Benjamin Graeme Pearce has rape charges against him dropped after conviction was quashed

A man who had a rape conviction quashed after a litany of errors at trial has now had all charges against him dropped. HOW IT HAPPENED

A man who had a rape conviction quashed after a litany of errors at trial has now had all charges against him dropped.

The decision not to go to a retrial has been described by victim advocates as “disappointing” and “discouraging”.

Benjamin Graeme Pearce was convicted of two counts of rape in the Southport District Court in August last year.

It was alleged he raped a woman in Burleigh Heads in August 2019.

Pearce has spent nine months in prison on the charge.

The Court of Appeal last month quashed the conviction and ordered a retrial after it was revealed a juror had a note hidden in their phone case that appeared to detail a conversation with the bailiff.

A copy of the note was included in the Court of Appeal decision. “I said I belief (sic) each juror has the right for own (sic) decision. Not to be swayed. She said no. Have to listen you might change their mind. No happy (sic) with that answer/that is not how jury work. I have been doing this 10 yr (sic) was decision case with us. Bailiff.”

After 50 minutes of discussion at the trial, the juror who wrote the note was discharged.

While the discussion was taking place the juror was left in the room with other members of the jury.

The jury later came back with a guilty verdict.

In his decision, Court of Appeal Judge John Bond said: “In this case, it was evident that there had been an unauthorised communication between the bailiff and jury which constituted a clear departure from this fundamental tenet.”

He also noted Judge Rowan Jackson gave no reasons for discharging the juror.

After dismissing Pearce’s conviction, the matter was sent back to the Southport District Court for a second trial to take place.

On Thursday last week, the Department of Public Prosecutions told the court the charges were being dropped. They did not give a reason and were not required to do so.

Legal sources have told the Bulletin the likely reasons for the DPP to drop the charges include the complainant being unwilling to go through a trial a second time, a lack of confidence at being able to get a conviction at trial and belief the defendant, if he were to be found guilty after the retrial, had served adequate time behind bars.

If some or all of these circumstances applied in this case, the DPP would be unable to justify the cost of trial.

Pearce’s lawyer Bill Potts, of Potts Lawyers, said: “This is someone who has served nine months in custody despite never being convicted of a crime.”

Gold Coast Centre Against Sexual Violence director Di MacLeod said the decision to drop the charges was disappointing. Picture: Jerad Williams

Gold Coast Centre Against Sexual Violence director Di MacLeod said the case was disappointing.

“It is so disappointing for her for the conviction to be overturned,” she said.

“It’s really disappointing when (we) finally see a positive outcome and then it is overturned on appeal.

“It’s just discouraging on a number of levels.”

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