More charges levelled at Andrew O’Keefe
Former TV host Andrew O’Keefe was found guilty of assaulting another person while in custody, a court has heard, as he prepares to leave jail on Monday afternoon and attend rehab.
Mr O’Keefe appeared before the NSW Supreme Court to apply for bail on Monday morning, which was granted by the afternoon, as reported by news.com.au.
It comes after the presenter received six charges in January, with police alleging he grabbed a sex worker by the throat before punching her and pushing her to the ground.
He pleaded not guilty to all six, which included three counts of common assault, intentionally choking a person without consent, and assault occasioning actual bodily harm.
The court heard that Mr O’Keefe claimed he was acting in self-defence after being attacked, though the complainant hasn’t been charged with any offences.
In his previous hearing on May 4, Mr O’Keefe was denied bail after his disruptive behaviour was deemed evidence that he would pose an “unacceptable risk” to the community if he left custody.
Monday’s hearing saw the court hear that Mr O’Keefe’s circumstances had since changed, and that he would be able to move out of prison and into a long-term residential rehabilitation facility.
Justice Robert Hulme agreed that Mr O’Keefe needed treatment for “his long standing drug problems and mental health issues that appear to be, to a significant extent, trauma related”.
“Mr O’Keefe has experienced a significant descent into an erratic and chaotic lifestyle which is foreign to what he has experienced well into his middle age,” Justice Hulme said.
Though Mr O’Keefe’s defence team proposed a stay at a male-only residential facility in Port Stephens, far away from Sydney and those he knows, the Crown prosecutor noted that the Deal or No Deal host had been found guilty of assault despite being removed from those influences.
“There appears to be a pattern in the offending here. When he’s confronted, it ends up in violence,” he said.
“You have this pattern, which appears to be a function of his mental health issues overlaid by his drug use.”
The prosecutor agreed that treating Mr O’Keefe’s mental illness should be the priority, and the included terms in his bail agreement ensured he had three consultations with a psychiatrist and a psychologist.
Mr O’Keefe will also be prohibited from contacting the victims, taking illegal drugs, drinking alcohol or entering licensed premises.
If he leaves or is expelled from the rehabilitation centre, the court heard that Mr O’Keefe would be required to hand himself into police.
Despite being granted bail, Mr O’Keefe will be reappearing in court in June to challenge a charge of breaching an apprehended violence order (AVO) against another complainant, and again in July to examine the evidence relating to the allegations of assault and choking.
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