Latest news with #ChristiesBeach
ABC News
28-05-2025
- General
- ABC News
Former senior church member sentenced for sexual assault of teen girl
A former senior member of a South Australian church will spend at least four months behind bars after sexually assaulting a 14-year-old girl in the early 2000s. The 50-year-old man, from Christies Beach, was sentenced in South Australia's District Court on Wednesday after previously pleading guilty to one count of unlawful sexual intercourse. In sentencing, Judge Liesl Kudelka said she accepted the man was "genuinely remorseful and [had] taken steps in the past to apologise" but that he "should have known better". "I do not consider there is any risk of you reoffending, however the harm is done." Prosecutor Mitch Mott previously told the court the man was a "respected" member of the Impact Church at the time and had shown "continuing interest in the complainant". Judge Kudelka outlined the events of that evening in her sentence and said the teenager had been staying with the then 29-year-old man to help look after his two children while his wife was away. "The two of you drank alcohol together, I understand it was not usual for you to drink alcohol, you kissed her when you were both sitting on the couch, the two of you then moved to the bedroom [where the charged offending occurred]," she said. "In the next day or so you drove [her] to a playground and kissed her when you were both at the top of the play equipment. "You say you were trying to explain to her that the sexual contact that happened before should not have happened and could not continue. "It seems, however, you didn't do a very good job of that on that day because you ended up kissing her." The kiss in the days after the offending is not subject to any charges. Judge Kudelka said the teenager was "vulnerable and struggling with challenges" at the time of the offending and "feels [the man] groomed her". "As a 29-year-old man you took sexual advantage of a 14-year-old child," she said. The man was sentenced to 16-months' imprisonment which was reduced to 12-months due to his early guilty plea. He will be eligible for parole in four months.
ABC News
22-05-2025
- ABC News
Teen felt 'blaming' and 'shaming' after sexual abuse by senior SA church member, court hears
A woman has told a court that she felt "blaming" and "shaming" by members of an Adelaide church after reporting sexual abuse at the hands of a senior member when she was 14 years old. The 50-year-old man, of Christies Beach, appeared in South Australia's District Court earlier this week after previously pleading guilty to one count of unlawful sexual intercourse with a teenage girl in the early 2000s. In a victim impact statement read aloud to the court, the girl who is now aged in her 30s, said she felt "deep wounding and re-traumatisation" when attempting to report the incident to family and church members shortly after it occurred. "The response from people was only blaming and deeply shaming," she said. "I recall asking to change churches or do something about what has happened like go to the police and the responses given to me by adults were, 'what about "[the defendant] and his kids? What if he went to jail? His kids would be left behind'. "This totally negated that I was also a child." The woman said the offending has negatively "tainted" her "beliefs about God and religion and spirituality". "I do believe he groomed me, he admitted to me he was feeling this way about me for one year prior to this crime, leading to my lack of trust in men and people in authority positions." Prosecutor Mitch Mott told the court the man had committed the offence while "in an unofficial position of trust over the complainant". "In my submission, the defendant was … a respected member of a large church and, also a senior member of the unofficial youth group," he said. He said it is accepted that the offending was "isolated" in nature, but that a "kiss on the sly", for which he has not been charged, "showed some continuing interest in the complainant by the defendant at the time". Mr Mott said a "significant number" of character references had been handed up to the court in favour of the man — and that he opposed the assertions in one of them. Defence lawyer Jon Lister, for the man, said his client "deeply regrets" the offending and "will continue to regret it for the rest of his life". "He made two apologies to the complainant … one shortly after the incident came to light … and the second was some years later after she wrote to him," he said. He also said the defendant and the young girl had been drinking alcohol on the night of the offending, to which his client was "unaccustomed" to. "He really feels that his judgement was impaired by the use of alcohol on that night which he says he was encouraged in using by [the victim] at the time," he said. Mr Lister said the man, and other members of the church, had attempted to bring the matter to the attention of police but that they'd been told the victim, or her mother, would have to file a report. "A telephone call was made to the police, and they were informed of the nature of what had occurred," he said. Mr Mott disagreed with this submission and said there are no records showing contact with the police. "Police records do not show there was an approach to the police at the time of the offending, that is not to say there was not internal conversations within the church about whether a statement should be made. "What I do say is: a 14-year-old is not an appropriate person to ask whether a statement should be made about unlawful sexual intercourse." Mr Mott asked Judge Liesl Kudelka to sentence the 50-year-old to an immediate term of imprisonment "because of the inherent seriousness of the offending as well as the critical need for general deterrence". Contrastingly, Mr Lister asked the court not to sentence his client to a term of imprisonment, and instead, only record a conviction and impose a good behaviour bond. He will be sentenced next week.
