February 14, 2022
Former NRL star Jarryd Hayne has won an appeal against his sexual assault convictions.
Hayne, 33, was found guilty of two charges of sexually assaulting a woman in her bedroom on the night of the 2018 NRL grand final.
In 2021 he was given a maximum sentence of five years and nine months, with a non-parole period of three years and eight months.
A three-judge panel in the NSW Court of Criminal Appeal has upheld some of his grounds for appeal and quashed his convictions.
Hayne will face a retrial.
In sentencing him in 2021, District Court Judge Helen Syme said Hayne was fully aware the woman was not consenting, but went ahead anyway.
“The reliability and honesty of the victim’s evidence was tested at length and in my view, her reliability was not in doubt. She said no several times,” Judge Syme said.
“The use of force was such that the victim had no prospect of stopping him physically.”
During the trial the court heard Mr Hayne sexually assaulted the woman in her bedroom while her mother was also in the house, causing her injuries, and leaving her shocked and scared.
He was in Newcastle for a bucks party and visited the woman on the way back to Sydney.
Mr Hayne argued the sex was consensual.
In appealing against his conviction, his legal team argued Judge Syme gave the jury ‘flawed’ directions.
They also argued there was inconsistent evidence and that an outburst from the woman in court when she yelled “no means no” under cross-examination, was prejudicial.
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The Prime Minister’s wife has taken a swipe at former Australian of the Year Grace Tame’s decision not to smile during an event at the Lodge.
Interviewed by Karl Stefanovic for 60 Minutes, Jenny Morrison said it was “disappointing” Ms Tame did not smile at a recent meet and greet.
“I just wish the focus had been on all the incredible people coming in,” she said.
“I just found it a little bit disappointing, [because] we were welcoming her in our home.”
Ms Morrison, along with her husband Scott Morrison, welcomed Ms Tame to an Australia Day event in Canberra last month.
Television cameras captured the meeting as Ms Tame and her fiance, Max Heerey, arrived.
The pair were congratulated on their recent engagement — but they remained stony-faced as the group posed for photographs.
Morrison told Channel Nine she wanted her own daughters to become fierce and independent but also to have manners.
The Prime Minister’s wife said she respected “people who want to change things, stand up for their beliefs and are strong”.
“But I still think there’s manners and respect,” she said.
“I want my daughters to grow up to be fierce, strong, independent, amazing people. I think they can still do that and show kindness to other people and be polite and have manners.”
Mr Morrison did not comment on the snub during the Channel Nine program, and has not previously expressed any opinion on it.
Ms Tame has said that she did not smile because the “survival of abuse culture is dependent on submissive smiles”.
“It is dependent on hypocrisy,” she said in a tweet.
“My past is only relevant to the extent that I have seen — in fact, I have worn — the consequences of civility for the sake of civility.”
Video from the event shows Ms Tame briefly smiling and nodding to Ms Morrison.
Deputy Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce said he was “on Jenny Morrison’s side”.
“You don’t have to respect the person, you have to respect the office and the great honour and how we see the office of the Prime Minister,” he said.
“And for 30 seconds you just have to be polite.
“You can have your strident political views, you’re absolutely entitled to them … you’re absolutely entitled to go to the podium and express them but at that point, we all have to do it.
“If I see Anthony Albanese in the corridor, I’m polite to him.”
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Police have cleared and arrested the remaining protesters near the busiest US-Canadian border crossing, ending a demonstration against COVID-19 restrictions that has hurt the economy of both nations.
The crackdown came as authorities held back from clearing a larger protest in the Canadian capital, Ottawa
Local and national police have formed a joint command centre in Ottawa, where protests have paralysed the CBD, infuriated residents — who are fed up with police inaction — and turned up the pressure on Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
The protests have reverberated across the country and beyond, with similar convoys in Australia, France, New Zealand and the Netherlands.
The US Department of Homeland Security has warned that truck convoys may be in the works in the United States.
Police in Windsor, Canada, said about 12 people were peacefully arrested and seven vehicles were towed just after dawn near the Ambassador Bridge that links their city — and numerous Canadian automotive plants — with Detroit.
It was not immediately clear when the bridge might be opened but Windsor’s Mayor Drew Kiklens said he hoped it would be Sunday (local time).
