WEBVTT - Bruce Lehrmann’s new rape trial

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<v Speaker 1>Before we begin. This episode contains detailed allegations of sexual

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<v Speaker 1>assault from the Australian. Here's what's on the front. I'm

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<v Speaker 1>Claire Harvey. It's Friday, July five. The Albanesi government is

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<v Speaker 1>one senator lighter today after renegade West Australian Fatima Payman

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<v Speaker 1>quit the Labor Party and announced she'll move to the crossbench.

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<v Speaker 1>Payman was disciplined for voting with the Greens on a

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<v Speaker 1>measure supporting Palestine, and now she's refusing to rule out

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<v Speaker 1>starting a party of her own. Feast Coast of Australia

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<v Speaker 1>will run out of gas in twenty twenty seven. Without

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<v Speaker 1>urgent action to find new sources of supply, Australia may

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<v Speaker 1>even have to import gas. The Australian Competition and Consumer

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<v Speaker 1>Commission says. Bruce Lahman will face a jury into Woomba

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<v Speaker 1>in Queensland, where he's accused of raping a woman he

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<v Speaker 1>met in a nightclub. Lamon denies any wrongdoing, but hasn't

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<v Speaker 1>formally entered a plea today. How a trip to visit

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<v Speaker 1>his hometown turned into Lahman's latest legal nightmare. It's Saturday,

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<v Speaker 1>October ninth, twenty twenty one. Spring in the subtropical Queensland

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<v Speaker 1>city of to Woomba, where it's humored and warm. Overnight,

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<v Speaker 1>Bruce Laman is at The Vault, a strip club on

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<v Speaker 1>Ruthven Street that describes itself as the home of the

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<v Speaker 1>hottest girls in town and Queensland's finest adult venue. It's

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<v Speaker 1>popular with bucks and hen's parties. There are topless waitresses,

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<v Speaker 1>lap dancers, women dancing on poles, and a bondage room

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<v Speaker 1>described as a place to explore the boundary between pleasure

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<v Speaker 1>and pain. Lamon meets a young woman and introduces himself

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<v Speaker 1>as Bryce. She's had some drinks and consumed four lines

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<v Speaker 1>of cocaine, she says, to sober herself up and gain

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<v Speaker 1>entry to the nightclub after she'd been out drinking with friends.

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<v Speaker 1>Around four am on the Sunday October ten, Lamon and

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<v Speaker 1>the woman leave the Vault, climb into a taxi and

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<v Speaker 1>head to the home of a schoolmate of Laman who

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<v Speaker 1>grew up into Woomba. They have sex four times, according

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<v Speaker 1>to Laman. They also do some more coke after Lamon

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<v Speaker 1>finds a package of cocaine in her bra But it's

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<v Speaker 1>what happens as the sun climbs into the sky on Sunday.

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<v Speaker 1>By twelve noon it's already twenty five degrees. That has

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<v Speaker 1>sent both their lives in a new direction.

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<v Speaker 2>She alleges she woke up to him inside of her

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<v Speaker 2>to which when she realized, she rolled over and pushed

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<v Speaker 2>him off, telling him to stop.

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<v Speaker 1>Mackenzie Scott is a journalist with The Australian. She was

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<v Speaker 1>at the Tawoma Magistrates Court for a committal hearing on Thursday,

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<v Speaker 1>where a magistrate said a jury properly instructed could find

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<v Speaker 1>Bruce Lammon guilty beyond reasonable doubt. That means the matter

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<v Speaker 1>now goes to trial before a jury at a date

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<v Speaker 1>yet to be set.

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<v Speaker 2>She then alleges that he got on top of her

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<v Speaker 2>and penetrated her again without a condom, and had told

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<v Speaker 2>her it's okay, it's okay, and consoled her as he

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<v Speaker 2>continued to have sex with her until he ejaculated.

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<v Speaker 1>Laman has now been committed to stand trial on two

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<v Speaker 1>counts of rape for twice penetrating the woman, allegedly without

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<v Speaker 1>ascertaining whether she consented. The complainant says her body was

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<v Speaker 1>limp and she was not enthusiastic, but Laman persisted.

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<v Speaker 2>So after this she told him that she wanted to

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<v Speaker 2>go to a chemist to get the Morning After pill.

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<v Speaker 1>That's an emergency contraceptive that reduces the risk of pregnancy

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<v Speaker 1>after unprotected sex. The woman says she wasn't using any

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<v Speaker 1>form of contraception when the alleged assault occurred. The pair

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<v Speaker 1>drove in his car to the pharmacy and then on

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<v Speaker 1>to McDonald's, where Lamon paid for coffee with his West

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<v Speaker 1>Back Bank card. For this case, Bruce Lemon has engaged

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<v Speaker 1>a Queensland criminal barrister, Andrew Haaw case. He argued on

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<v Speaker 1>Lemon's behalf, there was no reason for the case to proceed,

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<v Speaker 1>citing elements like messages the woman sent to friends after

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<v Speaker 1>the night with Lamon in which she said she'd had

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<v Speaker 1>a good night.

