Neo-Nazi kicks up stink over prison showers, cell time
Adelaide Lang and Emily Woods |
A prominent white nationalist has not been allowed outside since before Christmas after being segregated in prison due to his alleged political affiliations, a court has been told.
Joel Davis, 31, has been in custody on remand since his arrest in November for allegedly calling for the “rhetorical rape” of independent Wentworth MP Allegra Spender.
The parliamentarian had condemned the since-disbanded National Socialist Network for holding a police-authorised rally outside the NSW parliament in November.
Davis – a key Sydney ally of the network’s leader Thomas Sewell – claims he was using a “philosophical term of art” in the post but prosecutors allege it encouraged hate and abuse towards Ms Spender.
After three unsuccessful attempts at being granted bail, Davis escalated the fight to the NSW Supreme Court on Thursday.
He has been kept in segregation in jail because of his suspected political affiliations and has not been outside since December 24, according to documents tendered to the court.
The former NSN mouthpiece has gone as long as four days without showering because he only leaves his cell when escorted to wash, the documents state.
“Those are unusual conditions in custody that most inmates are not experiencing,” Justice Natalie Adams noted.
Davis has not yet entered pleas to 10 charges of using a carriage service to menace, harass or cause offence.
Delays in the legal system mean he is likely to spend months – if not another year – in similar conditions if he is not granted bail, his barrister Sebastian De Brennan argued.
Prosecutor Laura Goodwin conceded Davis has experienced hardship over and above what he might have been expected to endure while in custody.
But she argued he should not be released into the community because he might commit serious offences or endanger the safety of individuals or the community.
“The alleged conduct has the capacity to incite others to affect the applicant’s desires,” Ms Goodwin said.
“Some of the messages contain references to actual desires to beat or to otherwise attack, particularly including to rape certain individuals without the qualifier of ‘rhetorical’.”
The messages might be reviled or seen as extremely unpalatable but their criminality was contested, Mr De Brennan told the court.
A psychologist’s report determined that while Davis still holds the controversial views expressed online, he has reflected on the best ways to communicate and was on the “precipice of change”.
The network was deregistered in January thereby removing his platform for sharing those views, the court was told.
The major consideration for granting bail is what conditions would ensure he doesn’t repeat his behaviour given that he still holds the views, even if he has shown insight into his past approach, Justice Adams said.
“The central hurdle to overcome in this case is that when someone has rigid views, it’s hard to modify one’s behaviour overnight,” she said.
In allowing bail, she said strict conditions including Davis not post, appear, or comment publicly on social media would make it very difficult for him to make another post like that against Ms Spender.
“It is understandable that persons may be concerned about leaving a person who … has (allegedly) made posts suggesting that a female member of parliament should be raped – rhetorically or otherwise – free in the community to do so again,” she said.
Meanwhile, former NSN leader Thomas Sewell faced Melbourne Magistrates Court on Thursday over allegations he behaved offensively in front of the city’s Chinese consulate in October 2024.
The 33-year-old, who led the now-disbanded National Socialist Network, plans to make a constitutional argument against his single charge.
AAP