“Today, our national economic crisis at the Ambassador Bridge came to an end,” he added later.
“Border crossings will reopen when it is safe to do so and I defer to police and border agencies to make that determination.”
Only a few protesters had remained after police on Saturday (local time) persuaded demonstrators to move their pick-up trucks and others cars that they used to block a crossing that sees 25 per cent of all trade between the two countries.
On Friday, a judge ordered an end to the blockade at the crossing in Windsor and Ontario Premier Doug Ford declared a state of emergency allowing for fines of $CAN100,000 ($110,000) and up to one year in jail for anyone illegally blocking roads, bridges, walkways and other critical infrastructure.
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Steve Smith has been ruled out for the three remaining games of Australia’s T20 international series with Sri Lanka due to concussion.
Smith dived to stop a Maheesh Theekshana ball from going to the boundary in Sunday’s second T20I at the SCG but fell headfirst as he attempted to claw the ball back.
Cricket Australia said they would not look to bring a replacement into the squad, which will be hoping to add to their 2-0 lead when they play in Canberra on Tuesday.
Sri Lanka were able to force a tie, responding to Australia’s 6-164 by scoring 18 off the last over, with Josh Hazlewood’s miserly five runs conceded in the subsequent super over then allowing the home side to claim victory.
The quick, who finished the standard 20 overs with figures of 3-22 from four overs, said he had no hesitation about stepping up when called upon to bowl the super over.
“I think everyone wants to bowl those,” Hazlewood said.
“It’s an exciting challenge to be put under that pressure when you’re bowling in the last few overs when it’s tight, or if it’s a super over.
“It’s just as hard at the start when you’ve only got two fielders out if the wickets are good. I think everyone wants to bowl those overs and nail them.
“I guess that’s when you get put up in lights, like in the IPL. It’s good to be the go-to man.”
Hazlewood received a $1.44 million payday to join the Royal Challengers Bangalore in Saturday’s IPL auction.
Given his displays at the SCG over the last few days, it’s clear to see why.
Hazlewood returned to the international arena on Friday after a disappointing summer in which he played just one of Australia’s Ashes Test wins due to a side strain.
The 31-year-old came back with a bang, finishing with career-best T20I figures of 4-12 before sealing the victory on Friday.
Fellow Test regular Mitchell Starc was rested and Hazlewood said it was likely he, Starc and Test skipper Pat Cummins would be rested with one eye on the tour of Pakistan.
“I think it’s just about resting up and giving some guys some opportunities,” he said.
“There’s still three games to go and I guess Pat and Mitch are coming off Test matches so could probably do with their feet up.”
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Victoria has recorded the deaths of a further two COVID-19 patients.
The number of people in hospital after contracting the virus sits at 465, the same as the number reported on Sunday.
Of the people in hospital, 66 are in intensive care units and 18 are on ventilators.
The state has reported 7,104 new infections. That tally is comprised of 2,058 positive PCR tests and 5,046 positive rapid antigen test notifications.
It takes the number of officially reported active infections to 53,707, down from 54,494 on Sunday.
About 51 per cent of the state’s adult population has now had a third dose of a COVID-19 vaccine.
Victoria’s Code Brown will lift at midday today, allowing more people to undergo elective surgeries in the state’s hospitals.
The emergency declaration came into effect last month, as the hospital system became overwhelmed by Omicron cases and staff shortages due to isolation requirements.
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Kyle Sandilands has announced he and fiancee Tegan Kynaston are expecting their first child together.
The radio host, 50, made the announcement on-air during The Kyle and Jackie O Show this morning, bringing his fiancee on as a guest to help break the news.
And it was a very Sandilands birth announcement, with the shock jock announcing he wants “either a girl … or a little gay son,” and praising his fiance’s “beautiful big meaty t***ies” since she’s become pregnant.
Tegan Kynaston and Kyle Sandilands recently got engaged during a Queensland getaway.
“This is so exciting!” said co-host Jackie O – who also suggested that the pregnancy was “why you’ve started getting so emotional lately – everyone’s noticed”.
Sandilands made headlines earlier this month when he stormed out of the show at the start of an episode, after going on a fiery 12-minute rant about Australian media and politics.
The dummy spit came weeks after Sandilands proposed to Kynaston in an extravagant stunt during a Queensland holiday in mid-January.
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