One of the judges who presided over Jarryd Hayne‘s successful appeal against his rape convictions has concluded there is a ‘significant possibility’ the NRL player is ‘innocent’.
The two-time Dally M winner was found guilty of digitally and orally sexually assaulting a woman at her home in Newcastle after a high-profile trial in the NSW District Court last year.
It was the third time he had faced a trial over the same incident and the second time he was found guilty.
Mr Hayne claims the sexual encounter was entirely consensual, but the jury accepted the woman’s version of events that she repeatedly said ‘no’ and ‘stop’ and was left bleeding after he pulled her pants off.
He has continued to maintain his innocence and launched an appeal against the convictions, which was upheld in a 2-1 majority decision by the Court of Criminal Appeal this week.
Former NRL star Jarryd Hayne is pictured being released from prison on Wednesday
The Court of Criminal Appeal overturned his convictions for two counts of sexual intercourse without consent
Hayne has already faced trial three times for charges of digitally and orally sexually assaulting a woman at her home in Newcastle
The appeal relied on three grounds – the first being the verdicts were unreasonable and not supported by evidence, secondly, the trial judge erred in ruling the complainant did not have to give evidence about a 2021 interaction with two people she messaged on the day of the alleged sexual assault in 2018, and lastly, that the judge’s ruling resulted in a miscarriage of justice.
In her portion of the judgment, Justice Deborah Sweeney dissented from the majority by proposing to uphold the first ground of appeal that argued the jury’s verdict of guilty was unreasonable.
She proposed Mr Hayne be acquitted of both counts of sexual intercourse without consent, but accepted she held the minority view.
The Supreme Court Justice claimed Mr Hayne’s guilty verdicts were unreasonable because it was ‘not clear, to the requisite standard, that (the woman) did not consent to the two sexual acts which occurred, or, if she did not, that (Mr Hayne) knew that.’
‘On my own assessment of the quality and sufficiency of the evidence, I have a reasonable doubt that the applicant committed the offences charged,’ she asserted.
‘I am of the view there is a significant possibility that an innocent person has been convicted.’
During his playing days Hayne was a game-changing fullback, winger and centre that played representative football for New South Wales and Australia
Hayne poses with the Dally M Award at the 2009 Dally M Awards in 2009, the year he led Parramatta to an unlikely grand final
By contrast, Justice Anthony Meagher found the appeal should have been dismissed on all grounds because the jury could have been ‘satisfied beyond a reasonable doubt’ of Mr Hayne’s guilt.
Justice Stephen Rothman agreed with Justice Sweeney that grounds two and three should be upheld.
They were satisfied the trial judge, Judge Graham Turnbull SC, erred in ruling the complainant did not have to give evidence about her interactions with two people on the day of the alleged rape in 2018.
The court found the ruling, combined with a direction Judge Turnbull SC gave to the jury related to the communications, had resulted in a miscarriage of justice.
‘The jury were deprived of evidence which had significance for their assessment of the honesty of the complainant,’ Justice Sweeney said.
‘By not permitting counsel to cross-examine the complainant on those topics and then telling the jury that in considering the submission that the complainant had lied about matters including deletions from her phone, they should consider whether that was ‘fairly put’, this created an unfairness in the accused’s trial.’
Hayne still faces an uncertain future with a decision yet to be made on whether a fourth trial will be held
Hayne finished his NRL career at the Gold Coast Titans after a short stint in the United States playing NFL
In upholding the appeal, the Court of Criminal Appeal ordered a retrial, while noting the decision about a fourth trial would ultimately fall to the Director of Public Prosecutions.
Justice Sweeney said she does not believe Mr Hayne should face a fourth trial over the rape allegations.
‘I am of the view that in the circumstances of the history of this matter, to put the applicant on trial for a fourth time would not be in the interests of justice,’ she said.
Justice Rothman noted Mr Hayne had been jailed twice and spent ‘significant time in prison’ before having his convictions quashed.
Following his third trial, Mr Hayne was taken into custody on April 14 last year and served nearly 14 months in custody before his release on bail on Wednesday.
He was due to be eligible for release on parole in May next year.
‘In the current circumstances, it is unlikely that a new trial will occur before the expiry of the non-parole period and most of that period has already been served,’ Justice Rothman said.
Hayne has already been jailed twice over the rape allegations and faces the prospect of further court action in the future
Hayne has been ordered to forfeit a surety of $20,000 and ordered not to stalk, harass, or contact the alleged victim or any witnesses
In a statement, the state prosecutor said it would consider the court’s judgment.
‘Any decision about a possible retrial will be made in accordance with the prosecution guidelines,’ a spokesperson said.
Jarryd Hayne’s lawyer says her client is happy to be returning to his family after his rape convictions were quashed in the Court of Criminal Appeal on June 12, 2024.
This weeks successful appeal marks the second time Mr Hayne has successfully won an appeal after his convictions were quashed in 2022.
The former Parramatta Eels fullback was released from prison on Wednesday evening wearing beige pants and a white shirt as he hurried to a waiting ute.
He was required to forfeit a surety of $20,000 and ordered not to stalk, harass, or contact the alleged victim or any witnesses.
The former Parramatta Eels fullback will reside with his wife and is forbidden to approach any international point of departure or apply for a new passport.
He will return to the NSW District Court next month to learn whether he will face a fourth trial.