Supreme Court judge to fight AVO charges
A Tasmanian Supreme Court judge will have a different role in the courtroom when he fronts a defended hearing in NSW to fight allegations he breached an apprehended violence order.
Gregory Peter Geason, 62, has been charged with breaching an apprehended violence order on three occasions in November last year.
Police allege he was in Sydney when he contravened the court order on the evening of November 20, about midnight on November 27, and on the afternoon of November 29.
His lawyer appeared in Sydney Downing Centre Local Court on Thursday to confirm Justice Geason would face a hearing next year over the allegations. The court heard a defended hearing would run over four days, with the majority of witnesses to appear in court via audiovisual link.
Justice Geason will return to the NSW Local Court in February next year to fight the allegations against him.
He was not required to appear in court on Thursday.
The court documents reveal the 62-year-old was charged with the offences by a NSW police officer.
He was arrested in Hobart in December last year and charged with physically and emotionally attacking a woman, who cannot be identified.
The Battery Point resident has since faced a Hobart Magistrates Court and pleaded not guilty to charges of emotional abuse and common assault.
Tasmania Police allege the judge verbally abused and struck a woman, tracked her with technology, and pressured her to sign a contract.
He was granted bail in December and given a written undertaking not to exercise any of the powers of a judge until the matters are resolved.
Justice Geason is the first Tasmanian judge in 200 years to be charged with criminal offences.
He was appointed to the Tasmanian Supreme Court in November 2017 after practising law for nearly 40 years.
Justice Geason took leave as a judge in November, after meeting with Chief Justice Alan Blow.