Bruce Lehrmann to stand trial on rape charges
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Former Liberal staffer Bruce Lehrmann has been committed to stand trial on two counts of rape.
Naomi Neilson
• 05 July 2024 • Big Law
Image: Google Maps
Queensland Magistrate Mark Howden ruled there was sufficient evidence to have Lehrmann’s matter determined by a jury or judge alone in a District Court in Toowoomba at a date to be set.
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“In my view, when considering the evidence as a whole, it is sufficient at this stage for me to reach a conclusion that a reasonable jury, properly instructed, could return a verdict of guilty,” Howden reportedly said on Thursday (4 July) morning.
Howden rejected an argument by Andrew Hoare KC, Lehrmann’s defence barrister, that there was “no case to answer” and the evidence was “insufficient to justify committal to trial”.
Hoare relied on submissions the woman had taken cocaine and drunk alcohol before the alleged rapes in October 2021.
The court was told the woman, who cannot legally be named, met at a strip club, took cocaine together and returned to a Toowoomba home in the early hours of the morning.
The two engaged in consensual sex but the woman alleged she later woke to find Lehrmann penetrating her without a condom.
When asked to stop, Lehrmann allegedly told her “it’s OK, it’s OK, it’s OK” and continued until he ejaculated.
The court was told the woman messaged her friends about the alleged assault in early November, writing that she felt “so shameful” and asked: “Who is going to believe me?”
The woman filed a complaint with police 20 days later.
When asked on Thursday if he had anything to say, Lehrmann replied: “Not at this time, thank you, Your Honour.”
Lehrmann did not formally enter a plea but flagged earlier that he would plead not guilty.
