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#21755164 at 2024-10-13 03:45:34 (UTC+1)
Q Research AUSTRALIA #37: EVERYTHING IS AT STAKE Edition

#36 - Part 72
Brittany Higgins Rape Allegations and Bruce Lehrmann Defamation Trial - Part 4
>>21396390 Brittany Higgins' defamation trial hears evidence of sharp decline in Senator Linda Reynolds' health - Liberal Senator Linda Reynolds's partner has testified her cardiologist thought she could die after she collapsed in the senate following intense pressure over her handling of Brittany Higgins' rape allegation. Robert Reid gave evidence in the Western Australian Supreme Court on Monday during the defamation trial brought by the Senator against her former staffer Ms Higgins over a series of social media posts. Mr Reid told the court of the significant deterioration in his partner's health after the 2019 rape allegation was made public, in an article by journalist Samantha Maiden and in Ms Higgins' interview with Channel 10's The Project on February 15, 2021. Mr Reid recalled receiving a message to come to parliament on March 23, 2021 after Senator Reynolds had collapsed and gone back to her ministerial suite. He said when he saw her, "she looked white, she looked almost dishevelled, it was very painful". On medical advice, they drove to a nearby hospital to have her heart checked, given she had a pre-existing heart condition. "Linda was still crying," Mr Reid said. They saw a cardiologist. "He said 'we might lose her'", Mr Reid said, breaking down in tears. "He said 'this is very serious'." The doctor though, did not admit Senator Reynolds and instead advised sending her home and monitoring her closely.
>>21404272 'Utterly false': Scott Morrison rubbishes Brittany Higgins cover-up claims in explosive testimony - Former prime minister Scott Morrison has vigorously defended West Australian senator Linda Reynolds' handling of Brittany Higgins' rape allegation, rubbishing claims of a political cover-up and saying it was parliamentary process that had failed the former staffer. Giving evidence in Reynolds' defamation case against Higgins on Tuesday via videolink from Sydney, Morrison pored over what unfolded in the days after Higgins' tell-all interview with The Project on February 15, 2021, including what he described as "aggressive" and "co-ordinated" questioning in federal parliament and by the media. Morrison revealed the broadcast was the first he knew of the alleged rape in Reynolds' ministerial suite and conceded he was disappointed the then-defence minister had kept him in the dark. But he said he understood Reynolds' predicament in attempting to balance her obligations to the government while maintaining the promise of confidence she had given Higgins. Morrison told Higgins' lawyer, Rachael Young, SC, that the need to ensure workplace safety at parliament was what had motivated him to order an inquiry, not the growing media attention.
>>21415080 Linda Reynolds' friend describes senator's 'state of distress' after Coalition's 2022 election defeat - One of Linda Reynolds' closest friends has described how the senator broke down after she learned she had failed to secure any shadow ministry roles in the wake of the Coalition's 2022 election defeat. Denita Wawn, chief executive of Canberra-based Master Builders Australia, told the West Australian Supreme Court on Thursday about Senator Reynolds' "heightened state of distress" during a weekend away shortly after the 2022 election. Ms Wawn said the senator's state that weekend was the worst she'd seen since Senator Reynolds was hospitalised soon after Brittany Higgins went public with her allegation that she had been raped by Bruce Lehrmann inside Senator Reynolds' Parliament House office. Ms Wawn has been friends with Senator Reynolds for more than 20 years and is contact with her at least once a week. She said the only time she had only seen Senator Reynolds in a worse state than during that 2022 getaway was in 2021, soon after Ms Higgins first appeared on The Project. Ms Wawn said she and her friends were incredibly concerned with the senator's wellbeing in the aftermath of that program, telling the court she was worried that the senator could die. Senator Reynolds was hospitalised for weeks after the 2021 revelations after the stress of the situation exacerbated a pre-existing heart condition. "She was a mess, I think is the best way to described her both physically and mentally," Ms Wawn said.

#21453315 at 2024-08-21 10:00:14 (UTC+1)
Q Research AUSTRALIA #37: EVERYTHING IS AT STAKE Edition

>>21453311

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Maiden told the court Higgins gave her the impression her intention was "altruistic" and 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 she labelled a text message she had received from Sharaz on the morning of publication hailing the article a "f-cking scoop" inappropriate.

The court was then 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.

But 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.

Bennett grilled Maiden about a text exchange between herself and Higgins in which the former staffer 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 resulted in legal reform and improved parliament as a workplace.

During cross-examination by Higgins' lawyer Rachael Young, SC, Maiden recalled a conversation in which Reynolds had told her she "did not know" whether the rape allegation was true because she was "not in the room".

