Jarryd Hayne’s outburst before sentencing: ‘I didn’t do it’

Jarryd Hayne proclaimed his innocence in court just hours before he found out his jail sentence for raping a woman.

Jarryd Hayne declared in court “I didn’t do it” just hours before he was jailed on Thursday for raping a woman in her Newcastle home.

Judge Helen Syme sentenced Hayne to at least three years and eight months behind bars at Newcastle District Court.

Hayne, 33, has been in court for a sentence hearing after he was found guilty by a jury in March of the sexual assault of the then 26-year-old woman at her Fletcher home on Newcastle’s outskirts in September 2018.

Judge Syme surprised the court when she announced that Hayne would be sentenced later in the afternoon.

He was sentenced to five years and nine months jail with a non-parole period of three years and eight months.

He will be eligible for release in January 2025.

Hayne took the stand on Thursday where he continued to deny that he performed oral and digital sex on the woman without her consent.

Jarryd Hayne was shielded by umbrellas as he walked into the court. Picture: Sam Mooy/Getty Images

Hayne’s defence barrister Richard Pontello SC argued Hayne had already suffered punishment after losing his job as an NRL player.

At the time, the Parramatta Eels had refused to renew his contract.

Hayne said he had agreed to a $500,000, one-year contract with St George Illawarra however the deal fell through when he was charged in November, 2018.

He told the court he was set to meet with Dragons officials on the day he was charged and was expecting to sign the contract that day.

However crown prosecutor Brian Costello objected, asking Hayne what he expected the consequences to be if he was convicted of sexual assault.

“I didn’t do it,” Mr Hayne told the court.

Jarryd Hayne walking into court before he is due to be jailed for rape. Sam Mooy/Getty Images)

“What did you think would happen if you went out and committed an offence of sexual intercourse without consent in relation to your career?” Mr Costello asked.

“I didn’t think about doing something without consent,” Hayne said.

Hayne continued to deny that he at any point contemplated what would have happened to his contract had he been charged with sexual assault.

“What the law says is innocent until proven guilty, I was never afforded that,” Hayne said.

However Mr Costello raised the fact that in August 2019, Hayne reached a settlement in a civil suit with a young American woman who had accused him of sexually assaulting while playing for the San Francisco 49ers.

He was never charged with that offence.

Mr Costello said that Hayne’s evidence was “inconsistent” with his own experiences with that case.

Judge Syme added: “He’s obviously lost his employment because he’s going to prison.”

Hayne is facing a maximum sentence of 14 years in jail.

Instagram messages between Jarryd Hayne and the woman he sexually assaulted. Pictures: Supplied.

Mr Pontello told the court that Hayne had deeply held Christian beliefs and they could help rehabilitate him.

He also pointed to his charity work, saying it was unusual for a defendant in such a case to have a philanthropic streak.

His former Eels teammate Tim Mannah told the court on Thursday that Hayne held strong religious beliefs after becoming involved in the Hillsong Church following the 2008 Rugby League World Cup.

Mr Mannah said the experience of being in a “Christian” team environment during his time with the Fijian national team rubbed off on him.

Mr Mannah said that prior to that, he was referred to by his teammates as a “part-time Christian”.

“He would go to church every now and then, then go out drinking and whatever, it wasn’t Christian-like behaviour,” Mr Mannah said.

Earlier in the sentencing hearing, Hayne’s victim spoke about rumours and innuendo that swirled around the case, saying the assault left her feeling “dirty and violated”.

“People talk about my vagina, my choices, and like to give their opinions based on what they’ve heard and it is the most helpless feeling,” the woman, who cannot be identified, told the court.

Hayne after the guilty verdict. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Christian Gilles

In her victim impact statement, she detailed how the assault had fundamentally changed her life.

“No I didn’t scream, no I didn’t say come over for sex, no I didn’t provoke him,” she said.

“I’ve kept it together as best I can. I feel I’ve walked through fire.

At the beginning of this someone said to me you may be scared, but you could be the key for other people who don’t feel strong enough.”

The woman began conversing with Hayne on social media in 2018, sharing sexually explicit messages.

However she denied ever consenting to him performing the sexual acts on her, saying in her evidence that she repeatedly said “no” and “stop”

Hayne had been in Newcastle for a two-day buck’s party for a former teammate and had agreed to come over to the woman’s house.

However during her evidence she said she resolved that she would not consent when she saw that he had a cab waiting outside.

Hayne has previously said he intends to appeal the guilty verdict.

Originally published as Jarryd Hayne’s outburst before sentencing: ‘I didn’t do it’