Prosecutor drops Australian Parliament House rape charge

By ROD McGUIRK
Associated Press

CANBERRA, Australia (AP) — An Australian prosecutor on Friday dropped the rape charge of a woman who was allegedly assaulted in a parliamentary office after he determined that the stress of the trial would put her life at risk. Former government staffer Brittany Higgins alleges a more senior colleague, Bruce Lehrmann, raped her in a minister’s office after a night of heavy drinking in March 2019. The Associated Press does not usually identify alleged victims of sexual assault, but Higgins has chosen to identify herself in the media. Higgins’ friend said she was in a hospital receiving mental health treatment. Director of Public Prosecutions Shane Drumgold said he dropped the case based on medical evidence that a trial could cost Higgins’ life.