Cassius Turvey murder trial: Witness claims she saw 4WD being driven ‘to hurt someone’ moments before attack

A woman living across the road from the park where Cassius Turvey was attacked has testified that she saw a four-wheel-drive ute allegedly travelling at high speed and being driven “recklessly” down her road “screaming” at teenagers about broken windows before the savage assault. Courtney Daniels also told the trial of the teen’s alleged killers that she saw one of the men attack a different teenage boy on crutches moments beforehand the attack on Cassius. The 15-year-old died in hospital from bleeding on the brain ten days after he was chased then allegedly struck on the head with a metal pole by a group of strangers who had accused him and his friends of smashing a car window. Jack Brearley, Aleesha Gilmore, Brodie Palmer and Mitchell Forth are on trial in the WA Supreme Court accused of killing Cassius. The trial has been told in the days before the attack Mr Brearley’s car windows had been smashed, with the four accused intent on finding those responsible. It has also been told Ms Gilmore’s younger brother Cody had been threatened by two different teenagers with the fight organised to take place at the oval in Middle Swan. In her evidence, Ms Daniels said she was outside in her driveway refitting a seat into her Kia Carnival when she noticed the ute drive past then pull up on the kerb “really fast” with three males in their early 20s inside. She said all three got out of the car with the two “skinny” ones on the passenger side closest to her. “They started yelling at the kids,” the Ms Daniels said. “They were yelling at the kids about broken windows, throwing rocks and saying nasty words.” Ms Daniels said the next thing she saw was one of the men grab what looked liked a car tyre pole, around 30cm long and bent at the top from the car. She told the court the man started waving it over the car and his head while yelling adding the teenagers who had gathered on the footpath. It was after this that Ms Daniels said some of the teens ran because “they were scared”. “Some of the kids ran through the grass area and three kids stayed behind,” Ms Daniels said. “Two kids were girls and one was a boy and he was crutches.” She then told the court one of the men then attacked the boy on crutches with the crutches in the middle of the road directly in front of her driveway. Ms Daniels said the man hit the boy in the head at least five times with the crutches then punched him saying that he had broken his windows. When asked what the boy did, she said he replied that it wasn’t him and that man then allegedly said: “It doesn’t matter.” She said the boy the fell to the ground adding she had kept doing what she was doing but she was also scared. After the alleged assault of the boy, she said the man went back to the car which then took off recklessly again before driving down the grassed area. “It was crazy,” she said. “I thought they were driving to hurt someone the way they were driving.” The trial continues.