WA pedophile loses bid over evidence

Serial West Australian pedophile Dennis McKenna has failed to stop details of his prior convictions being used as evidence in a new trial.

McKenna has pleaded not guilty to two charges of indecently assaulting a boarder at the St Andrews Hostel in Katanning where he was the warden between 1975 and 1990.

He is already behind bars for committing 44 sexual offences against 23 boys at the hostel and on Wednesday, a judge in the WA District Court ruled those convictions could be used as evidence in the new trial where relevant.

McKenna was expected to appear in court via video link from prison, but a technical delay meant he was not present to hear the judge's reasons.

The prosecution had argued the evidence would show McKenna's propensity to offend, but the defence claimed it could make a judge prejudicially biased.

Judge Philip Eaton ruled there was only a minimal risk of McKenna not getting a fair trial with a judge because they were trained in the discipline of the law and were less likely to be swayed by prejudice.

The trial in September will be heard by a judge sitting without a jury due to the publicity surrounding McKenna's crimes.