Reside
Lately returned Kiama MP Gareth Ward will face one trial in a Sydney court docket on sexual assault allegations after a choose rejected a bid to have the allegations separated.
Ward, 42, an ex-Liberal turned unbiased, has pleaded not responsible to sexual activity with out consent, three counts of indecent assault and one among frequent assault.
It is alleged Ward indecently assaulted a 17-year-old at his residence on the NSW south coast and had non-consensual sexual activity with a 25-year-old man at his Potts Level house in internal Sydney.
He retained the Kiama seat on the March NSW election after being suspended from parliament following expenses laid.
His trial is predicted to final about three weeks, Decide John Pickering mentioned within the NSW District Court docket on Thursday.
The choose granted a movement to have the trial held in Sydney and rejected one other movement to have expenses separated and handled in numerous trials in Sydney and Nowra on the south coast.
“There have to be a joint trial, and there shall be,” Decide Pickering mentioned.
“Overwhelmingly in my opinion it’s within the curiosity of justice for the trial to come back to Sydney.”
The trial might be extra simply accommodated and faster in Sydney, the choose mentioned.
A trial date shall be set “as quickly as attainable”, doubtlessly on Thursday afternoon.
Ward was not required to seem in court docket, being represented by a lawyer through audiovisual hyperlink.
– AAP
