Updated Bruce Lehrmann Pt2 * Reynolds Defamation Trial Current

[Kurve]

Here is PART 1

Historical Rape Allegation Against Fmr AG Christian Porter
The Alexander Matters matters

Just a reminder, this is the crime board and we need to be aware that there will be victims of crime either watching this thread or engaging in here from time to time. A degree of respect in all discussions is expected.

LINK TO TIMELINE
CJS INQUIRY
FINAL REPORT – BOARD OF INQUIRY – CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM
Joint media statement – Chief Minister and Attorney-General



FIONA BROWN - AFFIDAVIT

 

[BFew]

Neither of them had any right to access the building at that time, in that condition - certainly not unsupervised - privacy concerns, as well as OHS. At a bare minimum she remains in the reception area, whilst one of the officers walk him upstairs to get his keys. [I don’t see why the guard couldn’t have walked upstairs and grabbed them off his desk.]

Anyway I’m sick of having to state the bleeds obvious to halfwits that appear to know SFA about management. What if she had of woken up and slipped when exiting, and fatally cracking her skull on the edge of a desk??? That is why you don’t have a person working overtime alone.

Did security possibly let the two of them thru under instructions from someone, in order to try and gather evidence on Lehrmann who at that point in time, might have already been under suspicion as a high risk of accessing confidential information in his workplace for non-work reasons?

Not that anyone would likely ever admit it, if this was the case.

Surely Lehrmann would already have been listed and monitored by someone, with him known to be on the way out of that job and his reputation.

 

[Mick F]

Did security possibly let the two of them thru under instructions from someone, in order to try and gather evidence on Lehrmann who at that point in time, might have already been under suspicion as a high risk of accessing confidential information in his workplace for non-work reasons?

Not that anyone would likely ever admit it, if this was the case.

Surely Lehrmann would already have been listed and monitored by someone, with him known to be on the way out of that job and his reputation.

In what f’n world does a serial predator think that PH is a safe place to be taking half drunk girls, he’s likely drugged, to in the wee small hours of a weekend to rape??

Would never cross the mind of a person with a half competent manager.

Who knows what the security guards thought their role was - to guard the extremities against rampaging Raider fans after a loss??

 

[Underarrest_]

In what f’n world does a serial predator think that PH is a safe place to be taking half drunk girls, he’s likely drugged, to in the wee small hours of a weekend to rape??

Would never cross the mind of a person with a half competent manager.

Who knows what the security guards thought their role was - to guard the extremities against rampaging Raider fans after a loss??

agree, and then B is pulled into a meeting because she was seen as breaching security, (with policies & procedures on the table) when she was allowed in there (drunk and alone with a male) and despite the state she was found in two days prior.
It’s extraordinary.

 

[Kurve]

The defence will call AFP officer Leanne Close/Cross.

Senator Reynolds’ legal team will on Wednesday call news.com.au political editor Samantha Maiden to the stand, while Ms Higgins’ team will call former Australian Federal Police assistant commissioner Leanne Close as its only witness, after it was announced Ms Higgins would not take the stand as originally planned.

https://www.news.com.au/national/western-australia/senator-anne-ruston-says-colleague-senator-linda-reynolds-was-brought-to-her-knees-after-allegations/news-story/1da05c0239ada841bfa12a372994347f

 

[Lady O]

Brittany Higgins's $2.4m Commonwealth payout at risk after Linda Reynolds wins court ruling

Senator Linda Reynolds wins a legal bid to access the details of a protective trust into which Brittany Higgins put funds from her $2.4 million settlement with the Commonwealth.

www.abc.net.au

 

[Kurve]

The defence will call AFP officer Leanne Close/Cross.

Senator Reynolds’ legal team will on Wednesday call news.com.au political editor Samantha Maiden to the stand, while Ms Higgins’ team will call former Australian Federal Police assistant commissioner Leanne Close as its only witness, after it was announced Ms Higgins would not take the stand as originally planned.

https://www.news.com.au/national/western-australia/senator-anne-ruston-says-colleague-senator-linda-reynolds-was-brought-to-her-knees-after-allegations/news-story/1da05c0239ada841bfa12a372994347f

Taking a guess here this officer will be examined on her notes regards the couch being steam cleaned, the stated reluctance to report the rape until the budget was released and her notes on the first meeting with Reynolds and Brown, where Reynolds indicated she knew of the sexual assault in her office.

