A CIVIL case brought by two Hunter cannabis campaigners against government officials they said "maliciously prosecuted" them for breaching suppression orders in a child welfare matter has been stood over to March 30 after running for only two of the five days allotted it.
As reported yesterday, the Church of Ubuntu's Pastor Paul Burton and controversial medico Andrew Katelaris have brought the case against former Director of Public Prosecutions Lloyd Babb and the head of Family and Community Services (FACS) in 2017 when the child welfare matter occurred, Michael Coutts-Trotter.
Dr Katelaris had been treating the child's "intractable epilepsy" with cannabis oil when NSW authorities intervened and took the child.
Mr Burton and Dr Katelaris say they were "maliciously prosecuted" because they were the only ones charged with breaching a suppression order on identifying the child and others involved.
Today's session began with Mr Burton calling a former FACS media officer, Todd Webster, who appeared in the court by video link.
The two plaintiffs are running their case without legal representation, and counsel for the two defendants, barrister Gregory Bateman, regularly objected to questions put by Mr Burton, saying he was leading the witness.
Judge Robert Weber agreed to almost all of Mr Bateman's objections, and repeatedly reminded Mr Burton that the material he was questioning Mr Webster about had already been tendered as evidence, and would "speak for itself".
Judge Weber said Mr Burton was also trying to cross-examine his own witness, which was not allowed.
The same situation arose repeatedly with the second witness Mr Burton called - Blair Collier, a former executive assistant to Mr Coutts-Trotter.
Judge Weber said "the documents that are tendered are in".
"They say what they say," Judge Weber said.
"They speak for themselves is what lawyers would say."
He said: "What you are trying to do is fundamentally ill-considered. I'm trying to help."
Mr Burton said he had called Ms Collier as a witness because the defence had called no witnesses.
Judge Weber said: "They're entitled to call no witnesses.
"You're attempting to do something that virtually every barrister in NSW would advise against - calling a witness who is naturally in the other camp and then asking leading questions."
Judge Weber also warned Dr Katelaris about his actions in the court, saying at one stage Dr Katelaris was "dangerously close to contempt" for repeatedly trying to talk about the details of the child being taken by the authorities, when he, the judge, had made "an evidentiary ruling" that it was not relevant to the proceedings.
Dr Katelaris opened his evidence by starting to describe the way he became involved with the child, saying he was often contacted for help by families of children with intractable epilepsy that did not respond to conventional or "aleopathic" medicine.
Judge Weber said he had already explained the case was "not about the underlying rights or wrongs of the dispute between FACS and the parents".
"It's got nothing to do with that," Judge Weber said.
"Its got everything to do with court orders made suppressing the identity of various people."
When Dr Katelaris continued to refer to the child being "taken illegally", Judge Weber asked whether he was "deliberately ignoring what I am saying to you?"
"I am deciding whether the decision to bring proceedings against you gentlemen was an example of malicious prosecution by dint of the fact that you breached a suppression order.
"It is only the suppression order I'm concerned with."
The case concluded at the morning session. Submissions will now be lodged and the matter returns on March 30.
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