An Oodnadatta man will spend at least 12 years behind bars before a traditional Aboriginal punishment of being speared in the legs for the manslaughter of his partner.

Danny Ferguson, 36, was found guilty of the July 2015 manslaughter of partner, Serena Amos, in the outback South Australian town.

The court heard he beat her repeatedly while camping over the course of a week, eventually causing internal bleeding, renal failure and her death.

Ferguson's lawyers argued Ms Amos had a heart condition that may have killed her and Ferguson was not aware of the extent of the damage he was doing to his victim.

During sentencing, Justice Anne Vanstone did not place as much significance on Ms Amos' heart condition.

"Whether she suffered a coronary heart attack, is, in the end, neither here nor there," she said.

Justice Vanstone was critical of the lies Ferguson told to cover up Ms Amos' death, including that she had been raped by a man who was later discovered to be hundreds of kilometres away at the time.

"Far from having any remorse for Serena Amos' death, you attempted to shift the blame," she said.

"I see this as an extremely serious case of manslaughter."

Ferguson had other convictions for violent crimes against women in the Northern Territory.

He is yet to serve a jail sentence of at least 11-and-a-half years for a prolonged assault against another former partner, who he had restrained and repeatedly raped, in what the Northern Territory sentencing judge called "truly horrific offending".

Ferguson 'on the run' when he killed partner

Justice Vanstone said Ferguson was effectively on the run for violence against this woman when he killed Ms Amos.

"It is plain that you've been a violent man," Justice Vanstone said.

She said Ferguson had tried to plead guilty to manslaughter on the day his trial for murder, for which he was acquitted, was due to start.

She said offering a plea at such a late stage did not show remorse.

The court previously heard Ferguson, an initiated Aboriginal man, had accepted a traditional punishment which will be actioned upon his release of being speared through each leg five times.

Justice Vanstone said his release was so far in the future she could not let the traditional punishment be a factor in her sentencing of him.

He was sentenced to 15 years with a 12-year non-parole period after which he will serve his sentence for the violent offences in Northern Territory.