Lawyers request Zachary Rolfe court proceedings not be broadcast in Yuendumu

LAWYERS involved in the murder trial of NT police officer Zachary Rolfe have requested upcoming legal proceedings not be livestreamed in Yuendumu as was initially planned

Lawyers involved in the murder trial of NT police officer Zachary Rolfe have requested upcoming legal proceedings not be livestreamed in Yuendumu as was initially planned

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LAWYERS involved in the murder trial of NT police officer Zachary Rolfe have requested upcoming legal proceedings not be livestreamed in Yuendumu as was initially planned.

Rolfe stands charged with the shooting death of 19-year-old Kumanjayi Walker late last year.

Crown prosecutor Philip Strickland SC appeared by phone in the Alice Springs Local Court today and requested that permission to broadcast the upcoming committal hearing in a multi-purpose room at the Yuendumu police station be revoked.

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He said it would not be possible to prevent potential witnesses in the trial from seeing the proceedings, potentially influencing their evidence.

There are 56 potential witnesses that could be called to give evidence in the trial who live in Yuendumu, and 10 who will definitely be called.

“I’ve been instructed it would be hard to control whether those 10 civilian witnesses would get into the multi-purpose room and view the proceedings,” Mr Strickland said.

“Even if it were a perfect system where 56 of the civilian witnesses could be identified, my instructions are the police are not confident in their power to prohibit someone going into the multi-purpose room.”

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Mr Strickland said there was a tension between giving community members the opportunity to follow the case while still “maintaining the integrity of the evidence”.

Rolfe’s defence barrister David Edwardson agreed with Mr Strickland’s concerns.

Judge John Birch said he would ensure a list of witnesses is issued to the police officer who intended to be present at the livestream, and would make a decision on the day of the livestream next Tuesday.

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