Bruce Lehrmann has consistently pleaded not guilty to the allegations.
Shocking revelations have unfolded in a defamation case involving Bruce Lehrmann, a former Liberal Party political aide in Australia. The case, which centres on allegations of rape against Mr Lehrmann, has dragged prominent media networks into the spotlight, particularly the country’s Seven West Media and its Seven network.
This started back in 2021 when Mr Lehrmann’s co-worker, Brittany Higgins, another political aide, accused him of raping her in Australia’s Parliament House in 2019, as per the Guardian.
The report added that Ms Hinggins’ interview with Channel 10 created much buzz back then during the #MeToo movement in Australia.
Mr Lehrmann, after facing charges, has consistently pleaded not guilty to the allegations, the report added. His trial faced delays, first due to a public speech given by one of the journalists involved in Ms Higgins’ interview, and later disrupted by juror misconduct.
When the trial was eventually abandoned, prosecutors decided against pursuing a re-trial, because they were worried about Ms Higgins’ mental health, the report stated.
In response, Mr Lehrmann took legal action against Channel 10, suing them for defamation over the interview. Despite not being explicitly named in journalist Lisa Wilkinson’s report for Network 10, Mr Lehrmann claimed he was easily identifiable. Even before the interview aired, Mr Lehrmann had already taken legal action against Network 10 and Ms Wilkinson. He claimed that the alleged assault never happened and accused them of irreparably damaging his reputation, reported BBC.
This move marked the beginning of a legal battle that would uncover further controversies and bring scrutiny upon various media networks involved.
Rival Network Seven’s former producer Taylor Auerbach’s testimony painted a troubling picture.
“Mr Lehrmann had over dinner purchased a bag of cocaine while we were dining at Franca and when we got upstairs to the room he pulled that out and started to put it on a plate and then started talking to me about a prospective ‘Spotlight’ story and his desire to order prostitutes to the Meriton that night. And he began googling a series of websites to try and make that happen,” Mr Auerbach alleged in court, according to Variety.
He also revealed he was promised promotions and pay raises in exchange for catering to Mr Lehrmann’s demands, which included using a company credit card to get Thai massages and other unauthorised expenses, totalling over $10,000, the report mentioned.
In response to the allegations, Network Seven released a statement saying they were “appalled by the allegations made in recent days. We do not condone the behaviours described in these allegations. They do not reflect the culture of Seven,” as per BBC.
“Seven did not offer a promotion or pay rise to Mr Auerbach in November 2022, nor did it do so at any time after that,” they added.