Whangarei High and District Court Photo: Ministry of Justice website
This story contains details of violence that some readers may find disturbing.
A jury has had to be removed from the room and shouting, wailing, and threats in the public gallery have forced security to break up aggression between families at a murder trial this afternoon.
Two siblings are on trial in the High Court at Whangārei.
They are accused of killing 23-year-old Haze Peihopa just before midnight on Saturday 12 June last year.
Family members of the deceased approached the defendants, one yelling, "you should have f***ing killed yourself".
The judge, defendants, jury, and some members of the public were hurried out of the courtroom, but later returned.
The uproar came as CCTV evidence was played to the jury, including evidence of Peihopa being stabbed and collapsing on Bank St, in the central city.
The Crown says the man was murdered when an associate supplied a knife, and the older brother used it for stabbing.
Earlier, prosecutor Mike Smith told the jury Peihopa died when a knife was swung at him multiple times.
One blow pierced through his rib, lung and an artery - to his backbone.
"After those swings, after the stabbing, Mr Peihopa backs up some more, again still trying to keep the two of them in front of him and it ends up it would seem, backing up to the wall."
Defence counsel Steven Lack argued the jury could not be sure his client, the older brother who used the knife, intended to kill or realised his actions would be likely to cause death.
He said his client was heavily intoxicated: "Both from the consumption of alcohol but also through consuming nitrous oxide earlier in the evening and that was so much so that following his arrest the police determined that he was too intoxicated to interview".
Ron Mansfield KC, defending the younger brother, said his client did not strike the fatal blow, and "simply wasn't involved" in causing the injury in the brawl.
"There were many more than just these two, and as you will see, that there were a number of people around Mr Peihopa at the time he was fatally injured."
His client also pleaded guilty to a separate charge of injuring with intent this morning, and was convicted.
CCTV evidence shows a fight breaking out in the middle of the road
CCTV video was played from business' and council cameras, of the brawl and stabbing, as well as body-cam footage of police trying to stop Peihopa bleeding.
Police described it "pouring" out.
The fight started in the middle of the road, around cars stopped at lights at the intersection of Bank St and Vine St.
The crowd involved young women and men, some people were dragged, others punched and kicked each other and parts of clothing were ripped off.
Some video had audio of screaming and shouting.
The knife, around the size of a steak knife, was filmed towards the end of the videos, and shined in some bar lighting on the street.
Cars reversed and drove forward to avoid the brawl.
Throughout the first day of the trial, members of the public gallery had to leave the room crying, and most of the public gallery was visibly upset when the body camera footage of Peihopa's wound, and bloodied chest, were shown.
Peihopa collapsed and never regained consciousness.
One of Peihopa's friends, who was with him during the night, told the jury how he yelled to warn Haze Peihopa of the weapon during the fight.
"He's got a knife," the friend said he shouted.
"By the time I got there he'd already been stabbed."
The friend said as Peihopa bled, "He said I love you brother. I said 'I'll see you at the hospital'."
When Peihopa's partner called, he "didn't know how to tell her".
The friend said if he had had the opportunity, he would have struck the man holding the knife.
Another witness, who was a bouncer near the fight, said the knife "looked like a machete".
He said the man who held it looked like he was "itching for a fight".
The bouncer said the victim was "cheerful, he was sociable with everyone, he wasn't causing any arguments was just sitting there talking".
He said Peihopa was a regular and would not consume excessive amounts of alcohol, normally three beers a night when he was a patron.
The trial is expected to take up to two weeks.
