Australian lawmaker has both legs amputated after allegedly deliberate attack by car rammer
By Hilary Whiteman, CNN
Brisbane, Australia (CNN) — The Australian lawmaker hit by a car in an allegedly deliberate attack has now had both legs amputated, her husband announced Wednesday.
Helen Haines, an independent federal MP, remains in a critical condition in hospital after being hit on a main road outside her electorate office in Wangaratta, northeastern Victoria, mid-afternoon Monday.
“Helen’s left leg was amputated on Monday. We had been hoping that her right leg would be saved, but… the surgeons had to also remove her right leg,” Phil Haines, the MP’s husband of nearly 40 years, told a press conference at The Alfred hospital in Melbourne.
“But the good news in all this is Helen is alive and she’s stable,” he added.
On Monday, Haines, 65, was standing at the rear of her parked car, unpacking items from the trunk, when a man driving a Toyota Land Cruiser drove past her before allegedly turning around and ramming her into her vehicle. It’s not clear why.
As bystanders rushed to her aid, a local barber pulled the driver from the car, detaining him until police arrived. Haines was immediately airlifted to Melbourne for surgery.
Haines, a popular and respected politician in Canberra, has represented her community as an independent MP since 2019.
The alleged attacker, 43-year-old Brendan Nugent, faced court on Wednesday charged with dangerous driving causing serious injury, intentionally causing serious injury and causing harm to a Commonwealth public official.
Speaking after Phil Haines at the same news conference, Governor-General Sam Mostyn said she was keeping King Charles III updated on developments.
The governor-general is appointed by the king as Australia’s formal head of state, though the country is led by a prime minister under a parliamentary system.
“Australia is still reeling with the shock and distress of this terrible attack,” Mostyn said. “I know that here in Victoria, in particular, people are simply dumbfounded and finding it very hard to fathom the scale of this tragedy.”
As a pile of bouquets grew outside Haines’ electorate office, her husband urged people to consider donating instead.
“She loves flowers, but it’s a bit difficult to look after many bunches of flowers,” Phil Haines said. “We will ask people if they would like to support Helen financially to make a donation to Save the Children Fund.”
Security briefings
Though police are still to determine if the incident was politically motivated, the alleged attack shocked the country and has shone a spotlight on the safety of its political leaders.
Members of parliament received in-depth security briefings in Canberra on Wednesday as the Australian Federal Police (AFP) commissioner pointed to rising reports of harassment and threats against federal parliamentarians.
Authorities were seeing “increasing political polarization and anti-government sentiment, conspiracy-driven and grievance-based behaviors,” Commissioner Krissy Barrett told a news conference.
“Lone actors motivated by a convergence of personal grievance, mental health vulnerabilities, and ideological concerns,” were contributing to the rising trend, she added.
Victoria Police Chief Commissioner Mike Bush said police had no intelligence on Haines’ alleged attacker that pointed to an imminent risk.
In a very short court hearing on Wednesday morning, Nugent’s lawyer said Nugent had a rare neurological condition – and was currently unmedicated.
No application for bail was made, and the next hearing is scheduled for February 4.
The-CNN-Wire
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