A jury has acquitted a social housing tenant who argued he was acting in self-defence when he stabbed an "irrational and aggressive" neighbour.
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Kobi Guarini, 31, stood trial in the ACT Supreme Court this week on charges of intentionally and recklessly inflicting grievous bodily harm.
Late on Friday afternoon, the jury in the case found him not guilty.
The charges related to an incident on August 22, 2018, when a neighbour confronted Mr Guarini at the Illawarra Court public housing complex in Belconnen.
In his closing address during the trial, Crown prosecutor Anthony Williamson urged jurors to use "common sense" and find Mr Guarini guilty.
He told jurors the neighbour had blocked Mr Guarini from getting into his unit, asked him for about $1000 and punched him in the face.
Mr Williamson said Mr Guarini should have called the police in response, but had instead fetched a mate and a knife.
The prosecutor said when Mr Guarini returned, he stabbed his neighbour in the neck and back, leaving the man with nerve damage and permanent scarring.
He said Mr Guarini and his friend had also punched and kicked the neighbour in "a gratuitous, unnecessary and unreasonable use of violence" while he was on the ground.
But defence barrister Steven Whybrow told jurors Mr Guarini was "not Crocodile Dundee", referring to the film's famous line about the size of a large knife.
He said Mr Guarini had only intended to use a "little" knife to scare his "delusional" neighbour away if necessary so that he could enter his own unit.
Mr Whybrow said the neighbour had charged at Mr Guarini with "two big lumps of metal" and basically attempted to rob Mr Guarini. Things got out of hand and Mr Guarini defended himself by stabbing the neighbour.
Mr Whybrow said Mr Guarini should be acquitted because the charges were based on the "false premise" that there had been no immediate threat to Mr Guarini.
The jury deliberated for about a day before finding Mr Guarini not guilty.
Mr Guarini, wearing a blue suit, sat with his head bowed as the verdicts were delivered.
He quickly left the courtroom and had a muttered conversation with a woman as they hurried downstairs towards the building's exit.