Former Down Under Lawmaker Imprisoned for Over 60 Months for Sex Crimes
A former lawmaker sentenced of attacking two victims encountered via his position was given to 69 months in jail.
Legal Proceedings
Gareth Ward, mid-forties, has been in jail since July after the court convicted him of attacking a victim and indecently assaulting another individual, in different occasions in 2013 then 2015.
The defendant represented the coastal town of the district in the New South Wales parliament from the year 2011. He stepped down as a Liberal Party minister when the claims came to light in recent years but declined to leave the legislature and was re-elected in 2023.
Judgment Information
The presiding officer the court official considered Ward's disability of legal blindness in her sentence and found "no alternative punishment other than incarceration is appropriate".
Ward, who appeared via digital means at the courthouse, will undergo at no less than three years and nine months in custody before he can seek parole.
The court official stated the court needs to "issue a clear statement to similar individuals that criminal acts such as this will be subject to significant consequences".
Additional Information
The judge added the defendant had "avoided punishment for multiple years and experienced freedom absent a rehabilitation program or consequence for his actions during that time".
Post-trial, the politician launched a unsuccessful legal bid to stay in government and stepped down just prior to the members could oust him.
His legal team has indicated before he aims to appeal the conviction.
Case Facts
His nine-week trial in the state court was told that he asked a drunk young adult to his residence in the first incident and sexually abused him three times, despite his attempts to resist.
Subsequently, he raped a young government employee at his residence after an event at government offices.
The defendant had claimed the second incident didn't happen, and that the first victim was inaccurate regarding their meeting from 2013.
The state's attorneys argued that notable parallels in the accounts of the individuals, who had no connection to one another, showed they were being honest.
Court members debated for multiple days before announcing the findings of guilt.
Ward's resignation led to a special election in Kiama in last fall, which was claimed by the Labor candidate.
