Former Gosford Mayor Laurie Maher’s trial over historical sexual abuse allegations hears about his “unique” style

A man that worked with ex Gosford Mayor Laurie Maher told a court ‘when he walked around he had immediate respect’ during a trial into alleged child sexual abuse.

Former Gosford Mayor Laurie Maher’s trial has started over alleged historical child sexual abuse dating back to the 70s and 80s — with a jury hearing about his “unique” style from one witness.

Mr Maher’s trial continued at Sydney District Court on Wednesday and Thursday before Judge Phillip Mahony, with his defence team led by Paul Rosser QC.

Mr Maher, now aged 84, has been charged with 13 historical sexual abuse offences which allegedly occurred with six boys in the late 1970s and 80s when he was a superintendent at the Mt Penang Training School for Boys, a former juvenile justice centre in Kariong.

The charges include four counts of buggery, three counts of indecent assault on male and six counts of sexual assault (category 3) knowing no consent given.

Mr Maher pleaded not guilty to all charges in October 2020.

Mr Maher served as Gosford Mayor from 2007-2012.

The court was closed to the media when the trial started on Tuesday, missing opening submissions, however media were permitted on Wednesday and Thursday to view the evidence of one witness.

The witness, a former employee at the juvenile justice centre at various times during the 70s and 80s, gave evidence about the everyday running of the school. He worked with Mr Maher for 10 years while the former mayor was superintendent at the centre.

When asked what it was like to work under Mr Maher he said “he was unique”.

“When I say unique, he wanted to participate in all facets of the institution,” he said.

“He was high energy and he didn’t want to stay in the office. He opened the place for the public for the pool and for the usage of some of the other recreation areas.”

The witness told the court that during his time at Mt Penang he did not hear any complaints from residents against Mr Maher.

Mr Maher is also the former CEO of Coast Shelter. Picture: Mark Scott

“I’ve worked at several institutions … there’s so many ways to communicate for young offenders,” he said.

“Anybody could talk to anybody, you had chaplains coming in, official visitors, parents and Laurie was very free in allowing parents access outside normal visiting hours. And then you had the school, not dependent on us, that had outside sources to complain to.

“To my knowledge and I spent, for the first time I was there, six years or more … I never heard about a complaint about the administration of Mt Penang by Laurie or by anybody else in the management.”

When talking about Mr Maher’s working style and adherence to rules, he said he tried to “restrict formal rules” compared to others who were more desk-bound.

“Laurie didn’t put himself on the roster because he could show up seven days a week or show up at night or the afternoon. He was there most of the days.”

When asked if anyone would have considered it odd to see Mr Maher on school grounds at night or on weekends, he said “no one would”.

The witness described the school, including the dorms with up to 60 beds, khaki uniforms and parade ground at the facility where “each dorm would parade” in a “military style” each morning.

Mr Maher is now aged 84.

He spoke about the school’s point system which saw boys rewarded with more recreational time or trusted positions in their dormitories.

“Each level gives different levels of incentive … more time off your bed, participations in competitions against other boys,” he said.

He also confirmed there was a category of “unprivileged” for bad behaviour and when asked if the superintendent could classify someone “unprivileged” he said “yes, the superintendent had the authority to do anything”.

The witness was also asked about isolation as punishment and he told the court there were isolation cells in a detention centre for boys that were threatening harm to other people. He said most of the time they were there “just to cool off”. The time in isolation was not allowed to exceed 24 hours.

Former Gosford Mayor Laurie Maher leaves Penrith Local Court after pleading not guilty to all charges in October 2020. Picture: Kate Lockley

“The usage of the detention centre for the cells wasn’t recommended,” he said. “We thought … especially under Laurie there was no room for detention, locking people up that much … like it used to be in the old times. Isolation was the most severe punishment.”

The Crown questioned the witness about Mr Maher’s office and whether it had a door.

“He never had his door closed … I assume there was a door,” he said.

The witness said when he was relieving as deputy superintendent he was required to live on site with Mr Maher living “down the hill”.

He told the court Mr Maher was “completely” involved in sport. He said he and Mr Maher played together in a rugby union team which led to the start of a club in Kariong which included staff and players from Mount Penang.

During the start of cross-examination by Mr Maher’s defence lawyer Paul Rosser QC, the witness confirmed he met Mr Maher in 1974 when Mr Maher had organised a busload of inmates to help out with flood relief in Terrigal.

The witness was questioned about isolation cells at Mt Penang and described them as “basic, four walls, windows and bars on it, steel door”.

When asked if they were used for storage, he said “no”.

The jury was shown video footage of the isolation cells filled with boxes and other items, however the witness said “I’ve never seen the conditions of cells like that”.

However he reiterated that isolation was “a last resort” when Mr Maher was in charge.

Mr Rosser also questioned the witness’s previous comment that the superintendent “could do anything”.

The Mt Penang Training School for Boys turned into the Mount Penang Detention Centre in the late 80s.

The witness said “of course there’s always things he can’t do” such as leaving someone in isolation for over 24 hours. He also told the court he had never heard of a superintendent requesting the transfer of an inmate from another facility to Mt Penang.

Mr Rosser took the witness through extensive documentation on Thursday regarding some of the complainants. These included admission and discharge forms, “points cards” as well as records of punishment such as isolation.

The witness was asked about which documents recorded periods of isolation, however he did not remember.

When asked about Mr Maher’s management style, he said “he was assertive in a positive way”.

“I learned a lot through Mr Maher’s management style especially being in charge of so many staff and so many kids. When he walked around, he had immediate respect. Everybody knew him.

The trial is being held at Sydney Downing Centre. Picture: Nikki Short

“He was quite consistent in his decision making. He wasn’t one to sit in the office, he used to rotate compared to other superintendents … he made himself very visible within the institution.”

Mr Rosser asked “is it fair to say that one thing you observed about Mr Maher over your 10 years working with him was that he was guided by the principle of doing the best thing for the inmates?”

“I have no arguments with that,” the witness said.

Mr Rosser said “he insisted that the staff members treat the inmates with respect. Is that so?”

“Of course,” the witness said.

“In my experience … he would be a superintendent that spent a lot of time away from his office to ensure that he was happy with the atmosphere around the institution. He taught me a lot, I respected his work ethics. He was a good model for me to follow.”

The trial takes a break Friday before resuming on Monday.