The ex-partner of Julia Gillard, former prime minister of Australia, has used his connection with her to receive a more lenient sentence for a perverse sexual assault on a female friend. Tim Mathieson, also known as Australia’s ‘first bloke’ during Gillard’s reign, pleaded guilty to one count of sexual assault, resulting in a conviction and a $7000 fine. The Melbourne Magistrates’ Court heard that Mathieson sucked the nipple of his sleeping friend after she fell asleep on her couch and persisted despite her objections. Mathieson’s lawyer, Brad Penno, leveraged his client’s previous relationship with Gillard to plead for mercy, tracing their history from meeting to falling in love to eventual separation. Prosecutors described Mathieson’s actions as an aggravated and opportunistic sexual assault against a supposed friend in her own home. While Mathieson hoped to avoid conviction with a good behavior bond, Magistrate Belinda Franjic disagreed. Franjic criticized Mathieson’s behavior, condemning it as a serious instance of sexual assault that took advantage of a vulnerable victim who was asleep and in her own home. Franjic emphasized the prolonged nature of the assault, with Mathieson repeatedly trying to engage in the intimate act. Mathieson’s victim lived in an apartment below his in Brunswick East, which he had purchased with Gillard. The two developed a close friendship during Victoria’s Covid-19 lockdowns after meeting while walking their dogs. On March 13, the woman invited Mathieson over for dinner, and after a lengthy drinking session, they watched a Whitney Houston documentary. Senior Constable Simpkin testified that Mathieson took advantage of his victim when she fell asleep, pulling her top down and sucking her nipple. She woke up startled and pushed Mathieson away, but he persisted in his attempts. Mathieson left but apologized for his actions the following day. Initially, Mathieson denied sexually assaulting his former friend, claiming that she consented to his actions. However, he eventually pleaded guilty after prosecutors agreed to withdraw two counts of stalking related to accusations that he had entered the woman’s home without permission. Mathieson’s victim provided a victim impact statement that detailed her fear and shame, which led her to leave the country. Mathieson’s lawyer attempted to mitigate the offense by stating that Mathieson and the victim had often slept together in the same bed, but not in a sexual manner. The lawyer also emphasized Mathieson’s intoxication at the time and his lack of memory of the incident. Mathieson faced a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison for the offense.
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