Rape trial delay request over Lisa Wilkinson’s Brittany Higgins Logie speech
The man accused of raping Brittany Higgins is attempting to delay his trial after Lisa Wilkinson’s highly publicised speech at Sunday night’s ceremony.
The man accused of raping former Liberal staff member Brittany Higgins is attempting to delay his trial after journalist Lisa Wilkinson’s highly publicised speech at the Logie Awards on Sunday.
Wilkinson won the Logie for most outstanding news coverage or public affairs report for her interview with Ms Higgins last year over the alleged rape of the former Liberal staffer by Bruce Lehrmann inside senator Linda Reynolds’ office at Parliament House in March 2019.
Mr Lehrmann was charged last year and pleaded not guilty to sexually assaulting Ms Higgins.
He is due to face the ACT Supreme Court next Monday but his barrister, Steve Whybrow, has asked the court to delay proceedings following the widespread publicity of Wilkinson’s speech in order to give Mr Lehrmann a fair trial.
Mr Whybrow said TV ratings indicated more than 800,000 people tuned in to the Logies on Sunday and that Wilkinson’s speech received countless reactions on social media and news outlets, resulting in intense scrutiny ahead of the trial.
Mr Whybrow said his client would rather not delay proceedings.
“He wants to get it on, but he wants a fair trial,” he said.
Wilkinson referred to Ms Higgins’ story in her acceptance speech as “a political problem”, adding that it was the most important journalism she had worked on across her 40-year-long career.
“I knew it from the very first phone call I had early last year with a young woman whose name she told me was Brittany Higgins,” Wilkinson said.
“Four incredibly intense sleepless weeks later, when our story went to air, the entire country knew the name Brittany Higgins.
“As Brittany warned me before we went to air, her story would be seen by many of the most powerful people in this country not as a human problem but as a political problem.”
Wilkinson has been approached for comment.
ACT Chief Justice Lucy McCallum will consider the application to vacate the trial on Tuesday.
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