Senator Linda Reynolds’ partner Robert Reid gives evidence in Brittany Higgins defamation trial
Senator Linda Reynolds’ partner was grilled on his attendance at Bruce Lehrmann’s criminal trial, as he gave evidence in the Senator’s defamation case.
WA News
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Senator Linda Reynolds’s partner Robert Reid has been grilled on why he attended Bruce Lehrmann’s criminal trial as he broke his silence to give evidence in the Senator’s long-running defamation case against Brittany Higgins.
Mr Reid cut a lonely figure as he walked into court on Monday, with Senator Reynolds back in parliament as the sitting week began.
Senator Reynolds is suing Ms Higgins and her husband David Sharaz in the WA Supreme Court over posts shared in 2022 and 2023 which were critical of Ms Reynolds’ handling of Ms Higgins’ allegation she was raped in Parliament House in 2019 by her then-colleague Bruce Lehrmann.
Mr Lehrmann pleaded not guilty to rape and faced trial in 2022, but the trial was aborted due to juror misconduct.
The charge was dropped and Mr Lehrmann continues to maintain his innocence.
SENATOR’S PARTNER GRILLED
Senator Reynolds’ partner Mr Reid denied attending Mr Lehrmann’s criminal trial to watch and report back to her while she was in Rwanda.
Mr Reid faced tough questioning by defence lawyer Ms Young about whether he told the senator that he was sitting through the criminal trial.
Senator Reynolds was working in Rwanda at the time of the trial and was not due to give evidence until she returned from her trip.
Mr Reid maintained during his evidence that he did not discuss with the senator that he attended the trial while she was away until it became clear she may be required to give evidence earlier than anticipated.
Ms Young put to Mr Reid that he would have communicated with the senator that he was at the trial other than trying to work out the logistics.
“You never told her you spent the day in the ACT Supreme Court?” she asked
“She never asked how your day was?”
He said he could not recall a long text conversation with the senator during that time.
“It was important for me because I had been through the experience, I wanted to see what would happen and was interested in some of the evidence,” he said.
“I considered Parliament House the safest place in Australia.
“It was an important case for lots of reasons, it was an important case for me and my family.”
He said it was important for him to hear the allegations that were being made about the senator and he wanted to hear them being questioned.
He said he had been angry about the way this saga had impacted on the senator and “the plan” that set out to attack her.
He added that he was also angry about the conduct of the Labor Party and the press and how they worked together to question the senator.
“The way Ms Higgins has been used is astounding.”
LEHRMANN TRIAL
Mr Reid said he wanted to hear all the evidence in the criminal trial because it had affected his family so much.
He denied that he wanted to keep an eye on the case or that he wanted to see if the senator’s position would be undermined by any of the witnesses.
Mr Reid said one of the reasons he sat in on the criminal trial was because of the impact it had on him and Senator Reynolds.
He told the court he wanted to hear all the evidence, including information about the couch in the senator’s ministerial office and Ms Higgins and Mr Lehrmann’s entry into Parliament House.
“I was interested in everything being said, every bit of evidence because it was helping me piece together what happened,” he said.
“I did not take a particular decision on the outcome.”
Mr Reid said he first thought about attending the trial because he was concerned about comments Mr Drumgold had made in a meeting.
He said Mr Drumgold was not aware about books that were being written nor did he seem to know how big this case would be.
“I knew Parliament House and politics and knew some of the players involved,” he said.
“I made the decision to sit in on the trial about a day before it started.”
DEFENCE BEGINS
Mr Reid told defence lawyer Rachel Young that the senator had been feeling distressed for about a week when she was questioned in parliament.
Mr Reid said the senator was prepared for policy questions but was repeatedly asked about what she knew about Ms Higgins’ allegations and when.
When the senator was hospitalised, Mr Reid confirmed that they were given permission to take her home that night despite Dr Walter saying the senator’s condition was serious and they could lose her.
Mr Reid told the court the senator was adamant that she would give a speech to the Press Club the next day.
He said Dr Walter instructed him to watch the senator carefully and to ring him if anything changed.
“Unfortunately, I was keen for Linda to give the Press Club speech the next day,” he said.
