Father, mother and son appear on murder charge

Emotional scenes unfolded in and outside a Bunbury court, Australia, when a father, mother and his son appeared on a murder charge.

Three members of the same family - the Smiths - were charged with the murder of 23-year-old Jarrad Fitzpatrick, who died after he was attacked outside a house in Bunbury early on Saturday morning.

Police say Mr Fitzpatrick was an innocent bystander to a domestic dispute and was ``in the wrong place at the wrong time''.

Kenneth Smith, 20, his father Colin Smith, 40 and mother Tanya Smith, 38, were not required to plead to murder charges when they faced Bunbury Magistrates Court today.

Relatives yelled messages of support to the family inside the court but abused television crews outside, with one man threatening to sue.

Police claim Mr Fitzpatrick, of Australind, was attacked as he tried to leave a property in Glen Iris shortly after midnight. He died on the driveway. The three accused did not apply for bail and will reappear in Stirling Gardens Magistrate Court next week.