A murder accused has been acquitted of carrying out an assault in the hours before he allegedly stabbed a man to death.
Robbie Smullen is accused of murdering 22-year-old Barry Dixon who died in hospital after being discovered badly injured in a Perth flat.
Smullen, 23, was further accused of assaulting Paul Booth in the city’s Nimmo Avenue the previous evening, challenging him to fight, chasing him, fighting with him, threatening him, and repeatedly punching him on the head to his injury.
Advocate depute Erin Campbell told the High Court in Edinburgh on Monday that the Crown was dropping that charge of assault before closing the prosecution case.
The Crown further dropped a charge alleging Smullen had broken bail conditions to remain within his flat in Wallace Court between 7pm and 7am on June 3 and 4 2019.
Smullen is accused of assaulting Barry in Wallace Court, striking him on the body with a knife or similar instrument, and murdering him.
His mother, Mary Smullen, is in the dock alongside him accused of trying to cover up his alleged involvement in the killing.
Both deny the charges against them and Robbie Smullen has lodged a special defence of self-defence.
The court heard previously how Barry was found lying injured on a mattress.
He was taken to Ninewells Hospital in Dundee but suffered a cardiac arrest in hospital while surgeons battled to repair the damage and he was pronounced dead at 5.53am on June 4 2019.
Earlier on Monday, Dr Helen Brownlow, 42, a forensic pathologist, described the postmortem she conducted on Barry’s body.
She said he’d suffered a single stab wound to the left side of the chest.
The cause of death was a stab wound to the heart, Dr Brownlow added.
The trial continues.
