Carer Kerrie Ann Barry pleads not guilty after allegedly spraying disabled man with a hose
An Illawarra carer has faced court over allegations she injured a disabled man by spraying him with a high-pressure hose at a south coast group home.
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An Illawarra carer has denied allegations she sprayed a disabled man with a high-pressure hose at a Mt Ousley group home last year, which allegedly left him with several injuries.
Kerrie Ann Barry, 42, faced Wollongong Local Court for the first time on Tuesday, where she pleaded not guilty to a charge of assault occasioning actual bodily harm.
Barry, who was arrested and charged in November, stands accused of injuring a 36-year-old man with a high-pressured water cleaner on September 1, 2019, leaving him with “numerous injuries” to the right side of his body and buttocks.
Officers from Wollongong Police Area Command initiated an investigation after the family of the man – who has a number of disabilities – reported he’d been injured at the Mt Ousley branch of Aruma Disability Service, formerly known as the House With No Steps, where Barry worked at the time.
Following inquiries, Barry, a Farmborough Heights mother of one, was arrested.
On Tuesday, Aruma Disability Services CEO Andrew Richardson confirmed Barry had been “stood down” and no longer worked for the organisation.
Barry, who was supported by family during her appearance on Tuesday, will return to court next month.