7-Eleven Caulfield bashing: Sarah Franklin sentenced over hot coffee attack on Sarah Murphy
A woman has been jailed after throwing hot coffee at and beating another woman for making anti-Semitic comments, who later died in hospital.
Sarah Murphy, 51, and Sarah Franklin clashed in a two-minute attack near the coffee station of a 7-Eleven gas station in Caulfield in Melbourne’s south-west two years ago.
The pair both entered the store just after 10 a.m. on February 8, 2022.
Witnesses later reported hearing Mrs. Murphy make racist comments about Jewish people and throw a sugar packet at Franklin, who responded by throwing a full cup of coffee at her.
Franklin then attacked Ms Murphy, with the pair tumbling to the ground as Ms Murphy bit her attacker.
Sarah Franklin (pictured) was sentenced to four months in prison on Wednesday, but walked free after her legal team appealed
READ MORE: Tragic details emerge from bizarre incident that left husband and wife dead on ‘Millionaire’s Row’
Doyne Caspersz (photo) and his wife Marlene were found dead in their home
On one recording, Ms. Murphy can be heard screaming; “Leave me alone, help, help me… I can’t breathe.”
Franklin replied, “Are you calm now?” as she kept a hold on her.
After Mrs. Murphy, who was asthmatic and suffered from mental illness, became unconscious, Franklin left the store.
Mrs Murphy had stopped breathing but was revived by paramedics before being taken to Alfred Hospital.
She suffered a massive stroke and died six days later.
Franklin was initially charged with manslaughter, but this was dropped after forensic experts were unable to identify Ms Murphy’s cause of death.
Prosecutors acknowledged she had acted in self-defense until she put Ms Murphy in a headlock after she made it clear she could not breathe.
A court was previously told that Ms Murphy’s death could have been caused by a number of factors, including health problems and drug poisoning.
Franklin, 53, appeared at Moorabbin Magistrates’ Court on Wednesday after pleading guilty to a common assault charge late last year.
The court was told she had written a letter saying she was ‘deeply sorry’ for the assault.
She was sentenced to four months in prison by magistrate Stephen Lee.
Just before she was taken into custody, her attorney Greer Boe said they plan to appeal the sentence to a higher court.
An hour later, Franklin was granted bail ahead of her June 5 appeal hearing.
Sarah Franklin (pictured) wrote a letter saying she was ‘deeply sorry’ for the attack