Hayne’s plane to refuge
JARRYD Hayne’s family has proclaimed his innocence and vowed to stand by the NRL superstar as he defends himself over a rape claim.
Hayne arrived in Tel Aviv yesterday after flying out of Sydney as details emerged of the civil lawsuit lodged against him in a Californian court by lawyers for his 25year-old accuser.
He has “unequivocally and vehemently” denied the allegations he had non-consensual sex with the woman in December 2015 while he was in the US playing in the NFL for the San Francisco 49ers.
As Hayne and a minder brushed aside media questions at Tel Aviv airport, his stepmother Tamara Regan broke down in tears in Sydney as she described the toll the allegations had taken.
“Our whole family has been torn apart by this — we’re going through hell,” Ms Regan, who is married to Hayne’s father Manoa Thompson, said.
“Jarryd has done nothing wrong, there’s not even enough evidence to charge him. We’re totally standing by him. Enough’s enough.”
The Californian woman, a restaurant worker, did not go to police until May last year because she feared being “victim blamed”, according to documents filed in the Superior Court of California Santa Clara.
The Santa Clara District Attorney’s Office decided in October last year not to charge Hayne, 29, because of insufficient evidence.
Hayne fully co-operated with the DA’s office at the time, his lawyer Ramy Qutami, said in a statement.
The documents — filed on December 19, two days before the expiration of California’s two-year statute of limitations for civil sexual assault lawsuits — claim the woman was “heavily intoxicated” and did not consent to sex when she accompanied Hayne back to his San Jose apartment.
Hayne had only recently returned from a pilgrimage to Jerusalem where he was baptised in the Jordan River before flying back into Australia four days ago for the first birthday of his daughter Beliviah Ivy. He posted a photo of himself cuddling her on his Instagram page.
Hayne and Bel’s mother, Amellia Bonnici, reportedly met on Instagram just weeks before she fell pregnant while he was playing for the Gold Coast Titans after unsuccessfully trying out for the Fiji Rugby Sevens Olympic side when he quit the 49ers.
The couple are both Christians and were previously seen attending a Hillsong Church.
Hillsong’s Sydney-based leader Brian Houston said the church didn’t know the facts of Hayne’s case but “condemn any form of sexual violence or abuse”.