Trial date looms for Goonellabah man accused of baseball bat murder
The Northern Rivers man has pleaded not guilty to the murder charge as a Sydney Justice questions the Crown’s submissions in the lead up to trial.
Police & Courts
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A dad-of-nine will head to trial over an alleged murder of a Goonellabah man with a baseball bat in 2013.
Clinton Brian Williams, 39, was charged with murdering Dennis Dalton in October, 2020.
On Friday, June 2 he fronted Sydney Supreme Court for his arraignment where he pleaded not guilty to the sole charge of murder.
It was alleged Mr Dalton and Mr Williams were involved in a fight on June 6, 2013 in the early hours of the morning.
Police will allege 29-year-old Mr Dalton was found at 5.30am with severe head injuries at the front of his Goonellabah home.
It was alleged Mr Dalton sustained these injuries as a result of Mr Williams using a baseball bat to forcibly strike his head in what was their third altercation of the night.
Mr Dalton was taken to Lismore Base Hospital before being transferred to Gold Coast University Hospital, where he died on Tuesday, June 25, 2013.
During his Friday appearance, the court heard the trial was estimated to take six weeks and had to move from Lismore due to a lack of available space.
The Crown prosecutor indicated Coffs Harbour District Court would be a suitable alternative for witnesses involved in the case.
“From the Crown’s point of view, if not Lismore, something close to Lismore like Coffs Harbour would be preferable,” he said.
During the sitting, Justice RA Hulme also questioned the Crown case’s statement and why it had not addressed the five year gap between the incident allegedly occurring and Mr Dalton’s arrest.
“I’m curious what came about that brought about his arrest when according to the statement of facts, nothing happened for some years,” he said.
The Crown Prosecutor explained the matter was later reviewed by the DPP in 2020 where charges were then laid.
Justice RA Hulme asked if the Crown could submit “evidence pertinent to the matter between 2015 and 2020” and ordered they file a fresh affidavit.
He also questioned if the trial could be a judge-only matter.
The trial was scheduled for May 2, 2022 at Coffs Harbour District Court.
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