Judge warns on Vulin appeal
A judge has warned an appeal against the 17-year jail term being served by Natalie Dimitrovska for the horrific attack on Dana Vulin could result in more jail time.
After her 2013 trial, Dimitrovska was handed just three years less than the maximum penalty for maiming Ms Vulin.
Dimitrovska, 29, a mother of one, was found guilty despite claiming she flung an open bottle of liquid at Ms Vulin in self-defence without realising it was highly flammable.
Ms Vulin earlier grabbed a spirits burner used to smoke drugs from Dimitrovska's hands.
Dimitrovska accosted Ms Vulin over the false suspicion of an affair with her husband.
Ms Vulin suffered horrific burns, and sentencing Judge Bruce Goetze said it was difficult to imagine a worse case of its kind.
Dana Vulin outside court after woman who set her alight was sentenced to 17 years in jail. Picture: Nic Ellis / The West Australian
Launching an appeal on Friday, lawyer David Grace QC said they intended to argue that Ms Vulin was not as badly injured as she claimed in court, based on footage filmed for the 'Sunday Night' program.
But appeal judge Carmel McLure warned him that the appeal could result in the court imposing an even longer sentence, if it felt a mistake had been made.
The hearing was adjourned until September.
