Terrence Freebody was found dead in his Red Hill home in July.
The man accused of stabbing his neighbour to death in a wealthy south-side street has been committed for trial, but will stay locked up for the time being.
Luigi Costa will go on trial for murder in the ACT Supreme Court at a later date, accused of slaying his 89-year-old across-the road neighbour Terrence Freebody.
Police arrived at Costa’s Mugga Way home on July 22 in response to a triple-zero call.
They found Mr Freebody dead in the dining room and 69-year-old Costa in the bathroom.
It is alleged a bloodstained knife was found in the bathroom sink.
The accused man later returned a blood-alcohol reading of .157, and it is alleged he had consumed at least two bottles of red wine in the lead-up to the incident.
Costa has been in custody ever since his arrest, but his bid for bail has been drawn out since July.
The court has heard Costa has been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s-type dementia, and his legal team asked for him to be bailed to a private psychiatric ward.
A person charged with murder must show special or exceptional circumstances before a court can entertain a bail application.
The man’s legal team, barrister John Purnell, SC, and solicitor Kamy Saeedi, argued their client’s incarceration made it impossible for them to properly formulate a defence.
They want a report from forensic psychiatrist Stephen Allnut canvassing his mental state at the time of the alleged offence.
Another psychiatrist who has seen Costa at the Alexander Maconochie Centre today said he wanted the man bailed to Calvary Hospital’s Hyson Green unit so he could conduct an occupational therapy assessment.
But he conceded his concern was more about the man’s prospects of rejoining the community rather than planning a legal defence.
And under questioning from prosecutor Anthony Williamson the witness agreed the problems with assessing Costa at the prison were the result of unwilling public servants in the mental health field rather than recalcitrant prison authorities.
Mr Purnell argued his client’s age, lack of a criminal history and his health create exceptional circumstances justifying the grant of bail.
“If [his police interviews] don’t prima facie delusion, delirium or something, I don’t know what else would,” he said
But Mr Williamson opposed the man’s release, saying there were no special or exceptional circumstances.
“I’ll start by saying that in my respectful submission the issue of the accused going to Hyson Green is a bit of a red herring,” he said.
The prosecutor added there was no evidence Costa couldn’t get the necessary assessments to help prepare his case while behind bars.
“Although it’s always going to be less than ideal for a defence team to have their client in custody it doesn’t make it impossible,” Mr Williamson said.
Magistrate Peter Dingwall said he wasn’t satisfied the defence team had overcome the presumption against bail, and remanded Costa in custody.
He formally committed Costa to stand trial in the ACT Supreme Court, with the defendant set to face the higher court for the first time next month.
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