"It's horrible that such an awful murderer can go away for such a little time. Thirteen years - that's nothing. It's hardly a life sentence," Lesley Elliott said.
Mrs Elliott, whose daughter Sophie (22) was fatally stabbed at their home on January 9, was present in court for the sentencing of the 38-year-old man who earlier admitted killing Mr Hutchings, and the 30-year-old woman who admitted being an accessory to the murder.
She was in court yesterday because she wanted to support Mr Hutchings' sister and mother and to see how the sentencing process worked, Mrs Elliott said.
The man accused of Miss Elliott's murder has been committed for trial, but no trial date has been set yet.
She said Mr Hutchings' killer, who has name suppression, could apply for parole after 13 years and the family would have to go through the whole thing again at parole hearings.
It was a failing of the justice system, not the judge who had to work within it, that life did not mean people would stay in prison for the rest of their lives, she said.
"It shows what we are fighting as victims in this country."
Kaitangata residents believe the sentences handed out yesterday were nowhere near enough.
Those spoken to in the small township could not believe the man received a minimum of only 13 years' imprisonment.
But most spoken to also struggled to understand why the woman involved received only a two-year sentence.
A long-time Kaitangata resident, who did not want to be named, said most had been expecting 15-year-plus sentences for both and the feeling around town was one of disappointment and disbelief.
"It doesn't say much for the system when the pair can do what they did and get so little punishment.
It doesn't seem right to me," he said.
Others spoken to shared those sentiments and no-one contacted believed the sentences were fair or excessive.
Act New Zealand party law and order spokesman David Gallet agreed with Mrs Elliott.
"I would have thought anyone's life was worth more than 13 years."
He said Act's policy of life without parole meant if there were aggravating features of a crime, such as premeditation or unusual cruelty, then "up you go".
National Party law and order spokesman Simon Power declined to comment on yesterday's sentencing, but said National would be releasing a sentencing policy today or tomorrow.
Green Party justice spokeswoman Metiria Turei said the Greens supported recent changes to sentencing laws that gave judges a wider range of sentences from which to choose.
