The court heard that Shaun Kenny-Dowall, centre, joked to his mother that he had bashed his former girlfriend Jessica Peris.
Advertisement
The 27-year-old Kiwi global has pleaded not guilty to 11 charges relating to the alleged assault and stalking of Jessica Peris, the daughter of Olympian and senator Nova Peris.
In one message in March 2015, after some of the alleged incidents, Kenny-Dowall asked his girlfriend, “tell me [what] I have done Jess, what do I do wrong in this relationship?”
The most serious charge of assault occasioning actual bodily harm allegedly occurred in October 2014 at the couple’s Sydney eastern suburbs unit.
Details of the couple’s 14-month relationship have emerged during court proceedings over the past three days.
“He was cursing me”. “I wasted my time”, Ms Peris said. Peris alleges the NRL player headbutted her, squeezed her arm so tightly it left a bruise, smashed her phone, put her in a headlock and pulled her hair.
During the alleged assault, Ms Peris sustained a bruise on her left biceps.
NRL player Shaun Kenny-Dowall has denied he was jealous, controlling and had problems controlling his anger during the third day of the Roosters centre’s domestic violence trial.
On June 30 Peris appealed to Roosters CEO Brian Canavan for support in an email, and attached letters, which where tendered in court on Thursday.
The final charge relates to allegations Kenny-Dowall punched a painting while Peris’s head was close to it.
Mr Temby accused Ms Peris of making up false or exaggerated allegations because she was unable to elicit enough money from the Roosters after the break-up.
Mr Temby, the former commissioner of ICAC, said there were no witnesses to the alleged incidents, no medical evidence, no text messages among the 40,000 tendered that made mention of violence and his client maintained he had never been disrespectful towards any woman.
“He grabbed me behind my neck and pushed me down”.
Asked earlier in the day by Senior Sergeant Assaad why he couldn’t just “walk away” given that he was 35 centimetres taller and 50 kilograms heavier than his girlfriend, he said “she was attacking me, sir”.
“I responded “You’re a f**king spastic”.
“She was walking on eggshells around you, wasn’t she?”
The footballer denied then grabbing Ms Peris, placing her in a headlock and flipping her onto the bed.
Advertisement
The hearing continues before the magistrate, Greg Grogin.
