On Friday, the ex-star fullback walked free from Sydney’s Downing Centre court without a criminal case hanging over his head for the first time since 2018.
“I stayed true to myself the whole time, this whole process,” a visibly relieved Hayne told reporters outside court.
“Today’s a vindication for myself, my family and my loved ones.
“I thank God for keeping me sane through this season.”
Hayne said the process had been difficult not just for himself, but also for his wife, who appeared in court alongside him.
“What she had to go through, it’s been tough,” Hayne said.
He described the process, going from rugby league royalty to a convicted rapist, as a “rollercoaster”.
“I just want to say thank you to all those that supported me from day one and stood by me, stood next to me,” he said.
“The boys on the inside that stood by me, mates on the outside and everyone that stood shoulder to shoulder with me.”
It was alleged Hayne raped a woman with his hands and mouth at her Newcastle home on the night of the 2018 NRL grand final.
A jury found him guilty in April 2023 and he was sentenced to a maximum of four years and nine months in prison.
But the New South Wales Court of Criminal Appeal quashed Hayne’s convictions on the basis that a judge erred in not allowing the complainant to be further cross-examined during the trial.
He was released on bail after the court decision having spent more than a year behind bars.
Before Friday’s hearing, the office of the Director of Public Prosecutions said the decision not to proceed to a fourth trial was made in accordance with prosecution guidelines, without disclosing specific reasons for the decision.
“The record will reflect that the Crown has discontinued any and all proceedings against Mr Hayne,” Judge Craig Everson told the court on Friday.
Three separate criminal trials were told the woman, who cannot be identified for legal reasons, changed her mind about having sex with Hayne after realising he had a taxi waiting outside her house.
The ex-NRL player’s barrister, Tim Game, SC, told an appeal hearing in April that the woman deleted messages between herself and Hayne that demonstrated she had initially shown a sexual interest in him.
His defence team also argued the woman should have been cross-examined on why she allegedly told police, “If those messages get out, I’m f***ed and he will get off.”
Judge Graham Turnbull, who oversaw Hayne’s third trial, refused requests for the woman to be cross-examined on the statement, saying it carried “almost infinitesimal weight”.
Hayne’s quashed convictions followed a hung jury in his first trial in 2020 and a previous appeal overturning the 2021 guilty verdict from his second trial.
Jarryd Hayne played 11 games for Australia and 23 matches in the NSW State of Origin side in a career that also included a stint with the San Francisco 49ers in the United States NFL.
SEXUAL HARM
Where to get help:
If it’s an emergency and you feel that you or someone else is at risk, call 111.
If you’ve ever experienced sexual assault or abuse and need to talk to someone, contact Safe to Talk confidentially, any time 24/7:
• Call 0800 044 334
• Text 4334
• Email support@safetotalk.nz
• For more info or to web chat visit safetotalk.nz
Alternatively, contact your local police station – click here for a list.
If you have been sexually assaulted, remember it’s not your fault.
