Christopher Lawrie stabbed and watched wheelchair-bound nephew bleed out on Moulden driveway

An amputee who was stabbed by a Palmerston grandfather over missing food has asked the court to lock up his attacker for 10 years.

An amputee who was stabbed and left to bleed out on a Palmerston driveway will carry lifelong injuries from the drunken attack.

Christopher Dennis Lawrie, 59, was sentenced in the Supreme Court in Darwin on Friday after to pleading guilty to causing serious harm to 39-year-old Mike Spencer.

Justice Peter Barr described how the Moulden grandfather stabbed the wheelchair-bound younger man after becoming enraged over missing food.

Justice Barr said after a nine-hour drinking session, Lawrie woke in the early hours of the morning on Saturday, May 8, 2021.

After finding his food eaten, his grandson’s toys scattered, and a table broken, the 59-year-old said he went “skitzo” and turned on his wife’s nephew.

He stabbed him three times to the abdomen, and then left him to bleed out for ten minutes as emergency services arrived.

“I hope Skippy dies tonight, and remember that I killed them. I want him to die,” Lawire yelled out from the back of the police paddy wagon.

Mr Spencer was treated for three knife wounds, which carved into his liver, small and large intestines, bowel, spleen, and pancreas.

NT Supreme Court Justice Peter Barr. Picture: NT Courts/Supplied

Justice Barr said Mr Spencer’s spleen was removed, meaning he would be permanently immunocompromised.

“The consequences to the victim were severe, both short term and long term,” he said.

“He will require lifelong antibiotics and is susceptible to severe infections.

“He will always be at risk.”

Justice Barr said any friendship Lawrie and his victim once had was gone.

“He expressed the wish that you would be locked up in jail for at least 10 years,” he said.

On Friday Justice Barr sentenced Lawrie to nine years in prison, with one year and four months already served.

Lawrie will be eligible for early release in 2025, after a fixed non-parole period of four years and six months.

Justice Barr said he hoped prison would help the Palmerston man, who described himself as a “binge drinker” and regularly polished off a carton in a single drinking session up to four times a week.

“If those consumption details are correct, your time in prison will surely be to the ultimate benefit of your health,” Justice Barr said.

‘I hope Skippy dies tonight’: Pop’s brutal stab attack on amputee

THURSDAY: A grandfather who repeatedly stabbed a wheelchair-user screamed from the police paddy wagon: “I hope Skippy dies tonight and remember that I killed them”.

Christopher Dennis Lawrie appeared in the Supreme Court in Darwin to plead guilty to causing serious harm to 39-year-old Mike Spencer.

For 10 minutes the 59-year-old sat and watched as the younger man bled out on his driveway in the early hours of Saturday, May 8, 2021.

The court heard Lawrie had a nine-hour drinking session with friends at his Moulden home the day before.

Crown prosecutor Tamara Grealy said his victim, Mr Spencer, was the nephew of Lawrie’s wife and used a wheelchair following a leg amputation.

Ms Grealy said Lawrie was asleep in his room, and Mr Spencer was outside by himself when more visitors arrived at the Moulden home at 1.30am.

“He woke up and became upset and angry because the food he purchased earlier had been eaten by his visitors,” she said.

Crown Prosecutor Tamara Grealy leaves the Supreme Court in Darwin. Picture: (A)manda Parkinson

Lawrie turned to Mr Spencer and warned him: “Skippy, f — k off. Go away or I might stab you”.

The 59-year-old grandfather went into the kitchen and grabbed a knife with a 25cm blade.

As he stormed through the house Lawrie saw a broken table, and his grandson’s toys strewn on the ground.

Despite his wife promising to clean it up, Lawrie said he went “skitzo”.

Turning to the lone man in the wheelchair, Lawrie said “I’ll kill that one”, before stabbing him three times to the abdomen.

The 59-year-old stood over the disabled man on the ground repeating one word: “Die”.

When police arrived at the home 10 minutes later, Lawrie was sitting on a chair on the driveway watching as his victim bled out.

“He’s not offered any comfort, he’s not put back in his wheelchair, there is no other first aid that’s given to him,” Ms Grealy said.

Lawrie told police he stabbed his wife’s nephew “to f — king protect my family … look at what he’s done to my property. Smashed the house up”.

After being put in the back of the police cage, Lawrie started screaming out as his victim was urgently treated by paramedics.

“I hope he f — king dies,” Lawrie said.

“I hope Skippy dies tonight, and remember that I killed them. I want him to die”.

Mr Spencer was raced to hospital, his condition rapidly deteriorating as paramedics wheeled him into the hospital.

“He was speaking in moans and wails only and smelled strongly of alcohol,” Ms Grealy said.

The knife had been plunged 10cm into his stomach, carving into his liver, small and large intestines, bowel, spleen, and panaceas.

Ms Grealy said 1.5L of blood was drained from the internal wounds and he was put in an induced coma for four days.

Defence barrister Shane McMaster leaves the Supreme Court in Darwin.

“Without urgent medical and surgical intervention, it’s likely that the victim would have died from haemorrhagic shock,” she said.

Ms Grealy said his spleen was removed, meaning he would require lifelong antibiotics.

“It’s a serious risk that he’s immunocompromised, where a minor infection could kill,” Justice Barr said.

Lawrie told police he was not aiming for Mr Spencer’s stomach, but wanted to take out his remaining leg.

“My intention was to stab him in the leg, so he can’t bloody walk for the rest of his life. “While he’s already got one leg, the other leg would be f — ked.”

Defence barrister Shane McMaster said his client acknowledged it was a “over-reaction” and he had never wanted to kill his wife’s nephew.

“The distinction that you make is that wishing that someone would die after you have stabbed them isn’t the same as intending to kill them at the time,” Justice Barr said.

Mr McMaster said it was important to note that Lawrie did not run away, but Ms Grealy said that merely spoke to his “sense of entitlement”.

“Really what he is saying is: he was at my house, he’s damaged some things, and I’ve been entitled to do what I did, and I don’t need to run away,” she said.

Justice Peter Barr will sentence Lawrie on Friday for intending to cause serious harm.