LEKAHNI Pearce is the newest public face of a domestic violence problem that isn’t going away.
If you haven’t heard of her, she’s the ex-girlfriend of axed Sydney footballer Elijah Taylor, whose AFL career came to a sudden halt this week, when the Swans terminated his contract.
The 19-year-old avoided jail just days later and instead received a $5000 fine and spent conviction – meaning he won’t have a criminal record – after pleading guilty to assaulting Pearce.
The assault became major news in mid-September, when Pearce posted a note and accompanying photo, complete with facial bruising, on her personal Instagram account.
What happened that night was revealed in brutal detail in a Perth court, including Pearce hitting Taylor first while he was sleeping, after she saw a Snapchat from a third party on his phone.
He proceeded to punch her repeatedly to the jaw and face and struck her with a belt.
When Pearce tried to leave the room they were in and threatened to go to the police, Taylor hit her in the back of the head – causing her to drop to her knees – and told her she wasn’t going anywhere.
Taylor was already banned for the rest of the season, for sneaking Pearce into the AFL’s Western Australian quarantine hub. He revealed in court he wanted to comfort her after a miscarriage.
That was a breach of the competition’s return-to-play protocols, as well as the state government’s COVID-19 laws for AFL footballers.
The Magistrate accepted Pearce started the violence and that Taylor's response was the result of a tumultuous period leading up to it, but said his response was “well above what was required”.
Sydney’s football boss, Charlie Gardiner, said in the club’s earlier announcement about parting ways with Taylor that his actions “could not be reconciled”.
The Swans’ decision followed discussions with the AFL, the AFL Players’ Association and Taylor’s management team.
There’s been criticism of the way the club handled the aftermath of his coronavirus breach, on the basis he was a teenager and that he should’ve received more support.
That’s a topic for another day, but whatever role it played in the eventual assault does not excuse Taylor’s abhorrent behaviour.
Naturally, he was remorseful in court.
Athletes involved in domestic violence simply illuminate an issue that is all too common away from the spotlight, but one sport is intrinsically linked to.
There was coverage ahead of this year’s AFL and NRL Grand Finals that revealed a disturbing spike in domestic violence across an extended period on those showcase days.
Data from Victoria, NSW and Tasmania showed increases ranging from almost 12 per cent up to 35 per cent on Grand Final days.
There was also the confronting vision in the United States in recent years of former NFL player Ray Rice knocking out his wife, Janay, with a punch in an elevator.
The NFL’s initial suspension of Rice was criticised, before League commissioner Roger Goodell announced a domestic violence policy.
This is all part of why it remains so disappointing that disgraced former AFL footballer Wayne Carey holds such prominent TV and radio roles as a special commentator.
Carey is a repeat violent offender, who’s been charged with indecent assault for grabbing a woman’s breast and twice with assaulting, or battery of, police officers amid reports of domestic disputes.
On one of those occasions, he allegedly smashed a wine glass into the face of his then-girlfriend Kate Neilson, who chose not to pursue charges.
Carey has since said he meant only to throw a glass of wine over her.
As a result, Channel Nine and 3AW sacked Carey from his media commitments in 2008 and he had a football hiatus, but he now boasts plum roles at Channel Seven and Triple M.
In the meantime, domestic violence continues to be a scourge on society.
According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics’ 2016 Personal Safety Survey, more than two million Australians have experienced physical and/or sexual violence from a partner.
Carey may be rehabilitated, for lack of a better word, but both Channel Seven and Triple M, unwillingly or not, continue to play a role in accepting – rather than rejecting – domestic violence.
Marc McGowan is an experienced sports journalist who’s covered Australian Football and tennis at the highest level. Now a freelancer, he worked most recently for AFL.com.au and has been published in The Herald Sun, The NT News, The Daily Telegraph, The Courier-Mail, The Australian and Australian Tennis Magazine. Marc completed an Honours degree in Communications from Monash University and has won awards for his feature writing.
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