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Convicted rapist quits Australian parliament after losing legal bid to stay

Accused seeks to appeal against sentence, will step down from parliament

The Australian senator who was convicted of rape will step down from parliament after losing his bid to keep his seat while appealing his sentence.

Victorian Supreme Court Justice John Champion ruled on Friday that Sen. Rod Cameron's appeal against his conviction could not begin until he officially resigned from parliament.

Cameron will officially step down from the chamber on August 16, citing the Australian Constitution's section 44, which prohibits people with a sentence of imprisonment of one year or more from sitting in parliament.

Timeline of events

Cameron was convicted of raping a woman in Melbourne in 1988 and was sentenced to 11 years in prison.

He was released on parole in 1995 and filed an appeal against his conviction in 2021, which was ultimately unsuccessful.

The Senate voted to suspend Cameron in March 2022, following a motion from the opposition, which also called for him to be expelled from parliament.

In June, Cameron launched a legal bid to stay in the Senate while he appealed his conviction, arguing that he should be allowed to remain in parliament until the High Court ruled on his case.

The matter will now go before the High Court for determination on a date yet to be fixed.