MP waits nearly a year for trial on sex assault claims
Jack Gramenz |
Recently returned Kiama MP Gareth Ward will wait almost a year to face trial in a Sydney court on sexual assault charges after a judge rejected a bid to have the allegations separated.
A date has been set for an estimated three-week trial to begin in the NSW District Court nearly 12 months after Thursday’s decision to hear both allegations simultaneously in Sydney.
Ward, 42, remains on bail, with a trial not set to start until April 8, 2024.
A readiness hearing is set for February 29.
The ex-Liberal turned independent member of the NSW parliament has pleaded not guilty to sexual intercourse without consent, three counts of indecent assault and one of common assault.
It’s alleged Ward indecently assaulted a 17-year-old at his home on the NSW south coast and had non-consensual sexual intercourse with a man in his 20s at his Potts Point apartment in inner Sydney.
He retained the Kiama seat at the March state election following his suspension from parliament after being charged.
Ward was not required to appear in court on Thursday, represented by a lawyer via audiovisual link.
Judge John Pickering granted a motion to have next year’s trial held in Sydney and rejected another motion to have charges separated and dealt with in different trials in Sydney and Nowra on the south coast.
“There must be a joint trial, and there will be,” Judge Pickering said.
“Overwhelmingly in my view, it is in the interest of justice for the trial to come to Sydney.”
Nowra is not set up for a jury in excess of 12 people, which will likely be required due to the estimated trial length to allow for reserve jurors as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, Judge Pickering said.
The three-week estimate would also “dominate” the Nowra circuit hearings, precluding other cases being heard.
The trial can be easily accommodated more quickly in the state’s capital, Judge Pickering said during a morning hearing.
Judge Timothy Gartelmann scheduled a trial date almost a year into the future on Thursday afternoon.
AAP
