ACT Chief Minister Andrew Barr is expected to order an inquiry into tensions between ACT police and the public prosecutor’s office.
ACT Chief Minister Andrew Barr is preparing to order a formal inquiry into the trial of Bruce Lehrmann after an extraordinary war of words erupted between the territory’s director of public prosecutions and police.
ACT DPP Shane Drumgold reportedly called for a public inquiry to examine “both political and police conduct” in the Bruce Lehrmann case.The inquiry discussion comes after the publication last week of a letter from ACT Director of Public Prosecutions Shane Drumgold to ACT chief of police Neil Gaughan in which Drumgold complained of a “very clear campaign to pressure” him not to prosecute Lehrmann, the man who had been accused of raping Brittany Higgins in Parliament House.
“The cabinet discussed how a broad-ranging, independent inquiry could help to identify the roles played by the parties involved in the trial and whether these actions were appropriate. These discussions also noted that an [Australian Commission for Law Enforcement Integrity] investigation is currently under way,” Barr said.Lehrmann pleaded not guilty to one charge of sexual intercourse without consent and his trial was aborted in October after juror misconduct.
The ACT police chief and the federal police union hit back at Drumgold’s criticism. Both also backed an inquiry into the Lehrmann case, with the union accusing the ACT’s chief prosecutor of smearing the force by criticising its handling of the investigation.ACT Opposition Leader Elizabeth Lee had also called for an inquiry into the handling of the trial.
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