Abortion accused speaks out

THE couple charged with breaching Queensland's century-old abortion laws, triggering the first prosecution of its kind, have told of how they were firebombed out of their home near Cairns.

THE couple charged with breaching Queensland's century-old abortion laws, triggering the first prosecution of its kind, have told of how they were firebombed out of their home near Cairns.

Sergie Brennan, 21, who is facing up to 14 years' jail for attempting to procure an abortion for his 19-year-old girlfriend, said their former home south of the city had been hit by a Molotov cocktail, and his car was vandalised in a separate attack.

"It was pretty bad," he said in his first interview since being charged with partner Tegan Simone Leach, who is accused of procuring her own miscarriage. "Everyone in Australia knew who we were, and where we lived."

Mr Brennan, a quietly spoken mechanic, said his girlfriend was "coping" now they had moved to a house with security cameras and dogs. "We are OK now because nobody knows where we live ... we just have to get through the court case," he said.

Mr Brennan said he had been told by his lawyer not to discuss the case, set down for committal proceedings in the Cairns Magistrates Court next month. But he said he and Ms Leach, who faces seven years' jail if convicted, were hopeful they would be cleared.

In addition to the count of attempting to procure an abortion, Mr Brennan has been charged with supplying drugs to procure an abortion, an offence carrying a maximum of three years' jail under Queensland law.

Police allege Mr Brennan's sister smuggled to Australia last December from Ukraine the abortion pill RU486 and the drug misoprostol, which is taken to complete the termination.

RU486 was banned in Australia until 2006, but its distribution remains tightly controlled by drugs regulator the Therapeutic Goods Administration, which has licensed only 61 doctors to prescribe it to women who have medical complications.

Brisbane obstetrician Adrienne Freeman revealed this week that three of her patients had obtained RU486 from overseas with the intention of using it here.

Dr Freeman and Cairns-based obstetrician Caroline de Costa, who established the country's first abortion service using RU486 but suspended it out of concern for her legal position following the prosecution of Ms Leach and Mr Brennan, have warned that the case could drive contraband users underground.

The Queensland government is resisting calls from pro-choice groups to decriminalise abortion in line with measures taken in Victoria last year.

Queensland Attorney-General Cameron Dick this week reaffirmed Premier Anna Bligh's position that there were "no plans to change the current legislation".

"The Premier has clearly and publicly stated her view that decisions in regard to abortion are best made by a woman, her partner and her doctor, and that these decisions are ultimately private matters," Mr Dick advised the Clerk of the Parliament, Neil Laurie, who had received a petition calling for retention of the existing law.

The Children by Choice group wrote to the Queensland Police Service yesterday questioning why there had been no investigation into the attacks on the home of Ms Leach and Mr Brennan.

A spokeswoman for the police said that as far as she was aware, there had been no complaint about the alleged incidents.

Mr Brennan said he and his girlfriend had been shocked when a petrol bomb was hurled at their former home, after the address was made public in April.