Bruce Lehrmann set to face trial on charges of rape

Bruce Lehrmann has been ordered to stand trial on charges of rape. The 29-year-old is accused of committing two counts of rape in Toowoomba, located west of Brisbane, in October 2021.

Magistrate Mark Howden, found sufficient grounds to commit Lehrmann to trial on Thursday (July 4), refusing his argument that he had no case to answer.

“Based on the available evidence, I believe there is enough to convince a jury that the defendant is guilty, assuming they receive proper instructions,” Howden said.

The Toowoomba district court will hear the trial at a date yet to be set.

Prior to Howden’s ruling, a crowded courtroom was presented with details that were mutually agreed upon by Lehrmann’s barrister, Andrew Hoare KC, and the prosecutor, Nicole Friedewald, concerning the events of the night and the morning afterOctober 9, 2021.

Lehrmann and the complainant, who cannot legally be named, agreed to meet at a strip club after both had been drinking alcohol and the complainant had taken cocaine.

They both proceeded to use cocaine together, and in the early hours of the morning, they took a taxi to a residence in Toowoomba where Lehrmann's schoolmate lived. There, they engaged in consensual sexual activity.

However, the complainant claims she woke up to see Lehrmann on toppenetrating her without a condom, despite her having insisted upon contraception during their earlier consensual encounter.

She also alleged she pulled her body away and told him to ‘stop’ but Lehrmann instead climbed back on top of her saying, “it’s OK, it’s OK,” continuing the unwanted sex.

Later, she would tell the police, "I did not consent to him penetrating me. I wasn't laying there enthusiastically. I was so in my head, I was in shock."

The complainant went to police 20 days later.

The court was informed that she made her formal complaint after seeing news coverage of the allegations by Brittany Higgins that Lehrmann raped her in parliament house.

Prosecutor Nicole Friedewald submitted that Lehrmann had done nothing to ascertain if the complainant was consenting.

"He was consoling her throughout that act, saying 'it's okay, it's okay'," Friedewald told the court.

Lehrmann's defence further submitted that she had not mentioned the alleged rapes at two doctor appointments, where she discussed an unrelated WorkCover claim and later had a test for sexually transmitted diseases.

Defence lawyer Hoare said, there was an absence of any complaint about sexual assault and that it was only after a conversation with a female friend who suggested sexual assault, that a police complaint was made.

He said "prior to speaking to the police" the complainant had met a civil lawyer and a criminal lawyer.

Magistrate’s decision

Magistrate Mark Howden said, that after considering all these factors, he believed there was enough evidence to establish a prima facie case against Lehrmann. He also noted that the reliability of the complainant's evidence would be determined by a fact finder, whether it be a judge sitting alone or a jury.

Howden formally charged Lehrmann with two counts of rape and asked if he had anything he wished to say in relation to the two charges.

(With inputs from agencies)