New charges for pedophile
Convicted ex-teacher back in court
A FORMER Hobart teacher and convicted child sex offender who previously confessed to molesting several young boys during the 1970s is back in court — denying the claims of a further two alleged victims.
Former New Town High teacher Darrel George Harington, 68, pleaded guilty in 2015 to eight counts of indecent assault against boys aged 12 to 15, inviting them to his home, massaging them at his gym, molesting them while at times “breathing heavily” or “licking his lips”.
A Supreme Court of Tasmania jury was given the full details of the previous court case on Wednesday, with Harington’s barrister Garth Stevens noting the crimes were “terrible — there’s no doubt about that”.
“(But) you must put aside any feelings of wanting to punish Mr Harington,” Mr Stevens told the jury.
“His guilt from the past does not mean that he is now guilty. You must consider the evidence.”
Crown prosecutor Jane Ansell told the jury the current case before them involved two complainants — one from the 1970s and one from the 1990s.
She said the first case involved a then-12-year-old who met Harington during 1976 when he was 25.
The man alleges Harington took him away to his Little Swanport property, gave him sherry to drink, woke the boy as he slept by molesting him — making him scream — and tried to make the child participate in a “masturbation game”.
“I just played dead, I didn’t want to play that at all. He carried on, very loudly,” the man told the jury on Wednesday.
“I’ve had nightmares all my life about what happened to me up at Little Swanport.”
The man said the alleged offending stopped when Harington brought a television as a gift for the boy to his family home, but his auntie told the teacher to stay away.
Ms Ansell said the second allegation dated back to Lauderdale during 1998, when the complainant was 14 and Harington was 48, and their “friendship turned sexual”.
Harington has pleaded not guilty to two counts of indecent assault and one count of maintaining a sexual relationship with a person under 17.
The trial before Justice Michael Brett continues.