Maiden also recalled being approached by Reynolds' long-time partner Robert Reid during Lehrmann's criminal trial, who she said was peppering her with questions about Higgins' whereabouts.

The Walkley award-winning journalist is the latest to give evidence in Reynolds' year-long defamation case against Higgins over a series of social media posts she claims accused her of mishandling the allegation and silencing victims of sexual assault.

Reynolds has also argued Higgins and Sharaz engaged in a calculated and premeditated campaign to attack her via her political opponents and the media.

Higgins is defending the allegations on the basis the substance of her posts were true.

Several of Reynolds' high-profile colleagues have been called to attest to the impact the saga had on her at the time, including former prime minister Scott Morrison and former foreign affairs minister Marise Payne.

On Tuesday, Payne told the court she watched her colleague of more than 30 years struggle under the weight of mounting pressure from what she described as unprecedented questioning.

Payne described seeing Reynolds shaking, breathing heavily, and gripping her desk in the parliamentary chamber after days of being "aggressively targeted" over the alleged rape before her public breakdown in late February 2021.

The month-long trial will now be cut short after Higgins made an eleventh-hour decision not to take the stand on medical grounds and because her legal team did not believe it was necessary to successfully argue the case.

Higgins, who is now expecting her first child, had been due to travel to Perth from her new home in France to take the witness stand from August 26.

Brown has also been excused from giving oral evidence on medical grounds.

https://www.theage.com.au/national/western-australia/she-s-drafting-a-plan-for-you-maiden-gives-evidence-on-breaking-higgins-story-20240821-p5k45k.html

#21396390 at 2024-08-12 11:28:31 (UTC+1)
Q Research AUSTRALIA #37: EVERYTHING IS AT STAKE Edition

>>21338861
Brittany Higgins' defamation trial hears evidence of sharp decline in Senator Linda Reynolds' health

Nicolas Perpitch - 12 August 2024

Liberal Senator Linda Reynolds's partner has testified her cardiologist thought she could die after she collapsed in the senate following intense pressure over her handling of Brittany Higgins' rape allegation.

Robert Reid gave evidence in the Western Australian Supreme Court on Monday during the defamation trial brought by the Senator against her former staffer Ms Higgins over a series of social media posts.

Mr Reid told the court of the significant deterioration in his partner's health after the 2019 rape allegation was made public, in an article by journalist Samantha Maiden and in Ms Higgins' interview with Channel 10's The Project on February 15, 2021.

Senator Reynolds maintains both pieces contained "false allegations" and "lies" by Ms Higgins about her handling of the alleged sexual assault, in Senator Reynolds's ministerial suite at parliament house.

In the days after the news broke, Senator Reynolds faced continuous questioning by Labor senators in question time.

Senator portrayed as 'villain'

Her lawyer Martin Bennett has told the defamation trial she was portrayed nationally as the "villain" in the story.

Mr Reid recalled receiving a message to come to parliament on March 23, 2021 after Senator Reynolds had collapsed and gone back to her ministerial suite.

He said when he saw her, "she looked white, she looked almost dishevelled, it was very painful".

On medical advice, they drove to a nearby hospital to have her heart checked, given she had a pre-existing heart condition.

"Linda was still crying," Mr Reid said.

They saw a cardiologist.

"He said 'we might lose her'", Mr Reid said, breaking down in tears.

"He said 'this is very serious'."

The doctor though, did not admit Senator Reynolds and instead advised sending her home and monitoring her closely.

'Linda felt stupid'

Her speech to the National Press Club the next day was cancelled, and she went on leave for three weeks.

Mr Reid said watching the interview on The Project had been a major shock.

"Linda felt stupid at that point," he said.

"She had been trying to do the right thing by Brittany, not telling anyone … and here was a plan to bring her down, and potentially to bring Scott Morrison and the government down.

"It was a hit on Linda.

"She told me she could not understand why the hatred."

A central plank of Senator Reynolds' argument in the defamation trial is that Ms Higgins and her now husband David Sharaz had formulated a plan to publicly reveal her rape allegation "as a weapon to inflict immediate damage upon (Senator Reynolds) and the then government".

Her legal team claims Ms Higgins and Mr Sharaz acted with malice and caused her not only severe reputational damage, but also caused her to suffer distress and embarrassment.

Ms Higgins claims Senator Reynolds mishandled the rape allegation and failed to properly support her in the aftermath.

Bruce Lehrmann was charged with Ms Higgins's rape, but his criminal trial was abandoned due to juror misconduct and no findings were made against him. He has always maintained his innocence.

