Former NRL star James Roberts walked away without conviction after breaching an AVO by repeatedly calling his ex-partner.
Roberts appeared before Sydney’s Downing Center Local Court on Tuesday, when a magistrate heard the former NSW State of Origin representative had not worked in six months and was receiving Centrelink benefits to make ends meet.
The 31-year-old, who played more than 160 NRL games for five clubs during his playing career, pleaded guilty to breaching a condition of an AVO not to make contact with his de facto partner Anna Jovanovic.
Prosecutors on Tuesday dropped a harassment or intimidation charge against him and the court dismissed it.
Roberts’ lawyer told the court the reason he called Ms Jovanovic was to contact his children and he fully accepted her misconduct.
‘He frankly admits the infringement; He called her after hours,” the lawyer said.
‘He had problems communicating with the children at the agreed times.
“It was just about that.”
James Roberts (pictured outside court on Tuesday) pleaded guilty to calling his ex 33 times despite being banned from making contact with her under the terms of an AVO.
Roberts, 31 (pictured while playing for Wests Tigers) has been living off Centrelink payments for six months, the court heard.
The police prosecutor argued that there are other ways to approach the situation other than “annoying and harassing” Ms Jovanovic.
“It wasn’t just a single phone call: there were 33 phone calls over a period of a month and a half,” the prosecutor said.
According to court documents, Roberts made a Facebook post in October suggesting that Jovanovic was not allowing him to communicate with his children.
Magistrate Scott Nash said he understood both sides’ positions and noted the need to deter others from similarly violating the AVOs, which were designed to protect potential victims of domestic violence.
He accepted that Roberts’ reasons for breaching the AVO were to try to establish contact with his children.
“That might provide an explanation, but not an excuse,” Mr. Nash said.
The former Rabbitohs and Panthers star is pictured being led to a police van after a court appearance for breaching the AVO in October last year.
An angry Roberts banged on the window of the vehicle (pictured) as it was being taken away.
But instead of recording a conviction on Roberts’ record, the magistrate opted for a 15-month probation order.
The AVO was extended for a further two years, and Nash urged Roberts to prove that the breach was misplaced.
“I think in the circumstances where this is a minimum level of severity… I will treat this as an aberration on their part,” he said.
The court was told Roberts’ lack of contact with his children caused him “great sadness”, which probably contributed to problems with depression.
“He was a grade one NRL player but at the time of the breakdown of their relationship… his career came to an end,” Roberts’ lawyer told the court.
“He has no income except Centrelink.”
Roberts, once considered the fastest man in rugby league, will retire in 2022.
He was arrested in October outside Downing Center Local Court after appearing for a brief court mention.
Roberts played for the Wests Tigers, South Sydney Rabbitohs, Penrith Panthers, Gold Coast Titans and Brisbane Broncos during 12 seasons in the NRL.
He appeared in all three of NSW’s games in the team’s successful 2018 State of Origin campaign and played for Indigenous All Stars and City Origin before retiring in 2022.