Prosecutors claim a magistrate was wrong to let an Olympic boxing hopeful off without convictions following a random New Year's Eve attack that has drawn comparisons with a drug-fuelled murder.
Lorenz Daley, 20, was "tripping" on LSD when he tried to yank a woman out of a car, before repeatedly punching both the woman and her partner as he boasted: "Look at me, I'm a stallion."
Daley pleaded guilty to two counts of common assault over the Gowrie attack, which one of the victims described as "animalistic, vicious and horrific".
Defence lawyer Michael Kukulies-Smith told the ACT Magistrates Court in March that Daley was very lucky not to have seriously hurt the couple, pointing out the eerie similarities between this incident and the 2019 murder of elderly man Richard Cater in Palmerston.
Both episodes involved young men becoming uncharacteristically violent and attacking strangers for no apparent reason while experimenting with the drug commonly known as "acid".
Special Magistrate Jane Campbell ultimately decided at Daley's sentencing to dismiss both of his charges, saying she believed the 20-year-old had "well and truly learnt his lesson".
She had earlier heard that criminal convictions might impact on Daley's work with children and the successful boxer's chances of gaining Olympic selection.
The office of the Director of Public Prosecutions is now challenging the non-conviction orders, with prosecutor Nathan Deakes recently lodging an appeal that describes them as "manifestly inadequate".
In documents filed in the ACT Supreme Court, Mr Deakes said the office would seek that the superior court set aside Ms Campbell's orders and re-sentence Daley.
The appeal has been listed for directions on Thursday, when it is expected a hearing date will be set.
