Andrew O'Keefe has failed to convince a court that a woman lied about being assaulted by him, with a judge finding the former game show host had a tendency of spitting at her during arguments.
District Court Judge John Pickering upheld O'Keefe's convictions for domestic violence assault on Monday, after rejecting his lawyers' arguments that the woman had inflicted scratch marks on her own arm and later blamed O'Keefe.
However, the judge overturned other charges for drug possession after finding it could not be proven items found in a lock box in O'Keefe's apartment belonged to him.
The troubled former Seven Network host was convicted in January of three counts of domestic violence-related assault, twice contravening an AVO against him, and two charges for possessing a prohibited drug.
He was ordered to serve 18 months on a community corrections order, which involves supervision and reporting requirements, and fined $800 for the drug offences.
During an assault in September 2021, O'Keefe was found to have pushed the woman into a doorway, punched her with the heel of the hand and forced her to the ground, before kicking her in the thigh and using his nails to scratch her chest.
However, O'Keefe's barrister Phillip Boulten SC said the woman's claim she scratched her hand on a hinge after being pushed through the doorway was not supported by physical evidence.
Mr Boulten said if the woman was found not to have been truthful about the scratch marks on her arm the entirety of her evidence should not be accepted.
Judge Pickering told the court he did not see any reason for the woman to lie about the assault, and noted at the time she had indicated she did not want to make a complaint to police.
"It was clear in her communication with the police that she did not actually want the police to get involved in this," he said.
"I do not see what benefit there was to the complainant.
"I am satisfied the complainant was a truthful witness about this incident."
As the judgment was read in court, O'Keefe shook his head in frustrated disagreement and passed written notes to his lawyer.
O'Keefe has admitted the argument occurred, but maintains he accidentally fell into the woman due to their proximity rather than pushing her.
The woman alleged that after she fell, O'Keefe had said to here: "Nice acting, I barely touched you".
Judge Pickering found it was open to the court in initially convicting O'Keefe to use an earlier incident in January 2021, in which O'Keefe admitted spitting in the same woman's eye, to help establish who was telling the truth.
"The majority of males in our community do not act in this fashion," he said.
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