community - 2026-08-29

Dee Why assault accused refused bail after prosecutors flag phone recordings

Source: manlyobserver.com.au

An 18-year-old accused of assaulting a Dee Why man who was struck with a brick and placed in an induced coma will remain in custody after being refused bail. Joseph Woodward appeared in Manly Local Court on 26 August, when prosecutors flagged phone recordings they allege link him to the May attack at James Meehan Reserve. Woodward appeared by audio-visual link from custody and applied for bail on the basis that the prosecution evidence was too weak to place him at the reserve. He has pleaded not guilty to assault over the attack on a 47-year-old man on 29 May. According to the police fact sheet, the man approached a group of youths near his home and asked them to quieten down before he was struck on the back of the head with a brick. He suffered a broken eye socket and a brain injury and was taken to Royal North Shore Hospital, where he was placed in an induced coma. The man has since returned home and recently spoke at a community safety forum near the site of the attack. The defence told the court that DNA evidence relied on by the prosecution could not establish when Woodward had been at the scene. His DNA and the victim's DNA were found on a pair of glasses recovered there,...