Coroner likely to determine if

IT’S not always a crime to kill someone. But only in rare circumstances, where police have “overwhelming evidence”, is it left to a coroner to decide if a person killed in self- defence.

Criminal lawyer Bill Potts, who runs Queensland’s largest criminal law firm, said this is likely what police have decided in the stabbing death of two men at Alva Beach early on Monday. Police indicated they could refer the investigation to the coroner less than 48 hours after Corey Christensen, 37, and Tom Davy, 27, died from their wounds on Topton St.

Dean Webber, 19, was taken into custody but released without charge on Tuesday.

“When somebody dies, even if they’ve been killed, it’s not necessarily against the law,” Mr Potts said.

“Murder is the intentional killing of somebody and manslaughter is the unintentional killing of somebody.

“In some cases it is lawful to kill somebody, and that includes when you are defending yourself or someone else from an attack that may well cause you either death or grievous bodily harm.”

Mr Potts said an argument of self- defence took several factors, including the number of attackers, if they were armed, if the person claiming self- defence armed themselves in advance, whether there was a chance of escape and the degree of force used.

“Generally the question of