A Logan man accused of cutting another man's throat during a fight, says he did not recognise him at first, and was "shattered" days after when he realised he killed someone he knew, a jury has heard.
Harley David Wegener pleaded not guilty to the murder of Benjamin Suttie at the beginning of a Supreme Court trial in Brisbane last week.
The 37-year-old died in hospital in August 2018, three days after the carotid artery in his neck was severed.
Prosecutors have alleged the two, who knew each other, had been walking in separate groups in a Woodridge park at the same time by chance.
It is alleged this is when Mr Wegener picked a fight with Mr Suttie, before intentionally wounding him with an "extremely sharp" knife.
Mr Wegener gave evidence on Wednesday in his defence, telling the jury Mr Suttie had been the instigator, but at the time he did not know who the person was, because it was too dark.
The 34-year-old told the jury Mr Suttie had sworn at his group first, and after Mr Wegener had verbally retaliated, he felt "a smack to the back of the head".
Mr Wegener said he then started throwing punches toward Mr Suttie, and only reached for his knife after he fell to the ground and tried to get back up.
"I just put my hand out [which was holding the knife] and pushed him off," he said.
"Just to keep him back because he was coming in to hit me."
"I didn't even want to hurt him."
When asked why he was carrying a knife, he told the jury this was something he always did, as Woodridge was a "pretty rough neighbourhood", and he had been assaulted and robbed some months before.
He told the jury he "didn't need to use it" as a weapon, and never planned to.
"I just felt safer carrying one and people are less likely to start on me if they see you have a knife," he said.
The court had previously heard after Mr Suttie was wounded, Mr Wegener and his group fled the scene.
Defence lawyer Joseph Briggs told the jury Mr Wegener had run away because there had been a fight, "not because he thought he had killed a man".
Mr Wegener testified he knew the knife had struck Mr Suttie but did not believe he was injured "severely" and had decided to leave the area "just to get out of there".
"I didn't know I'd cut him on the neck," he said.
Mr Wegener told the jury it was only after seeing news reports the following day he realised "I was in the shit" as "someone had been hurt bad".
He also maintained he did not know it was Mr Suttie he had injured until further media coverage after he died.
"I was pretty shattered," he said.
Earlier in the trial the court heard Mr Wegener and Mr Suttie had known each other for some years and had previous negative interactions.
Under cross examination by the prosecution, he was asked whether he was glad Mr Suttie was dead, and he answered: "I'm not … I'm sad".
The trial continues, with closing addresses expected to be delivered to the jury on Thursday.
