‘Nightmare’: How Higgins’ mum learned of rape claim

Bruce Lehrmann is suing Network 10 and Lisa Wilkinson for defamation. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Nikki Short.

Brittany Higgins’ mother says she was living her “worst nightmare” when her daughter disclosed allegations that she had been raped in Parliament House, a court has heard.

Mr Lehrmann is suing Network 10 and Lisa Wilkinson over a February 2021 interview with Ms Higgins in which she alleged she was raped by her former colleague at Parliament House in March 2019.

He has consistently denied the allegations and during his evidence told the court that he had no sexual contact with Ms Higgins that night.

Bruce Lehrmann is suing Network 10 and Lisa Wilkinson for defamation. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Nikki Short.

Brittany Higgins’ mother Kelly Higgins says her daughter disclosed rape allegations to her at a dinner in late 2019. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Flavio Brancaleone.

THE LIP READING EXPERT

A UK-based lip-reading expert will be required to fly to Sydney for an estimated one hour’s worth of evidence rather than to appear via videolink.

Justice Michael Lee last week allowed Network 10 to call lip-reading expert Tim Reedy, who will give evidence about what he asserts was said between Ms Higgins and Mr Lehrmann at a bar on the night of the alleged sexual assault.

The court has heard that Mr Reedy has been asked to analyse CCTV of Ms Higgins and Mr Lehrmann at The Dock bar.

Mr Reedy is profoundly deaf and requires an interpreter in order to play him parts of the CCTV, the court was told on Monday.

Justice Lee said that Mr Reedy would be required to appear in person.

“I know it will cost some money but I suspect there’s already been quite a bit of money already spent,” Justice Lee said.

He added: “But it’s an unusual situation – this is the first I’ve heard the gentleman requires an interpreter to give his evidence. Which, I must say, I want to see how that works.

“Because it seems to me it will be rationally affecting the weight I will give to his video evidence, how quickly and well he picks up on his interlocutor speaking to him.”

CCTV of Brittany Higgins and Bruce Lehrmann at The Dock on the evening of March 22, 2019. Picture: 7 Spotlight

“WORST NIGHTMARE”

Kelly Higgins told the court she noticed in March or April 2019 a change in her daughter Brittany’s demeanour.

“Her lack of enthusiasm, her lack of wanting to correspond, she started to withdraw, she didn’t have joy and enthusiasm when you communicated with her,” Kelly Higgins told the court on Monday.

Story continues

“I got a sense, as her mum, something was wrong.”

Kelly Higgins told the court that she was told about an “incident” at Parliament House but was told by her daughter to “please leave it”.

She told the court that at a dinner at Brisbane restaurant Hellenika, on November 21, 2019, her daughter disclosed the allegations to her.

“The next thing she remembers she was on the lounge,” Kelly Higgins told the court of what she was told by her daughter in that conversation.

“She believes she passed out. She was awakened with pressure and pain on her leg … when she was coherent, Bruce Lehrmann was on top of her raping her.”

Kelly Higgins told the court that her daughter was “emotional” and she had the sense Brittany had tried to “push this down”.

Kelly Higgins said she was told by her daughter: “I’m glad you know”.

“I had just been told a mother’s worst nightmare,” Kelly Higgins told the court on Monday.

Under cross examination from Mr Lehrmann’s barrister, Steve Whybrow SC, she denied that Brittany Higgins had not made the allegations to her during that dinner, which was also attended by her partner at the time.

“I’m putting to you Ms Higgins, your daughter did not make the disclosures to you that evening at that venue,” Mr Whybrow asked.

“You’re incorrect,” Kelly Higgins said.

“IF I WAS LISA WILKINSON”

The court heard that after The Project interview, Brittany Higgins returned to Queensland to live with her mother before later moving into an apartment across the road.

The court heard that on the evening of March 31, 2019 Birttany Higgins and her mother exchanged text messages, which were on Monday read to the court by Mr Lehrmann’s barrister Steve Whybrow SC.

“You’re choosing to cut me out. Your choice,” Kelly Higgins said in one message, the court heard on Monday.

“Can’t even return my texts or answer my call.

“If I was Lisa Wilkinson or a journalist, no problem. I’m just your mother who lives across the road and is trying to be here, who also lives alone.”

Kelly Higgins was asked by Mr Whybrow whether she had taken exception to the belief that she was spending time with others, including appearing at events, but not devoting time to her.

“I had no issues that she was spending time with other people, however my purpose is to take care of my daughter,” Kelly Higgins told the court.

“That’s all. My job is to try and help her emotionally.”

Brittany Higgins’ father Matthew Higgins (right) and his partner Kelly Jago (left) leaving the Federal court in Sydney on Monday. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Flavio Brancaleone

“I’M A DAD, I SHOULD BE STRONG”

Brittany’s father, Matthew Higgins, told the court that on the weekend following the alleged assault, he visited her in Canberra however she seemed “quiet and withdrawn”.

