The court was previously told Abdi was the “more active participant” and the one armed with a gun, and Karapanagiotidis said this meant his moral culpability was higher for the crime than Salad’s.
The prosecution previously argued Salad knew they were going to threaten somebody and that this act in itself could lead to an escalation of violence.
Salad was sentenced to 404 days in prison for the charge of intentionally causing serious injury and given a 15-month community corrections order.
On the charge of possessing a firearm, he was convicted for eight months, but with time already served in prison, he will walk free after a month to complete his community corrections order.
The order has strict provisions including that he will be closely monitored and undergo drug rehabilitation treatment.
Karapanagiotidis said she had considered the early guilty pleas of both men and noted that their young age meant they still had good prospects for rehabilitation.
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However, she urged the men, who both had criminal histories, to make substantial changes to their lives to deal with their past trauma and to address their substance abuse issues so they could contribute meaningfully to society into the future.
The court heard on Tuesday that Abdi had been stabbed some time before the shooting.
On the night of the attack on Nairn, there had been some kind of understanding between Abdi and Salad that they would confront and threaten the person who was responsible for the stabbing – who was not Nairn – in an act of revenge.
Nairn told the court last week that since the shooting, he had debilitating nerve pain, took ongoing medication and worried he would never fully recover or be able to participate in the physical activities he once loved, such as dragon boating and cycling.
“Pain has been constant,” he said. “For months, no signal was getting from the brain to the left foot.”
He said his wife, Catherine, had been left traumatised and struggled to sleep at night.
His stepdaughter, a trained nurse, injured her back while recovering from surgery as she dragged Nairn from the front verandah into the house. She now lives in chronic pain.
Nairn said his daughter and grandchildren also lived with fear and severe anxiety. For many months, the children had been frightened somebody would break into their home and hurt their family.
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“My 12-year-old grandson wanted a gun to protect his mother and his sister,” Nairn told the court last week.
Despite the trauma of the attack, Nairn said he hoped Abdi and Salad could rebuild their lives.
“Mr Abdi and Mr Salad deserve punishment for a cowardly, callous and stupid act,” he said. “But I have little anger towards them. I hope they find the strength to turn their lives around.”
Barristers for Abdi and Salad previously told the court both men had shown remorse for the shooting.
Abdi’s defence barrister said his client was the son of refugees from Africa and had experienced trauma in his childhood, including being exposed to “extreme violence” during a trip back to his homeland.
He said displayed all the features of post-traumatic stress disorder and had used drugs to cope over the years, which had induced paranoia.
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