The jury have been “unable” to agree on a verdict in Bruce Lehrmann’s trial after the fourth day of deliberations.
The court received a note from the jury on Tuesday afternoon, saying they had so far been unable to unanimously agree on a verdict for the case.
ACT Chief Justice Lucy McCallum has requested the jury continue to deliberate, re-examining their points of difference to try to reach a unanimous verdict.
Lehrmann has pleaded not guilty to one charge of sexual intercourse without consent. He is facing the charge after it was alleged he raped Brittany Higgins in Parliament House in 2019.
The jury have been deliberating since last Wednesday and have now retired for the day and will continue deliberations tomorrow.
“Judges are usually reluctant to discharge a jury because experience shows juries can in fact agree if given more time to consider the issues and evidence,” McCallum said, according to reports.
“For that reason, judges usually request juries to re-examine the matters on which they are in disagreement, and to make a further attempt to reach a verdict before they may be discharged.
“So, in the light of what I have already said, I asked you to retire, again, to see whether you can reach a verdict in this trial.”