Update on Samantha Murphy trial as accused enters plea
The man accused of murdering Ballarat mother Samantha Murphy has plead not guilty, electing to fast-track his case to the Supreme Court.
Patrick Orren Stephenson, 22, faced the Ballarat Magistrates Court on Thursday via video link, while Ms Murphy’s husband, Mick Murphy, watched the hearing from the body of the courtroom.
Mr Stephenson, the son of former AFL player Orren Stephenson, was charged with Samantha's murder in March, just weeks after the 51-year-old went missing after leaving home for an morning run on February 4th.
Crown prosecutor Raymond Gibson KC told the court that Mr Stephenson had elected to fast-track his case to the Supreme Court for trial.
This skips a committal hearing in the Magistrates Court jurisdiction in which a magistrate hears the evidence and decides if they’re satisfied it could support a conviction, and will allow Mr Stephenson to face trial at an earlier date.
“Not guilty, Your Honour,” the accused man said when asked how he would like to plea.
Mr Stephenson was committed to stand trial by magistrate Mark Stratmann and will appear in the Supreme Court later in November.
“Because the matter is now in the purview of the Supreme Court of Victoria, that court will be dealing with all matters in relation to this proceeding,” Mr Stratmann said.
Following Mr Stephenson’s arrest in March, Victoria Police Chief Commissioner Shane Patton remained tight-lipped about how the accused man was identified, but said the arrest came after a “painstaking and methodical investigation”.
“I’m not going to identify what has specifically led us to this man other than to say it has come about from painstaking detective work with great assistance from the public,” he said at the time.
Samantha Murphy's disappearance and alleged murder shocked the community and quickly became one of the most high-profile missing persons investigations in the state, and despite the efforts of police and volunteers, her body has never been found.
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