A mistrial has been declared soon after a hearing on wounding and assault charges against bouncer Jonathan Dixon got under way in Invercargill District Court.
Dixon, 41, faced one charge of wounding Queenstown chef Jordan Sinke with reckless disregard causing grievous bodily harm and one charge of assaulting Thomas Beatson.
The jury was told of the mistrial after it returned from the lunch adjournment on Monday. But the reason for the mistrial has been suppressed and cannot be reported.
During a brief appearance in the witness box in the morning, Mr Sinke told the court he had no memory of the incident at Queenstown's Subculture nightclub and could only remember meeting up with his friends after work.
Dixon's counsel Simon Claver, in cross-examination, suggested that Mr Sinke had had quite a few drinks by the time he got to Subculture.
"You had a go at (Dixon) about some video tapes that had been released," Mr Claver said.
Dixon has been separately charged over CCTV footage from inside Queenstown bar Altitude, which he allegedly uploaded to YouTube. It showed English rugby star Tindall - who had just married the Queen's granddaughter Zara Phillips - partying with an ex-girlfriend.
Crown solicitor Mary-Jane Thomas told the court Mr Sinke and Mr Beatson were with a group of friends having a night out in Queenstown on January 20, 2012, when they went to Subculture.
Dixon was also out with friends and they too ended up at Subculture, she said.
Dixon assaulted Mr Sinke there, causing him to fall to the concrete floor. He cracked his head on the ground, fracturing his skull and causing haemorrhaging in his brain.
Mr Beatson was punched as he tried to pull Dixon away from Mr Sinke, she said.
Mr Claver said that as Dixon turned away Mr Sinke tried to kick him and that caused him to fall backwards.
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