Connor Morris trial: Murder-accused says sickle used to scare street brawlers

Michael Murray appears in the Auckland High Court accused of murdering Connor Morris.

Michael Thrift Murray hit Connor Morris in the head with a sickle-like garden tool, killing him almost instantly.

But it wasn't murder, he said. He told the court there was no intent to kill and in fact, he did not even intend to strike Mr Morris..

Murray is on trial for the murder of Mr Morris on August 3 last year during a West Auckland street brawl. He has admitted responsibility for Mr Morris' death but says he was acting to defend his brother Stanley.

Opening the defence case yesterday, the second week of the trial in the High Court at Auckland, Marie Dyhrberg QC said during the fight outside her client's home on Don Buck Rd he saw Mr Morris assaulting his younger brother Stanley.

"You will hear that Michael Murray is very close to his brother Stanley, and even though they're 12 years apart Michael Murray will tell you he took on an almost fatherly role, a protector role of his younger brother... that is a solid bond," Ms Dyhrberg said.

"The defence case for Mr Murray is that he neither intended to kill or cause any bodily injury that he knew was likely to cause death. He didn't contemplate for one moment that death was something that could eventuate when he swung that sickle. He reacted instinctively, in the heat of the moment."

"Plain and simple, he reacts instinctively, he swings the sickle... Michael Murray reacted in the heat of the moment to what he perceived as a clear and present danger to his brother - and that was it."

Murray then took the stand.

He explained that he was standing in his driveway with a group of friends when one of them kicked out at a man walking past from another group. That man was attending a housewarming down the road at Mr Morris' sister Cymmion's house and was walking with two others to buy juice and cigarettes when the altercation occurred.

One of the others ran back to the housewarming to get reinforcements, including Mr Morris. A brawl broke out.

"I saw a wave of men coming down the road and the footpath," Murray said.

He ran home and got the sickle and used it when he saw his brother being beaten, he said.

"I thought if I got something maybe it would scare them and stop them from attacking us," Murray said.

"I yelled at the man to stop, that's my little brother... he just looked like he was going to continue to smash him," Murray recalled.

"I was quite fearful for Stanley's life. I didn't want Stanley to get seriously injured or killed... I've stepped forward to the vicinity of where the man was, closed my eyes and swung... the sickle.

"I wasn't thinking at that time, everything was just happening so fast."

In the afternoon Stanley Murray was called to give evidence.

As he began to speak, his older brother began to cry in the dock.

Stanley Murray told the jury that he was being beaten up by a man when he heard his older brother yelling.

"He was saying 'get off my brother, get off my brother," Stanley Murray said.

"He had a sickle in his hand. He held it with two hands."

He did not see what happened next, but the alleged assault stopped.

"I got up and ran with Michael..."

Stanley Murray said after the incident he lied to police

"I didn't want anything to happen to me, from the victim's family... I feared for my life."

He knew Mr Morris and his family were connected to the Head Hunters gang and said they were "violent" and he was worried about retribution and revenge.

The trial continues today.