Vanessa Scammell

To finish up today, I have to ask, what is the responsibility of any magistrate presiding over any case once the verdict has been delivered?

one would have to argue that it is not the responsibility of a magistrate to offer up grandiose and inflammatory scenarios based on or around personal beliefs.

The ultimate requirement of any officer of the court surely is to exercise professionalism, not make deliberate post-acquittal commentary in heroic tones.

And what of evidence that was seemingly neglected in her rulings, particularly evidence that was revealed in cross-examination?

She also made comments that Craig was not a credible witness.

She suggested that a moment of emotion Craig displayed during the case was contrived.

There seemed to be no consideration of Craig's state, that his life was in tatters, and that if by chance he showed emotion at one time during the case, that simply meant he wasn't to be believed.

Why is it that if an accused person shows emotion, it is contrived, but if complainants show emotion, it is more than accepted?

When I sat in court, I witnessed a man fighting for his life.

A respectful, measured and courteous accused man who was up against the frenzy of hashtag MeToo, where no matter what, all women were to be believed.

A court matter where it seemed for all intent and purpose...

saw the accused man tried on the stand as a character from a schlock horror music theatre show, Dr. Frankenfurter, a transsexual character from outer space, not as the man who lies behind the character, Craig McLachlan.

So why after all these years did I do this podcast?

The rulings of the magistrate, the brave and honest comments and the new laws have continued to be used against Craig McLachlan in efforts to keep him from returning to the stage, to film sets, to the industry, for him to be able to continue what he does best.

Verdict Verdict

not guilty, not guilty, not guilty, not guilty, not guilty, not guilty, not guilty, not guilty, not guilty, not guilty, not guilty, not guilty, not guilty, not guilty.

Your Honour.

My name is Vanessa Scammell and thank you for listening to Me Too.

Having dealt with all the charges of the criminal matter of the Crown versus Craig McLachlan, I will be bringing you future episodes to discuss what we know now, a behind-the-scenes look at the legal processes, the securing of lawyers when you know nothing about law, the human stories we experienced along the way, but most importantly...

I want to address coming through the other side and how with the help of a wonderful team of people we were able to do just that.