Previous Australian Politician Jailed for Above 60 Months for Criminal Acts

One-time lawmaker found guilty of assaulting two individuals he met through professional activities received a sentence to five years and nine months in prison.

Case Details

The defendant, mid-forties, has been in jail since mid-year after judicial panel found him guilty of raping an individual and sexually abusing another, in multiple events in 2013 and 2015.

The politician served the seaside community of Kiama in the state parliament from 2011. He stepped down as a political party minister when the claims surfaced in recent years but resisted resigning from the legislature and was re-elected in 2023.

Judgment Information

The presiding officer Kara Shead evaluated his visual impairment of sight disability in the judgment and found "no alternative punishment except for incarceration could be considered".

Ward, who appeared via remote connection at the courthouse, will complete at no less than nearly four years in prison before he can seek conditional freedom.

Justice Shead said the court needs to "issue a clear statement to like-minded offenders that criminal acts of this nature will be faced with significant consequences".

Case Background

The judge added the convicted man had "evaded consequences for a decade and lived freely without a programme or penalty for his actions during those years".

Following the verdict, the individual launched a failed court challenge to stay in his position and stepped down shortly before the members could expel him.

Representatives has indicated before he aims to challenge the ruling.

Incident Details

Ward's lengthy proceedings in the judicial venue was told that he brought a inebriated teenager to his residence in the first incident and sexually abused him three times, despite his attempts to resist.

In 2015, he sexually assaulted a 24-year-old office worker at his residence after a gathering at the legislature.

The defendant had argued the 2015 rape didn't happen, and that the other complainant was inaccurate regarding their encounter from the earlier year.

The state's attorneys contended that striking similarities in the testimonies of the individuals, who had no connection to one another, proved they were telling the truth.

A jury deliberated for 72 hours before returning the findings of guilt.

His departure caused a special election in the district in last fall, which was claimed by the opposition party.