A former mayor who denied taking part in a historic sexual assault has had his case adjourned, after his absence in court spelt no arraignment.
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Benjamine William Shields, 42, formerly of Peel Street in Dubbo, pleaded not guilty on April 21, 2023 in Penrith Local Court to having non-consensual sex with an 18-year-old man on January 1, 2003 between 12.01am and 7am.
The matter was listed for arraignment in Penrith District Court on May 19, 2023, but Judge S Beckett, who hoped to save time for another court, was hamstrung into adjourning the matter to June 9 in Parramatta with Shields and his legal team absent from proceedings.
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The court heard by way of DPP solicitor Brendan Donnelly that Shields' solicitors wrote to the court on an earlier occasion to request the matter be transferred to Parramatta District Court.
"Mr Shields is not here nor are his solicitors, so Your Honour cannot arraign him today," Mr Donnelly said.
"He had been granted permission to appear by AVL (audio-visual link) from Queensland, however his solicitors asked the matter to be mentioned by me."
Judge Beckett continued bail for Shields, who will appear in Parramatta District Court by AVL from his Queensland home to be arraigned before a trial date is set.
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Jay-Anna Sleeman
Reporter for the Western Advocate. First began as a sports journalist with ACM in 2018 before moving on to cover news and court.
Reporter for the Western Advocate. First began as a sports journalist with ACM in 2018 before moving on to cover news and court.
