Kyle Daniels: Mosman swim school will give evidence at sex trial
A court has heard who will give evidence against Mosman swim coach Kyle Daniels in what will be one of the most high profile trials of the year.
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Five of Kyle Daniels’ swim school colleagues will act as witnesses for the prosecution, a court heard.
The statements from pool-side supervisors, such as lifeguards and a reception supervisor from the Mosman swim school, were tendered to court on Tuesday morning.
Daniels, 21, has pleaded not guilty to 26 sexual abuse charges, including nine counts of having sexual intercourse with a child under the age of ten.
Up to nine girls, aged between six and 11 years old, are set to give evidence against him at his trial, which was pushed back again by Judge Kara Shead.
The former Knox Grammar School prefect sat in the Downing Centre District Court with his father.
His mother, who has been a fixture at his side at previous appearances, was not present.
Last week, Mr Daniels new barrister Gabrielle Bashir SC accused police of delaying the case.
The late service of material from the prosecution was named as the reason for pushing the date back today.
“(It’s) not in a position to meet the beginning of the trial,” Judge Shead said.
“The delay is troublesome and unfortunate,” she added, referring to the ages of the young girls set to give evidence.
“(It’s to) ensure that Mr Daniels has a fair trial,” she added.
The trial was due to begin on March 2 but has now been pushed back to a yet-to-be-determined date.
Daniels, who wore blue Cat in the Hat socks in court, twiddled his thumbs as reports were read out by court-appointed witness intermediaries for six of the young alleged victims.
These “ground rules” include an official record of how counsel should address each child during cross-examination, including, for example, how the alleged victims would like to refer to the accused and their body parts and whether they comprehend the passing of the time.
One of the girls is as young as six-years-old and the court was told struggles at times to concentrate and speaks in a quiet voice.
One child was also given permission to hold a breathing toy dog to calm her nerves, while another will be allowed to colour-in pictures while being cross-examined.
The girls are all former students of Daniels at the Mosman Swim Centre, where he was employed between June 2018 and March 2019.
The matter will be back before court on February 25 to set a new trial date.