He's Free & Free To Resume His Playing Career, There Will Be No Third Trial, All Charges Against Jack De Belin Dropped

[R L Winger]

Sexual assault charges against NRL player Jack de Belin have been dropped after the jury in two separate trials failed to reach a verdict.

His co-accused Callan Sinclair has also been cleared.

Earlier this month the pair were found not guilty on one charge and the jury could not make a majority decision on the other five.

The NSW Director of Public Prosecutions has confirmed it would not pursue the five charges for a third time.

De Belin and Sinclair pleaded not guilty to all charges relating to the alleged assault of a then-19-year-old woman in a Wollongong unit in 2018.

The woman alleged she was sexually assaulted by the pair, however, de Belin and Sinclair insisted the encounter was consensual.

The decision has cleared the path for de Belin to return to playing rugby league for the St George Illawarra Dragons, NRL CEO Andrew Abdo confirmed this afternoon.

De Belin had been stood down under the no-fault stand down rule, which means players cannot play if they are charged with a serious crime.

"We make no apology for taking the hardest stance in Australian sport where our players are charged with serious criminal offences," Mr Abdo said.

"We cannot remain indifferent to such charges, particularly those against women.

"The 'No-Fault Stand Down' rule upholds the values of the game, protects the game's commercial relationships and provides safeguards for the very small number of players who find themselves the subject of serious criminal charges.

"This is an example of our processes working.

"Jack continued to be employed by the club and was able to extend his contract with the Dragons during the process.

"The rule worked as it should."

Dragons CEO Ryan Webb also released a statement, saying, "today's outcome concludes a tumultuous period for all involved in the Jack de Belin matter.

"I wish to thank the support received by our partners, members and fans throughout this entire process."

The Dragons also confirmed de Belin wpuld remain at the club until at least the end of the 2023 season following the DDP's decision.

[Graham]

[R L Winger]

COURT PROCEEDINGS ARE NOT RUN BY THE MEDIA: JUDGE BLASTS LEAK OF JACK DE BELIN CHARGES BEING DROPPED

A judge has asked how journalists were informed that Jack de Belin's sexual assault case would be withdrawn before a court was notified, telling lawyers that she is not pleased and noting court proceedings are not run by the media.

Prosecutors formally withdrew four sexual assault charges against Mr de Belin on Friday, a day after lawyers confirmed the case would not proceed to a third trial.

Mr de Belin, 30, and his friend Callan Sinclair, 24, faced two trials in the NSW District Court on five counts each of aggravated sexual assault after they were accused of assaulting a crying woman at a North Wollongong unit in the early hours of December 9, 2018.

Both pleaded not guilty, maintaining the encounter was a consensual threesome.

Earlier this month, a jury acquitted the men of one charge, relating to an allegation of anal intercourse. The remaining four charges each faced - which were presented on an indictment as three shared counts and one separate count each - remained unresolved when the jury was unable to reach a verdict.

On Thursday, Crown prosecutor Craig Everson said the Director of Public Prosecutions directed there be no further proceedings in the case. Each indictment was marked as "spent".

Judge Dina Yehia said she wants to know "how it is that the decision that was taken, to direct no further proceedings, seems to have come to the attention of the press before it came to the attention of this court".

A judge has asked how journalists were informed that Jack de Belin's sexual assault case would be withdrawn before a court was notified, telling lawyers that she is not pleased and noting court proceedings are not run by the media.

 

Prosecutors formally withdrew four sexual assault charges against Mr de Belin on Friday, a day after lawyers confirmed the case would not proceed to a third trial.

Mr de Belin, 30, and his friend Callan Sinclair, 24, faced two trials in the NSW District Court on five counts each of aggravated sexual assault after they were accused of assaulting a crying woman at a North Wollongong unit in the early hours of December 9, 2018.

Both pleaded not guilty, maintaining the encounter was a consensual threesome.

Earlier this month, a jury acquitted the men of one charge, relating to an allegation of anal intercourse. The remaining four charges each faced - which were presented on an indictment as three shared counts and one separate count each - remained unresolved when the jury was unable to reach a verdict.

On Thursday, Crown prosecutor Craig Everson said the Director of Public Prosecutions directed there be no further proceedings in the case. Each indictment was marked as "spent".

Judge Dina Yehia said she wants to know "how it is that the decision that was taken, to direct no further proceedings, seems to have come to the attention of the press before it came to the attention of this court".

Mr Everson said the Crown did not communicate this information to the press, and he understands it was leaked to The Daily Telegraph twenty minutes after the DPP emailed lawyers for Mr de Belin and Mr Sinclair.

"Court proceedings are not run by the media, and it's a discourtesy to this court to have that decision leaked to the press before the proceedings are conducted in this court, when this court is notified in the appropriate form," Judge Yehia said.

Mr Everson said he is in "furious agreement".

Judge Yehia said she won't make further inquiries about how the information was leaked, because she has a busy day ahead, but "I'll tell you I'm not pleased about the way this information was leaked to the press".

