Ex- Down Under Lawmaker Imprisoned for More Than 60 Months for Sexual Offenses
An ex- Australian politician sentenced of sexually abusing two individuals encountered via work has been sentenced to five years and nine months in prison.
Case Details
The defendant, forty-four, has been in prison since last summer after a jury convicted him of raping one man and sexually abusing another individual, in multiple events in over two years.
Ward represented the oceanfront municipality of the regional area in the NSW parliament from the year 2011. He left his position as a Liberal Party minister when accusations surfaced in recent years but resisted resigning from his seat and was re-elected in last year.
Court Ruling
Judge the judicial figure evaluated Ward's disability of vision impairment in the ruling and determined "no alternative punishment besides detention could be considered".
The defendant, who participated via video-link at Parramatta District Court, will undergo at least three years and nine months in prison before he can request conditional freedom.
The court official stated the court needs to "deliver a strong warning to potential criminals that criminal acts such as this will be met with serious punishments".
Additional Information
Additionally stated the convicted man had "evaded consequences for multiple years and experienced freedom without a programme or penalty for the offenses during that period".
After his conviction, the individual initiated a failed appeal attempt to stay in parliament and left office just prior to the congress could oust him.
His legal team has indicated before he intends to challenge the conviction.
Incident Details
Ward's nine-week trial in the NSW District Court was told that he invited a inebriated 18-year-old man to his home in 2013 and indecently assaulted him three times, despite his attempts to oppose.
In 2015, he sexually assaulted a young political staffer at his residence after a function at government offices.
He had argued the second incident was fabricated, and that the other complainant was inaccurate regarding their interaction from the earlier year.
But the prosecution contended that significant resemblances in the testimonies of the victims, who had no connection to one another, demonstrated they were accurate in their accounts.
The panel deliberated for three days before announcing the findings of guilt.
Ward's resignation prompted a replacement vote in his constituency in September, which was claimed by the Labor candidate.