 

[campbell]

oh my.

https://www.news.com.au/national/western-australia/senator-anne-ruston-says-colleague-senator-linda-reynolds-was-brought-to-her-knees-after-allegations/news-story/1da05c0239ada841bfa12a372994347f

 

[Festerz]

oh my.

https://www.news.com.au/national/western-australia/senator-anne-ruston-says-colleague-senator-linda-reynolds-was-brought-to-her-knees-after-allegations/news-story/1da05c0239ada841bfa12a372994347f

Have to say, that is a very well written and succinct facts-based article given the matters covered and especially given it covers the testimony of the news.com.au's editor, Sam Maiden.

The defence will call AFP officer Leanne Close/Cross.

Not just an AFP officer but former Deputy Commissioner of National Security at the Australian Federal Police (AFP), former leader of the Federal Attorney-General Department's Criminal Justice Group and current head of the counter intelligence program at the US/Australian Government funded Australian Security Policy Institute. Her personal integrity and credibility is beyond reproach I would have thought.

Interesting late call by the defence team. I wonder if Reynolds' lawyers knew this was a possibility? And I wonder if Reynolds' evidence in this trial has prompted the decision to call Ms Close?

Because given what we now know about the glaring discrepancy between Ms Close's notes of interview and what Reynolds has claimed in relation to when and what she knew about the rape allegations (both in the Lehrmann criminal trial and subsequently), Ms Close's evidence will make pretty interesting reading.

 

[Kurve]

There's a bit more detail in here. Sam Maiden is accused of being part of a plot to bring down Reynolds or Morrison.

Here Maiden talks about being approached by Reynolds husband through the trial, asking her questions about where Higgins was.

The award-winning journalist who broke the Brittany Higgins rape story has flatly denied she was part of a plot to bring down Scott Morrison or Senator Linda Reynolds – saying she wanted to change the Parliament, not the government.

And she has also revealed she became “anxious” after being quizzed by a man she didn’t know about Ms Higgins’ whereabouts during the criminal trial of Bruce Lehrmann – who turned out to be Ms Reynolds’ partner Robert Reid.
Ms Maiden won a Gold Walkley award for her coverage.

On Thursday, she became part of the story — after being called as the final witness in Ms Reynolds’ defamation claim against Ms Higgins in WA’s Supreme Court.

That summons came after Ms Reynolds’ framing her claim against two of Ms Higgins’ social media posts as part of years-long plan to damage the Senator and Liberal government, which included Ms Maiden’s coverage.

Journalist tells how she was quizzed by Reynolds’ partner

The journalist who broke the Brittany Higgins rape story has flatly denied she was part of a plot to bring down Scott Morrison or Senator Linda Reynolds.

thewest.com.au

 

[Mick F]

There's a bit more detail in here. Sam Maiden is accused of being part of a plot to bring down Reynolds or Morrison.

Here Maiden talks about being approached by Reynolds husband through the trial, asking her questions about where Higgins was.

The award-winning journalist who broke the Brittany Higgins rape story has flatly denied she was part of a plot to bring down Scott Morrison or Senator Linda Reynolds – saying she wanted to change the Parliament, not the government.

And she has also revealed she became “anxious” after being quizzed by a man she didn’t know about Ms Higgins’ whereabouts during the criminal trial of Bruce Lehrmann – who turned out to be Ms Reynolds’ partner Robert Reid.
Ms Maiden won a Gold Walkley award for her coverage.

On Thursday, she became part of the story — after being called as the final witness in Ms Reynolds’ defamation claim against Ms Higgins in WA’s Supreme Court.

That summons came after Ms Reynolds’ framing her claim against two of Ms Higgins’ social media posts as part of years-long plan to damage the Senator and Liberal government, which included Ms Maiden’s coverage.

