Man committed for trial on sodomy charge

Press, 12 March 1985, Page 4

Man committed for trial on sodomy charge

An act of sodomy committed on a youth, aged 16, after the youth had attended a Christmas staff party was alleged in the District Court yesterday against a man, aged 37. After hearing depositions or statements of evidence from prosecution witnesses Mr J. B. Graham and Dr J. F. Mann. Justices of the Peace, held that there was sufficient evidence to commit the defendant for trial. They remanded him on bail to March 22 pending a date for trial in the High Court, and granted continued interim suppression of his name. His counsel (Mr D. C. Fitzgibbon) reserved his defence. Detective Sergeant B. M. Roswell prosecuted. The complainant gave evidence in relation to the charge. He said the incident occurred early on December 11 after he had attended a Christmas staff party at premises where he was working during the Christmas period. The youth had consumed wine during the evening and was intending to leave about 1 a.m. when the de-

fendant told him he could stay all night if he wanted to. The youth said he was leaving for home “in a minute.” He went outside and got on his bicycle to cycle home, but fell off. The youth said the defendant was near him and told him he could not go home in that state and to “come back to my room.” He remembered the defendant taking his bicycle, and him, towards some quarters but remembered nothing else until between 3 a.m. and 4 a.m. He then found he was on a double bed in a room, naked. The defendant was in the same bed. The youth gave evidence of an act that he alleged had been committed on him by the defendant. The youth said he vomited at one stage. He went back to sleep after the incident and awakened shortly after 7 a.m. The defendant invited him to stay and drink coffee but the youth cycled home. He did not go to work that day, and the next morning went to collect his pay and asked another employee whom he should see about finishing up. After he had spoken to this employee he was taken to see the manager, and “told him the whole story.” Cross-examined, the youth said he had not been used to drinking to any extent, before that night. He agreed that at one stage he was drinking glasses of wine, one immediately after the other. He agreed that he had gaps in his memory of that night which extended to a number of hours. He did not have a clear recollection of how he got to the quarters,

and the next “major” event he recalled was being in bed with the defendant. After the incident complained of he went back to sleep for several hours. Detective A. M. H. McAlum gave evidence of interviewing the defendant, who denied any knowledge of the matter and said that the youth had not been in a room with him. The defendant said he had gone to the back door with the youth as the door was kept locked because of valuables stored inside. The

youth had set off on his bicycle but had twice fallen and was helped up by the defendant. He last saw the youth cycling away, about 1 a.m. The defendant said that some other staff, whom he did not get on with, and who “had it in” for him, had done a good job of getting back at him by using the kid. The defendant denied having any homosexual inclinations and said that sort of thing did nothing for him, and that he was a heterosexual.