Deaf woman's silent screams

A MAN who allegedly tried to rape a hearing-impaired woman as she walked home in Rockhampton on Friday morning was yesterday denied bail in Rockhampton Magistrates Court.

The 26-year-old man was already on District Court bail for allegedly committing the same offence against another woman last year.

It’s alleged that the latest attack happened in Alma Street around dawn.

Yesterday, police alleged the man had harassed the woman for sex and chased her until she fell over.

Police Prosecutor Barbara Barton said the man got on top of her, grabbed her hair and tried to force her to have sex and oral sex with him.

She said the woman tried to scream for help, but couldn’t because of her hearing impairment.

The prosecution alleged the man became enraged at her attempts to escape and punched her in the side of the face.

She tried to run away, but was unable to see properly because of her injuries and the man again grabbed her and repeatedly kicked her to the stomach, the court was told.

It was unclear whether the woman eventually escaped or police came to her aid.

Duty Lawyer Shayne Studdert appeared on behalf of the accused, saying the man disputed the charges of bodily harm and assault with intent to rape, but no plea was entered.

Following the incident, the man was also charged with assaulting and obstructing police, public nuisance and breaching bail conditions.

The court heard the man had a number of sexual-assault related convictions on his criminal history including an incident in 2002 involving a 14-year-old girl.

Magistrate Tom Bradshaw said the accused, who cannot be identified for legal reasons, posed an unacceptable risk to the community if granted bail.

He was remanded in custody until June 30.