He was found to have raped Ms Higgins on the balance of probabilities in a separate civil trial. He is appealing that finding.

The trial is due to continue until early September, with Ms Higgins expected to give evidence in the last week of August.

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-08-12/linda-reynolds-brittany-higgins-david-sharaz-defamation-trial/104213042

#21385850 at 2024-08-10 15:22:43 (UTC+1)
Q Research AUSTRALIA #37: EVERYTHING IS AT STAKE Edition

>>21385847

2/2

For the past year, Reynolds has been pursuing Higgins for damages as well as aggravated damages over several social media posts in which she claims she was accused of using the media to harass her former staffer.

Higgins is defending the claim on the basis the imputations of harassment and the mishandling of her alleged rape are true.

Earlier, Reynolds vigorously denied she was trying to diminish what she knew in the days after Higgins was allegedly raped by Bruce Lehrmann while giving incorrect evidence at his criminal trial.

Lehrmann has maintained his innocence since his criminal trial was aborted due to juror misconduct.

Young grilled Reynolds about telling the ACT Supreme Court the first she learned that security guards had reported seeing Higgins in her parliamentary suite partially undressed and that there was an order that it be cleaned was via Higgins' tell-all interviews.

Reynolds told the court she now knew that sworn testimony to be incorrect, with both matters documented in a report she received in the days after the security breach.

But she rejected any assertion she was trying to diminish what she knew because it would have proven she knew something untoward or criminal had occurred.

She also denied knowing the alleged sexual assault had occurred before holding a meeting with the then-24-year-old in her parliamentary suite on April 1, 2019, just metres from the couch on which the alleged rape occurred.

"You knew Ms Higgins had told [chief of staff] Fiona Brown she remembered Lehrmann being on top of her, you knew she was barely lucid. You knew she wanted to visit a doctor," Young put to Reynolds.

"I cannot recall exact words, but I can recall she did say there was some form of physical contact, and that she couldn't remember much and that she wanted to go to the doctor. We're not counsellors," Reynolds told the court.

"Ms Brown asked [Higgins] if anything she didn't want to happen had happened, and she said no."

As her employer, Reynolds rejected the assertion she shouldered sole responsibility for Higgins' welfare.

Young has sought to obtain the confidential deeds of settlement in four of Reynolds' defamation actions, including with the ACT government, publisher Harper Collins and two media companies.

Reynolds' long-time partner Robert Reid is expected to take the stand in the five-week defamation trial on Monday before former prime minister Scott Morrison.

https://www.theage.com.au/national/western-australia/i-carry-the-guilt-reynolds-breaks-down-over-airing-kitching-warning-of-political-firestorm-20240809-p5k125.html

#20519996 at 2024-03-05 09:00:26 (UTC+1)
Q Research AUSTRALIA #34: UNITED AGAINST THE INVISIBLE ENEMY OF ALL HUMANITY Edition

>>20092945
>>20334220
Linda Reynolds' defamation action could 'bankrupt' Brittany Higgins' partner David Sharaz

Samantha Maiden - March 5, 2024

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Brittany Higgins has arrived at a Perth court for a marathon two-day mediation with her former boss Linda Reynolds.

The arrival sparked a media scrum as Ms Higgins walked behind her fianc?e David Sharaz who is also being sued for defamation by the Liberal Senator.

Ms Higgins and Senator Reynolds' legal teams will come face-to-face in Perth in a court-ordered mediation over the former Defence Minister's defamation case amid judicial warnings over the "human cost" of the legal battle.

Ms Higgins and Mr Sharaz flew into Perth on Monday night, their first return visit to Australia since they moved to France before Christmas.

For almost a year, the former defence minister has been pursuing legal action against Ms Higgins and her fiance, for damages, as well as aggravated damages.

Senator Reynolds' legal team has argued she has been left highly distressed by online trolling, and alleged that Mr Sharaz had been "a constant participant" in that trolling.

Her legal team has argued that his social media posts falsely suggested that Senator Reynolds pressured Ms Higgins not to proceed with a genuine complaint to police; has bullied her in public including over her compensation payout, "is a hypocrite in her advocacy for women's interests and empowerment"; and interfered in Bruce Lehrmann's trial.

Legal sources say the costs associated with the proceedings had the potential to bankrupt Mr Sharaz, who has not been in full-time work since he suddenly left his role at Southern Cross Austereo a fortnight after defamation action was taken against him by Senator Reynolds last year.

His resignation was conducted on mutual terms with SCA in February, 2023.