Speaking outside court, Mr de Belin's solicitor Robert Foster said the case has been "a very long road; no one had any idea just how long a road it would be".

"The indictment has now been marked as ‘spent' and these proceedings are at an end. Jack de Belin is very relieved and looking forward to getting back to playing football," Mr Foster said.

A 2½-week trial at Downing Centre District Court had been told the 19-year-old woman met Mr de Belin and Mr Sinclair at a nightclub, Mr Crown, on the evening of December 8.

In her evidence, the woman said she went with the pair and believed they were taking a bike taxi to another club, but instead they went to a unit in a residential area. She said she initially declined to go inside, then went in to use the toilet.

The woman said Mr de Belin walked into the en suite bathroom naked, while she was using the toilet, so she left the room. She said that when Mr de Belin emerged he undid her top, pushed her onto a bed and removed the rest of her clothing, then started "having sex with me" despite her saying "no".

She said Mr Sinclair undressed and joined in, taking Mr de Belin's place, before the pair swapped several times.

"They were both cheering each other on. Jack de Belin was going, ‘Yeah Cal, keep going,'" the woman said. "I was dead inside, I was numb, I was crying - that's all I was doing."

In his evidence, Mr de Belin said he proposed a consensual threesome with the woman by saying to her: "me, you and Cal".

"She responded, ‘but you have a girlfriend'," Mr de Belin said. "I responded, ‘I can keep a secret if you can'. After that, she winked back and smiled."

In phone calls played to the jury, which had been secretly intercepted by police, Mr de Belin and Mr Sinclair maintained their innocence in conversations with friends, relatives and each other.

Mr de Belin has not played since the end of the 2018 season after becoming the first player to be subject to the NRL's no-fault stand-down policy. Under the policy, players charged with an offence carrying a maximum prison term of 11 years or more are automatically stood down until their court proceedings are finalised.

The St George Illawarra forward is expected to make his return this weekend.

Speaking to Sydney radio station 2GB on Friday morning, Australian Rugby League Commission chair Peter V'landys was asked about the stand-down policy. He said he feels "sorry for Jack" but "we have a very serious position being custodians of the game and we have to consider the game as a whole".

"We took one of the toughest stances in Australian sport and we had to," Mr V'landys said.

 

 

[Sports Prophet]

No sign of DeBellin tonight. Dragons fans will be begging that he can bring some immediate form to a team whose season is in a vicious decline, losing to one very unconvincing team and then getting flogged a week later by another also ran.

I anticipate we will see the No Fault Stand Down policy face it’s biggest legal scrutiny in the coming months.

[R L Winger]

On 29/05/2021 at 00:26, Sports Prophet said:

No sign of DeBellin tonight. Dragons fans will be begging that he can bring some immediate form to a team whose season is in a vicious decline, losing to one very unconvincing team and then getting flogged a week later by another also ran.

I anticipate we will see the No Fault Stand Down policy face it’s biggest legal scrutiny in the coming months.

Jack de Belin has made his return to rugby league, 968 days since his last game.

De Belin ran out for the Dragons against Magpies in the NSW Cup at Lidcombe Oval on Saturday. They lost 26-18.

De Belin played for 44 minutes and was reportedly met with an overwhelmingly positive reception from the crowd and even opposition players.

It was his first game since 2018, having been stood down by the NRL after being charged with rape.

He started from the bench in the No.19 jersey. He was supported in the crowd by his partner and friends, as well as a number of other Dragons.

It is the first step in his journey back to the NRL. De Belin is now available to be selected for St George Illawarra, and could play as soon as Thursday night against the Broncos.

“I’d rather see how he gets thorough this,” Dragons coach Anthony Griffin told media after watching de Belin’s performance on Saturday.

“It would be a big ask to play next Thursday. He’ll be terribly sore after today.

“We’ll see what happens over the next couple of days. He wants to play as quickly as possible, and we want him on our list as quickly as possible, but we won’t do anything stupid that will put him in jeopardy of hurting himself after being out this long.

“He was gassed after four or five minutes. But he’s been really effective. He’s been everywhere he needs to be and neat with his defence.”

De Belin is set to return to training with the Dragons’ first-grade squad next week, though it is unclear when he will line up in the NRL.

However, reports from the St George Illawarra camp state that he is in elite physical shape. De Belin’s new contract with the Dragons runs until the end of the 2023 season.

NRL CEO Andrew Abdo stood by the policy that saw De Belin scrubbed out of playing for almost three years.

“We make no apology for taking the hardest stance in Australian sport where our players are charged with serious criminal offences. We cannot remain indifferent to such charges, particularly those against women,’’ he said in a Thursday statement.

“The “No-Fault Stand Down” rule upholds the values of the game, protects the game’s commercial relationships and provides safeguards for the very small number of players who find themselves the subject of serious criminal charges.

“This is an example of our processes working. Jack continued to be employed by the club and was able to extend his contract with the Dragons during the process.

“The rule worked as it should.”