Man accused of murdering Cassius Turvey says schoolboy stabbed him first
The man accused of murdering Indigenous Perth schoolboy Cassius Turvey claims he was stabbed first and lashed out in retaliation, but not with a metal pole.
Jack Brearley, now 23, is at the centre of the state’s case in the murder trial over the 15-year-old’s death in October 2022. Cassius died 10 days after he was allegedly bashed with the metal handle of a shopping trolley in a creek in the north-east suburb of Middle Swan.
Cassius’ death sparked a national outrcy.
During the first day of the trial on Monday, prosecutor Ben Stanwix told the jury it was Brearley who delivered the fatal blows to Cassius’ head on October 13, 2022.
Stanwix said Brearley’s three co-accused – Aleesha Gilmore, 23, Brodie Palmer, 29 and Mitchell Forth, 26 – were also charged with murder because, in the prosecution’s view, they were aware of his intent to inflict significant violence on others while angry about the windows on his car being smashed the day before.
But on Tuesday Brearley’s legal team, led by barrister Simon Watters, told the jury the state had the wrong man, and alleged it was Brearley’s co-accused Palmer who bashed Cassius with the trolley handle, leaving him with bleeding on his brain that led to his death.
“For two long years, Jack Brearley has waited for a jury to listen to his account of what happened on the afternoon of October 13, 2022,” Watters said.
“You will hear on behalf of Jack Brearley that over the course of those days, he, like a lot of members of our community, had concerns for the welfare of others, concerns for his property, and concerns for his home.”
Watters told the jury Brearley chased a group of schoolchildren who got off a bus in Middle Swan and who he believed were there to fight his girlfriend’s younger brother and run through his house.
The court heard that Brearley’s account of events was that he chased the group of 19 before catching up to what he called “the fat one”, meaning Cassius.
