Jury to decide if Nathan Morris, 22, guilty of murder of sister’s boyfriend Rodney Frampton

A jury will consider whether the stabbing death of Rodney Frampton, 34, in Caravonica was a deliberate act or the sudden actions of a young man wanting to ‘immobilise’ someone he was “scared” of in a “chaotic and crazy house”.

Rodney Anderson Frampton was stabbed and died on October 7, 2022, in Melinga Close, Caravonica.

The jury will retire in the murder trial of Nathan Andrew Shane Morris, 22, to decide whether he is guilty or not guilty of the murder of Rodney Frampton, his 18-year-old sister Hayley’s 34-year-old old boyfriend.

Prosecutor Elizabeth Kelso said the “ferocity” of the attack in their family home in Caravonica in October 2022 would leave the jury in no doubt that Nathan Morris, 22, intended to kill or cause grievous bodily harm to Mr Frampton, who suffered five stab wounds, some up to 15cm deep to his heart, chest and lung.

The wounds were caused by a kitchen knife from the house, the court has been told.

The wounds that killed Mr Frampton were caused by a kitchen knife, a court has heard.

Mr Morris has pleaded not guilty to murder.

During the trial, the jury has been told there was violence in the household, mostly centring around Mr Morris’s sister, Hayley and his mum, Janelle Salt.

The court was told that, during the night in question, Hayley had allegedly been hitting their mother with a broken broom handle, and Nathan was allegedly upset with his sister and punched her.

Ms Kelso said there was no evidence that Mr Frampton had been violent towards Mr Morris, nor was there evidence that he had heard any threats made to his mother or father that night.

Mr Kelso said evidence was heard during the trial that Mr Frampton said “What did you just do? I just got hit over the c***, Hayley” just before his death.

Mr Kelso told a Cairns jury Mr Morris acted “deliberately” to arm himself and cause harm to a man “just in case”.

“(Mr Morris) acted with deliberation; he deliberately armed himself, he deliberately acted swiftly and deliberately acted in an intentional way to cause harm to a man he didn’t like “just in case’, causing and intending to cause serious harm in those circumstances is not lawful,” Ms Kelso told the jury.

Defence Barrister Tim Grau told the jury they had heard that Mr Morris had lived in a “chaotic and crazy” house in which there was “almost daily” domestic and family violence, which affected his state of mind and anxiety.

He said he Mr Morris gave a candid account of the evening to the police the next day, speaking “at length” without the “filter” of a lawyer of the youth worker whose presence he had requested.

Defence Barrister Tim Grau said the house where Mr Frampton died was “chaotic and crazy” with “almost daily family violence. Photo: Alison Paterson.

He said Mr Morris told the police the next day that his intention had been to “immobilise or incapacitate” Mr Frampton because he was “scared”, but “did not want to kill Rodney”.

Justice James Henry summed up the legal arguments of the case, explaining to the jury that they must consider issues of provocation and aiding in self defence when they considered their verdict.

The jury, which retired to consider its verdict at 4pm on Wednesday afternoon, will consider whether Mr Morris, 22, is guilty or not guilty of murder or the alternative charge of manslaughter.

Originally published as Jury to decide if Nathan Morris, 22, guilty of murder of sister’s boyfriend Rodney Frampton