A teenager who fatally stabbed a stranger with a 40-centimetre knife in Brisbane’s inner north has been cleared of murder but convicted of manslaughter.
David George Connolly, 43, died after being wounded in the chest by the then 17-year-old boy on Newmarket Road in Wilston around midnight on January 22, 2023.
Mr Connolly’s body was found by passers-by about an hour later.
The now 18-year-old – who cannot be identified – had been on trial in the Supreme Court in Brisbane where he pleaded not guilty to murder, claiming he acted in self-defence after the victim punched him repeatedly during a confrontation.
SES volunteers scoured the ground for evidence near the scene of the stabbing. (ABC News: Michael Rennie)
A jury delivered a not guilty verdict roughly a day after retiring to deliberate on Wednesday afternoon.
However, they did convict on the lesser charge of manslaughter, finding the teenager did not intend to kill Mr Connolly.
‘I thought … he might be able to kill me’
During his evidence, the teenager told the jury his girlfriend had thrown a chain necklace she was wearing on the ground during a fight that night.
He said his girlfriend convinced him that Mr Connolly, who had been walking by, had taken it and told him to chase him down Newmarket Road.
Mr Connolly emptied his pockets to show he did not have the chain, and the teenager accused him of “dacking it” down his pants.
The accused told the court Mr Connolly then started getting aggressive and began throwing punches, which made him “feel unsafe”.
“I was under attack,” he told the court.
“I was just terrified … he could stop if he wanted to but he just wasn’t.”
The court heard the teenager held the knife for safety. (ABC News: Marton Dobras)
The teenager insisted he “didn’t want to fight [Mr Connolly] at all”.
He said he was only carrying the knife for safety as he and his girlfriend were homeless, and that he did not intend to kill Mr Connolly or cause him grievous bodily harm.
“I thought if I didn’t use the knife when I did, I wouldn’t have the chance to use it later…I thought he was going to keep bashing me,” the teenager said.
“I thought…he might be able to kill me.”
During the trial, the prosecution told the court the accused had no injuries that would suggest he had been in a fight.
Flowers left for stabbing victim in Wilston. (ABC News: Marton Dobras)
Caught on CCTV
The jury had been told interactions between the accused and Mr Connolly had been caught on CCTV.
The prosecution told the court the footage showed the boy following close behind Mr Connolly, and audio captured a male saying, “I’ll f*** you up c***” and “don’t f*** with me”.
The prosecution also said the teenager was stopped by police about 400 metres from Mr Connolly’s body “only minutes” after the stabbing.
Responding officers told the court they stopped him because he was running but did not see Mr Connolly’s body.
The 18-year-old will be sentenced at a later date.
