The final Sofronoff inquiry report was handed to journalists prior to the ACT’s chief minister, the government has said.
The fallout from the explosive findings and premature publication of Walter Sofronoff KC’s report continued on Friday, following revelations that the inquiry head had provided embargoed copies of the final report to selected media outlets before police, the director of public prosecutions and other key players.
An ACT government spokesperson said on Friday the report had also been provided to selected journalists prior to being handed to the chief minister, Andrew Barr.
The independent board of inquiry was established to investigate the ACT criminal justice system’s handling of Bruce Lehrmann’s prosecution for the alleged rape of Brittany Higgins.
The ACT’s Inquiries Act only allows boards of inquiry to submit their reports to the chief minister of the ACT, who then decides how and when it is presented to the ACT legislative assembly.
The law includes punishments for any member of a board of inquiry who “produce to any person, or permit any person to have access to” documents provided for in the act. The Guardian is not suggesting Sofronoff broke the law or will face punishment. Sofronoff has been contacted for comment.
The Australian was one of two outlets provided with an embargoed copy of the report. It published a detailed story on the findings on Wednesday night, but insists it did not breach the embargo.
Its publication followed an earlier report by News.com.au which reported some of the findings of Sofronoff, citing anonymous sources.
The ABC was also provided with an embargoed copy of the report and published a version later on Thursday.
The government spokesperson said Sofronoff had given an explanation for “why he chose to release the report to selected journalists prior to providing it to the chief minister”.
“The government remains extremely disappointed in this action, but at this time, our focus is on responding to the report and ensuring procedural fairness is afforded to all parties named in it,” the spokesperson said.
Sofronoff’s explanation was contained in a letter penned to the government on Friday.
In that letter, obtained by News.com.au, Sofronoff says he provided it to the Australian and the ABC on the express agreement that the findings would not be published until after the government released the report.
“It served to ensure that when the government published the report that those two journalists would be in a position swiftly and promptly to write and broadcast stories that would have at their foundation a true appreciation of the result of the work of the Commission,’’ Sofronoff said, according to News.com.au.
The findings were damning of Shane Drumgold SC, the DPP who ran the Lehrmann trial, according to sources who spoke to the Guardian.
Lehrmann says he has now instructed his solicitors to bring a claim against the government.
“I’ve got lawyers that need to be paid, people who have supported me, like my mum and uncle, who need to be supported,” he told the Daily Telegraph.
“I’m not interested in becoming a millionaire, but I do want to perhaps get on with my life and maybe buy a house. Given what the prosecution has done to me, I may never work again.”
Sources say the Sofronoff report found the prosecution was properly brought and there was enough evidence to charge Lehrmann, though that is not an indication of his guilt or innocence.
Lehrmann pleaded not guilty and has consistently denied the allegation that he raped Higgins. His first trial was aborted due to juror misconduct and a planned re-trial was abandoned due to fears for Higgins’ mental health.
But the full detail of what Sofronoff found has been made available only to the Australian and the ABC, which received embargoed copies of the report on the condition that it not be published prior to its release by the ACT government.
The government had planned to take one month to release its findings, despite criticisms of its slow approach. It will now release the report and its interim response early next week.
On Friday, the federal opposition intervened to say that Barr should speak publicly to outline the ACT government’s response.
“There are serious questions to be answered about a senior official within the ACT justice system and we haven’t had the ACT chief minister front the media or address this issue in the really necessary and important way, that it needs to be addressed,” the deputy opposition leader, Sussan Ley, said.
The Australian federal police and ACT policing were not asked about the matter during a Senate estimates hearing on Friday. But the ACT’s police chief, Neil Gaughan, was scathing of the early release of the report in an internal memo to staff on Thursday.
“I am shocked and distressed by this – feelings I am sure all of you share,” he wrote. “What makes this more difficult is that no one in ACT Policing, including myself, or the broader AFP, has obtained, or even seen, this final report yet.”
