A high-profile man accused of rape has indicated he will seek a suppression order if Queensland law is changed to allow his name to be published by media outlets.
Queensland law prohibits the naming of people charged with rape unless and until they are committed to stand trial, but the Palaszczuk government has tabled a bill to parliament seeking to change that.
During a committal mention in Toowoomba on Wednesday, the accused man’s solicitor Rowan King sought a one-week adjournment in part to seek a suppression order on his client’s name.
The man faces two counts of allegedly raping a woman in Toowoomba in October 2021
“It’s anticipated in the next two to three weeks that there will be legislation coming in which will potentially allow the naming of my client and it’s intended that we make an application to maintain the suppression of my client’s name,” King said.
He told the court it was unclear whether or not the legislation would apply in cases where the complainant did not want the defendant’s name released.
Magistrate Kay Philipson said she could not recall any application by the complainant to keep the accused’s name suppressed in response to applications by several media organisations in February to name the defendant.
Philipson said King’s intention to obtain a suppression order, much like the media’s application to name his client, was premature until the legislation was amended.
“Such an application can’t be heard in Arrest Court as we are too busy… I’m not adjourning for a week when there’s lots of maybes,” Philipson said.
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King said he would discuss with his client’s counsel about filing an application as soon as possible.
Philipson said there was nothing to stop King filing an application as soon as the legislation was passed or there was a date confirmed when it would be passed.
To keep the case moving forward, King also sought a one-week adjournment for prosecutors to provide downloaded material from the complainant’s phone that was created after the date of the alleged offence.
Crown prosecutor Sarah Dreghorn told the court on Wednesday that police would provide her with a partial report on the phone’s contents that day.
Dreghorn requested a four-week adjournment to review the total material that King had requested, which spanned 19 months.
“We won’t be releasing any material until we have reviewed it ourselves,” Dreghorn said.
Philipson said prosecutors would not have enough time to review 13 months’ worth of data during the space of a week and adjourned the case until September 20.