SENATOR’S BREAKDOWN
Mr Reid broke down in court when he recalled how a cardiologist told him that they could lose Linda after she suffered a breakdown in parliament.
Senator Reynolds had faced intense questioning from her Labor Senate colleagues during Question Time in parliament after The Project interview was televised.
She suffered a breakdown in parliament and was hospitalised later that evening.
Mr Reid told the court that he had gone to parliament that day to support his wife and had positioned himself in the public chamber so that she could see him.
When he saw Senator Reynolds afterwards, he said she looked white and dishevelled.
Mr Reid broke down recalling how the cardiologist told him “it was very serious” and “they could lose Linda” when they were at the hospital.
Mr Reid said the senator was due to give a speech to the National Press Club the following day, which was important because it was her first as Defence Minister.
He told the court he thought it was important that she still did this as it could be damaging for her and the government.
After they went home from the hospital, he said the senator had a sleepless night and when he got up she was sitting in the loungeroom with colleagues Jane Hume and Anne Ruston.
They told him they had cancelled the speech at the Press Club, and he realised it was the best decision for her even though it could be damaging.
SAGA ‘CHANGED OUR LIVES’
Mr Reid told the court about the immeasurable impact the “saga” has had on the senator, himself, his family and his mother who has now passed away.
He said it had changed his relationship with the people closest to him and his relationship with Senator Reynolds.
He said he hopes they can one day get their relationship back to what it was.
Mr Reid told the court Senator Reynolds now had to travel with blood pressure monitors and take medication.
He said they could be out at dinner and she would not be keeping an eye on her watch to monitor her heartbeat.
“It has changed our lives,” he said.
LEHRMANN CRIMINAL TRIAL
Mr Reid told the court he attended a meeting with the senator and Mr Lehrmann’s lawyer Steve Whybrow ahead of the criminal trial.
Mr Reid said it was a short and sharp meeting, where Mr Whybrow gave them an idea about how things would be run.
One of the significant moments from the meeting was being shown the video of Ms Higgins and Mr Lehrmann coming through the ministerial entrance.
“I had not seen it before but knew it would be important,” Mr Reid said.
He recalled while they were watching the video Linda pointed and said, ‘there is my jacket.’
Mr Reid said he wanted to go to the criminal trial because their lives had been majorly impacted by the events and he wanted to hear the evidence.
He specifically wanted to hear evidence from the cleaner about whether the Senator’s office had been dishevelled in the way Ms Higgins had described it.
He told the court during the criminal trial his contact with the senator had been limited because she was in Rwanda at the time.
As the trial went on, Mr Reid said several witnesses were not required and he knew the senator would need to return to Canberra earlier than anticipated.
He said he sent Senator Reynolds a text message she would need to return earlier after being approached by the DPP during the trial.
Mr Reid recalled to the court that the senator had felt confident going into the trial, but after the DPP questioned her about her husband’s attendance during the trial and the accusations that had been made about her by Ms Higgins, she felt let down.
Mr Reid said the senator was also angry when the civil claim with the Commonwealth was settled quickly and that her views were not considered.
SENATOR LOSES DEFENCE PORTFOLIO
Mr Reid told the court that defence was the senator’s love, and she had built herself up over many years to be the perfect Defence Minister.
Mr Reid said it was difficult for Senator Reynolds when the Prime Minister told her she could no longer do that job.
He told the court she got on with her job, but had felt a bit nervous about going back to parliament after she lost the portfolio.
Mr Reid said the continuous vitriol and attacks on social media had disturbed Senator Reynolds.
He told the court he would send her some social media posts he had seen, then realised it was the worst thing to do.
“It was about things she hadn’t done, that she had covered up a rape,” he said.
Mr Reid told the court their relationship had been affected by the never ending saga
THE PROJECT INTERVIEW
Mr Reid recalled to the WA Supreme Court that he only became aware of the security breach and alleged rape in her office when he saw a promo for The Project on TV.
Mr Reid said he felt utter amazement and had trouble figuring out why she had not taken him through the events.
He told the court that she first told him that two people had gone back to her office and something had happened.
“It was as general as that,” he said.
The court was told Mr Reid found it almost impossible to believe that two people had gone back to a minister’s office.
