Reality TV star Matt Wright's trial dates locked in after Chris Wilson's death
Matt Wright, also known as the Outback Wrangler, faces three counts of attempting to pervert the course of justice following a helicopter crash in February 2022 that killed his friend and co-star Chris 'Willow' Wilson.
The trial is set to begin in the Northern Territory with the selection of the jury on July 30.
Mr Wright was the host of Outback Wrangler, a reality series that saw him tracking down Australian wildlife in rural Australia.
He also hosted the Netflix show Wild Croc Territory in 2022.
Mr Wilson is alleged to have been suspended from the chopper on a crocodile egg collecting mission over the King River in Arnhem Land, when the helicopter crashed into the paperbark swamp, killing the 34-year-old father and critically injuring his 28-year-old pilot, Sebastian Robinson.
It has been alleged Mr Wright was not properly following the maintenance rules for his helicopters, and attempted to cover this up in the wake of the crash.
Mr Wright has strenuously denied all wrongdoing.
The trial's start date has faced many delays, most recently in mid-June when Justice Alan Blow accepted Mr Wright's defence barrister Luke Officer's request to push the July 7 start date back to July 28, resulting in the departure of Crown prosecutor James Moore from the case due to a double booking.
During a pre-trial hearing in Darwin Supreme Court on Tuesday, it was revealed neither the defence nor the prosecution were prepared for that date.
'Both of us agree that we are simply not ready to start on Monday,' defence barrister David Edwardson KC said.
Crown prosecutor Jason Gullaci SC endorsed the delay, leading Justice Blow to set a new start date for Wednesday, July 30.
The court was told there would be a pre-trial hearing on Monday, then the jury would be selected on Wednesday, with opening arguments beginning on Thursday.
Mr Gullaci indicated one witness would be Mr Robinson, who was also seriously injured in the crash and allegedly involved in the cover-up.
'I think it is likely there will be at least one or two witnesses that will, to use the phrase 'set the scene', before we call upon (Mr Robinson),' he said.
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