Linda Reynolds tells defamation trial she didn't suspect Brittany Higgins had been sexually assaulted when she spoke to her
Senator Linda Reynolds is wrapping up her evidence in her high-stakes defamation case against Brittany Higgins, insisting she didn't know of an alleged assault in her ministerial office when she arranged to meet her former staffer there days later. She's suing Ms Higgins over a social media post critical of the way she handled her allegation of rape by her then colleague Bruce Lehrmann, something he's always denied.
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00:00It's been a long week for W.A. Senator Linda Reynolds.
00:05Are you looking forward to finishing up?
00:09Her lawyers have spent the week seeking to prove Brittany Higgins defamed her on social media,
00:14suggesting the Senator mishandled her rape allegation.
00:17Senator Reynolds has faced a barrage of questions from Ms Higgins' lawyer
00:20about what she knew in the days following the alleged rape.
00:24As part of her truth defence, Ms Higgins claims Senator Reynolds arranged a meeting in her parliamentary office
00:29when she knew that's where the alleged rape took place,
00:32which had the potential to be seriously triggering for Ms Higgins.
00:35Under cross-examination, Senator Reynolds acknowledged she knew Ms Higgins had been found undressed in her ministerial suite,
00:42checked on by two security officers, was intoxicated and had memory loss,
00:47and remembered Mr Lerman had been on top of her,
00:50and that Mr Lerman had left Parliament that night in a hurried manner.
00:53But the Senator denied all of these factors taken together suggested Ms Higgins had been raped.
00:58She told the court that there were a wide range of options drunk young people can get up to late at night.
01:04She's also denied saying to Ms Higgins in this meeting that
01:07this is something women go through and I'm sorry this happened to you.
01:11The evidence caps off a week of intense scrutiny,
01:14with the Senator at times having to take a break due to concerns over her health.
01:18Something she maintains was damaged by Ms Higgins' portrayal of the whole affair.
01:23Next week, the trial will hear from Senator Reynolds' husband, parents and friends.
01:27Former Prime Minister Scott Morrison is also expected to testify,
01:31along with other former and current MPs.