A man who used an ornamental concrete owl to bludgeon a woman to death before dumping her body in a garbage bin will serve at least 18 years behind bars.

Key points: Travis Kirchner murdered Sally Rothe at her Murray Bridge home last year

Travis Kirchner murdered Sally Rothe at her Murray Bridge home last year A concrete owl statue was used to inflict several blows

A concrete owl statue was used to inflict several blows The court previously heard Kirchner had been in an argument with Ms Rothe

Travis Leonard Kirchner brutally murdered Sally Rothe in the front yard of her home at Murray Bridge, east of Adelaide, in February 2018.

Kirchner, aged in his 40s, used a concrete statue to beat the 54-year-old mother-of-three to death, before dumping her body in a wheelie bin.

He then became a fugitive, fleeing to Victoria and leading police on a manhunt that ended two days later when he was arrested at a home in the outer Melbourne suburb of Doveton.

The Supreme Court of South Australia heard Kirchner had previously lived at Ms Rothe's house and that, on the day she was killed, an argument broke out while he was collecting some of his belongings.

Kirchner pleaded guilty to murder in September.

Today, Justice David Peek sentenced Kirchner to life in prison with a non-parole period of 18 years.

His sentence was backdated to when he was taken into custody, making him eligible for release in 2036.

During sentencing, Justice Peek said he accepted that it was an "unpremeditated killing occurring on the spur of the moment".

"However, there are other weighty countervailing factors," he said.

He said Kirchner used a heavy weapon to inflict blunt force trauma, repeated the blows, formed an intention to kill and fled the state.

SA Police at the scene of the killing in Murray Bridge. ( ABC News: Martin Davies )

Justice Peek also said his prospects of rehabilitation were "far from encouraging".

"A clear pattern has developed if you [are] continually returning to the use of drugs with associated outbursts of violent offending," he said.

"This has now escalated to murder.

"This is a matter of very high concern from the standpoint of public safety."

Generous victim was 'down-to-earth'

Prosecutor Ryan Williams previously told the court that Kirchner's brutal attack lasted between 40 seconds and one minute.

"That's a long time to be repeatedly striking someone to the face and head with something made of concrete," Mr Williams said in December.

Daughter-in-law Taigen Murphy-Philby at a memorial for Ms Rothe. ( ABC News: Sarah Hancock )

Ms Rothe's daughter-in-law, Taigen Murphy-Philby, previously said her family was relieved by Kirchner's guilty plea.

"When it first happened it completely destroyed all of us," she said.

Ms Murphy-Philby described Ms Rothe as a generous and "down-to-earth" person.

"Almost weekly, there was someone here [at her home] asking for her help, and she would always help," Ms Murphy-Philby said.