The head of a victim support service has stood by her decision to publicly accompany Brittany Higgins to the criminal trial of the man she accused of raping her.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
or signup to continue reading
ACT Victims of Crime Commissioner Heidi Yates fronted an independent inquiry examining how the justice system handled the high-profile case.
Ms Yates was a support person for Ms Higgins during the investigation and trial.
The former Liberal staffer alleges she was raped inside a ministerial office at Parliament House by her then-colleague Bruce Lehrmann after a night out in 2019.
Mr Lehrmann denied the allegation.
On Thursday, Ms Yates said no one from the defence team, prosecutor's office or the police force raised an issue with her attending court alongside Ms Higgins at the time.
"If, at any point, including at trial, any concerns had been raised with me about the support I was providing Ms Higgins I would have absolutely considered those," she said.
Noting her statutory responsibilities, the commissioner considered it appropriate for her to attend court alongside Ms Higgins, who she said had a low level of trust in parts of the justice system.
Intense public interest and hostility towards Ms Higgins also contributed to Ms Yates' decision.
"I'm confident with the information available to me at the time I made a fair decision," she said.
Ms Yates was questioned about her decision to stand alongside Ms Higgins as she delivered a statement outside the court when a mistrial was declared.
The commissioner was primarily concerned about Ms Higgins' welfare and wanted to get her back to her accommodation as soon as possible.
She was aware Ms Higgins would make a statement to reporters but did not focus on what would be said.
Counsel assisting the inquiry Erin Longbottom highlighted Ms Yates' "conspicuous" presence with Ms Higgins outside court when she gave the statement.
"It has been suggested that the actions of Ms Yates at a time when there was a fresh trial had the propensity to affect the presumption of innocence to which Mr Lehrmann was entitled," Ms Longbottom said.
The commissioner was asked if she accepted it might have been problematic for her to stand next to Ms Higgins while she made a statement that referenced the truth of her allegations.
"I honestly can say I did not consider that on that day," Ms Yates said.
"I'm very open to the likelihood that if I had all the information to consider I would have made a different decision."
Prosecutors dropped the charge against Mr Lehrmann due to fears about the impact of a second trial on Ms Higgins' mental health after the first trial was aborted due to juror misconduct.
In her five years as commissioner, Ms Yates has worked with 200 victim-survivors and about half had undertaken criminal justice proceedings.
But she noted the "unusual" decision for several senior police officers to interact with Ms Higgins during the investigation.
Ms Yates said sexual assault complainants usually only communicate with the officers directly investigating the matter.
She was also "confused" when police requested to interview her.
"It seemed unusual to me they were seeking to interview me about what occurred in a meeting attended by police officers," Ms Yates said.
Earlier, tensions between an accused person's right to the presumption of innocence and support for a complainant were scrutinised.
Ms Longbottom said a victim of crime in the ACT was considered to be a "person who plausibly claims to be a victim of crime".
But this had implications for presumption of innocence entitlements.
She highlighted the tensions between Ms Yates being in a role that operated within the human rights commission and the presumption of innocence as a human right.
Ms Yates was likely the last witness to give evidence to the inquiry, which will now consider closing submissions.
A final report is expected by the end of July.
Australian Associated Press
