Afternoon Update: Lehrmann case judge labels evidence ‘sordid’; threat of floods in eastern NSW; and le crookie lands in Australia
Good afternoon. The reopened defamation case brought by Bruce Lehrmann against Network Ten continued today, with the federal court hearing further evidence from former Seven producer Taylor Auerbach.
The court heard claims from Network Ten that Channel Seven paid more than $10,000 for massages, drugs and sex workers for Lehrmann’s benefit, and that Lehrmann initially discussed a $200,000 payout for his interview. Justice Michael Lee described the evidence as “sordid” and questioned why it was relevant to the case and his findings.
Auerbach continued to insist that Seven offered him a pay rise and promotion for his role in Lehrmann’s interview on Seven’s Spotlight program, after the company on Thursday denied in a statement outside court that it had done so.
You can follow our live coverage of the hearing here.
Top news
Threat of floods in eastern NSW | Sydneysiders and communities along the coast of New South Wales have been warned to stay indoors as wild weather puts rivers in the region at risk of flooding. Sydney has had its highest daily rainfall in two years, with more on the way tonight.
Melbourne men attack police | Two men are on the run after attempting to assault police and ramming their cars. Police had been attending to reports of two men slumped in a car at a service station in South Melbourne at 3am on Friday.
‘Megadroughts’ to worsen | Australia should prepare for “megadroughts” that last more than 20 years and will worsen due to human-induced global heating, new research has found. The exceptionally severe periods of below average rainfall occur every 150 years or so.
Penny Wong says Israeli PM ‘deeply insensitive’ | The Australian foreign minister has rebuked Benjamin Netanyahu for trying to “brush aside” the deaths of the Australian aid worker Zomi Frankcom and six of her colleagues in an Israeli missile attack in Gaza. The Israeli Defence Force says it has completed its investigation into the drone strike. Meanwhile, the Israeli prime minister’s office said a key crossing in northern Gaza will be reopened to increase the flow of humanitarian aid, amid US pressure to protect civilians and aid workers.
Australians missing after Taiwan earthquake | The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade confirmed that two Australians are reported missing after Wednesday’s earthquake in Taiwan. Residents of the tourist town at the epicentre of the 7.2 magnitude earthquake face destruction and despair, with at least nine dead and 18 people still missing.
Asbestos found at second Melbourne park | Asbestos-contaminated soil has been found in the Melbourne suburb of Coburg North, after similar material was found in Spotswood earlier this week. The local council said much of the site had been closed to the public since the material was initially detected in January.
Judge blocks Trump’s attempt to throw out case | The federal judge overseeing Donald Trump’s prosecution on charges of retaining classified documents has denied his effort to have the case dismissed. The ruling struck one of Trump’s main defences and suggested the case is headed to trial.
Free blue ticks for most-followed X accounts | Elon Musk has started freely bestowing verified status on the most-followed users of X, the social network better known as Twitter. The firm had previously demanded payment for blue ticks.
Kennedy calls January 6 rioters ‘activists’ in email | A passage in a campaign fundraising email for US presidential candidate Robert F Kennedy Jr that called January 6 prisoners “activists … stripped of their constitutional liberties” was the result of an error by an outside contractor, a spokesperson said.
What they said …
***
“He appreciated the fact that I wasn’t sitting with the rest of the feminazis in the press pack.” – Former Seven producer Taylor Auerbach tells court this is was Bruce Lehrmann had told him.
Auerbach was discussing his verbal agreement with Lehrmann for an exclusive interview with Spotlight while giving evidence during Lehrmann’s defamation case against Network Ten.
In numbers
The largest study of its kind predicts worldwide prostate cancer deaths will rise from 375,000 in 2020 to almost 700,000 in 2040, with to cases double to 2.9 million a year.
Before bed read
Le crookie lands in Australia: does the cookie-croissant hybrid live up to the hype?
The latest variation on the croissant – cut in half, stuffed and baked again with American-style chocolate chip cookie dough – is proving popular in Australia.
Daily word game
Today’s starter word is: . You have five goes to get the longest word including the starter word. Play Wordiply.
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