Raiders hooker denies touching police gun during pub brawl

Tom Starling said he did not grip a police officer's gun holster before being punched repeatedly. Photo: Bianca De Marchi/AAP PHOTOS An NRL star says he may have brushed past a police officer's gun holster, but did not grip it before officers punched him repeatedly in a chaotic birthday party brawl. SALE ON NOW! Tap into unlimited access Login or signup to continue reading All articles from our website & app The digital version of Today's Paper Breaking news alerts direct to your inbox Interactive Crosswords, Sudoku and Trivia All articles from the other regional websites in your area Continue Canberra Raiders lock Tom Starling was allegedly set upon by police and punched in the head until he blacked out during the December 2020 incident at a NSW bar.

Sergeant Evan Huw Prowse, 38, and Senior Constable Steven Lockwood Brown, 50, have pleaded not guilty to assaulting the now-26-year-old. Starling told a court on Tuesday he did not grip onto a police officer's gun holster before he was struck. "I believe I had hold of his belt (or) jacket," he said while being cross-examined in Sydney's Downing Centre Local Court.



Starling described the brawl as chaotic and said it was a natural reaction for his hand to seek a leverage to help pull himself off the floor. Footage from the venue shows a brawl erupting after Starling confronted a security guard who had allegedly called their mother a "slut". The video was played in court and Starling said the footage showed he may have brushed past the holster, but it was unclear.

"I might have brushed past it," he said. "But I wasn't touching it. "In the middle of that scuffle, I didn't know what was happening .

.. I wasn't aware of my surroundings.

" Starling, his parents and two brothers had been at Shady Palms restaurant in Kincumber on the NSW Central Coast for a family friend's 21st party. Tom Starling said his conversation with paramedics was "pretty vague" after his head trauma. (HANDOUT/Tom Starling) The accused officers' lawyer suggested Starling consumed numerous beers in the lead-up to the brawl, which the rugby league player denied.

Starling said he could not remember the conversation he had with paramedics who tended to him after the incident and recorded in their notes that he drank more than 12 beers. "It was pretty vague after the head trauma," he said. "I can't really recall what happened after that.

" Prosecutors allege the punches were thrown by Prowse and Brown, after they were called to the venue with the riot squad. But the officers argue their response was proportional to the threat Starling posed when he put his hand on the firearm of a third officer. Both officers remain employed by the NSW Police.

Tom Starling, who has played 116 games for the Raiders after a one-game season with Newcastle, was initially charged over the December 5 fight. But he was cleared in 2023 after a court found police were not acting within their duty when they punched him multiple times. The 10-day hearing continues.

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