Jack de Belin: Case against St George star resumes with pre-trial arguments
St George Illawarra star Jack de Belin returned to court on Monday as legal argument continues ahead of his sexual assault trial.
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Complex pre-trial legal argument has recommenced ahead of benched St George Illawarra Dragons star Jack de Belin’s sexual assault trial.
The 29-year-old and his co-accused Callan Sinclair returned to Wollongong District Court on Monday, after a key witness fell ill in February, delaying complex legal arguments and the start of the estimated two-week trial.
The pair have each pleaded not guilty to five charges of aggravated sexual assault, after they were accused of sexually assaulting a 19-year-old woman at Wollongong apartment in December 2018 following a popular pub crawl.
The key witness was well enough to return to court on Monday, allowing the arguments to begin again in front of Judge Andrew Haesler.
Judge Haesler indicated he wanted the pre-trial arguments to continue for the remainder of the week so a trial date could be fixed, likely in November.
The court remained open for much of Monday’s proceedings, however, the nature of the argument cannot be revealed. Neither Sinclair or de Belin were supported by family on Monday, however were greeted by a flurry of media attention.
De Belin was first charged in 2018, and became the first player to be sidelined under the NRL’s no-fault stand down policy, which allows the game to stand aside players facing serious criminal charges.
Under the policy, de Belin has been banned from playing any games until the matter has been through the courts. If the trial did not proceed until an expected date in November, de Belin will have been sidelined for two consecutive seasons, with his Dragons contract due to expire at the end of this year.
While de Belin hasn’t been able to play for more than a year, he has still been able to train with the team and has been receiving his full $500,000+ yearly pay cheque.