Fatal servo coffee assault: Sarah Franklin refused sentence indication after alleged attack left victim dead
A woman allegedly involved in a “brutal” 7-Eleven assault that left another woman dead after she was doused with hot coffee has fronted court.
South East
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A woman “begged for her life” during an alleged fatal assault after she was allegedly doused with hot coffee at a Caulfield 7-Eleven, a court has heard.
Caulfield South woman Sarah Franklin, 52, who was allegedly involved in the fatal altercation, fronted Moorabbin Magistrates’ Court on September 27 for an sentence indication application.
Magistrate Luisa Bazzani refused the application, saying she was “not prepared” to give it.
“It’s clear to me that the accused wishes to know if I’ll impose an immediate term of imprisonment,” she said.
“You won’t receive an indication from me or from this court.”
The alleged assault occurred at the Hawthorn Rd 7-Eleven on February 8 last year, where Mr Franklin and another woman allegedly assaulted another patron of the servo, before fleeing the scene.
The court heard the victim had stopped breathing before police and paramedics arrived and was revived before being taken to The Alfred hospital.
The woman suffered a major stroke and died later that week.
The alleged incident was caught both on CCTV and bystander footage and Ms Franklin and her co-accused were later charged with common law assault by homicide detectives.
In court on Wednesday, Ms Bazzani characterised the behaviour of bystanders as “extremely concerning”.
“I saw a number of patrons continue to do their shopping while this brutal assault was happening before their eyes,” she said.
“Nobody stood in to stop it.”
Ms Franklin and her co-accused will return to court on October 31.
