A troubled former Home and Away star has hit out at the “unfair” perception that he is just “another child star” who has “lost his mind on drugs” after being accused of assault.
Police allege Felix Dean assaulted his housemate on the morning of August 1 at their Botany Bay apartment in a bloody attack.
He has pleaded not guilty to the allegations and must fight the charge during a Local Court hearing on November 4.
The 27-year-old appeared in the New South Wales Supreme Court on Friday to apply for bail after spending just under three months behind bars on remand.
Representing himself, the former actor argued against the idea that he was just another victim of toxic childhood fame after getting his big break on Home and Away at age 10.
“It seems to everyone else… that I’m just another child star who’s done drugs and given up on life and I’m impulsive and a danger to the community,” he said.
“That is very far from the truth.”
In a 30-minute speech to the court about his conditions, Dean revealed that he has been to prison five times, but maintained that “no one has been physically hurt” by his crime.
Former Home and Away child star Felix Dean (pictured) has been charged with assault occasioning actual bodily harm for an alleged attack on his housemate.
Dean rose to fame in Home and Away as VJ Patterson, the on-screen son of Ada Nicodemou (pictured)
It is clear, your honor, that drugs are not the problem. “Drugs are a solution,” he said.
‘They have helped me at times and probably have helped me in my criminal matters because I have not had the full capacity in my right mind to be stressed and angry to hurt anyone.’
The former child star told the court that he has “really addressed” his drug addiction and has not used intravenous drugs for the past two years.
He revealed that he has been placed under a strict financial management order that restricts his access to his own money and provides him with a stipend of $150 a week.
“All of these crimes, especially in recent years … have been a direct response to this financial management order,” Dean told the state’s highest court.
“All my offenses have been because I feel absolutely helpless.”
The 27-year-old told the court he needed to be released on bail so he could fight to be removed from the “restrictive” order.
He said he had been subletting a room in his apartment to the alleged victim, whom he met at a poker tournament, in an attempt to supplement his weekly income.
Dean will face a hearing in November on the assault charge.
The former actor claimed there were “inconsistencies” in the alleged victim’s account of the “argy bargy,” which was apparently recorded.
He alleged that blood found on the man’s pillowcase had been there before the alleged assault, but was unable to get a “clear answer” from the housemate about where it came from.
The Crown prosecutor opposed Dean’s application for bail.
Judge Tim Faulkner concluded that the 27-year-old had not shown why his detention was unjustified and refused to grant him bail.
Dean will remain in custody until he returns to local court to fight the charge of assault occasioning actual bodily harm.
The setback comes after a tumultuous couple of years for the former actor, who has been in and out of prison for the past four years.
He achieved national fame at the age of 10 when he was cast in Home and Away as ‘VJ’, the on-screen son of Leah Patterson, played by long-time cast member Ada Nicodemou.
Dean starred in the Channel 7 show for three years and earned nominations for Best Younger Actor at the 2008 and 2009 Inside Soap Awards for his work.
