Tomo’s death hurt my heart

But housemate admits he threw punches

A MAN initially accused of the manslaughter of his Warrane housemate has told a court it hurts his heart to think of the loss of his housemate.

Lawrence Charles Kean, 54, yesterday gave evidence during the coronial inquest into Paul Christopher Thompson’s January 2018 death.

Mr Kean, who denied the manslaughter charge which was eventually dismissed, told the inquest he was staying with Mr Thompson, 57, for about 18 months before Mr Thompson’s death on January 21.

Coroner Olivia McTaggart heard evidence from forensic pathologist Donald Ritchie, who said Mr Thompson died from a subdural haematoma — an injury that involves bleeding around the brain and which Mr Thompson was at increased risk of suffering — but the cause of the injury could not be determined.

Dr Ritchie said Mr Thompson could have fallen — either as the result of being drunk, or an epileptic seizure — or he could have developed the injury from being punched by Mr Kean, who told the court he punched Mr Thompson twice the night he died, once to each cheek, despite being aware of Mr Thompson’s increased risk of sustaining a potentially fatal head injury.

Dr Ritchie also said he could not rule out the unlikely possibility Mr Thompson's injury was spontaneous.

Mr Kean told the court he and Mr Thompson had been drinking together, which they regularly did, in the hours before Mr Thompson’s death.

He said Mr Thompson punched him, and he retaliated with two punches, one to each of Mr Thompson’s cheeks.

Mr Kean said he woke up once in the night and he said Mr Thompson was lying on the loungeroom floor snoring at that time. At “sevenish, eightish” when he next woke up, Mr Thompson was not responsive

“That’s when I panicked and I thought, oh, shit, I’ve done this,” he said.

Attempts to resuscitate Mr Thompson were unsuccessful.

“It hurts my heart that Tomo’s not here, and I know what his family are going through,” Mr Kean said.

“I’d like to think that I had nothing to do with Tomo’s death with those two punches, but in saying that I’m sorry for Tomo’s family for losing a member,” he said. “I think about it regularly.” Mr Kean said Mr Thompson had asked him to move out, but had only done so when he was drunk.

The manslaughter charge against Mr Kean, which he pleaded not guilty to, was dismissed in May last year.

The inquest has been journed.

Paul Thompson

ad