HAMILTON - A psychiatric patient at Hamilton's Henry Bennett Centre murdered a fellow patient by repeatedly stomping on his head after the patient had tried to "baptise" him, a crown prosecutor told the High Court at Hamilton yesterday.
Paul Robert Probestle, aged 37, of Raglan, is accused of murdering Karl Ian Franklin, 22, of Tauranga.
Mr Franklin died of head injuries at Tauranga Hospital on July 3 last year after being assaulted by Probestle at the centre.
Crown prosecutor Ross Douch told the court that Probestle was found in Mr Franklin's bedroom about 7.30 am on June 7, stomping on Mr Franklin's head.
Probestle later told staff that Mr Franklin - who had been admitted to the centre a week before the attack - had tried to "baptise" him.
Justice Grant Hammond told the jury that the case centred on the state of Probestle's mind at the time of the attack, and whether he was insane.
Probestle, who had a history of paranoid schizophrenia, was admitted to the centre the night before the assault, after his wife called the hospital's Crisis Assessment Team to the couple's Raglan home.
Crown witness Anthony Moran, a psychiatric nurse at the centre, said he spoke to Probestle just after the incident to try to determine what had happened between the two men.
"He [Probestle] said Karl had attempted to baptise him and Paul couldn't understand why, as he had already been baptised."
Psychiatric nurse Ian Wallis said he was making his morning check-up about 7.30 am when he heard loud, thumping noises coming from one of the bedrooms.
He said that, as he entered Mr Franklin's bedroom, he saw Probestle stomping on Mr Franklin's head.
After alerting the ward with a mobile alarm, Mr Wallis led Probestle out of the bedroom into a secure room, where he was later interviewed.
The defence called an expert witness, psychiatry Professor Graeme Mellsop, who said he had examined Probestle soon after the incident.
"I believe that Paul Probestle was insane at the time of his assault on Franklin in the sense that he had a disease of the mind acting at that time which rendered him incapable of distinguishing right from wrong in our ordinary sense," he said. had a history of paranoid schizophrenia, which led him to nte nte
Professor Mellsop said Probestle believed he was an instrument of God's will.
He thought himself to be in constant battle against the forces of the devil and evil.
The jury is expected to retire today to consider its verdict.
Baptism set off murder: Crown
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