In short:
An assault charge against Yarra councillor Stephen Jolly has been dismissed by as magistrate.
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charge → dismiss → magistrate
Cr Jolly was accused of striking a gatecrasher after she arrived at a 2024 election afterparty to protest.
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she → accuse → afterparty
Magistrate Jill Prior says although she was satisfied Cr Jolly made contact with the woman, the prosecution could not prove beyond reasonable doubt he intended to assault her.
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he → say → her
Longtime City of Yarra councillor Stephen Jolly has been cleared of punching a protester in the face at a 2024 local government election afterparty.
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Jolly → clear → afterparty
Magistrate Jill Prior today dismissed an assault charge against Cr Jolly, who was accused of striking a woman in the face when the event was gatecrashed.
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event → dismiss → face
Magistrate Prior said she was satisfied Cr Jolly made contact with the face of Estella Burrows, but ruled the prosecution could not prove beyond reasonable doubt that he intended to commit assault.
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he → say → assault
She said the incident occurred during a "chaotic" series of events that lasted between 30 seconds and a minute.
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that → say → seconds
"The interaction occurred with multiple parties converging across a very small space," Magistrate Prior said.
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Prior → occur → space
Cr Jolly, who was elected mayor of Yarra less than three weeks after the incident, hugged and embraced supporters in the small courtroom when the decision was announced.
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decision → elect → courtroom
Dancefloor melee at 2024 party leads to assault accusation
The incident occurred in front of about 50 people at Ziggy's Disco Lounge in Fitzroy on November 1, 2024.
Protesters wearing Halloween masks and carrying a megaphone turned up uninvited and confronted Cr Jolly.
Phone footage taken by one of the gatecrashers was shown to the court and partially captured the scuffle, along with a series of unproven allegations made about Cr Jolly.
"So, residents of Yarra City Council, we are here to congratulate you on electing our most prolific sexual predator," a protester named Peaches McCormack says in the clip.
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protester → lead → clip
Another woman can be heard shouting "Stephen! Stop it!" as a dancefloor melee breaks out.
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melee → hear → it
The complainant, Ms Burrows, testified that she was protesting Cr Jolly's re-election and that the group planned to unfurl a banner.
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group → testify → banner
She said Cr Jolly moved quickly towards her and, without warning, struck the left side of her face with "significant force".
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Jolly → say → force
"I thought we would probably be evicted from the venue.
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we → think → venue
I didn't expect to be punched in the face though," she said.
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she → expect → face
In a police interview, Cr Jolly denied punching anyone.
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Jolly → deny → anyone
His lawyers argued that even if Ms Burrows was struck it would have been accidental or in self-defence.
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it → argue → defence
Cr Jolly's barrister, Michael McGrath, said his client had been subjected to a "prolonged political campaign" and that an egg was cracked on his head at a public rally 13 months earlier.
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egg → say → rally
The veteran councillor did not give evidence at the hearing.
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councillor → give → hearing
Character references were provided on Cr Jolly's behalf, including by academic Jacinta Chavulak.
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references → provide → Chavulak
Ms Chavulak said she was at Ziggy's Disco Lounge and felt "really scared" when the masked protesters confronted Cr Jolly.
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protesters → say → Jolly
She said she had known Cr Jolly for two decades and had "never" seen him commit or threaten violence.
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him → say → violence
Outside court, complainant Ms Burrows, who was wearing a headscarf and jumper with an anti-police slogan, called the legal process "ridiculous".
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who → wear → process
"Obviously I'm disappointed about the verdict but to be honest I'm not surprised," she said.
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she → disappoint → verdict
Cr Jolly addressed the media on the steps of the court.
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Jolly → address → court
He insisted he did not punch Ms Burrows and said his only regret was not hiring security for the event.
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regret → insist → event
I also think it was a huge waste of resources,"he said.
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it → think → resources,"he
Cr Jolly said he had been targeted by the same group of protesters for years and described sexual assault claims they'd made against him as "bullshit".
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they → say → bullshit
"I just choose to ignore it and get on with life and try and be positive.
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I → choose → life
My heart is filled with love and not hate," he said.
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he → fill → love
The Aporia