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<v Speaker 2>The defense had argued that there was no case going forward,

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<v Speaker 2>and one of the points that they had suggested was

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<v Speaker 2>that when she went to get that morning After pill,

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<v Speaker 2>instead of ticking a box that said she had been

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<v Speaker 2>sexually assaulted, she had ticked a box and said that

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<v Speaker 2>there was a contraception failure. So they alleged that in

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<v Speaker 2>ticking that box, she has denied that there was a

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<v Speaker 2>sexual assault that took place and she has changed her narrative.

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<v Speaker 1>Since a voice actor is reading the words spoken by

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<v Speaker 1>Bruce Lehman's barrister in.

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<v Speaker 3>Court, it must be said that the ticking of the

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<v Speaker 3>boxes is quite distinct to any type of narrative being

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<v Speaker 3>asked of her or otherwise, and that is said to

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<v Speaker 3>be a contradiction of the complaint now made.

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<v Speaker 1>Andrew haw Casey also argued the complainant had a handful

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<v Speaker 1>of opportunities to disclose the alleged assault in the days

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<v Speaker 1>and weeks that followed, including at an appointment with her

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<v Speaker 1>GP where her mental health was discussed and she took

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<v Speaker 1>tests for sexually transmitted infections. The Crown prosecutor on the case,

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<v Speaker 1>Nicole Friederwald, said that's pretty standard behavior for a sexual

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<v Speaker 1>assault victim. A voice actor is reading the words spoken

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<v Speaker 1>by the prosecutor in court.

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<v Speaker 4>The fact that she did not disclose anything immediately, whether

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<v Speaker 4>by ticking a certain box on a contraceptive checklist or

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<v Speaker 4>by telling friends or acquaintances or general practitioners in the

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<v Speaker 4>days after the offending, does not mean that it did

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<v Speaker 4>not happen, nor does it mean, in my submission, that

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<v Speaker 4>she did not hold the subjective belief at the time

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<v Speaker 4>that she had been sexually assaulted.

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<v Speaker 1>Friedwold pointed to a number of instances where the complainant

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<v Speaker 1>alluded to an alleged assault, including in text messages she

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<v Speaker 1>sent to a friend before making a formal complaint to

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<v Speaker 1>police on November six, nearly a month after the alleged rapes.

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<v Speaker 1>Voice actors are reading that exchange, I just feel so shameful.

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<v Speaker 1>You also need to think about whether you would ever

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<v Speaker 1>want to report this to police.

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<v Speaker 5>There are options to do that anonymously too, if you're worried,

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<v Speaker 5>what do you mean?

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<v Speaker 1>Reported Nicole Friedwald said. At this point, the complainant told

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<v Speaker 1>the f and as a fact she'd been sexually assaulted

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<v Speaker 1>and Laman had committed a crime.

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<v Speaker 5>The complainant does not at that time question whether the

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<v Speaker 5>fact is true. There is no dispute by her or

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<v Speaker 5>confusion about what happened to her. Rather, what she immediately

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<v Speaker 5>says is who's going to believe me?

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<v Speaker 1>Magistrate Mark Howden said the woman's story was that she

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<v Speaker 1>had no idea who Laman was until she googled Brittany

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<v Speaker 1>Higgins rapist and saw an image of Laman. Earlier this year,

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<v Speaker 1>Mackenzie Queensland passed some of the world's most tough sexual

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<v Speaker 1>assault laws, including applying a life penalty for stealthing that's

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<v Speaker 1>tampering with or removing a condom during sex without the

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<v Speaker 1>other person's knowledge. Bruce Lahman has not been charged with

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<v Speaker 1>a stealthing offense, has he no, So this is two

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<v Speaker 1>charges of rape. So whilst the pair had consensual sex

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<v Speaker 1>with a condom as requested, the allegation of rape the

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<v Speaker 1>following morning was that it was penetrative sex without a

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<v Speaker 1>condom that had never been applied or discussed in the

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<v Speaker 1>first place. No date has been set for the trial

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<v Speaker 1>and Bruce Lammon hasn't ended a plea, although he's expected

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<v Speaker 1>to defend the charges coming up. How will the court

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<v Speaker 1>handle Bruce Lammon's reputation? Britain will wake up soon to

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<v Speaker 1>a new government. And at the Australian dot com do

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<v Speaker 1>you right now, we've got all the expert analysis on

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<v Speaker 1>what Labour's thumping defeat of the Conservatives means for the

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<v Speaker 1>rest of the world. Check it out and join our

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<v Speaker 1>subscribers to always know what you're talking about. We'll be

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<v Speaker 1>back after this break. Laman has been through this before

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<v Speaker 1>an earlier time trial for an alleged rape in the

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<v Speaker 1>Act Supreme Court, although in that case he was not convicted.

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<v Speaker 1>That's the matter of Brittany Higgins, a fellow former Liberal

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<v Speaker 1>Party staffer, who said she was raped by Laman in

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<v Speaker 1>twenty nineteen. She alleged she awoke to find Lamon having

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<v Speaker 1>sex with her, and said she repeatedly told him to stop,

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<v Speaker 1>but that he didn't respond. Higgins said Laman ejaculated inside her.

