One-punch accused on trial in Broome

A man accused of a one-punch assault outside a Broome hotel which left another man unconscious has faced trial this morning.

Scott McPhee appeared in Broome District Court charged with grievous bodily harm after punching Tony Trunfio to the right side of his face outside the Mangrove Hotel on September 25, 2015.

The attack caused Mr Trunfio to fall back and hit his head on the pavement, leaving him unconscious.

He sustained fractures to parts of his face and lacerations to his lips.

Mr Trunfio was taken to Broome Hospital before being transferred to Royal Perth Hospital where he was placed in an induced coma for two days.

Both men, who were unknown to each other at the time, had been at the Mangrove on the night of the incident to watch an AFL semi-finals match between Hawthorn and Fremantle.

The court was told Mr McPhee had been outside the venue with a friend around 9.50pm arguing about the match when Mr Trunfio walked past and engaged in the conversation before being struck moments later.

CCTV footage of the assault was played to the jury during the trial.

State prosecutor Michael Cvetkoski said the tape showed Mr McPhee bouncing up and down after the attack, acting like he had “just won a title fight.”

The footage also appeared to show Mr McPhee bending over Mr Trunfio and mouthing off at him before leaving the scene.

Mr Cvetkoski said Mr McPhee had acted like a thug and punched Mr Trunfio out of “anger and aggression,” using a “significant” amount of force to cause as much pain as possible.

However, Mr McPhee’s lawyer Fred Butafa said his client had acted in self-defence against an imminent attack from Mr Trunfio.

Mr Butafa said the CCTV footage showed Mr Trunfio kicking off his thongs and had engaged in the conversation with Mr McPhee and the other man without being invited to join the discussion.

He said Mr McPhee’s friend and another man who was there at the time had told Mr Trunfio to go away.

Mr Butafa told the court Mr Trunfio had been the one acting aggressively, with the footage showing Mr McPhee taking steps away from the complainant while Mr Trunfio continued to walk towards him moments before the punch.

Mr Butafa said his client “knew something was coming” and had acted to stop himself from being harmed.

He said Mr McPhee had no time to assess how much force he had used and said his client had not set out to get involved in an altercation that night.

Mr Trunfio briefly gave evidence at the trial this morning and said while he could remember being at the Mangrove, he had no recollection of the incident.

The trial continues.