00:00A Supreme Court judge, but not for much longer.
00:06Justice Gregory Geeson returning to court after last month being found guilty of assault
00:11and emotional abuse.
00:13The presiding magistrate found he grabbed a woman, shook her, punched her to the chest
00:18and pushed her, causing her to fall backwards and hit her head.
00:22He was also found to have subjected the woman to emotional abuse or intimidation on 13 separate
00:28occasions over a seven-month period.
00:31During sentencing submissions in the Hobart Magistrate's Court today, Justice Geeson's
00:36lawyer ending weeks of speculation, telling the court the judge will resign.
00:42He does not have that moral authority to continue sitting.
00:46Justice Geeson is set to be sentenced on Thursday, his lawyer also telling the court he has lost
00:51everything and the destruction of his public image and professional life is total.
00:58Director of Public Prosecutions Daryl Coates described Justice Geeson's conduct as a serious
01:03example of an assault, asking the magistrate to consider jail time.
01:09Not only is there no evidence of remorse, there's evidence of a lack of remorse.
01:14The woman read a victim impact statement to the court via video link, saying she suffers
01:19from anxiety and post-traumatic stress disorder following the relationship.
01:24She said she couldn't work for eight months and has lost faith in the legal system due
01:28to Justice Geeson's position on the Supreme Court.
01:33Justice Geeson's impending resignation means the government won't have to wait for its
01:37new Judicial Commissions legislation to come into effect in order to remove him.
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