Australia: Melbourne man not guilty of reckless HIV transmission

A Melbourne man on trial for reckless HIV transmission was found not guilty by a jury this week. Details are sparse, but it seems the case hinged on whether the accused had disclosed his HIV status to the complainant before having unprotected sex. Unusually, the jury believed the accused.

If anyone knows any more details, please post a comment, below.

Story from The Age is below.

Man not guilty of deliberate HIV infection

Sarah-Jane Collins
March 18, 2008 - 9:44AM

An HIV-positive man accused of deliberately infecting another person with the disease, was found not guilty yesterday.

The man, who cannot be identified, was acquitted by a County Court jury on a charge of reckless conduct endangering serious injury.

Prosecutor Alex Albert claimed the man had tested positive to HIV in 1996 but had unprotected sex with the alleged victim on numerous occasions.

Mr Albert said the man had not told his victim about his HIV status before having unprotected sex. He told the jury that the man later sent a series of text messages to the alleged victim about his HIV status.

He told the jury that the man was well aware of the possibility of transmitting HIV through unprotected sex.

But the jury disagreed.

At the trial opening, Paul Higham, for the accused, said his client had told the alleged victim he was HIV-positive when they first met.

"The case you're going to hear is a tragedy. It is a sad, sad tale. It's a sad tragedy, but it is not a crime," he told the jury, who ultimately agreed.