Daily Mail
10-05-2025
- Business
- Daily Mail
Mum-of-two who bought her dad's favourite cafe and is now going broke pleads with Aussies to help her out... but should they?
A small business owner is asking for help in a last-ditch effort to keep the cafe she bought based on cherished memories of the time she spent there with her late father. Single mum-of-two Ayesha Byrne, 34, owns and operates Rito's Café & Continental delicatessen in Christies Beach in Adelaide 's southern suburbs. Facing rising costs, flat-lining customer demand during the cost-of-living crisis, and $20,000 in debts, the single mum last week reluctantly launched a GoFundMe page. Ms Byrne told Daily Mail Australia the fundraiser was 'pretty much the last card I could play'. Ms Byrne grew up in the area and would go to Rito's every afternoon with her father where they would talk about their days over pork pies and hot chocolate. 'That's basically why I bought it,' she said, adding that he did not live long enough to see her acquire their special place in 2023 but knows he would be proud. 'Maybe not right now,' she joked. 'I'm a small business owner, a mum-of-two and I've literally poured everything into that place so, really... it's just a bid for survival.' Like many small businesses along Beach Road in the outer suburban mortgage belt, and across the country generally, Ms Byrne is facing hard times as people's discretionary spending budget is cut to the bone. Things came to a head in February when she was locked out of her own store by a locksmith and bailiff hired by the landlord for failing to pay her rent. The mum-of-two was doing the school pick-up when she was notified. Unable to pay the outstanding amount, the locks were changed and a bailiff arranged for a full inventory of the store to be posted on the windows for sale, along with a termination of the lease. 'It was a very public thing... I was so embarrassed,' she said. It was five days before she was able to get a new key and regain access to the shop. Strapped for cash, Ms Byrne nonetheless offered to pay for counselling for staff who were present at the time and seemingly faced with immediate unemployment. Ms Byrne announced the reopening of the café in an Instagram post in which she called on locals to indulge in the store's deli goods and freshly-brewed coffee. 'Getting Rito's back on its feet after a wild few weeks, we unfortunately have to throw away so much stock that we would usually have donated,' she said. 'And while that's been tough, it's nothing compared to what's ahead to rebuild.' Ms Byrne bought the store in June of 2023 and, faced with lower than expected stock levels, she was forced to spend most of her contingency fund simply to get the store up and running. Last year was the worst on record for business insolvencies nationwide, not just because of customers cutting their spending, but electricity costs increased by more than 50 per cent and rising interest rates saw borrowing costs hit their highest in a generation. The neighboring Coles also posed a bigger threat to the cafe's deli section than Ms Byrne had initially thought. Faced with the risk of bankruptcy, Ms Byrne reached out to her community, local politicians and influencers for support. 'A lot of them ghosted me, but I thought: "I've got to shoot my shot",' she said. Apart from a stop-in by South Australian MP for Kaurna Chris Picton and a few extra cups of coffee purchased by local residents, the drive failed to move the needle. The struggle has spread beyond the business and is impacting Ms Byrne's personal life. Since purchasing the store, she has cut back on discretionary expenses including hair appointments. More recently, she was forced to arrange a payment plan with the school attended by her two boys. 'Being a small business owner as well, [you're] just making hard decisions every single day of your life.' As of writing, Ms Byrne's GoFundMe page has raised just over $1,500 towards a $5,000 goal. 'I never thought I'd be writing this, I never wanted to ask for help,' she wrote on the website for the fundraiser. 'For the past few months, I've been fighting quietly behind the scenes through lawyers, through negotiations, trying to keep Rito's alive without needing to involve anyone else. 'I believed if I just worked harder, I could save it myself. But it's reached a point where I can't do it alone anymore.' Every dollar raised by the fundraiser will go towards repaying her landlord, covering legal fees and keeping the store up and running. A link to Ms Byrne's GoFundMe page can be found here.
