Bruce Lehrmann has blasted a prosecutor after his medical details were detailed in open court when he failed to turn up to a hearing and was threatened with arrest.
The former political staffer pleaded not guilty to stealing a Toyota Prado in Tasmania in 2024, but neither he nor his lawyer Zali Burrows appeared in Hobart Magistrates Court on Thursday when the theft charge was listed for contest mention.
The court eventually got Ms Burrows on the phone, who said Lehrmann would produce a medical certificate explaining why he was not there.
Magistrate Robert Webster slammed Ms Burrows and suggested she didn’t ‘understand the purpose’ of the proceeding, which was to test evidence prior to a proper hearing.
The magistrate mentioned an email he received earlier from Ms Burrows that said Lehrmann was ‘not available today due to urgent medical issues/tests’.
Ms Burrows applied for the medical issues to be sealed so the media couldn’t access them, but the application was opposed by police prosecutor Bunewat Keo and denied by the magistrate.
The Daily Mail understands Lehrmann’s lawyers believe his health information was relayed in confidence, and should never have been aired in open court.
Lehrmann is understood to have emailed Mr Keo on Thursday afternoon to say he felt anxious and helpless after the health information was detailed.
Bruce Lehrmann is understood to have lodged a complaint after personal details were relayed in court on Thursday
Lehrmann is said to have told him the situation left him scared for his health and his ability to seek care confidentially, and has since reported the matter to Tasmania Police’s ethics and standards team.
He further alleged the situation caused him irreparable harm and publicity by prolonging the case, and stated he would hold the prosecutor responsible if his condition worsened.
Lehrmann intends to issue a complaint about Thursday’s hearing to the Legal Profession Board of Tasmania.
In court, the prosecutor said he had little choice but to issue an arrest warrant because Lehrmann failed to attend court.
Speaking to the court on the phone, Ms Burrows said: ‘I have been inundated with calls from the media asking if there is a warrant out for [Lehrmann’s] arrest.”
The magistrate replied: ‘Well, there’s an easy way around that – don’t give them your number.’
Lehrmann has lodged a complaint to Tasmania Police about prosecutor Bunewat Keo (pictured)
Sydney lawyer Zali Burrows (pictured) received a dressing-down from Magistrate Robert Webster after she and Lehrmann did not appear in Hobart on Thursday
A warrant was issued for Lehrmann’s arrest, but ordered that it lie in court unless he could not provide a medical certificate and failed to show up to the next court date.
The police prosecutor said police had a ‘strong prima facie case’ Lehrmann stole a Toyota Prado at remote Mountain River in southern Tasmania.
The car owner and her family, a service station worker and five police officers are expected to give evidence in the case, which is expected to last four days.
At a previous hearing, Ms Burrows signalled she would challenge the Prado owner’s statement to police on the grounds it was different to assertions made in media interviews.
Lehrmann has been the subject of various court matters since a 2019 alleged rape of then-colleague Brittany Higgins at parliament house.
While a trial was abandoned in 2022 because of juror misconduct, the Federal Court in 2024 found on the balance of probabilities the rape did occur, dismissing his defamation suit against Network Ten and presenter Lisa Wilkinson.
Lehrmann has appealed the defamation loss.