Lawyers for alleged Darwin gunman Benjamin Glenn Hoffmann have told a Northern Territory court they will defend his charges on the grounds of mental impairment.
Mr Hoffmann, 46, is facing four murder charges and has been committed to stand trial in the Supreme Court.
He plans to enter a plea of not guilty.
Mr Hoffmann stands accused of shooting and killing four people in Darwin's CBD on 4 June last year after allegedly taking methamphetamine.
NT Police escort Benjamin Glenn Hoffmann, 45, from the Royal Darwin Hospital. Source: NORTHERN TERRITORY POLICE, FIRE AND EMERGENCY SERVICES
It was Darwin's worst-ever mass shooting.
Mr Hoffmann appeared in the NT Supreme Court via video link from Holtze prison on Thursday but did not speak during the hearing.
Jon Tippet QC, who is now representing Mr Hoffmann after , told the court that "the prosecution has known from the beginning” that they would be defending the charges on the grounds of mental impairment.
Mr Tippet added there was a "high likelihood" his client would maintain his original plea of not guilty.
In addition to four counts of murder, Mr Hoffmann is also facing seven other charges, including recklessly endangering life and making a threat to kill.
The four deaths occurred in a 30-minute rampage that shocked the city and a nation where such mass shootings are rare.
Taxi driver Hassan Baydoun, 33, Nigel Hellings, 75, Michael Sisois, 57, and Rob Courtney, 52, were killed.
Police at a crime scene on the intersection of McMinn Street and Stuart Highway in Darwin following the shootings. Source: AAP
Police believe three of the four people killed were unknown to Mr Hoffmann.
Mr Hoffmann was on parole when he allegedly used a pump action 12 gauge shotgun to kill the four men and seriously injure another woman.
He underwent surgery in a Darwin hospital after the alleged incident for apparent knife wounds "sustained prior" to being tasered and arrested by police.
The case has now been adjourned until 31 July.
