R v Green [2024] NSWDC 638

District Court New South Wales

Medium Neutral Citation: R v Green [2024] NSWDC 638 Hearing dates: 9 – 11 October 2024 Date of orders: 18 October 2024 Decision date: 18 October 2024 Jurisdiction: Criminal Before: D Barrow SC DCJ Decision: Accused is found not guilty on counts 1-4. Catchwords: CRIME – Judge alone trial – reasons of trial judge – assault occasioning actual bodily harm – intentional strangulation – where accused and complainant in a domestic relationship – accused found not guilty on all counts Legislation Cited: Criminal Procedure Act 1986 Cases Cited: Fleming v The Queen [1998] HCA 68 Barwick v R [2023] NSWCCA 139 GS v R [2022] NSWCCA 65 Category: Principal judgment Parties: The Crown Accused (Wayne Green) Representation: Crown: Ms Fleeton, of Counsel

Defence: Ms Hooper, of Counsel File Number(s): 2023/00215590 2023/00084497

JUDGMENT 1. Wayne Green appeared for trial on 9 October 2024, charged with the following offences: 1. Count one: on or about 14 March 2023 at Surry Hills in the State of New South Wales he assaulted JM, thereby occasioning to her actual bodily harm. 2. Count two: on or about 14 March 2023, at Surry Hills in the State of New South Wales, he intentionally strangled JM without her consent. 3. Count three: on or about 5 July 2023, at Redfern in the State of New South Wales, he assaulted JM. 4. Count four: on or about 6 July 2023 at Surry Hills, in the State of New South Wales, he assaulted JM. 1. The accused pleaded not guilty to each count and the trial proceeded before me without a jury. Both the Crown and the accused agreed to this course. 2. The Crown opened and identified the following alleged conduct on the part of the accused: Count 1: after being allowed to enter the complainant's unit, the accused punched her to the head four or five times, resulting in her losing consciousness, falling and hitting her head on the floor. The accused also stomped on her head, causing pain. Count 2: upon the complainant regaining consciousness, she tried to stand, however the accused got on top of her and held her down, kneeling on her torso and then choked or strangled her. 1. Couns 1 and 2 were alleged to have occurred in the complainant's unit in the early hours of 14 March 2023. The Crown continued: Count 3: on 5 July 2023 the complainant and the accused, in breach of an Apprehended Violence Order, were staying in a unit on the corner of Cooper and Walker Streets in Redfern. The complainant was asleep on a couch when the accused and an unknown male returned. She let them in and continued to try and sleep on the loungeroom floor. The accused and the male were talking loudly. She told them to shut up. The accused walked to the complainant and stomped her left shoulder, which put the complainant's right shoulder into the floor causing her pain. Count 4: on 6 July 2023 the accused and the complainant had attended the Molly Malone Tavern in Surry Hills and spent time in the gaming room. Afterwards, and when on the way to a Belvoir St unit complex (Northcott), the accused punched the complainant in the left jaw with his right hand using a closed fist. The complainant felt immediate pain and dizziness and felt like she was going to lose consciousness.