Journalist tells how she was quizzed by Reynolds’ partner

The journalist who broke the Brittany Higgins rape story has flatly denied she was part of a plot to bring down Scott Morrison or Senator Linda Reynolds.

thewest.com.au

There was report after report into bullying and sexual harassment in PH. Didn’t have to be a rocket scientist to recognise there was a problem - middle aged men employing young, single, attractive women and overseeing a culture of merging work and social - plying them with alcohol and abusing their power.

The predators doing the abusing didn’t see the problem. The lickspittles hunger for promotion overode any inherent concern a decent person would have, that would lead to calling them out.

 

[Kurve]

Is this Sam Maiden 'monstering' Reynold's staff?

‘Reynolds had been under a lot of pressure in parliament,” she said.

“She hadn’t been accurate about the number of meetings with police, we were trying to get to the bottom of how many times she had met with police.

“We were trying to clarify information for stories.”

https://www.news.com.au/national/western-australia/senator-anne-ruston-says-colleague-senator-linda-reynolds-was-brought-to-her-knees-after-allegations/news-story/1da05c0239ada841bfa12a372994347f

 

[Aristotle Pickett]

Linda the hater.

“She just avoided me. Avoided being in photos with me, I was toxic. She hated me,” Higgins told Maiden during the recorded interview.

“She worked her entire life to finally [become the defence minister] and I was like, in her first two weeks … some little twit she doesn’t know who gets assaulted in her office and she hates it, she hated me.”

Brittany Higgins told journalist who broke alleged rape story Linda Reynolds ‘hated’ her, court hears

Journalist Samantha Maiden was called to give evidence in the WA senator’s defamation trial against her former staffer

www.theguardian.com

 

[Mick F]

Linda the hater.

“She just avoided me. Avoided being in photos with me, I was toxic. She hated me,” Higgins told Maiden during the recorded interview.

“She worked her entire life to finally [become the defence minister] and I was like, in her first two weeks … some little twit she doesn’t know who gets assaulted in her office and she hates it, she hated me.”

Brittany Higgins told journalist who broke alleged rape story Linda Reynolds ‘hated’ her, court hears

Journalist Samantha Maiden was called to give evidence in the WA senator’s defamation trial against her former staffer

www.theguardian.com

Being from a military background, and being trained by the best, you’d think she would know the troops come first, second, third, fourth and fifth.

Not unexpectedly, for a person who threw their career in to chase the power/$$$, she only cares about herself - not a manager’s ahole.

 

[jason_recliner]

Linda the hater.

“She just avoided me. Avoided being in photos with me, I was toxic. She hated me,” Higgins told Maiden during the recorded interview.

“She worked her entire life to finally [become the defence minister] and I was like, in her first two weeks … some little twit she doesn’t know who gets assaulted in her office and she hates it, she hated me.”

Brittany Higgins told journalist who broke alleged rape story Linda Reynolds ‘hated’ her, court hears

Journalist Samantha Maiden was called to give evidence in the WA senator’s defamation trial against her former staffer

www.theguardian.com

This doesn't look at all good for Higgins.

 

[Aristotle Pickett]

Being from a military background, and being trained by the best, you’d think she would know the troops come first, second, third, fourth and fifth.

Not unexpectedly, for a person who threw their career in to chase the power/$$$, she only cares about herself - not a manager’s ahole.

The fact that she's taking a rape victim to court for something this petty says it all.

 

[Aristotle Pickett]

This doesn't look at all good for Higgins.

Why?

 

[Xtreme]

The fact that she's taking a rape victim to court for something this petty says it all.

Perhaps BH should have stopped firing shots from behind her keyboard and she wouldn't be in this mess. In fairness I reckon her "husband" put her up to it.

 

[jason_recliner]

Why?

Because all of the evidence and publicly available court findings (which Maiden was not privy to at the time of the interview) indicate it to be a complete falsehood. Which is why, I suppose, Reynolds called Maiden as a witness.

 

[Aristotle Pickett]

Because all of the evidence and publicly available court findings (which Maiden was not privy to at the time of the interview) indicate it to be a complete falsehood. Which is why, I suppose, Reynolds called Maiden as a witness.

Even if she wins she will probably only get a nominal amount. This case has made her reputation worse either way.

 

[jason_recliner]

Even if she wins she will probably only get a nominal amount. This case has made her reputation worse either way.

