Trial date set for Lehrmann rape allegations
Former political staffer Bruce Lehrmann has been set for a trial date to face rape charges more than five years after the alleged crimes.
Lehrmann, 30, was not required to appear for summons at the Queensland District Court in Toowoomba when the trial date was set for November 2 by Judge Deborah Richards.
Defense attorney Zali Burrows was asked if Lehrmann would seek a jury trial or just a trial in front of a judge.
“It could be (before the jury). Mr. Lehrmann is still deciding,” Ms. Burrows said.
Lehrmann is accused of raping a woman twice on the morning of October 10, 2021, after a night out in Toowoomba, west of Brisbane.
He was charged in January 2023 and set to stand trial in July 2024 following hearings in Toowoomba Magistrates’ Court into the reliability of alleged victim testimony.
Lehrmann and the woman met at a Toowoomba strip club the night before.
She told police that she and Lehrmann discussed their political beliefs before taking a taxi to her friend’s house, having consensual sex and consuming cocaine around 4 a.m.
The woman said she was awakened around 10 a.m. by Lehrmann sexually assaulting her.
Lehrmann, who was released on bail, has not yet made a formal defense, but has previously stated that he will object to the charges.
Lehrmann previously worked for then-Liberal senator and defense industry minister Linda Reynolds at Parliament House in Canberra.
She sued Network Ten and journalist Lisa Wilkinson for defamation over her interview with former colleague Brittany Higgins, who claimed Lehrmann raped her in his Parliament House office in 2019.
A criminal trial in the ACT accused of raping Ms Higgins was annulled in 2023 due to juror misconduct.
Lehrmann lost the defamation case after a Federal Court judge found that he raped Ms Higgins under the civil standard of evidence in 2024.
The judge’s findings were upheld on appeal by the Full Federal Court in December.
In his third bid to win the libel case, Lehrmann took his case to the Supreme Court.
If Lehrmann loses this bid, he could be forced into bankruptcy due to a court order that he would pay Ten $2 million in legal bills.
Toowoomba rape charges will need a pre-trial hearing before November on the application of a special witness, Attorney-General Caroline Marco has said.
Vulnerable people or alleged victims of sexual offenses may be granted special witness status so they can give evidence remotely or via pre-recorded video.
Ms Burrows also applied for a ruling on the evidence.
Judge Richards set a pre-trial hearing in Brisbane for July 24.