He said prior to this she made reference to “an incident with someone at work being inappropriate”.

And he said that in 2019, she became further withdrawn and spoke to him less often.

He told the court that it was in February 2020, during a phone call that she told him about the alleged rape.

“Brittany had told me … what the inappropriate (incident) that had happened at Parliament was, that she’d been raped,” Mr Higgins told the court.

Mr Higgins said his daughter urged him to “keep” his “cool” however he said he “shut down”.

“She was probably looking out for me a bit, reassure me, for me to be strong, but I’m a dad, I should be strong,” Mr Higgins said.

“When you hear that, it’s not a good thing to hear.”

Lisa Wilkinson with barrister Sue Chrysanthou SC. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Jeremy Piper.

“COMING FOR YOU”

An anonymous email which was sent to Mr Lehrmann in January 2021 was on Monday released by the court.

The subject of the email read: “Coming for you”.

“Bruce, a woman spoke about what happened to her that night, and she’s Australian of the Year,” the email begins, with a reference to Grace Tame.

It continued: “I want you to have a think about what you did, and what might be around the corner for you.

“It’s inspiring when justice is delivered and the truth comes out. You know what they said: the truth shall set you free.

“How many people know what you did, and how many did you tell. How many cameras are in Parliament House and how many people tracked down the vision.

“Think about it. Two former staffers from Aussies, now security guards.

“It’s going to be a magical 2021.”

During the opening week of the trial a fortnight ago, Mr Lehrmann was asked about the email and how, when he initially received it, he believed he had been “hacked”.

He was asked by his barrister Steve Whybrow SC whether, with hindsight, he had formed a view of who had sent it.

“I have a view that that was Ms Higgins’ fiance, Mr David Sharaz,” Mr Lehrmann told the court at the time.

An email sent to Bruce Lehrmann in January 2021 which was released by the court on Monday. Picture: Supplied.

Brittany Higgins (centre) entering court with David Sharaz (right). Picture: NCA NewsWire/Jeremy Piper.

“THEY STUCK WITH ME”

Christopher Payne was a departmental liaison officer within Senator Linda Reynolds’ office, where he worked alongside Ms Higgins and Mr Lehrmann in March 2019.

He told the court on Monday that after the alleged sexual assault, he was told by Senator Reynolds’ chief of staff Fiona Brown that on the previous Saturday morning Ms Higgins had been found in a “state of undress”.

He was also told that she had accessed the ministerial suite alongside Mr Lehrmann.

He later had a conversation with a tearful Ms Higgins inside an office.

“She said that she and Bruce had arrived in an Uber at Parliament House and they had come through security and had come back to the ministerial suite,” Mr Payne told the court on Monday.

“She told me she had been sitting on a windowsill and didn’t remember anything after that until she woke up on the couch in the minister’s office.”

Mr Payne told the court that Ms Higgins said when she woke up that Mr Lehrmann was “having sex with her”.

He said that at that point Ms Higgins was upset and he allowed her to compose herself.

Mr Payne said asked her if he could ask a “direct question” and she said “sure, go for it”.

“I said ‘did he rape you?’ and her response was ‘I could not have consented it would have been like f***ing a log’,” Mr Payne told the court on Monday.

“They were quite confronting words, as you can imagine, having a 20-something female in tears saying those things is extremely confronting, so they stuck with me.”

Under cross examination from Mr Lehrmann’s barrister Steve Whybrow SC, Mr Payne was asked which windowsill Ms Higgins was referring to when they discussed the alleged assault.

He was asked whether she was referring to the windowsill in the open part of the ministerial suite or the windowsill which was in Senator Reynolds’ private office.

“You’re saying specifically you didn’t get the impression that she was referring to the windowsill in the minister’s private office,” Mr Whybrow asked.

“I did not get that impression,” Mr Payne said.

Christopher Payne told the court he had a conversation with Ms Higgins following the alleged sexual assault. Picture: NCA NewsWire/Flavio Brancaleone.

TOP SECRET

Mr Payne told the court that he was also involved in another incident on March 20, 2019, when Mr Lehrmann left documents labelled “top secret” unsecured on a desk within Minister Reynolds’ office.

“I was advised by another staffer in the office that a secure document had been left on a desk,” Mr Payne said.

“A document had the top secret classification level. I was advised it was observed to have been left there by Mr Lehrmann.

“I obtained it and secured it in a safe.”

Mr Payne told the court he felt it was a “quite significant” incident, adding that “top secret” material is not generally “left out in the open”.

He placed the document in a safe inside a room with a secure door.

“I approached Mr Lehrmann to ask his intentions for the documents and could I assist him to take it somewhere, to do something else with it, to achieve what he was trying to do,” Mr Payne told the court.

Mr Payne added: “I believe that I said to him I understand this document is yours and it can’t be left where it is right now and can I help you… to take it somewhere or to someone, to the appropriate agency who owns the document.

