The Crown says a young man accused of fatally shooting a man in Hamilton at close range can't use his age as a defence.
Tyson-Tainui Rukuwai-Te Tomo Photo: RNZ / Andrew McRae
Tyson-Tainui Rukuwai-Te Tomo, 17, is on trial in the High Court in Hamilton for the murder of Michael Thompson, aged 29 in February.
He died during an incident in the suburb of Meville which started as a verbal altercation but then escalated into violence and shots being fired.
Mr Thompson was a patched Black Power member and was shot in the face.
In its closing arguments, the Crown said the accused's youth doesn't excuse unjustifiable violence.
Prosecutor Ross Douch told the jury that during a confrontation, the accused progressively kept raising the level of violence which culminated in a shooting.
He said the defence claim that it was an unconscious act did not ring true, as having a loaded-firearm required someone to pull the trigger.
Mr Douch described the shooting as deliberate and non-accidental.
Mr Rukuwai-Te Tomo said the gun went off accidentally and that it is manslaughter, not murder.
In his closing argument, Adam Couchman told the jury that because the weapon was never found, its firing mechanism could not be checked.
He said the accused had the weapon only to scare away Mr Thompson and not to kill him
Mr Couchman said what his client did was amateurish, stupid and naive, but that he didn't have murderous intent.
He said Mr Rukuwai-Te Tomo was remorseful for what happened and had not made any attempt to dodge responsibility.
Justice Hinton will sum up on Wednesday before the jury of seven men and five women retires to reach a verdict.