It's expected both women - the former defence minister and her former staffer - will remain in separate rooms while the legal teams negotiate.

The former defence minister is suing her former junior staffer, who alleges she was raped on Senator Reynolds' ministerial couch, for defamation over social media posts regarding the alleged rape and her workplace treatment.

Mr Lehrmann was charged but never convicted over the allegations before the trial collapsed and the charge withdrawn by the former Director of Public Prosecutions Shane Drumgold. Mr Lehrmann maintains his innocence.

Judge Marcus Solomon has urged all parties to settle the matter to avoid the "crippling" or even "insurmountable human cost".

Ms Higgins has continued to comment on social media about her alleged mistreatment in the office of her former boss, who has sought French legal advice over freezing the former staffer's assets.

"I'm not the same naive 25-year-old girl from Parliament House," Ms Higgins wrote in response. "You don't scare me anymore and I won't be bullied."

Ms Higgins told reporters that Perth was a beautiful, but difficult place to come back to and she believed that "everyone's acting in good faith".

A smiling Senator Reynolds arrived with her partner, former journalist Robert Reid, who watched the trial of Bruce Lehrmann in Canberra.

His presence in the courtroom later prompted former Director of Public Prosecutions Shan Drumgold to cross examine her over the matter and a subsequent separate defamation claim.

Senator Reynolds declined to comment, telling reporters she would save any response for after the mediation.

On Monday, the ACT Government confirmed it paid $90,000 to Senator Reynolds following a claim for defamation, which was split between $20,000 for legal costs and $70,000 for damages.

It followed the former DPP's claim that she engaged in "disturbing conduct" in a letter to the ACT police commissioner that was later released under freedom of information laws.

In the letter, Mr Drumgold said Senator Reynolds' partner was regularly seen conferencing with Lehrmann's defence "during the course of the entire trial".

"During the conduct of the trial, a number of disturbing events have occurred, including prosecution witness [redacted] firstly giving evidence directly contradictory to her chief of staff, then directly soliciting transcripts of other evidence to tailor her evidence direct from the defence barrister Steven Whybrow," he said.

Mr Whybrow did not provide the texts to Senator Reynolds and she told the court during the cross examination that her partner was in the courtroom but denied they had discussed the evidence, saying it had been made "very clear" to her that was not acceptable.

(continued)

#19204809 at 2023-07-19 10:21:47 (UTC+1)
Q Research AUSTRALIA #31: MAGIC SWORD - IN THE FACE OF EVIL Edition

>>19194509
'Recklessly indifferent to truth': Linda Reynolds blasts DPP Shane Drumgold over Brittany Higgins case

JANET ALBRECHTSEN and STEPHEN RICE - JULY 19, 2023

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Former Defence Minister Linda Reynolds has launched a blistering attack on ACT chief prosecutor Shane Drumgold, accusing him of making "baseless and unsubstantiated allegations" that she was motivated by political forces to suppress Brittany Higgins' rape complaint.

In a submission to the Sofronoff inquiry obtained by The Australian Senator Reynolds asks chairman Walter Sofronoff KC to find that Mr Drumgold "was recklessly indifferent to the truth of this mistaken belief, and was otherwise prepared to assert a position that had no evidentiary basis despite being an officer of the Court with ethical and prosecutorial duties that attach."

Senator Reynolds alleges multiple breaches by Mr Drumgold of the Barristers Rules, the Legal Profession Act, the Director of Public Prosecutions Policy, the Freedom of Information Act and the Human Rights Act over the trial of Bruce Lehrmann.

The allegation that she had tried to pervert the course of justice would have remained unchallenged, she submitted, but for the intervention of Mr Sofronoff, who elicited from Mr Drumgold the startling admission during the inquiry that he no longer believed his own claims.

"The evidence of the DPP at the Inquiry demonstrated that there was no basis to make such a serious allegation during the trial or at any time before or after the trial. It was a baseless and unsubstantiated allegation made irresponsibly and has damaged the reputation of Senator Reynolds irreparably," her submission states.

The Liberal MP reveals her shock at being declared a hostile (or "unfavourable") witness in the trial by the DPP who, without warning, suddenly cross-examined her on her credibility.

That included questioning about the presence of her husband, Robert Reid, sitting in the courtroom, even though no one had suggested there was anything wrong with this, including the DPP, who had met and was aware that Mr Reid was her partner. An ODPP solicitor had even approached Mr Reid in the court to ask if Senator Reynolds could appear sooner than previously scheduled.

Senator Reynolds was also cross examined over a text message she sent to Bruce Lehrmann's defence counsel, Steve Whybrow, requesting a transcript of the trial. She said she had not been aware this was not permitted.

