Bruce Lehrmann has denied he was trying to get Brittany Higgins drunk on the night she claims he raped her in Parliament House during an after-hours visit, the court in his defamation trial has heard.
Lehrmann has always denied the rape allegation and in a previous criminal trial about the matter pleaded not guilty to one charge of sexual intercourse without consent, denying that any sexual activity had occurred.
The criminal trial was aborted after it was discovered a juror had conducted their own research in relation to the case and had taken the document into the deliberation room.
In December prosecutors dropped charges against Lehrmann for the alleged rape of Higgins, saying a retrial would pose an “unacceptable risk” to her health.
As part of his cross-examination of Lehrmann, Network Ten’s barrister, Matt Collins KC, played extensive CCTV footage to the court which showed Higgins and Lehrmann socialising and drinking on a Friday night after work with other parliamentary staffers.
The court heard the footage showed Higgins had consumed six spirit-based drinks in the Canberra bar, two of which were bought for her by Lehrmann.
Earlier, Lehrmann said he couldn’t remember buying her drinks.
“I don’t recall buying her two vodkas, no,” Lehrmann said.
“I’m happy to be corrected. It’s very hard to recall specifically, I’m sorry.”
Collins was taking Lehrmann through the events of the evening leading up to him taking an Uber to Parliament House with Higgins.
He said that at one point at the Dock bar Lehrmann moved three drinks closer to Higgins on the table and said they were “all hers, all hers”.
“You moved them to the edge of the table so that they were close to Ms Higgins,” Collins said.
Lehrmann replied: “No, I disagree with that.”
Collins said Higgins laughed and touched Lehrmann on the arm, saying: “Oh stop, oh stop.”
Lehrmann replied: “I can’t be certain of that, sorry.”
Collins asked: “You were trying to get Ms Higgins drunk.”
Lehrmann: “No I wasn’t.”
Collins: “You were ensuring that she had a glass of spirit-based alcohol in her hands at every moment.”
Lehrmann: “No I wasn’t.”
Collins said the criminal trial heard evidence from Liberal staffer Lauren Gain that he kissed and touched Higgins at the nightclub.
He denied Gain’s evidence that Higgins was drunk and fell over in the nightclub, grazing her knee, and that he helped her up.
Collins told the federal court that a video of the record of interview with Australian federal police was played to the jury at Lehrmann’s criminal trial in the ACT supreme court in October 2022.
He was asked by the AFP: “At any time during the night … did you engage in any intimate behaviour with Miss Brittany Higgins at all?”
Lehrmann replied: “Yeah, I can’t – I just can’t remember that, I know we were close but I just can’t remember.”
Collins said Gain, who was one of the group of four, gave evidence at the criminal trial that Lehrmann and Higgins were “pashing” in a booth at the nightclub and he was touching her leg.
Lehrmann denied the suggestion by Collins that he was intimate with Higgins at the nightclub that they attended after the Dock.
Earlier, Lehrmann accepted that the evidence he gave on Wednesday when questioned by his own barrister was wrong about how many drinks he had consumed and bought that night. He said he had consumed only two rounds of drinks.
Collins said the CCTV footage showed he spent more than $16 at the Dock because he bought five drinks for himself and others.
Lehrmann said he could not explain why the transactions on his bank statements only showed $16; and he agreed he told Australian federal police in a record of interview he only spent $16.
