A swimming coach who was cleared of sexually assaulting nine young girls has dropped his claim for the crippling legal costs of defending himself at two trials.
Kyle Daniels endured a seven-week trial in 2020 and another which ran for ten weeks last year before the NSW Director of Public Prosecutions decided not to proceed with a third.
The 24-year-old’s legal bills over the past four years, including paying lawyers to appear during more than 100 days in court, are likely to have far exceeded half a million dollars.
Mr Daniels was arrested in March 2019 after the parents of two girls raised concerns about his conduct at Mosman Swim Centre on Sydney’s lower north shore.
A swimming coach who was cleared of sexually assaulting nine young girls has dropped his legal claim for the crippling costs of defending himself at two trials. Kyle Daniels was charged while working part-time at Mosman Swim Centre on Sydney’s lower north shore
The Sydney University student, then aged 20, was originally accused of assaulting two students, aged six and eight, during private swim lessons at the school.
His arrest prompted more girls to come forward with allegations of Mr Daniels touching them on or near their genitals between February 2018 and February 2019.
At one time the former Knox Grammar prefect was facing 56 charges but 33 of those were dropped in September 2019.
At his first trial, Mr Daniels pleaded not guilty to eight counts of sexual intercourse with a child under ten, nine counts of indecent assault and six counts of intentionally sexually touching a child.
The 26 counts on the indictment – which included three alternative or ‘back-up’ charges – related to nine girls aged five to ten.
A NSW District Court jury acquitted Mr Daniels of five of the most serious offences in December 2020 but could not reach verdicts on the remaining 21.
A fresh jury acquitted Mr Daniels of ten charges in October last year but was discharged after stating there was no prospect of agreeing on the remaining 11 counts.
Mr Daniels was originally accused of assaulting two students aged six and eight during private swim lessons. He Daniels is pictured outside court with his mother Janine
The Director of Public Prosecutions revealed in December there would be no third trial.
Mr Daniels’ lawyer Urania Zafiris said at that time the DPP’s decision was ‘entirely appropriate’ and her client would demand the Crown pay his legal costs.
‘Mr Daniels has always maintained his innocence of all charges in respect of these matters,’ Ms Zafiris said back then.
‘The jury verdicts and decision to discontinue are an entirely appropriate outcome consistent with that innocence.’
Mr Daniels made an application for costs through the District Court on December 9 but it was withdrawn on March 13.
Daily Mail Australia contacted Ms Zafiris to ask why the application was dropped but she did not respond.
Mr Daniel’s legal team had been extremely critical of the way police conducted his arrest at his parents’ home in Balgowlah on Sydney’s northern beaches.
His barrister, Leslie Nicholls, claimed at Mr Daniels’ second trial the arrest had been staged to make it more ‘newsworthy’.
Mr Daniel’s legal team had been extremely critical of the way police conducted his arrest at his parents’ Balgowlah home on Sydney’s northern beaches. His arrest is pictured above
Mr Nicholls said his client had been handcuffed and ‘paraded’ down the street for a police media camera crew, which ‘presented a negative image in the public’.
‘Was it arranged that he was going to be taken all the way down that road?’ Mr Nicholls asked in court. ‘I say yes.
‘That’s what this was about. So the police could give that news footage to the media… with a view to having an appeal for further victims.’
Mr Nicholls noted most of the charges against Mr Daniels were laid after his arrest was broadcast and parents asked their children if he had touched them.
‘It’s clear that the parents were influenced by what they saw in the media,’ he said. ‘It caused all of them anxiety and concern for their children.
‘Being so influenced, they then influenced their children in the way that they questioned them, raising “he’s done something bad – he’s hurt children”.
‘The media footage… had a real practical effect on the unreliability and influence of the complainants.’
Kyle Daniel’s father posted this photo of himself and twins sons Kyle and Liam on Manly beach in Sydney gushing that he had ‘A very happy heart. Pure happiness and love. My boys!’
The Crown had claimed 21 incidents spanning 13 months showed a pattern of behaviour in which Mr Daniels took advantage of the students under his care for his sexual gratification.
Mr Daniels strenuously denied ever intentionally touching any student inappropriately.
Mr Nicholls argued that swim school parents lied and changed their evidence in a bid to convict the instructor, after mistakenly believing he had abused their daughters.
Mr Daniels told the court that while he was under arrest, some police officers referred to him as ‘a disgusting paedo’ and joked about what would happen to him in jail.
Daily Mail Australia revealed last week that police had finally withdrawn their request for apprehended violence orders against Mr Daniels to protect five of the girls.
Those apprehended violence order applications were finally withdrawn and dismissed before a magistrate at Downing Centre Local Court on May 31.
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