R v Bennett [2014] NSWDC 61

District Court New South Wales

Medium Neutral Citation: R v Bennett [2014] NSWDC 61 Hearing dates: 20 May 2014 - 23 May 2014; 2 June 2014 Decision date: 03 June 2014 Before: Berman SC DCJ Decision: The accused is found not guilty Catchwords: CRIMINAL LAW - Verdict and judgment - Judge alone trial - Sexual assault - Complaint Category: Principal judgment Parties: The Crown Shaun Anthony Bennett Representation: Counsel: P McGrath - Crown Mr A Goldsworthy - Accused Mr D Randle - Accused Solicitors: Director of Public Prosecutions File Number(s): 2012/2633164 Publication restriction: There is to be no publication of the name of the complainant or of any material which may tend to identify the complainant.

Judgment

Summary of the facts.

Introduction 1The accused is charged with an offence of sexual intercourse without consent allegedly committed upon the complainant on the 11th of April 2011. He was arraigned on that charge and pleaded that he was not guilty. He elected that he be tried by judge alone. The Crown consented and so the issue as to whether the accused is guilty or not is for me to decide. In this judgment ,I will deliver my verdict and the reasons for it. 2In what follows I will not use the name of the complainant. Instead I will describe her in those terms. I fully appreciate that describing a human being who has made an allegation of sexual assault as "the complainant" is impersonal and could easily offend. I wish to make it clear that I have referred to the complainant in that manner to protect her privacy. This judgment will be published on the internet and I have no wish to cause any further distress to the complainant beyond that she has already experienced.