CCTV from day of Higgins’ alleged rape automatically wiped, court told
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Some CCTV footage from the day Brittany Higgins has alleged she was raped in Parliament House was automatically wiped and no longer exists, the Federal Court has heard.
Network Ten sought access to footage from different camera angles from the department of parliamentary service as it defends a defamation suit brought against it by former federal Liberal political staffer Bruce Lehrmann, who has denied raping Higgins in 2019.
Seven’s Spotlight program aired an interview with Bruce Lehrmann, along with vision of him entering Parliament House with Brittany Higgins on the night of the alleged incident.Credit: Seven Spotlight
At a preliminary hearing in Sydney on Monday, the Federal Court heard the department had produced some footage in response to Ten’s subpoena.
Barrister Tim Senior, acting for Ten, said “the material that has been produced today in response to the latest subpoena I believe … would have been the material that was broadcast” on Seven’s Spotlight program in June.
But Senior said the department had indicated it had “searched various servers” and other footage sought by Ten no longer existed.
“It’s apparent that the material that was the subject of that particular subpoena was not quarantined in any way and was automatically overridden, so that material doesn’t exist,” Senior said.
“Searches have been carried out to see whether that material was on a server somewhere, but apparently it’s not.
“We were satisfied that the scope of the subpoena was understood, the searches had been carried out, and had produced no documents. We were satisfied as to why no documents were produced in response to that subpoena.”
Lehrmann filed Federal Court defamation proceedings against Ten in February over an interview with his former colleague Higgins on The Project, broadcast on February 15, 2021. Separate proceedings against News Corp, filed at the same time, have since settled.
He alleges the interview conveyed a series of defamatory meanings, including that he raped Higgins in then-defence industry minister Linda Reynolds’ office on March 23, 2019.
Lehrmann was not named in the broadcast but his lawyers say he was identified via other means.
If the court finds Lehrmann was identified, Ten and its reporter Lisa Wilkinson admit they conveyed the defamatory claims alleged, including the central claim of rape, and will seek to rely chiefly on defences of truth and qualified privilege – a defence relating to publications of public interest which requires an outlet to have acted reasonably.
Lehrmann is also suing the ABC for defamation for broadcasting a National Press Club address last year by Grace Tame and Higgins.
The court heard on Monday that Laura Tingle, chief political correspondent for the ABC’s 7.30 program, and publisher Penguin Random House Australia, which struck a book deal with Higgins, had also produced documents in response to subpoenas.
Lehrmann was named in the media in August 2021, six months after the Ten interview, when he was charged with sexual intercourse without consent.
He pleaded not guilty to the charge. His trial was aborted in October last year due to juror misconduct. The charge was later dropped altogether amid concerns about Higgins’ mental health. Lehrmann has always maintained his innocence.
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