Ex- Down Under Lawmaker Sentenced for Above Five Years for Sex Crimes
A former public official sentenced of assaulting two individuals encountered via professional activities received a sentence to nearly six years in detention.
Case Details
The defendant, 44, has been in custody since last summer after the court found him guilty of raping an individual and sexually abusing a second person, in separate incidents in over two years.
The defendant served the seaside community of the district in the NSW government from the year 2011. He stepped down as a political party official when allegations surfaced in recent years but declined to leave the legislature and won again in 2023.
Judgment Information
Judge the judicial figure considered Ward's disability of sight disability in the ruling and found "no different consequence except for imprisonment would be suitable".
The defendant, who participated via digital means at the judicial venue, will undergo at no less than nearly four years in detention before he can apply for conditional freedom.
The judge stated the judicial system needs to "deliver a strong warning to potential criminals that sexual offendings like these will be faced with serious punishments".
Further Details
Additionally stated the defendant had "avoided punishment for ten years and lived freely free from a rehabilitation program or punishment for his crimes during that period".
After his conviction, the politician initiated a unsuccessful court challenge to stay in government and stepped down shortly before the legislature could remove him.
Defense attorneys has indicated before he plans to challenge the ruling.
Incident Details
Ward's extended court case in the state court learned that he invited a inebriated young adult to his property in 2013 and attacked him three times, despite resistance attempts to resist.
Two years later, he sexually assaulted a young political staffer at his residence after a function at the legislature.
He had maintained the 2015 rape never occurred, and that the first victim was misremembering their encounter from 2013.
However, prosecutors argued that significant resemblances in the testimonies of the two men, who were unacquainted with the other, demonstrated they were telling the truth.
Court members considered for multiple days before delivering the findings of guilt.
His departure prompted a replacement vote in his constituency in last fall, which was claimed by the challenger.
