Judge Robert Newlinds back in court after NSW Judicial Commission findings

A judge has been reinstated after being sidelined for accusing the state prosecution office of running baseless rape trials, despite the judicial watchdog saying he shouldn’t hear criminal matters ‘for the foreseeable future’.

NSW District Court judge Robert Newlinds.

The chief justice of the NSW District Court has reinstated Robert Newlinds to hear criminal matters weeks after he was sidelined for accusing the state prosecution office of running baseless rape trials, despite the judicial watchdog finding it would be “inappropriate” for him to preside over criminal cases “for the foreseeable future”.

Judge Newlinds was stood aside from criminal trials after a NSW Judicial Commission probe into his claims that the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions was adhering to an “unwritten policy” that says sexual assault trials should be run “without sensible and rational interrogation” of the complainant.

The commission, helmed by NSW Supreme Court Chief Justice Andrew Bell, found in its report delivered on August 9 that Judge Newlinds should be taken off criminal matters, and only be reinstated when chief judge Sarah Huggett “considers it appropriate to do so”.

But The Australian can reveal Judge Newlinds handed down a sentence for a part-heard drug trafficking matter just a week after the commission tabled its final report, and heard a child sex abuse matter in late October.

Chief Judge Huggett told The Australian Judge Newlinds undertook counselling with former NSW Chief Justice Tom Bathurst to her satisfaction before his return to the bench.

The Judicial Commission probe was launched in response to a complaint filed by chief prosecutor Sally Dowling SC, after Judge Newlinds called for “lazy and perhaps politically ­exped­ient” referrals of baseless rape accusations to the court to stop.

NSW chief prosecutor Sally Dowling SC. Picture: Max Mason-Hubers

Judge Newlinds is one of five judges who have accused Ms Dowling’s office of running meritless rape cases over the past 18 months.

The criticism led Ms Dowling to conduct an audit of all 330 sexual assault matters set down for trial this year, which saw 15 cases discontinued on evidentiary or discretionary grounds.

The commission earlier this month partially upheld a complaint filed by Ms Dowling against judge Peter Whitford, finding it was “entirely inappropriate” for the judge to suggest there was an “opaque, even secret, policy” that overrides prosecutorial guidelines in the state.

The Judicial Commission, after investigating Ms Dowling’s complaint in Judge Newlinds, found its conclusions raised “questions of suitability of temperament and appropriateness of the judge continuing to sit in criminal cases in the District Court”.

The commission found the “issues of temperament” raised in the complaint against Judge Newlinds “are not obviously confined to criminal cases” but disclose “a lack of proper awareness of the judicial role”.

NSW District Court chief judge Sarah Huggett. Picture: Damian Shaw/NewsWire

“Nevertheless, as it is accepted by the judge that he will seek (and need) some judicial mentoring from experienced colleagues, we consider that the interests of justice would be best served if he were restricted in sitting in cases in areas of law where he is most experienced,” the report reads. “This does not include criminal cases.”

Chief Judge Sarah Huggett said the decision to reinstate Judge Newlinds was in keeping with the commission’s findings.

“The Conduct Division recommended that ‘It will be a matter for the Chief Judge to assign the Judge to the criminal jurisdiction only if and when she considers it appropriate to do so’,” the Chief Judge said. “With the exception of being required to complete one part-heard sentence, Judge Newlinds did not sit in the criminal jurisdiction of the Court for close to 10 weeks after the Conduct Division delivered its report. In that period, Judge Newlinds also undertook counselling.”

The ODPP declined to comment.