Zak Butters: Port Adelaide star cleared amid successful appeal due to ‘error of law’
Port Adelaide’s acting captain Zak Butters has had his fine scrapped, with the Power launching a successful appeal. Get the details here.
Port Adelaide superstar Zak Butters has had his umpire abuse charge thrown out by the AFL appeals board after it was ruled a panel member’s decision to listen to the original tribunal hearing from his car was a “miscarriage of justice”.
Butters was fined $1500 by the AFL tribunal last Tuesday for abusing field umpire Nick Foot during the Power’s loss to St Kilda in round five.
Foot told the tribunal Butters asked him: “How much are they paying you?’‘ after awarding the Saints a free kick.
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By continuing you agree to our Terms and Privacy Policy.Butters vehemently denied making that comment, but the tribunal sided with the umpire, who reported him at the time of the incident.
Monday night’s appeals board hearing barely referenced the original hearing at all, as Port appealed based on an error of law regarding former Essendon midfielder Jason Johnson’s conduct as a panel member.
Johnson, a real estate agent, tuned in to the online hearing in his office then briefly disconnected and switched devices to his mobile phone as he drove to an open house inspection.
The Power argued that “was inexplicable and amounted to a miscarriage of justice”.
“The board cannot be satisfied that Mr Johnson in those circumstances was paying proper attention to his duties and adjudicating appropriately,” lawyer Paul Ehrlich KC said, noting it had to be inferred Johnson was distracted.
After deliberating for 14 minutes, the panel of Will Houghton (Chair), Stephen Jurica and Richard Loveridge agreed, and upheld the appeal.
Houghton said the conduct “constituted a miscarriage of justice” and “it was clearly an error of law that had a material impact on the decision of the tribunal.”
The AFL had determined if the appeal was upheld, there would not be a re-hearing, meaning Butters is cleared.
In somewhat comical scenes, Ehrlich’s submissions were punctuated by his dog barking in the background.
Albert Dinelli KC, representing the AFL, acknowledged it was “regrettable” that Johnson had briefly disconnected from the hearing.
Dinelli described it as a “minor lapse” and said Butters had not been denied of his right to a hearing.
But the appeals board sided with Port.
