Charge dropped

By Kath Gannaway
AN ATTEMPTED murder charge against James Brendan D’Zilva, the man accused of stabbing Healesville police officer Senior Constable Chris Bullen, was dropped last week following a three-day committal hearing at Melbourne Magistrates’ Court.
D’Zilva, 33, will now stand trial in the Supreme Court charged with intentionally causing serious injury. He has pleaded not guilty.
A directions hearing has been set down for 7 December, exactly a year to the day D’Zilva is alleged to have stabbed Sen Const Bullen eight times at the Shell service station in Healesville.
The court heard that police were wanting to talk to a man matching D’Zilva’s description in relation to reports five days earlier of a man acting suspiciously in the Healesville High School area.
Sen Const Bullen told the court that the police canine unit and a helicopter were called in on the evening of Tuesday 7 December to look for D’Zilva, who had evaded attempts by police to speak with him earlier that day and the previous day.
Sen Const Bullen was one of seven witnesses who gave first-hand accounts at the hearing before Magistrate Ian Watkins of a confrontation that occurred about 10pm that night between him and another man at the Shell service station.
The court heard that during a struggle punches were thrown, which left Sen Const Bullen bleeding from the head and stomach.
Sen Const Bullen said he wrestled with the man for 10 to 15 seconds.
“I saw blood spurting from my eye and that’s when I let go. I knew it was not going my way; I was having extreme difficulty,” he said and added it was at that point he knew his injuries were more serious.
Sen Const Bullen was treated at the scene and rushed by air ambulance to The Alfred hospital where he received further treatment for wounds including a cut to his head, and punctures to his arm and stomach.
The man escaped, sparking an intensive search which ended when D’Zilva was arrested in Richmond on 5 January 2011.
Asked by D’Zilva’s defence lawyer Stewart Bayles about his memory of the incident, Sen Const Bullen said he could still picture the events quite clearly.
“It will never leave me… I’ll live with it for the rest of my life,” he said.
Director of Public Prosecutions John Champion SC told Magistrate Ian Watkins it was “line ball” as to whether the matter should be heard in the County Court or Supreme Court.
He said while it was not a complex matter, it was a matter of some public interest.
“It’s a matter of interest particularly from a point of view of the community in Healesville,” he said.
“Along with a charge of intentionally causing serious injury against a member of Victoria Police, are two reasons to go to the Supreme Court,” he added. A suppression order on the publication of any images of D’Zilva was extended to 7 December.