Jarryd Hayne will walk free from prison within hours after a magistrate granted him bail – as he prepares for a blockbuster third sexual assault trial.
The former NRL and American football star appeared in the NSW District Court on Tuesday to apply for bail just 24 hours after he quashed his rape conviction.
Hayne, who will return home to his wife and children on Tuesday – his 34th birthday – has always maintained his innocence.
But he is now facing the prospect of yet another marathon three-week trial amid allegations he sexually assaulted a woman inside her Newcastle home on the night of the 2018 NRL Grand Final.
On Tuesday, the magistrate agreed to grant Hayne bail on the proviso he reside with his wife, Amellia Bonnici, and not enter the Newcastle local government area.
Hayne is required to pay a $20,000 surety within seven days of his release, the court heard.
He also must report to Merrylands police station in Sydney’s west each Monday, Wednesday and Friday and forfeit his passport.
Hayne will return to his loyal wife on Tuesday to celebrate his birthday and freedom after he was granted bail
Hayne was raised by a single mother (pictured) in housing commission and had one of the most uplifting success stories in the NRL prior to his arrest
A new trial date will be decided on February 18. But given delays in the court system, if a trial goes ahead, it might not be scheduled until 2023.
Prosecutors must follow strict guidelines to determine whether a retrial is held, a spokeswoman for the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions said.
In matters such as this the Crown typically weighs up the likelihood a jury could find beyond reasonable doubt that Hayne is guilty.
Hayne’s legal team argued in court that presiding Judge Helen Syme gave the jury ‘flawed’ directions, and that the alleged victim’s evidence was inconsistent in seeking to overturn the conviction.
The 34-year-old’s freedom comes after nine months in custody at Cooma Correctional Centre 400km south-west of Sydney.
Cooma is a medium and minimum security facility 400km south-west of Sydney which has housed high-profile white collar criminals in recent years
Amellia Bonnici has maintained support for Hayne despite Covid preventing prison visits
The medium and minimum security facility is generally known to house high-profile white collar inmates.
Oliver Curtis, PR guru Roxy Jacenko’s husband, found himself jailed for a year at Cooma for conspiracy to commit insider trading in 2016.
Other notable names who’ve spent time inside the concrete facility include sex offender former Labor minister Milton Orkopoulos and controversial businessman Salim Mehajer.
Hayne was initially taken to Parklea Correctional Centre and housed alongside murderers, bikies and drug dealers.
Conflicting reports emerged about his short time in custody at Parklea, with one source saying he was ‘pelted with apples’ by some inmates upon arrival, while another told Daily Mail Australia he was ‘hero worshiped’.
‘Many of them (inmates) had troubled upbringings…they were excited about meeting a sporting hero who had come from similarly humble beginnings,’ the source said.
Seeking a new challenge, he ditched his $2million contract with Parramatta in 2014, flew to America and tried to make it in one of the toughest sporting leagues in the world as a completely inexperienced rookie
Hayne pictured with wife Amellia Bonnici. He was sentenced to a non-parole-period of three years and eight months but has successfully appealed the conviction, meaning he is now facing a retrial
Upon arriving in Cooma, however, Hayne was swiftly put to work.
He landed a job in the jail’s textiles workshop, making prison greens for fellow inmates. Hayne, who earned $1.2million playing for the Gold Coast Titans, earned about $24.60 a week in the role.
It’s understood he was ‘no seamstress’ and struggled with the work before accepting a traineeship in the prison’s laundry room for almost double the pay.
For $48.96 a week, Hayne washed bed sheets for other inmates as well as local aged care homes.
All the while, Hayne has maintained his innocence, vowing to appeal his conviction and fight for his freedom.
It’s unclear whether the Director of Public Prosecutions will progress with a third trial.
Amellia Bonnici, the mother of Hayne’s children and his wife, stood by him despite the rape conviction
A jury in his first trial could not reach a verdict, but in March 2021 during his second trial, the jury found beyond reasonable doubt Hayne had sexually assaulted the 26-year-old woman in her bedroom on the night of the 2018 NRL Grand Final.
She allegedly suffered injuries during a sexual encounter and required medical treatment.
In text to a friend after the incident, the victim described how she stopped wanting to have sex with Hayne after learning he had a taxi waiting outside to take him back to Sydney.
She recounted she ‘kept saying no’ and claimed she suffered injuries to her genitalia.
Further messages showed the woman confronting Hayne, saying: ‘I know I’ve talked about sex and stuff so much, but I didn’t want to do that after knowing the taxi was waiting for you’.
‘I thought you would have at least stayed? I m hurting really badly. I told my Mum you got a nose bleed, but I’m sitting here in my room crying ’cause I feel weird.’
Hayne replied: ‘Go doctor tomorrow’.
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