Zach Rolfe murder trial could be broadcast on YouTube, court hears

THE murder trial of NT police officer Zach Rolfe could be broadcast over YouTube if technical issues can be overcome, the Supreme Court has heard

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THE murder trial of NT police officer Zach Rolfe could be broadcast over YouTube if technical issues can be overcome, the Supreme Court has heard.

Rolfe is due to stand trial in July for the alleged murder of 19-year-old Kumanjayi Walker in Yuendumu in November 2019.

In a pre-trial hearing on Tuesday, Chief Justice Michael Grant said a request had been made for proceedings to be broadcast to a school hall in Yuendumu via the video sharing platform.

But counsel for both the prosecution and defence each flagged concerns the feed could be tapped into by others, including potential witnesses who would normally be excluded from the courtroom prior to giving evidence.

“If we saw someone (present in court) for example, after an order for witnesses to leave the courtroom had been made, we’d then bring it up straight away for the judge — but we have no capacity to monitor who is going to access the video footage,” Rolfe’s barrister David Edwardson QC said.

“If the wider public could access it, outside of the hall, that would be a matter of great concern.”

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Crown prosecutor Sophie Callan SC said while she did not object to the proceedings being broadcast in Yuendumu, she also held concerns about it being accessed by others.

“The initial concern that I have is that while the facilitator at Yuendumu may be in a position to control what occurs and what can be seen at that end, it’s not clear to me that that would prevent other individuals accessing the YouTube video for their own purposes,” she said.

“I think the question, your honour, is whether it’s some form of private YouTube channel or access to which others would be restricted.”

Ms Callan also told the court she had provided a set of facts to Mr Edwardson in the hope of finding common ground to save time at the trial.

While no agreement had been reached by Tuesday, Mr Edwardson said he was “optimistic” about progressing discussions.

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Chief Justice Michael Grant said he would have court staff provide the parties with further technical details of the broadcast and “whether people could be watching it on their mobile phones at home” and revisit the proposal at Rolfe’s next court date in March.

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