A man who three years ago stabbed another man in the heart in an “unnecessary and unwarranted attack” on Gympie on Father’s Day has been sentenced to life in prison for murder.
Alex Robert Smart, 29, pleaded not guilty to the murder of Tylor Bell at the start of his trial in the Supreme Court in Brisbane last week.
His lawyers argued that he had acted in self-defense when he stabbed the 31-year-old man in the chest and leg with a knife at an intersection of the Bruce Highway.
During a sentencing hearing Thursday, the Supreme Court learned that the attack was sparked by a previous altercation between Smart and Mr. Bell’s father, Gregory Bell, at a nearby mall.
The court said the couple had a brief “violent episode.” Shortly afterwards, Mr. Bell and his father got out of the parking lot and Smart followed them with his partner’s car.
When Smart caught up with Mr. Bell, the two got involved in a heated exchange, before he stabbed Mr. Bell through the open window next to the driver, the court learned.
Mr Bell was treated for his injuries at a nearby hospital before being transferred to Brisbane, where he died several days later.
After a five-day trial in Brisbane, a jury took more than two days to reach a unanimous verdict.
Smart has already spent more than 900 days behind bars. (Supplied)
In the impact statements of the victims read in court, Mr. Bell’s parents described how much they missed their son, who said he had the “sweetest heart.”
“He was my best friend,” Teresa Bell wrote.
“I’m broken, our family is broken.”
Ms Bell said “the world has lost a good person”.
“I’m angry about how they took TJ out of us as if it didn’t matter: TJ’s life mattered.”
His father, Gregory Bell, witnessed his son’s stabbing and said he had “destroyed” him and his family.
“My life is shattered,” he wrote.
“We’re not the same people anymore. That has changed us.”
Tylor Bell had four sons and a daughter, and his ex-partner said his father’s death had destroyed them.
“My kids are broken little people,” she wrote.
Your actions were unjustified
When sentencing, Judge Peter Applegarth told Smart that “there was no excuse” for his “deadly actions.”
“Nothing Mr. Bell said or did gave you the excuse to jump in and stab him,” he said.
“Your actions were unnecessary and unjustified.”
Judge Applegarth told the court, “Assault and knives are not the answer, they are the problem.”
“It had deadly consequences: one man has died, your life is ruined, five children are left without a father.”
Smart has already spent 996 days in jail. Must be 20 years old before being eligible for parole.
Posted 1 Hr 1 Hour ago May 26, 2022 at 7:04 AM, last updated 1 Hr 1 Hrs ago, May 26, 2022 at 7:07 AM