A magistrate has criticised the "appalling waste of public resources" in the prosecution's approach to an assault case involving Canberra murderer Aleksander Vojneski.
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Vojneski, 31, was found guilty last month of stabbing his girlfriend Paula Conlon to death at her Macgregor home in 2012.
He is currently in custody awaiting sentencing for murder.
But Vojneski is also fighting allegations of a lesser charge of common assault for an attack on a prison guard, which occurred while he was awaiting his murder trial in the Alexander Maconochie Centre.
His lawyer Ashleigh Tilbrook told the ACT Magistrates Court on Thursday she had asked the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions to have the common assault scheduled as an additional offence, which would be taken into account by the ACT Supreme Court when Vojneski is sentenced for murder.
The ACT Supreme Court has already heard evidence of the prison assault during Vojneski's murder trial.
But the DPP has refused, preferring instead to hold a separate hearing in the ACT Magistrates Court for the alleged prison assault.
That would mean that evidence and issues dealt with in the ACT Supreme Court, including significant mental health claims, will need to be repeated a second time in the lower court.
The DPP's approach was strongly criticised by Magistrate Peter Dingwall on Thursday morning.
Mr Dingwall asked who had approved the course of action, and was told it was decided at "the highest level" of the office of the DPP.
The magistrate described it as an "appalling waste" and said there was absolutely no public interest in such an approach.
"The director can explain to the public why he's wasting so much money," he said.
Mr Dingwall said he hoped common sense prevailed.
The prison assault charge was put over for a two hour hearing on October 23.
