Brittany Higgins poses for selfies in the same dress she wore on the night of her alleged rape – as texts reveal how Bruce Lehrmann desperately tried to convince his girlfriend not to dump him as he hit rock bottom
EXCLUSIVE
These are the bathroom selfies Brittany Higgins sent to her ex-boyfriend in her white cocktail dress, just weeks after she wore it the night she claimed she was raped by Bruce Lehrmann.
The photos were part of a series of documents uploaded to the Federal Court website on Tuesday afternoon, amid Mr Lehrmann's defamation trial against Lisa Wilkinson and Network Ten.
A series of text messages that Mr Lehrmann sent his ex-girlfriend while in a mental health facility were also revealed – two days after Ms Higgins first went public with her rape allegations in early 2021.
Ms Higgins was cross-examined in court on Friday about the white dress, during which she admitted that she told police on February 6, 2021, that she had kept it in a bag under her bed for six months before taking it out and waste. and wear once.
Last year she made the same claim in the ACT Supreme Court during the criminal trial of Lehrmann – before being forced to admit it wasn't under her bed for six months because she wore it to a work event on May 16, 2019.
Last week, Ms Higgins admitted the dress was under her bed for about five days before she took it out, washed it and packed it for a six-week work trip to Perth with her former boss Linda Reynolds.
Brittany Higgins sent this selfie to her ex-boyfriend – just weeks after she wore it the night she claimed she was raped by Bruce Lehrmann
The photos were part of a series of documents uploaded to the Federal Court website on Tuesday afternoon
She wore it to Senator Reynolds' birthday party, five weeks after the alleged rape, and took selfies in the bathroom to send to her former flame, Ben Dillaway.
“I'm on my selfie game,” she wrote after sending the photos.
He replied: 'F**k, you look hot.'
Ms Higgins had told the court they had an on-again, off-again relationship and sometimes sent 'sexts'.
Ms Higgins told the court on Friday she wore the dress again because it was her favorite and she wanted to 'reclaim' it.
She said: 'I took the pictures of myself in the bathroom because I felt uncomfortable that night.
“We were stirring things up again. I was trying to be flirty, I guess.”
Mr Whybrow said she had sent 'thousands' of messages to Mr Dillaway but never told him it was the dress in which she had allegedly been attacked.
The documents on the Federal Court website also showed a series of text messages between Mr Lehrmann and his ex-girlfriend, Greta Sinclair, in the week that Ms Higgins publicly claimed she had been dated for the first time by a 'male colleague' raped.
The court previously heard that Mr Lehrmann realized Ms Higgins' allegations were about him on the afternoon of February 15, 2021 – after a news.com.au story was published containing the same rape allegations, and before The Project that evening was broadcast.
Mr Lehrmann is suing Lisa Wilkinson and Network Ten for defamation
He has consistently denied raping Ms Higgins.
Mr Lehrmann was previously questioned about the piles of messages he sent Ms Sinclair as she was 'distraught' when she found out the rape allegations were about him.
He tried to make her feel better by fabricating information – falsely claiming that he had “two lawyers”, could “make millions” by filing a defamation suit, and that his lawyer said he was “part of of a greater political hatchet'.
He then told the court that this message was incorrect: “I was putting on a brave face for Mrs Sinclair in a way,” he told the court.
New text messages from Tuesday show that the couple frequently said “I love you” and called each other “sweet pea.”
But within about two days of Ms. Higgins' allegations being made, Ms. Sinclair — while supportive — began to struggle.
At the time, he had checked into Royal North Shore's mental health unit before being transferred to another facility that specialized in mental health care.
On February 17, the couple had a text exchange about his mental health situation.
They were saying goodnight, when suddenly Mr. Lehrmann said, “You don't love me anymore. It's OK.'
Ms Sinclair replied: 'It's just a lot to deal with… so it's not easy for me and today has been scary.'
Mr Lehrmann replied: 'I know and I have said through all of this that you are my main concern, so I understand. I felt that safety was the first priority. I never want to lose you. I meant [everything] I once said or did something for you in terms of my feelings.”
She replied, “I know… We don't have to talk about it right now. Let's just get you to the hospital.'
Mr Lehrmann was previously questioned about the piles of messages he sent Ms Sinclair as she was 'distraught' when she found out the rape allegations were about him
The tranche of court documents also revealed a series of text messages that Mr Lehrmann sent his ex-girlfriend while he was in a mental health facility – two days after Ms Higgins first went public with her rape allegations in early 2021.
The next day she said, “I'm going to tell my friends that you're in a clinic due to stress at work and we're taking a break for my mental health because I can't support you and what you need.”
On February 21, she said, “I don't know if I can continue our relationship.”
Mr. Lehrmann replied, “Right. So you're dropping me?'
She said, “I'm not going to let you down.”
Ms Sinclair then told him that another woman had accused Mr Lehrmann of rape, but he told her the allegation had been made two weeks earlier and had been 'debunked'.
She said she didn't know how to process the information because she hadn't read the news, but found out when her mother told her.
He said, 'I'm telling the truth. I came home straight away and told you the truth… Because you are important to me. How much I can't tell you.'
She replied, “I know… And I know you didn't do it, but I don't know if I can get over the thought of it.”
Mr Lehrmann said: 'I haven't changed. The media has changed the perception of me. Not even the media, nasty disgusting trolls on social media. I didn't do anything wrong.
'I've lost absolutely everything and everyone over nothing. In all my life so far, I have never felt as comfortable and confident about the future as I do with you and that is a testament to you and your strength and what you have overcome.”
Brittany Higgins is pictured leaving federal court during the defamation trial against Network 10 and Lisa Wilkinson
Mrs Sinclair said: 'Thank you. I'm sorry. I will call you tomorrow.' She added, “I'm always here for you.”
Three days after that, she texted him again: “This is all kind of a big deal for me and a journalist tried to add me on Instagram. I will be available to talk every now and then, but I am not going to continue our relationship.
“I'm sorry and I hope you understand.”
At the time, Mr Lehrmann's mother was visiting him in Sydney, friends sent him articles containing further rape allegations, and he had lost his job.
Mr Lehrmann is suing Wilkinson and Ten over an interview with Ms Higgins on The Project on February 15, 2021, in which she first made her rape allegations against him.
He was not named in that broadcast, but he claims he was identified by friends, colleagues and relatives as the man who allegedly raped Ms Higgins at Parliament House on March 23, 2019.
Mr. Lehrmann has consistently denied having any sexual contact with Ms. Higgins, consensual or otherwise.
Ms Higgins' cross-examination ended on Tuesday.
The hearing will resume Wednesday morning.