‘Relieved’ Shane Van Styn recovers legal costs following assault acquittal

Geraldton Mayor Shane Van Styn has been granted more than $24,000 in legal costs following his acquittal for an alleged assault in a Kalbarri hotel. Mr Van Styn’s defence lawyer, George Giudice, appeared in Geraldton Magistrate’s Court on Monday where he outlined the legal expenses sustained during the case. Mr Giudice said the protracted 17-month battle had been a “long and arduous process” requesting $24,464 which included the maximum amount allowed to be claimed for the four-day trial. The Department of Public Prosecutions did not oppose the application. The claim was approved by Magistrate Sandra De Maio who noted the trial was “lengthy” and “quite involved” with the prosecution calling a large number of witnesses to give testimony. “This is certainly one of the larger bills I’ve seen,” she said. Mr Van Styn said he was relieved to have this case behind him and was looking forward to moving on. “Court cases at this level are expensive to go through and I’m relieved some of the cost will be returned to me,” he said. He said the legal battle had cost him approximately $50,000 but he was happy to see it “well and truly over”. The 43-year-old was acquitted on October 2 for the assault charge launched after 32-year-old Tahnwa Graham Manrique accused the mayor of punching him in the face at the Kalbarri Motor Hotel last year. At the time, Ms De Maio said the prosecution had failed to prove the charge beyond reasonable doubt. She found Mr Manrique had been acting aggressively to Mr Van Styn and others on the night and that his testimony was unreliable. “He exaggerates his injuries, which boils down to bruising, one sore tooth and a red mark above his eyebrow,” she said. However she did say the credibility of Mr Van Styn’s testimony had been negatively affected by his “misleading account” of the night. “I suspect that the accused did punch or at least use his hand to strike the complainant, but suspicion, no matter how great it is, does not lead to a conviction.”