The moans Dr Peter Dunne made after being deliberately hit by a car are believed to have been the ramblings of a neighbour, but it was actually that man who was behind the wheel.
Thomas Hill pleaded guilty on Monday to manslaughter in the Brisbane suburb of Tarragindi, killing Dunne in February 2019.
In the months before the hit-and-run, Hill, now 37, had become angrier and more confrontational thinking his neighbours were harassing him, gossiping and wanting to harm him, Brisbane Supreme Court was told.
Since October 2018, Hill and her mother have slept in their small car and sporadically returned to their Tarragindi home early in the morning to avoid interactions with neighbors.
The victim and Hill first met weeks before the incident, when the defendant was acting angry and agitated toward her mother, prosecutor Elizabeth Kelso said.
Hill sensed Dunne staring at him, while his mother thought the doctor had called her son an “idiot.”
Hill ran towards Dunne, pushing him and shouting insults at him.
Dunne was back on his usual 4 a.m. drive on Feb. 18 when the Hills drove by in separate cars.
Dr Peter Dunne (right) was deliberately run over by a car driven by Thomas Hill in February 2019
Hill pleaded guilty on Monday to the murder of Dunne in the Brisbane suburb of Tarragindi.
Hill’s mother thought Dunne had called her an “idiot or something” before shining his flashlight into her car.
“It appears that those actions were what caused the defendant to become angry and decide to confront Dr. Dunne,” Kelso said.
Hill made a U-turn, accelerated, reversed and then hit the doctor in the calf with the car before driving off.
Medical evidence suggests Dunne fell and hit his head with considerable force on the road after his foot somehow became trapped in the car.
Neighbours initially thought Hill was making noises in the street before calling emergency services at around 5am
Instead, police found Dunne moaning and groaning. He was conscious but couldn’t say what had happened.
Dunne was taken to hospital with a catastrophic brain injury, before dying six weeks later.
Police planted a listening device in Hill’s car, capturing his explanations of why he confronted Dunne.
“I can assure you now that if he hadn’t stared at me for so long… I would never have chased him,” she said.
Hill had been mentally ill for years and his behavior had escalated before the incident, defense attorney Gregory McGuire told the court.
Neighbors had reported Hill yelling in the street that he was being harassed and that lies were being told about him, McGuire said.
Hill, now 37, had become confrontational after he began to think his neighbors were bullying him, gossiping and out to get him.
Dr Dunne’s family (pictured leaving court) said they had been suffering in limbo for five years waiting for Hill’s verdict to be known.
Hill has been in custody, initially charged with murder, since April 2019 while undergoing numerous mental health evaluations.
Judge Michael Copley will sentence Hill on the basis that he intended to cause serious harm to Dunne but had a substantially impaired ability to control himself and knew he should not have done so.
Dr Dunne’s daughter Kate said the family had been suffering in limbo for five years.
“How can we accept his death when there is nothing but delay and disappointment?”
Dr Dunne’s sister, Lisa McKay, said the repercussions of the crime had been felt every day.
“This was not necessary. This could have been avoided. This made no sense,” he told the court.
“This was an evil act.”
Dr Dunne was out for a morning run when Hill hit him in the calf with the car before driving off, causing the doctor to fall and hit his head with considerable force.
Dunne was remembered as a “pillar of support” by his daughters, who said they felt deprived of sharing future memories, such as walking down the aisle or their children meeting their grandfather.
“I miss my dad so much,” said his daughter Claire Dunne.
Judge Copley is scheduled to sentence Hill on August 27.
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