William Tyrrell’s foster parents plead not guilty to assaulting a child

William Tyrrell’s foster parents have both pleaded not guilty to assaulting a child – and the foster mother will apply to have her case heard under Mental Health Act.

The foster father may also apply to have his charge heard under the Mental Health Act, his lawyer told Hornsby Local Court on Friday, but was awaiting the return of a ‘report’ about the 54-year-old.

The pleas were entered via the couple’s lawyers as the foster parents attended court by dialling in via audio visual link, although their faces did not appear on screen.

The assault is alleged to have occurred at a home on Sydney’s upper north shore this year against a child who police prosecutor Senior Sergeant Amin Assaad told the court would be re-interviewed ‘shortly … some time this year’.

The brief hearing on the alleged common assault charge came after Magistrate Robyn Denes blasted lawyers from all sides in a hearing about suppression orders surrounding the case.

Magistrate Denes told the Hornsby Local Court hearing she had been up ‘last night at what I would describe as stupid o’clock’ reading submissions and other material about the case.

She was addressing lawyers for the foster parents, the media, and the NSW Department of Justice and Communities during a hearing about a raft of suppression orders over the case.

‘To put it bluntly, I was very annoyed. I’m still not sure what you all want me to do,’ Magistrate Denes said. 

 ‘You wanted me to do something and now the goal posts are moved.’

William’s foster mother entered a plea of not guilty on Friday to one count of common assault via her lawyer, Sharon Ramsden who said the 56-year-old will apply to have her case heard under the Mental Health Act.

The foster father, 54, also pleaded not guilty to the same charge via his barrister Kirralee Young who said she was waiting on a report to determine if he would also be applying to plead under the same act. 

The Hornsby Local Court  hearings were on the same day that a month-long search for William’s remains is winding up at Kendall on the NSW Mid North Coast, where the three-year-old vanished in September 2014.

During submissions challenging the non publication orders the foster parents had applied to have imposed over evidence or detail about the common assault charge, Magistrate Denes said media interest in the case had been ‘relentless’.

‘It’s about the impact … that may have on the safety of the (foster parents),’ she said. 

‘All persons charged must be presumed innocent. Simply anonymising their names does not provide the protection … necessary to protect the names.’  

William’s foster mother has pleaded not guilty to one count of alleged common assault against a child who is not William and will apply to have it heard under the Mental Health Act

The 54-year-old foster father of William Tyrrell has pleaded not guilty via AVL in Hornsby Local Court to an allegation of common assault

Suppression orders related to evidence in the assault allegation against the foster parents of William Tyrrell were reinforced on Friday

Inquiries into the boy’s disappearance continue, although a month-long search for his remains at Kendall is due to wind up today.

Last month, then NSW Police Commissioner Mick Fuller identified the foster mother as a ‘person of interest’ in the case.

It is not suggested the foster mother had anything to do with Wiliam’s disappearance, just that she is a person of interest in the case.

Geomorphologist Professor Jon Olley (right) on Thursday with police at the William Tyrrell dig   where a bone fragment was found this week

More than 15 tonnes of soil has been taken to a lab for analysis during the just over four weeks police and Rural Fire Service officers worked on the site searching for William’s remains.

Police have sent away more than 30 items including pieces of cloth and string for DNA and forensic tests.

A bone fragment found by searchers on Wednesday has been sent to the Forensic and Analytical Science Service at Lidcombe in western Sydney for testing.