Alleged Darwin gunman Ben Hoffmann to run a ‘mental impairment’ defence at months’ long trial

Alleged Darwin gunman Benjamin Glenn Hoffmann intends to plead not guilty due to mental impairment in a trial expected to run for up to three months, a court has heard.

Jon Tippett QC will defend Ben Hoffmann at his murder trial after a funding impasse with the NT Legal Aid Commission was resolved. Picture: Glenn Campbell

ALLEGED Darwin gunman Benjamin Glenn Hoffmann intends to plead not guilty due to mental impairment in a trial expected to run for up to three months, a court has heard.

Hoffmann again faced the Supreme Court on Thursday where he is charged with four counts of murder and a string of other offences stemming from an alleged rampage in June last year.

Prosecutor Tami Grealy told the court the Crown expected the trial to run for at least 10 weeks due to the number of witnesses — which the court heard could number in the hundreds — and complexity of the evidence.

“We’re looking at ways to make it digestible to a jury, given the volume of material,” she said.

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Hoffmann’s lawyer, Jon Tippett QC, told Chief Justice Michael Grant he would “run the defence of mental impairment” on his client’s behalf and would be serving medical reports with the prosecution in the coming months.

Chief Justice Grant suggested it might be possible that the Crown would accept a plea on that basis but Ms Grealy said there was no material yet before the court that would allow that.

“It’s highly unlikely that the Crown will be conceding the mental impairment defence based on the material we’ve got,” she said.

“If that’s an avenue that’s going to be taken then the Crown would commission reports of it’s own.”

Hoffmann had previously been unrepresented due to a funding impasse with the NT Legal Aid Commission and Mr Tippett said while he now appeared in the matter, an application for additional funding would have to be made due to the volume of evidence in the case.

Mr Tippett said so far the prosecution brief of evidence listed almost 500 witnesses and while that “seems to be overkill … it’s a matter we will have to raise with the government”.

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Hoffmann will return to court on July 31.