Rugby league star Latrell Mitchell was “reduced to a weeping mess, worried that he might die” when police arrested him following an alleged scuffle along with his cousin, Jack Wighton, a court docket has heard.
The two males, who’re distant cousins, good associates and have performed collectively within the NSW and Indigenous all-star groups, had been allegedly concerned in a battle outdoors a nightclub in Canberra within the early hours of February 5 this 12 months.
Mitchell, who performs for South Sydney Rabbitohs, has been charged with battle in public place, affray, and hinder/ resist territory officers.
Wighton, who performed for Canberra Raiders on the time however will be a part of Mitchell on the Rabbitohs subsequent season, has additionally been charged with combating in a public place, and failing to adjust to an exclusion course.
The court docket heard from Wighton’s lawyer, Jack Pappas, that earlier within the evening, whereas celebrating his thirtieth birthday, Wighton had been “unlawfully” ordered to depart Fiction nightclub after a bunch of police entered the premises.
Prosecutor Sam Bargwanna instructed the court docket {that a} police officer had noticed that Wighton had “facial expressions that showed he was upset, and angry, and had clenched fists” – which the defence rejected – and had been requested to depart after allegedly pushing one other male.
Wighton was faraway from the membership and, as soon as outdoors, was given an exclusion course.
In CCTV footage performed to the court docket, there was an altercation throughout the street from the nightclub allegedly involving the 2. The prosecution stated the pair had been “pushing, shoving, and grappling with each other”.
The defence instructed the court docket the incident didn’t quantity to a battle, whereas the prosecution tendered the Macquarie dictionary definition of the time period.
Police “descended” upon the pair after the scuffle broke out and separated Wighton and Mitchell, the court docket heard.
The prosecution stated Wighton was reminded by police that he was topic to an exclusion course, and subsequently instructed the officers attending to him to “lock him up with (Mitchell)” and referred to as the officers “f***wits”.
The defence stated Mitchell had complied with instructions to get on his knees, after which the bottom, however was stored pinned to the bottom by a police officer.
Mitchell’s lawyer Steve Boland instructed the court docket the participant was “screaming in pain” and was “horribly distressed”, whereas Wighton was standing close by.
“It seems to me that (Wighton) is accused of not turning his back on his cousin and walking off into the night in circumstances where Mr Mitchell ultimately was reduced to a weeping mess, worrying that he might die, and screaming that he’s got two daughters,” Mr Boland stated.
The court docket heard that whereas Mitchell was on the bottom, the Rabbitohs star instructed a bunch of bystanders, a lot of whom had been filming the incident on their telephones, to “release it” (the footage).
The court docket heard that Mitchell had instructed the officers on the time of the incident that he had accomplished “nothing wrong except be a blackfella in Australia” and had repeatedly requested for an evidence as to what had occurred.
The defence argues that the pair weren’t concerned in a battle, and that the idea of the exclusion discover was illegal and improper.
The matter continues.
Source web site: www.foxsports.com.au
