelling the conversation.

Crime statistics in Australia show a steady increase in violent knife crimes over the past decade (Australian Bureau of Statistics), underscoring the need for justice systems to impose penalties that act as effective deterrents. 

In the state of Victoria, manslaughter sentences were increased to 25 years, yet no judge has been willing to sentence above the maximum 13 years anyone has ever been sentenced in this state in the last decade.

When will the justice system bridge the gap between cases of negligence and instilling harsher penalties for those where the crime is unlawful, dangerous and the lines are blurred towards murderous intent? 

It is time that the 25 years available to penalise for “serious cases of manslaughter” are utilised, to allow for mitigating factors and concessions due to drug use, age, rehabilitation prospects and mental or cognitive impairment without ending up with inadequate sentences that are merely a "slap on the wrist".  

PAUL'S LAW: Statutory minimum non-parole sentence of a minimum of 10 years for manslaughter committed with a knife.
We demand the introduction of legislation enforcing minimum mandatory sentencing for knife-related crimes that result in loss of life. The law must deter the carrying and use of knives. We have recently introduced minimum mandatory sentencing of 10 years non-parole in relation to the “coward punch”, yet knife crime is rife and criminals are essentially getting off lightly with nothing but excuses in culpability. It is nonsensical that a killer can receive half as much minimum jail time for using a knife as compared to a punch.

Please, stand with us in our fight for justice and sign our petition today!

For further information, follow these links:

"Slap on the wrist": Bailey Clifford Jailed for killing Paul Grapsas

Nine news: Widow expresses frustration over her husband's killer's sentencing

If you would like to financially donate to Jessica and her children, please do so on the GoFundMe page here: