Lockhart Mayor Wayne Butcher’s bail bid details alleged domestic violence offending

Lockhart River Aboriginal Shire Mayor Wayne Butcher has made a bid for bail over a string of domestic violence charges including one count of grievous bodily harm.

Mayor Wayne Butcher of Lockhart River. Picture: Liam Kidston

A magistrate has granted Lockhart River Aboriginal Shire Mayor Wayne Butcher bail over a string of domestic violence charges, citing potential “problems with the credibility of the complainant”.

Mr Butcher, 53, was arrested and charged with seven domestic violence offences including one count of assault occasioning bodily harm, one count of deprivation of liberty and two counts each of common assault and choking, suffocation or strangulation.

The court heard the allegations arose from an alleged assault at a Lockhart River property on Friday, June 28, and from an incident in December 2022 where the complainant had to attend Townsville Hospital.

The earlier alleged incident led to a charge of grievous bodily harm against Mr Butcher.

There, the court heard the complainant received surgery for a blood clot in her brain and a ruptured artery.

However, Mr Butcher’s lawyer Mark Butler told the court the complainant had changed her evidence about that event and she had “motives to lie” about the alleged June 28 incident.

The court heard the complainant had originally made a police statement in December 2022 saying that the injury had come about because she had broken up a fight between people in Lockhart River.

Lockhart River Mayor Wayne Butcher at Lockhart River airport, a small Indigenous town north of Cairns on Cape York in Far North Queensland. Picture: Brendan Radke

“She swore a document that she had been breaking up fighting between the members of the community after she had been drinking for three days,” Mr Butler said.

“Now since this new incident she has changed her statement and said it was my client.”

The court heard the more recent incident is alleged to have taken place on June 28 at the Lockhart River canteen.

Mr Butler told the court it was the complainant who had the police called on her for failing to leave the premises and received a public nuisance charge.

He said she had attacked Mr Butcher during this incident and Mr Butcher merely was trying to hold her off.

He said CCTV footage showed Mr Butcher “holding her off him”.

Magistrate Leanne Scoines said that while she noted the complainant had described “a fairly chronic pattern of domestic violence offending” and the “charges were serious”, she said that the woman’s change to her December 2022 affidavit raised “issues with the complainant’s credibility”.

Lockhart River, a small Indigenous town north of Cairns on Cape York in Far North Queensland. Picture: Brendan Radke

She said that police had “taken her off the police station with matters to do with her conduct there on the night” and “when being charged with offences she made disclosures”.

Ms Scoines said that there were “problems with her evidence”.

She noted that Mr Butcher had a dated criminal history and did not see him as a risk to the community, in what otherwise would be a long wait for trial.

Ms Scoines granted Mr Butcher bail and he will return to Cairns Magistrates Court on September 13.

In a statement chief executive officer Dave Clarke said Mr Butcher “will return to Lockhart River and recommence his civil duties”.

Deputy Mayor Alister Bowie had been appointed as acting mayor at a crisis meeting on Wednesday while Mr Butcher was held in custody.

On Thursday, Barron River MP Craig Crawford was asked whether it was appropriate for Mr Butcher to continue in his role as mayor.

“I think what is probably best is no,” Mr Crawford said.

“Obviously that’s not a decision for me. But I think anyone in a position like that facing such a charge, my piece of advice to him probably would be to step aside and allow the processes to run its course.”

Attempts were made to contact Mr Butcher.

Originally published as Lockhart Mayor Wayne Butcher’s bail bid details alleged domestic violence offending