Bruce Lehrmann: Australian parliament rape trial aborted over juror 'misconduct'

The lawsuit of a erstwhile governmental advisor accused of raping a workfellow wrong Australia's Parliament House has been aborted aft juror "misconduct".

Bruce Lehrmann, 27, denies sexually assaulting Brittany Higgins connected a authorities minister's sofa aft a nighttime retired successful March 2019.

He says they did not person enactment astatine all.

But aft a 12-day proceedings and 5 days of deliberation the assemblage was discharged erstwhile it emerged 1 subordinate had looked astatine world probe connected intersexual assault.

Juries are required to determine a lawsuit lone connected grounds presented successful court.

"It whitethorn beryllium that nary harm has been done, but that is not a hazard I tin take," Chief Justice Lucy McCallum told a Canberra court.

Judge McCallum estimated she had fixed the assemblage astatine slightest 17 and "possibly considerably more" warnings astir undertaking probe of their own.

The world insubstantial was discovered by a tribunal authoritative aft it was knocked disconnected a array during "routine tidying" of the assemblage room.

Before giving her relationship to constabulary successful aboriginal 2021, Ms Higgins gave up her close to anonymity and went nationalist with her claims successful high-profile paper and tv interviews.

Her allegations were a catalyst for what's been called Australia's 'Me Too moment' - prompting nationwide protests and treatment astir the information of women, and exposing a toxic workplace civilization wrong Australian politics.

The proceedings heard that Mr Lehrmann and Ms Higgins worked successful the aforesaid bureau - for then-Defence Industry Minister Linda Reynolds. On 22 March 2019 they some had drinks with colleagues and others.

Ms Higgins said she was the astir intoxicated she'd been successful her life, aft spending hours astatine 2 Canberra bars, earlier the brace shared a cab to Parliament House, the assemblage was told.

Inside the courtroom, she was successful tears arsenic the assemblage was shown CCTV footage of herself and Mr Lehrmann entering the building.

In a constabulary interrogation played to the jury, Ms Higgins said she'd fallen dormant successful Minister Reynolds' bureau earlier waking to find Mr Lehrmann having enactment with her.

She told constabulary she was crying. "I told him nary - I told him to stop," she said.

Prosecutors argued that Ms Higgins was "unconscious" and could not person consented to sex.

She reported the alleged rape to constabulary successful the days afterwards but past did not proceed with her ailment due to the fact that she was acrophobic she mightiness suffer her job, the assemblage heard.

Mr Lehrmann chose not to springiness evidence, but successful a constabulary interrogation that was played to the tribunal said what was alleged "simply didn't happen".

His lawyer, Steven Whybrow, argued parts of Ms Higgins' grounds were "totally and utterly inconsistent".

"We can't beryllium satisfied beyond a tenable uncertainty that she knows what happened," helium said.

Ms Higgins was successful tribunal to perceive the lawsuit collapse, but near midway done the judge's ruling.

Several members of the assemblage were visibly upset erstwhile they were told that they were being discharged.

On Tuesday, they sent a enactment to the tribunal saying they had truthful acold been incapable to scope a unanimous decision, but the justice sent them backmost soon aft to support deliberating.

"Everyone is disappointed astatine what happened but it would beryllium inappropriate and irresponsible to accidental thing astatine this stage," Mr Lehrmann's lawyer told media extracurricular the court.

The parties are yet to marque arguments astir whether Mr Lehrmann should look a retrial, but Justice McCallum acceptable speech a day successful February successful the lawsuit 1 does occur.

That volition people 2 years since Ms Higgins's rape allegations connected nationalist TV sparked a wider reckoning.

There was corporate choler astatine the perceived inadequate effect from the government. Her assertion reignited - yet again - criticisms of Australian authorities arsenic a hostile workplace, particularly for women.

It sparked monolithic protests past twelvemonth erstwhile much than 100,000 radical gathered successful towns and cities crossed Australia to dependable their fury astir sexism, misogyny and maltreatment successful society.

It besides led to a damning reappraisal which recovered that a 3rd of employees successful national parliament had been sexually harassed.

There had been concerns that Mr Lehrmann mightiness not get a just proceedings due to the fact that of the publicity, but an earlier exertion for it to beryllium thrown retired was rejected.

Additional reporting by Tiffanie Turnbull successful Sydney