One of Australia's top cops admits his unnecessary rush to "move on" resulted in police sending Brittany Higgins' confidential counselling notes to lawyers for the man she accused of rape.
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Commander Michael Chew, of the Australian Federal Police, made the concession on Friday, when he gave evidence at an independent inquiry into the case of Bruce Lehrmann.
Mr Lehrmann stood trial last year, having always denied allegations he raped Ms Higgins when they were Liberal Party staffers.
After juror misconduct forced a mistrial, the charge he faced was discontinued.
Commander Chew, a former ACT deputy chief police officer, was quizzed on Friday about why he had told subordinates to serve Mr Lehrmann's lawyers with a brief of evidence when the man was charged.
He acknowledged this was unusual because briefs were supposed to be served by the office of the Director of Public Prosecutions, and only once a not guilty plea had been entered.
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The inquiry heard Detective Superintendent Scott Moller had expressed concerns about not following usual processes, but Commander Chew told him: "Let's just get it served and move on."
A brief of evidence that contained Ms Higgins' confidential counselling notes, which were legally protected material, was consequently served on Mr Lehrmann's lawyers, who never accessed them.
Asked to explain why he had departed from normal practice, Commander Chew said the matter had been "dragging on" and the brief of evidence had been reviewed by a number of senior police officers.
He said he was also worried ensuring a fair trial for Mr Lehrmann "would be challenging" because of media commentary, saying he felt commencing court proceedings would help limit public discourse.
However, he conceded that could have been achieved simply by serving a summons for Mr Lehrmann to attend court, and that, "in hindsight", normal procedure should have been followed with the brief.
'Unfortunate' choice of words
Commander Chew also conceded he made an "unfortunate" choice of words when he told Detective Superintendent Moller there was "too much political interference" in the case.
Those words were reflected in a diary entry made by Detective Superintendent Moller in June 2021, some weeks before Mr Lehrmann was charged.
On Friday, Commander Chew said there was "definitely political interest" in the case but he could not point to anything that might amount to interference.
He noted there had been significant media interest in the matter, with the former prime minister and senior members in the Morrison government having commented on the circumstances of the case.
Two ministers were also witnesses.
Public hearings of the inquiry are set to resume next Thursday, when Mr Lehrmann's former barrister, John Korn, and the ACT Victims of Crime Commissioner, Heidi Yates, are expected to give evidence.
