A MAN accused of killing Scott Parrott at Beresfield railway station in 2022 will face a murder trial focusing primarily on his mental state at the time of the random and unprovoked attack.
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Canadian Matthew Robert Breckenridge, 29, who suffers from schizophrenia, is accused of beating Mr Parrott to death at the railway station on December 12 in an attack that was captured on CCTV.
He then jumped onto the back of a passing train in an attempt to flee.
Mr Breckenridge's matter had been delayed in the local court while defence lawyers and prosecutors obtained psychiatric reports into Mr Breckenridge's state of mind at the time of Mr Parrott's death.
The court previously heard that defence solicitor, Kristy Wade, had made a plea offer, but that was rejected last month by the DPP.
On Wednesday, Mr Breckenridge appeared in Newcastle Local Court via audio visual link from the Silverwater Correctional Complex where he pleaded not guilty to murder and the matter was committed for trial to the NSW Supreme Court.
The matter was adjourned until June for Mr Breckenridge to be arraigned and get a date for a trial, which is expected to focus solely on expert psychiatric evidence into Mr Breckenridge's mental state at the time of Mr Parrott's death.
Port Stephens-Hunter police said they were called to Beresfield train station about 6pm on December 12 and found Mr Parrot critically injured on the platform.
Paramedics treated the 39-year-old, but he died at the scene.
Police say they arrested Mr Breckenridge a short time later and he was later charged with murder.
A magistrate later said the case against him was "extremely strong" because the attack was "depicted on video".
