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The sentencing of a former MP, who was convicted for sexually assaulting two men, has been postponed due to a last-minute legal maneuver by his defense team.
Gareth Ward, once serving as the state MP for Kiama, was found guilty of rape along with three counts of indecent assault after a jury trial concluded in July.
The 44-year-old was originally scheduled to receive his sentence today at Parramatta District Court.
However, the proceedings were rescheduled to Friday after his attorney, Steven Burns, requested additional time to prepare arguments regarding the appropriate sentencing guidelines for his client.
The delay stems from a disagreement between prosecutors and the defense over whether the sentencing should adhere to current legal standards or those that were in effect at the time of the offenses in 2013 and 2015.
Neither party opposed a short adjournment, but Judge Kara Shead chastised them for the “regrettable” delay over an issue that could have been raised earlier.
She acknowledged the frustration of Ward’s two victims, who were watching the hearing via an audio-visual link.
The former MP, who has been held in custody since July, dialled in wearing prison greens but did not speak during the brief appearance.
Ward invited a drunk 18-year-old man to his home on the NSW south coast in February 2013 after hearing the teen was having troubles with his girlfriend.
They continued drinking before the MP indecently assaulted him on the grass outside and in his bedroom.
“No, like I’m going to sleep. Get off,” the teen said while on the politician’s bed.
Ward replied: “No, relax. You know I’ll give you a massage.”
Two years later, Ward sexually assaulted an intoxicated political staffer at the then-Liberal MP’s inner-city apartment after a mid-week event at NSW Parliament House.
The man, who was 24 at the time, said Ward climbed into bed with him, groped his backside and sexually assaulted him despite him repeatedly saying “no”.
He testified to the jury that he was uncomfortable and felt “a jolt kind of pain”.
He said in a victim impact statement that any hope he had of finding future love after coming out in his 20s had been taken away by what happened.
“I was raped by a politician – someone entrusted with protecting our most vulnerable,” the man wrote.
Ward’s other victim reported being haunted by that night and fearing for his safety in the lead-up to the trial.
“The cost of this experience … has been a numbness, a dulling of my ability to fully experience and enjoy the positive things in life,” he wrote.
Ward has relied on his legal blindness and his public fall from grace to argue he should be given a community sentence rather than a jail term.
Character references tendered with the court, including from former Liberal MP Shelley Hancock, said the offending was out of character.
“I absolutely affirm that Gareth would not be a danger to anyone in the community at all,” Hancock wrote.
After reports police were investigating sexual crime allegations in 2021, Ward was removed from his position as minister for families, communities and disability services and shifted to the crossbench.
His personal vote was so significant he was re-elected as an independent during the 2023 election despite the charges hanging over his head.
Ward resigned from his position in August, hours before a parliamentary expulsion vote was due to take place.
In doing so, he narrowly avoided becoming the fifth person expelled from NSW Parliament in two centuries.
1800 RESPECT (1800 737 732)
National Sexual Abuse and Redress Support Service 1800 211 028