The ACT's top prosecutor has sensationally accused police of being "clearly aligned" with the man who allegedly raped Brittany Higgins after a "very clear campaign" failed to stop him pursuing a sexual assault charge.
Director of Public Prosecutions Shane Drumgold SC wrote to the ACT's chief police officer last month, days after the trial of Bruce Lehrmann was aborted because of juror misconduct, making several explosive claims.
The Guardian, which obtained the letter under freedom-of-information laws, reports that Mr Drumgold told Australian Federal Police deputy commissioner Neil Gaughan he held "serious concerns" over what he perceived to be "quite clear investigator interference in the criminal justice process".
Mr Drumgold alleged he had been "pressured to agree with the investigators' desire not to charge" Mr Lehrmann, who denies raping Ms Higgins at Parliament House when the pair were Liberal staffers in 2019.
According to the prosecutor, police mischaracterised and cherry-picked evidence to suggest weaknesses in the case against Mr Lehrmann.
Mr Drumgold disagreed with their assessment and the case proceeded to a trial, throughout which he complained police regularly met with Mr Lehrmann's lawyers during breaks in evidence.
He also expressed concerns Ms Higgins had "felt bullied by police, who she felt were pressuring her into discontinuing the complaint" she had made against Mr Lehrmann.
"This is an observation corroborated by at least two of her support people," Mr Drumgold reportedly wrote.
"Although this is a matter for her to raise directly with the AFP, it is relevant for our purposes as it impacted the trial process, as she presented as highly anxious in dealing with either the police or by extension, the DPP."
In a sign of the seemingly strained relationship between police and the office that prosecutes on their behalf, Mr Drumgold told Deputy Commissioner Gaughan he wanted a public inquiry to examine "both political and police conduct in the case", which was dropped last week over fears for Ms Higgins' mental health.
"The [investigators'] interests have clearly aligned with the successful defence of this matter rather than its prosecution," he wrote, according to The Guardian.
When contacted by The Canberra Times, Mr Drumgold confirmed he was aware his letter had been released under freedom-of-information laws but declined to comment on it.
An ACT Policing spokesman also said the police force knew of the letter's disclosure, and played down fears of a rift between the law enforcement agencies.
"The ACT DPP has requested a public inquiry in relation to this matter," the spokesman said.
"As such it would be inappropriate to provide any further comment in relation to any aspects surrounding this matter, including commentary about the letter from the ACT DPP.
"ACT Policing will continue to work cooperatively with the office of DPP to ensure the safety and security of the Canberra community."
