Charge against Christopher Dennis Lawrie upgraded to attempted murder after Moulden stabbing

A man who allegedly stabbed a wheelchair user has faced court charged with attempted murder.

Christopher Dennis Lawrie, 59, applied for bail in the Darwin Local Court.

A MAN who allegedly stabbed a wheelchair user, leaving him in a coma in intensive care has faced court charged with attempted murder.

Christopher Dennis Lawrie, 59, applied for bail in the Darwin Local Court where he stands charged with a string of offences following the violent altercation in Moulden on May 8.

Lawrie was initially charged with reckless endangerment and causing serious harm before prosecutors escalated the charge to attempted murder.

His lawyer, Simon Lipert, said Lawrie should be released ahead of his trial to take care of his 11-year-old grandson who has special needs and to give him an opportunity to prepare his defence.

“(The boy’s) grandmother, Mrs Lawrie, has issues with her health and as a consequence she’s not able to provide all the assistance that’s required whereas Mr Lawrie has stepped into that place,” he said.

“The charges have stepped up and that’s a serious concern, not only for Mr Lawrie but also as far as the DPP are concerned, nonetheless there is legitimate reason for him to be at conditional liberty.”

But prosecutor Collette Dixon said Lawrie was facing life in prison if found guilty, “which does give him an incentive not to turn up to court” and had made admissions to police about his involvement in the altercation.

“Witnesses have said he said words to the effect of, to a wheelchair bound man, ‘I’ll kill this one’ before he went on and stabbed him and then ‘Die, die, I hope he (f***ing) dies tonight’,” she said.

“In terms of the needs of the child, the fact that the child was at the premises wasn’t a deterrent to the defendant’s actions that night — indeed the grandmother ended up taking the child out with her to try and keep it safe.”

Ms Dixon said the other man subsequently had to have his spleen removed, with long term consequences for his health.

In refusing bail, Chief Judge Elizabeth Morris said the Crown case appeared “relatively strong”.

“I do have concerns should he be released on bail, even if he was on supervision, given what appears to be a lengthy history in relation to alcohol matters,” she said.

Lawrie returns to court on September 29.