Former ACT Director of Public Prosecutions Shane Drumgold has had a big win as complaints against him, based on findings Walter Sofronoff made in his ACT Inquiry Report, were dropped by the ACT Bar Association.
While it is a big win for Shane Drumgold, in some regards it is also a hollow win as he was forced to resign as ACT DPP when Walter Sofronoff leaked his report to News Corp’s Janet Albrechtsen.
Not only is it a big loss for Walter Sofronoff, but it’s also a big loss for Bruce Lehrmann, Channel 10, Lisa Wilkinson and numerous AFP and ACT police who lined up against Shane Drumgold at the ACT Inquiry.
Shane Drumgold was a whistleblower who alleged police and political inference at Bruce Lehrmann’s rape trial which led to the ACT Inquiry headed up by Walter Sofronoff.
I spoke to Walter Sofronoff on the phone during the ACT Inquiry and all he wanted to do was criticize Shane Drumgold.
Walter Sofronoff is now under criminal investigation for leaking the ACT Inquiry Report to News Corp’s Janet Albrechtsen.
The Riotact reported (15/10/24):
The ACT Bar Association has dropped all of the complaints it made about former top prosecutor Shane Drumgold SC’s conduct during the proceedings relating to Bruce Lehrmann.
Mr Drumgold said the association resolved to dismiss the first 10 complaints and withdraw the 11th it made against him as the former ACT Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP).
“The ACT Bar Association has found there is no evidence to support a finding that I engaged in either professional misconduct or unsatisfactory professional conduct in relation to any conduct surrounding the prosecution of Bruce Lehrmann,” he said.
“This is the first investigation of the merits of the Sofronoff findings and whether any conduct amounted to either professional misconduct or unsatisfactory professional conduct, with the ACT Bar Association concluding that none of the 11 Sofronoff findings examined were made out on the evidence. (Click here to read more)
Bruce Lehrmann, Shane Drumgold and Brittany Higgins
The ABC reported (14/10/24):
The ACT Bar Council’s complaints, released in a report of its investigation, alleged Mr Drumgold engaged in professional misconduct or unsatisfactory professional conduct during the trial, including claims he misled the court.
The complaints also targeted the release of an unredacted letter to the ACT’s Chief Police Officer under Freedom of Information laws.
The letter sparked the Sofronoff Inquiry, when Mr Drumgold complained he felt pressured to drop the prosecution of Mr Lehrmann and called for a public inquiry.
The other issues raised relate to accusations Mr Drumgold misled the ACT Supreme Court in his account of a conversation with journalist Lisa Wilkinson about whether she should give a speech at the Logies about her interview with Ms Higgins on The Project.
The speech ultimately led to a delay in the trial.
Another target was his questioning of Senator Linda Reynolds during the criminal trial, when he suggested she had arranged for her partner to sit in the back of the court. (Click here to read the full article)
Senator Linda Reynolds was also caught coaching Bruce Lehrmann’s barrister Steve Whybrow during the rape trial.
The ACT Chief Minister Andrew Barr says, “it was a mistake to appoint Walter Sofronoff to head an inquiry into the trial of Bruce Lehrmann.”
There are numerous court cases that have resulted from Brittany Higgins original rape complaint against Bruce Lehrmann and there are at least 3 still before the courts.
The 3 court cases still afoot are Senator Linda Reynolds defamation case against Brittany Higgins and her husband David Sharaz which has been to trial with the judge reserving his decision. From memory that is Linda Reynolds 5th defamation case.
Bruce Lehrmann is appealing his defamation loss against Channel 10 and Lisa Wilkinson.
And while Walter Sofronoff is only under criminal investigation, I would expect charges to laid as it’s an open and shut case of illegally leaking the ACT Report to News Corp’s Janet Albrechtsen in breach of the relevant law.
It would be no surprise if other court cases arose in the future from this matter.
Shane Drumgold is a whistleblower and most whistleblowers get belted, and they tried.
Shane Drumgold has done well to survive as well as he has.
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Categories: Australian Federal Police, Walter Sofronoff
This is fantastic news for Drumgold. I’ve always felt that he was very poorly done by. He’s obviously a man of considerable mettle, so will go on, I feel, to prove even more so, what a strong legal, and ethical mind he has.
Yes , at last a vague hope of justice being done , I was always very skeptical re the juror misconduct finding in the original trial ?
Shane Drumgold should be reinstated. He may not wish to be but the offer and full apologies should be made in good faith.
KCA, thank you, I like your article that finally ends in favour of Shane Drumgold.
The action against Shane Drumgold appeared, to me, as a contradiction of justice.
That’s a good win. Though I’m sure nothing much will happen to Walter and Janet.
My goodness it has been a long and dirty road for Shane Drumgold, who has only advocated for the truth and justice! He has stood up to death threats and financial costs that would have made many a stronger and weaker person falter. I would like to personally thank Shane Drumgold for his unstinting determination to doggedly continue publishing true facts and keep the bast*rds honest.
Wonderful article . I alway thought he was a hero but got really hammered for my comments .One wonders about the other court cases and the outcome .
Drumgold is a victim as well as an hero along with Ms Higgins .
The Bar Council sounds a bit like the ACT Law Society, which manages to clear crooked solicitors, however flagrant their misconduct.
It’s gotta be time that any honest lawyers & politicians stand up and show a real example that long awaited justice & change starts now..!!!!! Sofronoff should be made a example of how corrupt conduct especially by those smug law makers will not be remotely tolerated & will be subjected to the highest level of punishment due to their positions.. How can we ever accept corrupt judges, lawyers & politicians to pass judgment on average citizens appearing before them when they flaunt the law,??? WE SHOULD’NT..😡 Publicly throw the book at them, knock them off their arrogant perches as police forces do to any corrupt officers who are lower in the legal hierarchy than judges, barristers etc……
Congratulations to Shane Drumgold in what was always a perversion of process to shut him up.
What next for Lehrmann, Reynolds and Sofronoff?
Who will be thrown under a bus?
AH HA! A chance for another script based on this great article from KCA! More good work!
The Noble, the Notorious, and the Never-Ending Saga …
Cue the tumbleweed, dramatic standoff music, and old saloon doors creaking in the distance…
The Good: Enter Shane Drumgold, the lone sheriff of Justice Town, who took on the Lehrmann trial with the kind of grit only a true whistleblower could muster. Armed with nothing but a moral compass and a whistle that’s seen better days, Drumgold walked into the legal desert, only to be ambushed by…
The Bad: Walter Sofronoff, the outlaw of the inquiry. He didn’t just bend the rules – he leaked the rulebook straight to News Corp’s Janet Albrechtsen! Sofronoff rode into town, set up his own brand of justice, then hit the escape button when his house of cards started to wobble. Now, he’s under a criminal investigation, staring down the barrel of his own twisted justice.
The Ugly: Meanwhile, in the background, Bruce Lehrmann – shifty-eyed and ever-appealing – lurks in the shadows, dragging Lisa Wilkinson, Channel 10, and even Senator Linda Reynolds into an endless loop of defamation lawsuits. Lehrmann keeps throwing legal tantrums, trying to squeeze more out of the circus before anyone notices the show’s over. The longer this drags on, the uglier it gets.
With Drumgold’s win at the ACT Bar Association, The Good walks away with a bittersweet victory. He’s cleared of all complaints, but the apology he deserves is lost in the dust. The Bad and the Ugly are left to fend for themselves in the desert, facing their own reckoning.
Final Showdown: The Good – Survives. The Bad – Investigated. The Ugly – Still Appealing.