Former New South Wales MP Gareth Ward has been sentenced to five years and nine months in prison after he was found guilty in July of sexually abusing two young men.
Ward was sentenced by judge Kara Shead on Friday in the Parramatta district court. Ward, who had been remanded in custody while he awaited sentencing, appeared via video link from Cessnock prison.
Shead sentenced Ward to a maximum term of five years and nine months with a non-parole period of three years and nine months.
He was given a more lenient non-parole period after the judge took into account his lack of any prior criminal record. Shead also noted the legally blind ex-MP would find his time in custody more onerous.
The sentence was backdated to late July 2025, meaning Ward could be released in April 2029.
Ward resigned as an MP in early August, just hours before he was to be kicked out of parliament.
During his sentencing hearing, his lawyers had told Shead that Ward should receive a lesser sentence because of his “enormous fall from grace as a result of the convictions”.
The crown, however, argued that those consequences were “triggered by his own actions”.
Shead said on Friday that the loss of Ward’s political career did not amount to extra-curial punishment that could merit a lesser sentence because it was “inevitable” as a result of his offending.
Sign up: AU Breaking News email
Ward, 44, was found guilty in July of sexually abusing two young men in 2013 and 2015. He is appealing against the convictions, which include three counts of indecent assault and one of sexual intercourse without consent.
The judge said on Friday that Ward had acted in a “callous and predatory manner and [his] moral culpability was high”.
In raping one of his victims, he was aware the 24-year-old political staffer had voiced his non-consent, Shead said.
“The offender knew that the victim was suffering discomfort and pain yet continued with the sexual intercourse until he achieved sexual satisfaction,” she told the court.
In his victim impact statement, the man said the assault had seen his “dreams of entering politics shattered”, because he felt Liberal colleagues had sided with Ward and he would “never [be] forgiven for reporting one of their own,” Shead said.
The victim said he could “no longer reconcile love and sex belonging together”, meaning the assault had destroyed his dreams, trust in others and intimacy.
Shead said Ward had good prospects for rehabilitation, and although he hadn’t expressed remorse, that was consistent with him maintaining he was not guilty.
The court heard on Friday that Ward was an accomplished violinist who had planned to work as a barrister after ending his political career.
Ward resigned as the independent MP for Kiama before the parliament could expel him. In 2021, Ward left the Liberal party and moved to the crossbench after identifying himself as the state MP under investigation by the child abuse and sex crimes squad.
One of the men that Ward assaulted had a statement read to the court on his behalf during the sentencing hearing.
The man had just turned 18 when Ward indecently assaulted him three times in one night in 2013 – despite his attempts to resist.
The man wrote that after the assault, he suffered from severe mental health, substance abuse issues and alcoholism in an attempt to cope.
He said his fear was reinforced when he read statements from Ward in his local paper after charges were laid. The MP asserted he had done nothing wrong and said there would be consequences for those who “weaponise the process”.
“I was fearful Gareth would get to me before I had a chance to give evidence. And I felt the need to watch my back wherever I went,” the victim wrote.
“This constant fear has taken away my joy for life for years.”
Shead found there was “a significant disparity in maturity, power and influence” between the teen and the politically savvy MP.
Ward knew the youth was intoxicated but persisted with his unwelcome sexual conduct despite knowing the man was vulnerable, the judge said.
Ward had been scheduled to be sentenced on Wednesday.
However, it was delayed to Friday after Ward’s lawyers made an eleventh-hour bid for his sentence to reflect the sentencing practices at the time of his offending.
Shead had said on Wednesday that Ward’s lawyers had denied that 21B of the Sentencing Act – which requires sentencing to be in line with the current practices – applied in this instance.
On Friday, Shead acknowledged that Ward’s victims were attending online for the sentencing.
Their impact statements were a powerful reminder of the devastating effect of Ward’s offending, Shead said. Recognising the harm done to victims was important in sentencing.
The judge noted one of the victims had felt that the offending was his fault but, she said, “only one person is to blame and that is the offender”.
- Additional reporting by Australian Associated Press
• Information and support for anyone affected by rape or sexual abuse is available from the following organisations. In Australia, support is available at 1800Respect (1800 737 732). In the UK, Rape Crisis offers support on 0808 500 2222. In the US, Rainn offers support on 800-656-4673. Other international helplines can be found at ibiblio.org/rcip/internl.html
