Killing not the intent: court

A HOBART man killed at a wake after he tried to organise a dogfight died from an act of violence, a coroner has found.

According to a record of investigation released this week, Jason Scott Picken died in January 2015 at Rokeby following a stoush with event host David Luke Pearson, then 30.

During the wake, Mr Picken, 38, attempted to organise an animal fight between Pearson’s pet and a neighbour’s dog.

The neighbour became “enraged”, picking up a steel pole and confronting Mr Picken.

He punched Mr Picken in the face and unsuccessfully tried to attack him with the pole, before Pearson joined in.

Pearson also punched Mr Picken, causing the father-ofthree to fall into a gutter.

While he was on the ground, Pearson choked Mr Picken, breaking his throat cartilage and causing him to lose consciousness.

When paramedics arrived, Mr Picken was in cardiac arrest and died shortly after arriving at the Royal Hobart Hospital.

An autopsy two days later showed Mr Picken suffered traumatic internal head bleeding after a complete tear of the artery at the base of his brain.

A forensic pathologist determined the injury could have been caused by Pearson’s punch, the force of Mr Picken hitting the concrete, or the pressure applied to his throat if rotation was involved.

At the scene, Pearson and others told police Mr Picken “had fallen and must have hit his head”, with a true account emerging within the coming days.

Pearson was found guilty at trial of manslaughter, with the sentencing judge accepting the death was unintended.

Pearson was jailed for seven years commencing June 2015, with a non-parole period of 4½ years.

He could walk free from jail within months.

“I find that Mr Picken died as a result of an act of violence by David Luke Pearson that was inflicted with the intention of harming Mr Picken but not with the intention of causing his death,” Coroner Olivia McTaggart said in her findings.

She said the circumstances of his death meant a coronial inquest was not required.