Wild brawl in central Adelaide turns deadly as man knocked to the ground dies
A young man is dead and another is behind bars after a wild brawl in the centre of Adelaide in the early hours of Sunday morning.
Police are still trying to piece together the exact chain of events that happened on Hindley Street, but it's believed a single blow may have killed 22-year-old Jack Hanley.
He fell victim to a wild brawl that started when two groups of young men clashed on the corner of Hindley and Morphett streets just before 5.30am on Sunday.
"It appears to be the interactions took place very, very quickly and then the assault occurred," Detective Chief Inspector Charmaine Peters said.
Mr Hanley was struck in the head during the fight.
He collapsed, smashing his head on the ground. He lay unresponsive, as witnesses frantically called for help.
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Paramedics tried desperately to save him, but there was nothing they could do.
"It's terrible. It's really sad to hear - his family will suffer for ever, that's the sad thing," a woman at the scene said.
In a statement the grieving Hanley family says Jack's death is hard to believe.
"A life taken in a blink of an eye, it's so unfair that it all had to end like that," the statement reads.
On Sunday, police briefed the premier on the incident. Premier Jay Weatherill later said Hindley Street, which was recently declared a special precinct giving police wide-sweeping powers, is very well resourced.
"This is an area of great focus for us," Mr Weatherill said.
"It's alarming there's been an incident of this sort and obviously tragic there's been a loss of a life."
The death raises questions about the effectiveness of the lockout laws.
"Whether we could have avoided something like this occurring is a question we would have to look at but this comes back to single male responsibility for their actions," Detective Chief Inspector Charmaine Peters said.
[[img:caption=Detective](https://s.yimg.com/cv/ae/default/171209/3333333.jpg]
After reviewing CCTV footage police made a breakthrough on Sunday afternoon, arresting a 22-year-old Kingswood man, and charging him with manslaughter.
Police say the arrested man has been cooperative. He will appear before a magistrate on Monday.
More arrests and charges are possible, police say.