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<v Speaker 6>And the first thing that sort of awoke me was

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<v Speaker 6>I was in a pain. My leg was kind of

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<v Speaker 6>being crushed. The senior staff was on top of me

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<v Speaker 6>as I woke up mid rape.

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<v Speaker 1>Essentially, the cases have some striking similarities, including both complainants

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<v Speaker 1>saying they were essentially asleep when intercourse began. Another similarity

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<v Speaker 1>is that Laman denies any wrongdoing. In the matter of Higgins,

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<v Speaker 1>he denied any sexual activity had happened at all. In

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<v Speaker 1>the Tawomba matter, he admits having sex, but says it

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<v Speaker 1>was entirely consensual. And of course, the to Womba jury

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<v Speaker 1>will be directed by the judge to put out of

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<v Speaker 1>their minds anything they know about Laman. They won't be

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<v Speaker 1>allowed to bring their preconceptions into their deliberations at all.

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<v Speaker 1>The jury in the Act matter never returned a verdict,

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<v Speaker 1>and it's against the law to solicit information from jurors

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<v Speaker 1>about their deliberations, so we'll probably never know what their

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<v Speaker 1>decision could have been. They'd been deliberating for several days

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<v Speaker 1>when a court officer went into the jury room after

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<v Speaker 1>hours and noticed among the juror's papers a piece of

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<v Speaker 1>research material about the propensity for sexual assault claims to

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<v Speaker 1>be untrue. That's a breach of the rules for jurors.

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<v Speaker 1>They're not allowed to bring material into their consideration which

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<v Speaker 1>hasn't been presented to them in the courtroom. Justice Lucy

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<v Speaker 1>McCallum dismissed the jury and aborted the trial. Lambman faced

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<v Speaker 1>the prospect of another trial, but then the case was

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<v Speaker 1>dropped altogether.

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<v Speaker 7>Crown Prosecutor Shane Drumgold told us this morning that he

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<v Speaker 7>received compelling medical evidence that suggested if a retrial were

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<v Speaker 7>to go ahead, there would be a significant and unacceptable

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<v Speaker 7>mental health risk to Britney Higgins's life.

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<v Speaker 1>Listeners to the front no, of course, that a judge

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<v Speaker 1>has found Bruce Lahmon did rape Britney Higgins. That was

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<v Speaker 1>Federal Court Justice Michael Lee, who said, on the balance

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<v Speaker 1>of probabilities he believed Higgins's account.

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<v Speaker 8>I'm satisfied that it is more likely than not that

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<v Speaker 8>mister Lehman's state of mind was such that he was

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<v Speaker 8>so intent upon gratification to be indifferent to miss higgins consent,

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<v Speaker 8>and hence when he was sexual intercourse without caring whether

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<v Speaker 8>she consented. This conclusion is not mandated by but is

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<v Speaker 8>consistent with my finding the intercourse convinced when Miss Higgins

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<v Speaker 8>was not fully cognatively aware of what was happening.

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<v Speaker 1>Bruce Lamon is appealing that finding balance of probabilities is

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<v Speaker 1>the civil standard because that was a defamation trial. In

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<v Speaker 1>the criminal courts, such as the one into Womba that

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<v Speaker 1>will hear the present rape case, the standard is beyond

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<v Speaker 1>reasonable doubt. And remember Lehman doesn't have to prove or

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<v Speaker 1>say anything. The owners is on the crown to prove

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<v Speaker 1>to the jury beyond reasonable doubt that the complainant's accusation

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<v Speaker 1>is true. One interesting choice ahead for Lahman's lawyers is

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<v Speaker 1>how they handle the matter of his reputation. Do they

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<v Speaker 1>try to hope the jurors listen to the judge when

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<v Speaker 1>he or she tells them not to bring any preconceptions

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<v Speaker 1>to the trial, or do they tackle it head on

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<v Speaker 1>and tell the jurors listen. You might have heard Bruce

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<v Speaker 1>Lemmon's name before, and you might have some opinions about him,

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<v Speaker 1>but this is about what happened on this particular night,

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<v Speaker 1>and being accused of one thing doesn't make you guilty

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<v Speaker 1>of another. Another choice for Lairmon is whether he continues

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<v Speaker 1>to pay a Silk, a top barrister who charges upwards

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<v Speaker 1>of six thousand dollars a day in the to Womba

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<v Speaker 1>matterlready facing a huge legal bill in Sydney, having been

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<v Speaker 1>ordered by Justice Lee to pay Network ten two million

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<v Speaker 1>dollars to cover its costs and potentially more for Lisa

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<v Speaker 1>Wilkinson's legal costs in that matter. Lherman did have senior

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<v Speaker 1>counsel or Silks representing him, but they were acting on

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<v Speaker 1>a no win, no fee basis. Thanks for joining us

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<v Speaker 1>on the front. Our team is Kristen Amiat, Jasper League,

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<v Speaker 1>Leat Sammaglu, Joshua Burton, Tiffany Demack and me Claire Harvey