Axe attack claim after complaints

Press, 4 May 1984, Page 19

Axe attack claim after complaints

A man, aged 36, said in the District Court yesterday that only by grabbing the handle of an axe, as an elderly neighbour was swinging it at his head, did he stop it from penetrating his skull. The axe instead, cut him above an eye. Other evidence was that the attack allegedly occurred while neighbours in a flat above that of the elderly man were playing a stereo, and that there had been a previous instance of a complaint made to the Christchurch City Council over noise level at the flat. This evidence was given during the preliminary hearing of alternative charges against Robert Alister McDonald, aged 71, a retired foreman, relating to an alleged axe attack in a flat in Montreal Street on the afternoon of Sunday, February 19. The charges were of wounding Bruce Frederick Graham, aged 36, with intent to cause him grievous bodily harm, and of injuring Mr Graham with intent. After hearing depositions of evidence of prosecution witnesses, Messrs E. W. Pyle and J. B. Graham, Justices of the Peace, held there was sufficient evidence to commit the defendant for trial on the wounding charge. They remanded him on bail to June 18, pending a date for trial in the High Court. Mr Graham, a set constructor, employed by the Court Theatre said he returned to his upstairs flat on the afternoon of February 19 and began preparing a meal. He detailed incidents he saw relating to the defendant leading to Mrs McDonald going up the stairs of a flat occupied by Clinton Poole. When she was inside he could only see an arm being raised, and a thumping forward motion. A girl came from the flat and screamed out to him across the rooftops to come over. The witness went to the property and saw the defendant downstairs holding an axe. He told the defendant to put the axe away. The defendant swore at him and ran up the stairs of the flat with the axe slightly raised. Mr Graham said he followed upstairs. The defendant entered the flat. He yelled to the defendant again but the defendant yelled back that he was going to sort this matter out and was not going to put the axe down. The defendant looked extremely violent and seemed to have lost control of himself. He aimed the axe at Mr Graham’s head and swung it in an arc at arm’s length. Mr Graham said he stepped inside .the movement and caught the axe

handle near the blade, just as the axe hit his forehead. The blade cut him above his left eye. If he had not blocked the blow the axe would have gone into his skull, Mr Graham said. He struggled with the defendant and Mrs McDonald then began beating him from behind about the head and back. He called out for Clinton Poole to assist him and they struggled with the defendant and got the axe from him. Mr Graham said there had been earlier incidents before that of February 19, in two of which police had been called. The basis of the complaints was about noise. Cross-examined, Mr Graham said the flat occupied by Mr Poole was above that of the defendant. During his earlier tenancy of the upstairs flat with Mr Poole, the witness said, Mrs McDonald seemed to be the more volatile of the couple. All of the incidents started with Mrs McDonald. Clinton Richard George Poole, aged 19, a technician employed by the Court Theatre gave evidence of playing his stereo and talking to Miss Hatton and her sister on the afternoon of February 19. The stereo was not playing loudly. It was very low because they were talking. After incidents outside he told Mr Graham who telephoned, that the “old guy" was yelling at them. Mrs McDonald then entered his flat. He asked her what she was doing but could not remember what she said. He asked her to leave. Mrs McDonald began hitting the two girls and he

telephoned the police. He did not see the defendant arrive but saw Mr Graham with blood over his eye. He did not see how he got this cut. He saw that the defendant held an axe. Cross-examined the witness said that a city council noise control officer had visited his flat after a party he had held. “We couldn’t really understand why it was all that noisy because it wasn’t.” he said. He agreed there had been problems with the McDonald over the noise issue. Linda Hatton, aged 19, a theatre receptionist said she was the girlfriend of Clinton Poole. She said she was at Mr Poole’s flat with her sister playing the stereo. The defendant entered the flat, shouting and calling them names. He left and later Mrs McDonald arrived and refused to leave. After hitting one girl as she telephoned the police Mrs McDonald called for her husband, who came to the flat carrying an axe. Mr Graham told the defendant to put the axe down. The defendant was going to take a swing at Mr Poole but then saw Mb Graham out of the corner of his eye and swung round and hit him on the head with the axe. Cross-examined Miss Hatton said the record player belonged to Mr Poole. The door of his flat was open at the time to let in some fresh air. Miss Hatton said that when Mrs McDonald entered the flat she was complaining about the noise.