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Sports and entertainment manager Ralph Carr plans to fight for his freedom for as long as it takes, a court has heard as his lawyer branded Carr’s rape conviction the most obvious miscarriage of justice he had seen in a decades-long career.
But Dermot Dann’s strong defence of his client was met by tense debate from the judge and from the prosecutor, who accused the King’s Counsel of making inappropriate political and emotional statements.
The second day of Carr’s pre-sentence hearing was underscored by both sides trading legal blows amid looks of frustration, eye rolling and whispering throughout hours of legal argument over his application to stay the case pending an appeal.
Carr, who once counted Brownlow medallist Dustin Martin as a client and business partner and was married to singer Tina Arena, was found guilty last month of two counts of rape and one of sexual assault, following a jury trial in the County Court. He maintains his innocence.
On Tuesday, lawyers for the 66-year-old argued there had been a serious miscarriage of justice and the jury verdict was unsafe.
Dann acknowledged his application to stay the case was a rare legal move only to be used in the most exceptional circumstances.
“We submit that anyone who was in this court … and saw and heard the complainant give evidence in this trial should be very, very concerned and very, very uncomfortable about the guilty verdicts,” he said.
“There should be no one who feels comfortable with those verdicts, and anyone who does … has lost sight of what justice is and justice means.”
Dann said that in his 35 years of experience, Carr’s case was the most obvious miscarriage of justice he had seen.
But Judge Frank Gucciardo told Dann his client would not be the first convicted man to claim his innocence and that it was inappropriate to overstate claims and express personal views at that point of the hearing.
“I respectfully differ,” Dann replied.
Gucciardo said he was not troubled by the jury verdicts and would not reassess the evidence. He said the jurors were conscientious, engaged by the evidence and cross-examination, and took copious notes before days of deliberations.
“The whole process seemed to be exactly how it should’ve been. It seems to me you’ve got the hurdle to jump,” the trial judge said.
In carving out the issues for the defence, Dann said the complainant’s evidence changed during her six days in the witness box compared with what she had previously told police.
Differences, he said, included the length of the alleged rapes and whether Carr was clothed or partially undressed. Dann also maintained the complainant had a financial motive to lie, pointing to a pending civil case.
A future appeal, he said, had good prospects, and he pointed to his client’s declining mental health and placement in solitary confinement as reasons for his possible release on bail if the stay application was granted.
Prosecutor Matthew Fisher said he had serious concerns about how Dann was referring to Carr’s plight and any potential miscarriage of justice.
“We are very concerned on this side of the Bar table. To make a political or emotional speech to your honour … is entirely inappropriate,” Fisher said.
“We hope he hasn’t made that statement to your honour to garner or attract some sort of media attention to his client’s cause. It was open to the jury to reach the verdicts that they did.”
The court heard the woman had elected not to read or compile a victim impact statement for the court. Her evidence during the trial was held in closed court.
Carr was found guilty in July after the jury heard he and the victim had been consuming alcohol and cocaine at his home in 2023 when he raped her.
His identity was suppressed for three years after his legal team obtained a suppression order to conceal his alleged involvement in the assault citing mental health concerns.
On Monday, the court heard Carr was confined to his prison cell for 23 hours a day, and believes the verdict has destroyed his career.
Dann said his client’s declining mental health warranted mitigation of his sentencing along with Carr’s lack of criminal history, prior good character, and the significant contribution he had made to the community.
The pre-sentence hearing and stay application will continue on Wednesday.
If you or anyone you know needs support, you can contact the National Sexual Assault, Domestic and Family Violence Counselling Service on 1800RESPECT (1800 737 732), Lifeline 131 114, or Beyond Blue 1300 224 636.
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