Former Bachelor star Sam Wood will remain in custody while he awaits trial on domestic violence charges, after he was refused bail for a second time.
Wood, 46, from Melbourne, has been held in custody since his arrest on 4 October at Noosa.
On Friday supreme court justice Patrick McCafferty said Wood posed “an unacceptable risk” of further offending, meaning he will remain in the high-security Wolston correctional centre until his trial, which the court heard might not take place until 2028.
Wood was previously remanded over allegations he choked and assaulted his wife, Snezana Wood, while the family was holidaying on the Sunshine Coast.
He is charged with two domestic violence offences: assault occasioning bodily harm and strangulation in a domestic setting.
His legal team have indicated he will fight the charges and he has not yet entered a plea.
During an initial bail hearing, a court heard Snezana was supportive of the charges, that she was allegedly choked and that “there was a cessation of breath”.
“She articulates [in a video-recorded statement] the banging of her head on the floor. She couldn’t breathe,” police prosecutor Jeanette Grigoris told the earlier hearing. “She thought she was going to die.”
The more serious charge, related to strangulation, placed him in a “show cause” position where there is a presumption against bail unless he can demonstrate he does not pose a risk of re-offending. McCafferty said that Wood had not satisfied him that proposed conditions could ameliorate that risk.
During Friday’s bail hearing, the Supreme Court heard claims that Wood used drugs and alcohol, engaged in a “party lifestyle” and that he “struggles with anger”.
On Friday Wood’s lawyer, Paula Morreau KC, said that there was no suggestion Wood “suffered from addiction” despite crown submissions that he used drugs and alcohol use and engaged in a “party lifestyle”.
Morreau said that if granted bail, Wood proposed to reside in Tasmania, where his father lives, and that he would agree to the condition “to not enter Victoria” where Snezana lives. At the earlier application, Wood had sought bail to reside in Melbourne.
Morreau said Wood had been suffering “significant stressors” and that he “struggles with anger” but that in such situations “he usually leaves and takes time”.
“He shows he has the capacity for self-control,” she said.
Wood’s legal team proposed he undergo a “men’s behavioural change” course if released on bail.
Crown prosecutor Jessica Guy said there were “serious features” to allegations that Wood assaulted and strangled his wife.
“[Wood] didn’t desist. [The] violence extended beyond the application of force to her neck, to the banging of her head to the floor of the skirting boards.
“[It occurred] in the presence of an adult witness and the close proximity of young children.
Wood is now being held at the high-security Wolston correctional centre near Brisbane. He was not brought to the court for the hearing on Friday.
The bail hearing continues.
