By Cam Lucadou-Wells
A man described as having a “persecutory view of the world” has been jailed after nearly stabbing a younger man to death during a Dandenong alleyway fight on a summer afternoon.
During sentencing in the Victorian County Court, Heath Lugg, 47, called out that “none of that’s fair, that’s not correct”.
Judge Frank Gucciardo admonished him, saying: “You’ll sit there quietly and listen to the sentence please.”
Lugg faced a single charge of recklessly causing injury, with prosecutors accepting he acted in “excessive self-defence”.
About 2pm on 26 February 2015, Lugg claimed he confronted the victim in Cadds Lane for allegedly stealing his phone, cigarettes and other items.
The incident became physical with Lugg alleging he was assaulted.
He told police he drew a knife from his back pocket and “let him have it”.
According to Lugg, he’d been assaulted many times before, and that he was “just not going to take it anymore”.
“I’ve got to try and confront the guy and get my stuff back.”
The victim ran down the lane about 50 metres before collapsing. He was resuscitated from full cardiac arrest with CPR by paramedics at the scene.
At The Alfred hospital, he had emergency surgery for a stab wound to the lung and the sac around his heart, as well as for cardiac bleeding and blood clotting.
The knife, which had a blade of at least nine centimetres and a handle of 11, was usually used to cut fruit, Lugg said.
Lugg may have acted in “excessive self-defence” but it didn’t “diminish the gravity” of bringing a knife into the dispute, Judge Gucciardo said on 1 December.
The judge accepted that the victim – who had many prior convictions himself – was stronger, more able and likely to overcome a physically and mentally “fragile” Lugg in a fight.
Judge Gucciardo noted a psychiatric report that stated Lugg’s persecutory and paranoid disposition, particularly towards the health and legal systems.
This trial was delayed after Lugg was found with weapons as he attended court in February this year.
Lugg had a 24-year criminal history of drug and weapons possession, dishonesty and criminal damage.
Most recently, it included a 12-month community corrections order in 2015 for using a phone to harass.
In his sentence, Judge Gucciardo said the accused required a period of supervision to address several medical conditions, a personality disorder and long-standing drug abuse.
Lugg was jailed for nine months followed by a 12-month supervised community corrections order with alcohol, drug, mental health and medical treatment.