She says Mr Drumgold "ambushed" her in the trial and had given her no indication beforehand in discussions that he intended to do this, even though he was already well aware that Ms Higgins' was claiming political interference to suppress her complaint.

"I was shocked and frustrated at this approach as it appeared the DPP was seeking to undermine my credibility (and that of Senator Cash) in an effort to re-assert the credibility of Ms Higgins and increase his prospect of securing a conviction. Alleging that a politician was motivated by 'political forces' was an easy line to run."

The DPP repeatedly asked questions which alleged Senator Reynolds was motivated by "political forces," she said, even though he was well aware from her statement that it was she who had suggested to Ms Higgins she should talk to the police and assured her the AFP had expertise in handling sensitive personal matters.

In his summing up Mr Drumgold told the jury that "it is abundantly clear from the evidence and actions of Senator Reynolds during this trial that those political forces were still a factor."

(continued)

#18363704 at 2023-02-17 14:30:31 (UTC+1)
Q Research AUSTRALIA #27: THEY ARE IN FULL BLOWN PANIC MODE Edition

>>18363699

2/8

'A bomb went off in my head'

"It's been the hardest two years of my life, without question," she says, sitting on a sofa across from her partner of nine years, Robert Reid.

Reynolds recounts watching the Project interview in her office with her staff. "It was just like a bomb went off in my head. It was like, what is, what is Lisa saying? What is this conversation about me and about Fiona?" Reynolds says. "Because almost everything that was said did not accord with my recollection of what had happened two years previously.

"I actually couldn't believe what I was hearing and seeing. It was just such a shock. Being accused of covering up the rape of a young woman for political purposes. It was like a stake through my heart.

"It hurt," she says, quietly.

That pain is still not far from the surface. The 57-year-old former defence minister recalls how Labor senators "just kept at me asking me questions day after day, essentially saying that I covered up the rape of a young woman. And that was one of the most distressing and confronting things in your workplace, having your colleagues not only in your workplace, but in front of the entire nation, accusing you day after day of covering up the rape of a woman."

Labor senators Penny Wong and Katy Gallagher led the charge, using a pincer movement in the days and weeks that followed the Project interview. Between them they asked Reynolds eight questions in the Senate on February 15, 2019, the night the Project interview aired. With no clue about what was about to explode that night, Reynolds didn't have immediate access to notes or files. The next day, February 16, another six questions were fired at Reynolds; the next day, another nine.

Reynolds gave a statement in the Senate on February 18, setting out how, during a meeting with Higgins, she offered her young staffer full support in whatever course of action she chose. In that statement to her Senate colleagues, Reynolds asked that this very serious issue be dealt with "away from politics".

Not a chance. Labor senators lined up the next day, posing nine questions to her, then a dozen more the following day.

Reynolds maintained then what she maintains now: she did the right thing, supporting Higgins, encouraging her to speak with AFP officers in Parliament House and to seek counselling if that's what she wanted. "Parliament is the last place, and the media is the last place that these matters should ever be discussed," she says to me. "Having supported family members and friends, and a colleague in the parliament as well, a staffer in previous years ... I understood the concept of agency from those personal experiences. Anything relating to sexual assault ... these are not matters that should be played out in public."

'The incident'

Reynolds is keen to tell her story about what happened during the first few days after Higgins and Lehrmann entered her ministerial suite in the early hours of Saturday, March 23, 2019. This was, she says, a very serious security breach. In her police statement it is described as "the incident".

Reynolds is a stickler for rules, proper processes, and, working in the defence portfolio, she explains how highly sensitive matters in this area demand a higher standard.

"When you work in a ministerial office, either as a minister or the trusted staff, you are privileged to great information, and in the defence portfolio highly sensitive information. And I think as every Australian would expect, that comes with a higher standard of conduct and behaviour and security is No.1. So that was just a huge security breach."

She says entering her ministerial suite unauthorised, in the early hours of Saturday night, as Higgins and Lehrmann had done, was "a sackable offence". "It doesn't get much worse than that."

(continued)

#6410466 at 2019-05-04 09:23:34 (UTC+1)
Q Research AUSTRALIA #4 - Q Goes Down Under Edition

Robert Reid, father of tennis prodigy Todd Reid, has died six months after his son

Todd Reid was a tennis prodigy before being forced into retirement after injuries

He died in Melbourne October of 2018 after retiring in from professional tennis

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-6976621/Father-Australian-tennis-champion-dies-just-six-months-son-dead-aged-34.html