A Bondi Rescue star has fronted a court facing domestic violence charges in relation to three alleged assaults.
Lifeguard Andrew ‘Reidy’ Reid, 45, has pleaded not guilty to two counts of common assault (DV) which allegedly occurred in November 2022 and January this year in Chatswood on Sydney’s north shore.
Police allege a further charge of occasioning actual bodily harm (DV) occurred on March 24.
A fourth domestic violence related charge has been dismissed.
The allegations relate to the same woman, who’s listed as a protected person under an apprehended domestic violence order against Reid.
Reid faced part of a hearing in order to fight the allegations.
High profile Defence barrister Margaret Cunneen SC, said the charges will be ‘vigorously defended’ by Reid.
‘There are three very disparate allegations with a long time in between all, of which on the defence case, could be accounted for by an accident,’ she told the Sydney Morning Herald.
Bondi Rescue star Andrew Reid has pleaded not guilty to two counts of common assault (DV)
Police allege a further charge of occasioning actual bodily harm (DV) occurred on March 24
‘There is no hitting or punching alleged. His good character will be squarely raised in the question of proof in these allegations.’
The hearing will be held on March 25 next year at Hornsby Local Court.
Reid has been a star on Bondi Rescue since the popular series first aired in 2006.
He’s patrolled the iconic beach for more than two decades.
Earlier this year, the lifeguard rushed to the aid of injured victims stabbed by Joel Cauchi in the deadly Westfield Bondi Junction rampage that claimed six lives.
He had been shopping for a new bed in Myer when a frantic retail worker told him ‘people are being stabbed’ and ‘the building is being evacuated’.
Andrew Reid was hailed a hero during the Westfield Bondi Junction stabbing rampage when he rushed to the aid of injured victims
Reid had been locked behind a safety door before he convinced a security guard to let him slip beneath the door to help a woman who was bleeding.
‘There was a lady… and there was just blood everywhere,’ Reid told Nine News.
‘I realised I had to go and help because that’s what we’re trained to do as lifeguards.’
He and two other members of the public gave the woman first aid, along with police officers.
‘I have never seen so much blood… we were just looking for wounds, trying to stem the bleeding,’ Reid said.
‘As I looked up there were multiple victims about 50m apart. The lady next to us was in a really bad way – there were others working on her.’
Reid said that he’d never witnessed anything as traumatic as the Westfield Bondi Junction stabbing rampage (paramedics at the scene)
Once Reid had helped to stabilise the woman, he continued to move through the shopping centre to help others.
‘I saw police needed help with the other lady so I started doing compressions on her. I don’t think she made it,’ Reid said.
‘Then I went to help the next victim and saw an empty pram. I have three young kids and just though oh my God.’
While Reid is no stranger to life and death situations, he admitted he’s never experienced anything so traumatic.
‘I have seen some pretty gnarly stuff after working for 20 years on the beach, but nothing like this.’
1800 RESPECT
***
Read more at DailyMail.co.uk