Nathan Burmeister found not guilty of Mortdale sex assault
A suburban rugby player has been found not guilty of sexual assault against a woman he met on a night out at a Sydney pub after a District Court jury trial.
St George Shire Standard
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A jury has found a suburban rugby union player not guilty of sexual assault after a night out at a Sydney pub.
Nathan Burmeister, 28, was found not guilty of four counts of sexual intercourse without consent and two counts of sexual touching without consent by a jury after a District Court trial which began on August 18 at the Downing Centre.
The jury found Burmeister guilty of one count of assault causing actual bodily harm after he grabbed a woman by the throat after they met at the Peakhurst Inn on August 31 last year.
Burmeister had pleaded not guilty to all charges and completely denied any sexual impropriety.
The court heard at the time the pair was walking down Morts Rd in Mortdale after they left the woman’s friend’s house in an attempt to get an Uber to their respective homes.
During the trial Burmeister’s barrister had said certain facts were not in dispute – including that Burmeister and the woman had met for the first time at the Peakhurst Inn and that they had consensually kissed on the couch at the friend’s home.
“There’s no dispute that they left (the friend’s) house together, during which the woman ordered an Uber, and there’s no dispute that there was a kiss,” the barrister told the jury.
“The defence case is that there was some consensual kissing and touching at the friend’s house, and a kiss outside, and that’s it.”
Burmeister will be sentenced for assault causing actual bodily harm on November 27 at Downing Centre District Court.