A Perth council has approved plans for a confronting, anti-violence memorial to Andy Marshall – the musician pushed to his death from the second storey of a Cottesloe pub.
The Town of Cottesloe has voted to allow a plaque to be installed on the footpath outside the popular Ocean Beach Hotel, after a proposal by Andy's family for a profound tribute against senseless violence.
The 29-year-old, a talented drummer with Perth band Rich Widow, died when he was shoved through a plate glass window at the Ocean Beach Hotel by former Rock Machine bikie associate Stefan Pahia Schmidt in an unprovoked attack in May 2011.
In October, Fairfax Media revealed Andy's parents wanted a permanent memorial at the scene of his fatal fall as a community warning.
A total of $4110 was raised to fund the memorial and fly Andy's family to WA from New Zealand for an unveiling ceremony, after a fundraising drive by Sergeant Matt Donkin, a WA detective who investigated Andy's death.
Town of Cottesloe chief executive Carl Askew confirmed councillors had given "general support" for a plaque to be installed in the footpath in front of the OBH after an approach by police on behalf of the Marshall family.
"Wording for the plaque is yet to be finalised with the family however it has general support from Council and the OBH," Mr Askew said.
"Timing for the installation is yet to be finalised."
In a message of thanks emailed to all donors, Alan and Wendy Marshall said they had been touched by the "amazing" outpouring of support to finance a tribute to their son.
"We are truly overwhelmed by your kindness and thoughtfulness. It also means that we are able to come to Perth for the unveiling," the couple wrote in the email on November 18.
"We want the plaque to be a memorial to our amazing son Andy, but we also want it to carry a message about the devastating impact of senseless violence. Thank you for being a part of that message."
Sergeant Donkin said he had been prompted to help after forging a close relationship with the Marshall family in the aftermath of Andy's death and supporting them during the court hearings.
In October, Mr and Mrs Marshall told Fairfax Media they wanted the plaque to bear a photograph of their son and "words appropriate to the message of anti-violence".
"If it's there in a public place it might just make someone think when they see it: this is where a young man in the prime of his life, 29 years old, an innocent person, lost his life through the violent actions of another person," Mr Marshall said in an emotional interview from his New Zealand home.
"It might be just that sobering thought to make people think about their behaviour, their actions and the consequences."
In May, Schmidt, 28, was jailed for nine years after he was found guilty of manslaughter in a judge-alone retrial in the WA Supreme Court.
In 2012, Schmidt was handed a life sentence with a minimum jail term of 14 years for murdering Andy Marshall, but the Court of Appeal determined that Schmidt should face a retrial, with Justice Michael Buss saying he could have been found guilty of manslaughter instead of murder.
At the start of the retrial, Schmidt had offered to plead guilty to the lesser charge, admitting he had pushed Mr Marshall but didn't mean to kill him. But prosecutors rejected the plea deal.
Justice John McKechnie found Schmidt guilty of manslaughter and ordered that he spend at least seven years behind bars before being eligible for parole.
In sentencing, Justice McKechnie said the cause of Schmidt's anger – Andy speaking with two of Schmidt's female associates – was "unbelievably innocuous".
Justice McKechnie said his sentence should deter others from thinking about "casual violence", saying people should be able to go out without fearing such an attack.
He added that Schmidt's actions of walking away while Andy lay injured on the pavement outside the pub were "undoubtedly callous".
