Cricket legend Michael Slater is hit with a staggering number of new domestic violence charges
- Slater’s case was heard in the Queensland court on Monday
- The case will return to court in Maroochydore on Tuesday
- The 54-year-old was found guilty of assault last year
Australian cricket great Michael Slater has faced a lengthy list of domestic violence charges in a Queensland court after being arrested over the weekend.
The 54-year-old faces 18 charges related to domestic violence, including suffocation and strangulation, assault occasioning bodily harm, four charges of common assault, unlawful stalking and entering a dwelling at night by recess.
He is also accused of breaching bail conditions.
Slater failed to appear at the Maroochydore Magistrates Court in Queensland on Monday as he was behind bars at Maroochydore Police Station.
Slater (pictured outside court last year) has been hit with a long list of domestic violence-related charges after being arrested this weekend
No pleas have been entered on his behalf.
Slater was remanded in custody and will return to court on April 16 for a bail application, with the court’s lawyer telling the magistrate he is investigating a rehabilitation center for the former cricket star.
Last October, the former Test opener sought mental health treatment at a private men’s retreat after being charged with allegedly assaulting a police officer.
“Unfortunately, the defendant’s health has deteriorated to such a degree that his psychologist directed him to be admitted for treatment for his own safety and well-being,” said a letter to the court written by Slater’s attorney Tony Krahenbring.
Queensland Police were called to a Noosa Heads home just before midnight on March 31, 2023, following reports of a domestic violence-related issue and a medical incident at the property.
Police alleged Slater assaulted an officer at the Noosa Heads address.
On November 8 last year he was convicted of common assault, breaching a restraining order and two other offenses against a woman.
The former cricket star (pictured playing for Australia in 1998) did not attend the Maroochydore Magistrates Court as he was still locked up in a nearby police station.
On Monday, a lawyer on duty told the court that a rehabilitation center for Slater (pictured outside court last year) was being investigated
Magistrate Robyn Denes said those involved had noted aspects of domestic abuse, allegations of infidelity, demands to see phones, restrictions on who they could meet and speak to, and threats of self-harm.
He was branded a ‘domestic abuser’ after it was revealed he put on his ex-girlfriend’s hoodie, causing her to fall onto a bench in April 2023.
Slater then tried to email, text and call her more than 100 times, breaching a domestic violence order.
He was sentenced to two years’ imprisonment, to be served in the community.
The former Channel Nine commentator played 74 Tests for Australia in a career spanning eight years, scoring 5312 runs and 14 centuries in the long form of the game.
He also played in 42 one-day internationals for his country.