Overview
- Prosecutors and defence told the Supreme Court they accept a High Risk Serious Offender (HRSO) declaration for Dennis John McKenna, 81, shifting the choice away from immediate continued detention toward a supervised scheme.
- Psychiatric evidence presented to the court rated McKenna’s actuarial reoffending risk as low mainly because of his advanced age, while also finding he denies or minimises his crimes and shows little insight into victims’ harm.
- The state told the court it still views McKenna as posing an unacceptable risk of committing a serious sexual offence against a boy, and it seeks a supervision order with strict, enforceable conditions.
- Experts warned that the proposed post-release accommodation—sharing a home with another offender who denies his crimes—could raise risk and undermine compliance with monitoring and treatment.
- A final judicial order setting the exact supervision conditions remains pending and will determine whether McKenna is released under supervision when his 15½-year sentence finishes on November 17, 2026, a prospect that has drawn strong anger from survivors and families who say monitoring cannot undo lifelong harm.