'Vigilante attack' on gay man
A former Sydney DJ was allegedly fatally bashed in a disabled toilet by two strangers in a "vigilante attack" to rid a Caversham park of gay men.
Warren Gerard Batchelor, 48, died a few days after he was allegedly attacked in a public toilet block at Middle Swan Reserve in November 2013.
Two men who were camping at the reserve at the time, Daniel Wade Jones and Mark Taylor, went on trial yesterday accused of murdering Mr Batchelor.
Prosecutor Bruno Fiannaca told the Supreme Court the pair burst into the cubicle and attacked Mr Batchelor while he was in there with another man.
He said Mr Taylor, whose four young children were nearby, made derogatory remarks and punched and kicked Mr Batchelor before Mr Jones repeatedly hit his head with a metal pole.
"Certainly there was no justification or excuse or any lawful basis for the killing of Mr Batchelor," Mr Fiannaca said.
Mr Batchelor briefly regained consciousness but collapsed next to his car as he tried to leave the area. He had a fractured skull, bleeding, brain swelling and a blood clot that pushed his brain downwards.
Doctors tried to relieve the pressure on Mr Batchelor's brain by removing part of his skull but he died in hospital two days after the attack.
Mr Fiannaca said the public toilet block appeared to be a well-known meeting place for homosexual men.
He urged the jury to put aside any judgments they may have about the lifestyles of people involved in the case.
Recorded evidence from two of Mr Taylor's children who were at the park at the time of the assault will be played to the jury.
The court was told Mr Taylor's oldest child heard yelling and was later told by her father someone was half dead in the toilets and there was blood everywhere.
The man who was in the toilet with Mr Batchelor, whose name is suppressed, was the only witness to what happened inside the cubicle and will give evidence during the trial.
Mr Fiannaca said the man was assaulted and threatened with a knife but managed to barge through the men and flee in a car.
During an interview with police, Mr Taylor said he saw a man on the floor of the cubicle but claimed he did not notice any blood or injuries.
When he was arrested, Mr Jones denied any involvement in the toilet block attack.
Mr Jones' and Mr Taylor's lawyers will deliver opening addresses to the jury today.