“And Mr Lehrmann responded to me it wasn’t my concern because it wasn’t within my remit to be handling that document and he would like me to return it to him.”

CCTV of Brittany Higgins and Bruce Lehrmann making their way into Parliament House. Picture: 7 News Spotlight.

AFP agent Rebecca Cleaves was involved in interviewing Brittany Higgins. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Flavio Brancaleone

VOMIT

Federal agent Rebecca Cleaves told the court on Monday she had interviewed Ms Higgins on April 1, 2019, just over a week after the alleged sexual assault, in a meeting inside Parliament House.

Ms Cleaves said she was told by Ms Higgins that after drinking at two bars with colleagues, she travelled back to Parliament House with Mr Lehrmann.

She said she was told by Ms Higgins that Mr Lehrmann told her to “play along” as they were entering Parliament House.

Ms Cleaves told the court Ms Higgins said in the interview that she woke up with Mr Lehrmann “on top of her”, engaged in non-consensual sex.

“The next thing she remembers is being in the ministerial suite,” Ms Cleaves said.

“She didn’t really recall the walk there. And from there she remembers waking up in the ministerial suite, on the couch. And Mr Lehrmann was on top of her participating in non-consensual sex.

“And she remembers saying ‘no’ or ‘don’t’. And the next thing she remembers is waking up in the morning alone.”

Ms Cleaves said that Ms Higgins noted the following morning the “smell of sex” and vomit down her dress.

“She appeared to be nervous, which was understandable what she was disclosing,” Ms Cleaves told the court.

Under cross examination, Ms Cleaves told the court that Ms Higgins told her she had not washed the dress she wore the night of the alleged offence.

“That’s my recollection,” Ms Cleaves said.

Ms Cleaves said that Ms Higgins also told her that she went to see a GP at the Phillip Medical Centre.

Did she advise you of any physical injuries as a result of what happened,” Mr Lehrmann’s barrister Steve Whybrow asked.

“No,” Ms Cleaves said.

Bruce Lehrmann and his legal team entering court on Monday. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Flavio Brancaleone

THE LIP READER

On Friday, the court ruled Network 10 would be allowed to call an English lip-reading expert in a bid to establish what was purportedly said between Mr Lehrmann and Ms Higgins at a bar on the night which she alleged she was raped.

Mr Lehrmann’s legal team had attempted to block Network 10 from calling forensic lip-reading expert Tim Reedy.

The court has heard the network was attempting to tender a report, compiled by the UK-based expert, about what was said between Mr Lehrmann and Ms Higgins at The Dock bar on the night of the alleged assault.

The court heard that Mr Reedy had been profoundly deaf from the age of four and had taught himself to lip read.

Mr Lehrmann’s lawyers attempted to block the report, with barrister Nicholas Olson arguing that lip-reading wasn’t a field of specialised knowledge.

Justice Michael Lee rejected the assertion that just because a skill was not based on study or experience, it cannot be a field of specialised knowledge.

“It is plain that specialised knowledge may exist which is not scientific, one must not lose sight of the fact that specialised knowledge can be gained from experience,” Justice Lee said.

Justice Lee noted: “My ruling allowing this evidence to be adduced is not to say that I will regard the evidence as being of great weight.

“This will depend, in part, on the conclusions I draw, upon the foreshadowed cross examination of the expert.”

Lisa Wilkinson with barrister Sue Chrysanthou (right). Picture: NCA NewsWire/Jeremy Piper.

Brittany Higgins (centre) entering court with David Sharaz (right). Picture: NCA NewsWire/Jeremy Piper.

HIGGINS’ FEAR

Also on Friday, a crisis counsellor told the court that Brittany Higgins was tearful and distressed at the prospect of losing her “dream job” at Parliament House if she disclosed rape allegations.

Counsellor Kathryn Cripps on Friday said that she first met Ms Higgins at a police “meet and greet” on April 8, 2019 at the Winchester Police Centre, where she acted as an advocate.

“There was a lot of distress on her behalf, she was very tearful but she tried very hard to remain composed,” Ms Cripps told the court on Friday.

“But there were times when she couldn’t and tears just flowed intensely.”

Asked if anything in particular caused Ms Higgins distress during the meeting, Ms Cripps said it was when Detective Senior Constable Sarah Harman explained to her the “rights” of the alleged “perpetrator”.

“She really flooded,” Ms Cripps said.

Ms Cripps told the court that Ms Higgins expressed to her she “desperately” wanted to report the alleged sexual assault but there was a “tug-of-war” going on in her mind.

She said that Ms Higgins told her that she was worried about the possibility of losing her job.

“Each time I saw her it was about her distress at wanting two different things and they weren’t congruent,” Ms Cripps said.

“She’d only been in the ACT six months … This was her dream job and she wanted a career in this area.”

Ms Cripps added: “She told me that she knew that if she brought this to anyone’s attention she would lose her job. She was clear about that.”

The trial continues.