Yeah, I don't imagine she'll get a whole lot (after costs). She's still working, isn't she? Hard to quantify significant financial costs from the defamation. I think for her it's more about proving a point and setting the record straight.

 

[Aristotle Pickett]

Yeah, I don't imagine she'll get a whole lot (after costs). She's still working, isn't she? Hard to quantify significant financial costs from the defamation. I think for her it's more about proving a point and setting the record straight.

The reality is Reynolds hated Higgins because she thought she was ruining the election and giving her a bad name.
She ticked boxes but really thought that it was Higgin's fault because she was drunk eg 'this is what happpens in life' quote.
If she wins she won't even be awarded costs.
You can't go around sueing rape victims if you employed the rapist and you helped the rapist's lawyer and leaked info to the Australian.

 

[Ballarat Bob]

Reynolds is really laying this on thick to try and prove an overwhelming case against Higgins and Sharaz. I don't think the evidence so far supports anything near what she is claiming. Don't get me wrong she has a legitimate complaint and will 'win' in court but this is like spending a million dollars to win the lottery.

 

[Underarrest_]

Perhaps BH should have stopped firing shots from behind her keyboard and she wouldn't be in this mess. In fairness I reckon her "husband" put her up to it.

Doesn’t appear to have been helpful.

Source WA today 21/08/2024,
Higgins’ partner, former press gallery journalist David Sharaz, first approached Maiden about the story in January 2021, writing a text message about a “Me Too incident” the Liberal Party had “covered up”.
“I am letting this be [Higgins’] decision, but she’s drafting a plan for you. She wants to do it in an election year,” Sharaz wrote.

 

[Kurve]

Doesn’t appear to have been helpful.

Source WA today 21/08/2024,
Higgins’ partner, former press gallery journalist David Sharaz, first approached Maiden about the story in January 2021, writing a text message about a “Me Too incident” the Liberal Party had “covered up”.
“I am letting this be [Higgins’] decision, but she’s drafting a plan for you. She wants to do it in an election year,” Sharaz wrote.

Yeh that's not a good look. Even if anybody thinking they can draft a plan for Samantha Maiden and she'd take any notice of it is ridiculous.

 

[Festerz]

Yeh that's not a good look. Even if anybody thinking they can draft a plan for Samantha Maiden and she'd take any notice of it is ridiculous.

Saying what I hope is obvious but it's very important for context reasons to take account of Maiden's differential view of the narrative Sharaz was portraying in his idiotic texts and what she saw as Ms Higgins' motives in wanting media coverage of her ordeal.

'Maiden told the court Higgins gave her the impression her intention was altruistic and she wanted the story to have an impact.'

“She was concerned it would be a one-day wonder. She wanted there to be an impact given what she saw as systematic failures [in the government’s handling of the alleged rape],” Maiden said.

'But Maiden labelled a text message she had received from Sharaz on the morning of publication hailing the article a “f---ing scoop” inappropriate.'

The so called 'tortious conspiracy' involving Federal Labor politicians also got a run in the questioning of Maiden....

The court was taken to a series of text messages between Maiden and senior Labor Party figures, including Penny Wong and Tanya Plibersek, regarding questions to be levelled at Reynolds during question time.

Maiden insisted there was nothing remarkable about the correspondence and dismissed any assertion she had acted as a conduit for the staffer or that Higgins had a plan to bring down the Morrison government.

Reynolds’ lawyer, Martin Bennett, grilled Maiden about a text exchange between herself and Higgins in which Higgins told her she did not believe Reynolds should resign because she was just “following instructions” from the prime minister’s office.

“Just having played my little part in your operation has been one of the greatest moments of journalism I’ve ever had,” Maiden texted Higgins.

When asked what she had meant by “operation”, Maiden told the court she believed Higgins had shown “great bravery at great cost” to raise issues that had resulted in legal reform and improved parliament as a workplace.

‘She’s drafting a plan for you’: Journalist Maiden testifies on breaking Higgins story

Interview recordings and a flurry of texts filed in Linda Reynolds’ defamation row with Brittany Higgins have laid bare what unfolded before the publication of a rape allegation that sparked a cultural reckoning.

www.watoday.com.au