Groping golfer 'sexually immature', court told
Aspiring professional golfer Leighton Lyle was sexually immature and a virgin when he fondled a woman's breast on a long-haul flight, a court has been told.
Lyle, the brother of Australian US PGA tour player Jarrod Lyle, fears his own golf ambitions could be ruined if he is convicted.
The 2007 Victorian amateur champion has admitted indecently touching the woman seated next to him while she slept during a Los Angeles to Melbourne flight in April of that year.
In the Melbourne Magistrates Court on Thursday, Lyle's lawyer Julie Sutherland put his behaviour down to sexual immaturity and said in his dedication to golf, he may have neglected his love life.
"At 24, this young man had never been really going out with anyone. He was a virgin. Perhaps that factored into this offence," she said.
However, Ms Sutherland said Lyle - who recently received his tour card to play professional golf in Australia - could have his hopes of being a professional dashed by a conviction.
"He's going to be punished, in effect, for the rest of his life," she said.
Ms Sutherland said his behaviour was opportunistic and he deserved a bond without conviction, but the crown argued a conviction was deserved because the offending was serious.
The court heard Lyle, 25, from Shepparton, was ashamed, embarrassed and sorry for his actions.
Forensic psychiatrist Jeffrey Cummins told the court he was confident Lyle posed a minimal risk of reoffending.
"He should regard this as an opportunity to learn more about socialising with women," he said.
The court heard since the offence Lyle had signed up to internet dating websites and was socialising more.
Lyle, who has pleaded guilty to indecent assault, will be sentenced by Magistrate Charles Rozencwajg on Friday.
AAP
This story was found at: http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2009/01/22/1232471487847.html
Lyle, the brother of Australian US PGA tour player Jarrod Lyle, fears his own golf ambitions could be ruined if he is convicted.
The 2007 Victorian amateur champion has admitted indecently touching the woman seated next to him while she slept during a Los Angeles to Melbourne flight in April of that year.
In the Melbourne Magistrates Court on Thursday, Lyle's lawyer Julie Sutherland put his behaviour down to sexual immaturity and said in his dedication to golf, he may have neglected his love life.
"At 24, this young man had never been really going out with anyone. He was a virgin. Perhaps that factored into this offence," she said.
However, Ms Sutherland said Lyle - who recently received his tour card to play professional golf in Australia - could have his hopes of being a professional dashed by a conviction.
"He's going to be punished, in effect, for the rest of his life," she said.
Ms Sutherland said his behaviour was opportunistic and he deserved a bond without conviction, but the crown argued a conviction was deserved because the offending was serious.
The court heard Lyle, 25, from Shepparton, was ashamed, embarrassed and sorry for his actions.
Forensic psychiatrist Jeffrey Cummins told the court he was confident Lyle posed a minimal risk of reoffending.
"He should regard this as an opportunity to learn more about socialising with women," he said.
The court heard since the offence Lyle had signed up to internet dating websites and was socialising more.
Lyle, who has pleaded guilty to indecent assault, will be sentenced by Magistrate Charles Rozencwajg on Friday.
AAP
This story was found at: http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2009/01/22/1232471487847.html
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