He had previously worked as a chief of staff for federal ministers and said it was something you never did.
After he watched the interview, he said he also had trouble believing accusations that were made about the cover-up and that Ms Higgins was told she could lose her job.
“I couldn’t believe that anybody would have said that or done that, the cover-up was the most dangerous thing of all,” he said.
“Senior ministers don’t cover up.
“Ms Higgins had asked Linda not to tell anyone about it and Linda kept that promise.”
Mr Reid told the court that The Project interview was painful to watch, and that Senator Reynolds had been angry because the story that was told was not true.
“Linda was really angry it was a story being told that was not true,” he said.
After Senator Reynolds suffered a breakdown in parliament and was taken to hospital before she was due to give a speech in the National Press Club, doctors told him that they could lose Linda.
“It was very serious,” he said.
PERTH TRIP
Mr Reid began his evidence recalling the election campaign ahead of the 2019 federal election.
Mr Reid told the court he spoke to Ms Higgins for about 15 minutes at a birthday dinner for the senator, which was a “joyous” occasion.
He said he talked to her about going to Government House and voter sentiment at polling stations.
“We spoke about the positive nature and the potential of a miracle victory,” he said.
“We also spoke curiously about Government House, she had been there for the ANZAC Day March, she had been with Linda.
“I had spent five or six years there when my father was governor.
“It was a joyous feeling that night.”
Mr Reid told the court that everyone at the dinner knew if the Liberal Government were re-elected then Senator Reynolds would be the Defence Minister.
He said it was hugely significant for everyone at the dinner.
“They knew how significant the defence minister role was in the list of portfolios, they knew their future was a very bright one.”
SENATOR’S PSYCHOLOGIST
Senator Linda Reynolds’ psychologist was called to the witness stand early on Monday.
Redimed head of psychology services April Jones told the court the senator first contacted her through the employee assistance program and that she saw her several times between 2019 and 2023.
While they talked about events, people and certain things that happened, Ms Jones said her role was to manage the symptoms and distress the senator was feeling.
She recalled the first session with the senator was after her breakdown in parliament, and that Senator Reynolds had become distressed.
The court was told the senator had high levels of anxiety, was shaky, felt unwell, had a rapid heart rate, was dizzy, that it had impacted her concentration and she was teary.
During their sessions the senator had referred to social media posts made by Ms Higgins and being described as a hostile witness during the criminal trial.
She mentioned the senator told her she was being triggered in parliament and not been given a chance to express herself which had impacted on her mental health.
Ms Jones told the court that her sessions with Senator Reynolds always came back to what the senator needed to do to stay grounded, her mental health and heart condition.
Ms Higgins’ defence lawyer Kate Pedersen asked Ms Jones about her notes which indicated that the senator had positive energy during some of their sessions.
Ms Jones told the court there were times she saw the senator when she was mentally unwell and anxious and there were times she was doing well.
“There were a lot of stressors on her, cannot be sure which one today is the priority,” Ms Jones said.
Ms Jones said they spent a lot of time managing the senator’s symptoms, not managing the detail of other aspects of the case.
WHAT SENATOR KNEW
Senator Reynolds maintained in court last week she had no knowledge Ms Higgins had been sexually assaulted after she received a Department of Parliamentary Services report days after the security breach in her office.
The court was told the report contained information that Ms Higgins was found in the senator’s office undressed, intoxicated and had been checked on by two female security officers during the night.
The senator told the court there were many possibilities about what could have occurred between two drunk people in their 20s and she had not wanted to jump to conclusions.
Outside of the David Malcolm Justice Centre in Perth on Friday, the senator said she was grateful to the court for the opportunity to provide her evidence so she could head back to parliament.
“I am relieved I can get back to work,” she said.
This week the trial will hear from the senator’s partner Robert Reid, former Prime Minister Scott Morrison, and people who worked with Ms Higgins and the senator during the 2019 Federal Election campaign in Perth including members of the Senator Reynolds’ family.
Brittany Higgins will start giving her evidence from August 26, marking the third time she gives evidence in a trial following her complaint to the Australian Federal Police in 2019.
The trial continues.
Originally published as Senator Linda Reynolds’ partner Robert Reid gives evidence in Brittany Higgins defamation trial
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