Murder jury told time of death is irrelevant

A JUDGE has told the jury of a murder trial not to worry about how long after the alleged attack the victim died.

The 12-person jury will resume deliberations this morning as they decide the fate of 22-year-old White Rock man Jake Desmond Livingstone, who is accused of punching and strangling a young chef to death on a Cairns street.

Mr Livingstone’s legal team raised concerns during the Cairns Supreme Court trial that the victim, Philip Quayle, 27, had serious undiagnosed heart disease, which may have been the cause of his death.

Crown prosecutor Michael Cowan described the chances of the two events – the assault and a heart attack – coinciding as “minuscule” during his closing submission yesterday.

He said the key consideration for the jury should be Mr Livingstone’s intention to kill the New Zealander in the apparently random attack on Spence St early on February 26, 2015. Two witnesses, Samantha Sky French and Alexander Lehmann Hansen, who were walking with Mr Livingstone prior to the incident, told of seeing him put the victim in a “chokehold” while shouting “die ... die”.

“At that moment or within those minutes he meant it,” Mr Cowan said. “That’s murder.”

During an interview with police, Mr Livingstone said after attacking the man he got off him and walked away.

“He’d known what he had done ... and he just continued on his way,” Mr Cowan said.

“That’s someone who was full of rage and he’s taken it out on Philip Quayle.”

Defence solicitor Josh Trevino suggested yesterday Mr Quayle may have still been alive after the group left.

Ms French said she thought the man was breathing when they left.

Mr Trevino said neither of the two witnesses saw the man wearing a backpack but emergency services did.

“There is a significant prospect that the deceased got up and put his backpack on,” Mr Trevino said.

But during his summation, Justice Jim Henry said the exact timing of his death did not matter: “It does not matter that death did not immediately result.”

The jury retired about 4.40pm yesterday and deliberated for just over an hour before being sent home.

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