The Federal Court dismisses Bruce Lehrmann's defamation case against Network 10; Six victims of the fatal Bondi Junction stabbing attack named; And in football, Bayer Leverkusen have won the Bundesliga for the first time.
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TRANSCRIPT
In this bulletin;
- The Federal Court dismisses Bruce Lehrmann's defamation case against Network 10;
- Six victims of the fatal Bondi Junction stabbing attack named;
- And in football, Bayer Leverkusen have won the Bundesliga for the first time.
Federal Court Justice Michael Lee has dismissed Bruce Lehrmann's defamation case, finding on the balance of probabilities, a lower threshold than in criminal trials, that Mr Lehrmann raped Brittany Higgins.
Justice Lee has delivered his judgment today in Sydney in Mr Lehrmann's defamation case against Network Ten and journalist Lisa Wilkinson.
He has found that Network 10 and Ms Wilkinson had proved a defence of substantial truth over allegations of rape against Mr Lehrmann.
"The respondents have not won because I can exclude all other possibilities as to what happened, but because they have proven that such possibilities that are open on the evidence both individually and collectively and unlikely, and further because I am satisfied that the evidence provides an appropriate basis upon which to reach a conclusion. As a result of the inconclusive criminal trial, Mr Lehrmann remains a man who has not been convicted of any offence, but he has now been found by the civil standard of proof to have engaged in a great wrong. It follows that Ms Higgins has been proven to be a victim of sexual assault."
The former Liberal staffer sued both the network and journalist for defamation over a February 2021 report on The Project, where he claims he was identified as the man that allegedly raped Brittany Higgins in Parliament House almost two years prior, though he was not named.
Justice Lee found that three elements had been satisfied to the civil standard - that Mr Lehrmann had sexual intercourse with Ms Higgins, that Ms Higgins did not consent, and that Mr Lehrmann knew she did not consent.
Mr Lehrmann has always denied the sexual assault allegation.
The criminal case against him was dropped in 2022 following juror misconduct, with no findings made against him.
If you or someone you know wants to talk about sexual assault or harassment, family or domestic violence, call 1800RESPECT on 1800 737 732 or visit www.1800RESPECT.org.au. In an emergency, call 000.
—
Tributes have continued to flow to the six victims of the fatal Bondi Junction stabbing attack have now been named.
27-year-old Yixuan Cheng, a student from China who was completing a master's degree in economics at the University of Sydney, has been named as the sixth person who died after Saturday's attack.
China’s acting consul-general in Sydney said he was "very sorry" to hear about the incident, and that the consulate would contact with her relatives to make arrangements.
New South Wales Police Comissioner Anthony Cooke says police have made contact with two of the victims’ families who were overseas.
"We expect that we will arrive to the country, one family to the day, and I'm not sure in relation to the second. We’ll support those families as we are with all through the liaison officer program to ensure they’re getting the support and information that they need."
The other victims have been named as 55-year-old Pikria Darchia, 30-year-old security guard Faraz Ahmed Tahir, 25-year-old Dawn Singleton, 47-year-old architect Jane Young and 38-year-old Ashlee Good.
Dr Good's nine-month-old daughter is in a serious but stable condition after undergoing surgery in hospital.
She is one of eight people who remain at hospitals across Sydney, after four people were discharged after being treated for their injuries.
—
Advocates have told a senate inquiry the Albanese government's proposed deportation bill goes against human rights norms.
The proposed amendment to the Migration Act would impose a minimum one-year prison term and up to five years for those who refuse to co-operate with the government over their deportation.
The bill would also give the home affairs minister unilateral power to ban visa classes for relatives of asylum seekers from blacklisted countries that don't accept the deportees.
President of the Australian Human Rights Commission, Rosalind Frances Croucher says the bill is "problematic."
"The problem for the Human Rights commission as indeed it has been over the years, it's been the treatment of this group as a cohort, treating slabs of people as cohorts, rather than individual people. Seeing the individual, the dignity of each individual in our system That is the focus of Human Rights."
—
In football,
Bayer Leverkusen have won the Bundesliga for the first time, ending Bayern Munich's 11-year reign as German champions.
Florian Wirtz scored a hat-trick as Leverkusen sealed their landmark triumph in style, continuing their unbeaten campaign to beat Werder Bremen 5-0 on Sunday.
It's the club's first-ever German league title as they lead second-place Bayern Munich by 16 points with five matches left.
Leverkusen coach Xabi Alonso says he feels incredible to lead the team's first side to win the league.
"The first time is always something special for everyone. So to be able to say that we were able to be a part of this moment at Leverkusen feels great."
