A city’s former Citizen of the Year has been jailed behind bars on serial child abuse charges after he appeared in court for a lengthy bail hearing Tuesday.
Laurence ‘Laurie’ Wilfred Norris, 63, appeared at Forbes Local Court in central western New South Wales on Tuesday, charged with more than 70 sexual offences, including rape and offenses against children.
The 63-year-old was granted parole following his arrest last Thursday, as he had an urgent chemotherapy appointment for his leukemia the following day.
However, on Tuesday Magistrate Shields denied his bail, citing the “very serious” allegations against him as the main reason.
“Very few of those issues would need to be proven for Mr. Norris to face full-time custody for a very, very significant period,” he said.
Laurence ‘Laurie’ Wilfred Norris (pictured) is on remand for more than 70 alleged sexual offences, including rape and offenses against children.
Norris was granted strict probation following his arrest (pictured) on May 15 due to his ongoing treatment for leukemia.
His wife, Rachael Morgan, sat near her husband, who was wearing a gray blanket and a mask, and shouted: “You will kill him” as Magistrate Shields delivered his decision.
Norris’ lawyer, Stephanie Shields, argued that he should be granted bail so he could continue receiving chemotherapy treatment and continue to be monitored at home by his wife, a former nurse.
However, Magistrate Shields noted that Norris “would not be the only person in custody with a serious medical condition”.
“I am forced to conclude that your needs can be sufficiently met in custody and that would not demonstrate why detention is not justified,” Magistrate Shields said.
‘The Bail Law requires me to refuse bail. “The defendant (Norris) should be returned to custody.”
Norris is accused of sexually assaulting four girls, three of whom were under 16 years old at the time of the alleged crimes, between 1974 and 2023.
Officers arrested the 63-year-old last Thursday following an 18-month police investigation, which reportedly gathered enough evidence for a “very strong” case against him, according to court documents seen by Daily Mail Australia.
The charges against him include sexual assault on a person under 16, sexual intercourse without consent, attempted rape, indecent act with a girl under 16 and sexually touching another person without consent.
He will face Parkes Local Court via audio-visual link on July 18.
The court heard Norris was a “respected member of the Forbes community and became a very, very well-known provider of riding lessons” before his alleged crimes came to light.
Norris was awarded the Forbes Citizen of the Year award at the 2022 Australia Day ceremony for his “dedication to ensuring generations of residents enjoy and achieve in horse riding and sport” and was the past president of the Forbes Pony Club .
Magistrate Shields concluded Norris (pictured) could receive treatment while in custody and cited the “very serious” allegations against him as the main reason for his custody.
Forbes Local Court (pictured) Magistrate Shields heard Norris was a “respected member of the Forbes community and became a very, very well-known provider of riding lessons” before his alleged crimes came to light .
He comes from a well-known farming family within the Eugowra community; Her father Wilf Norris was a popular farmer known for using horses to plant fields and her mother Pat was a horse rider and polocrosse player.
Wilf, who died last year aged 95, was awarded a Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) for his work with draft horses and his service to heritage preservation, having helped establish the Australian Society of Draft Horse Stud Book and the Golden Plow competition.
Norris continued his family’s love of horses by mentoring young riders and offering horse-drawn carriage rides at local events. He is also a committee member of the local Riding for the Disabled Association.
According to media reports at the time of his honor, Norris was described as a “tireless worker” and “popular within the community” who voluntarily gave his time to mentor and train young riders.
Accepting her award, Norris said she loved working with the Pony Club because teaching children how to ride helped “keep them safe.”
“Horses are great levelers,” he told Forbes Advocate in 2022.
‘Pony Club is helping children become better riders, keeping them safe.
“What it teaches kids is how to be competitive, how to perform, how to grow and be a good human being.”
Norris became involved with the Pony Club as a rider in 1975 before traveling around Australia working as a cowboy in films including The Man From Snowy River.
He returned to Forbes in 2000 and became involved again with the Pony Club, which has about 50 members.
Norris dropped his gray blanket and took off his mask as two officers took him into custody from the courtroom.
His wife was thrown out of the courtroom for her outburst while relatives cried from the gallery.
Norris (centre) will appear at Parkes Local Court via audio-visual link on July 18 on more than 70 charges.
Norris (pictured) is accused of sexually assaulting four girls, three of whom were under 16 years old at the time of the alleged crimes, between 1974 and 2023.
Norris will continue receiving his chemotherapy treatment while in custody.
Strike Force Boche was established in October 2022 to investigate reports of alleged historical child sexual abuse by Norris.
As investigations continue, anyone with information should call police or Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.
