Courtroom chaos in defamation trial
A BITTER defamation case launched by a Gold Coast high school principal yesterday erupted as wild scenes rocked the final day of the landmark trial.
A parent who faces losing her home over comments posted online following the 2016 suspension of Tamborine Mountain principal Tracey Brose screamed “rot in hell bitch” as she was helped from the courtroom after collapsing in waves of grief at the bar table during her closing submission, while Judge Catherine Muir listed several major concerns with the case in an extraordinary day of testimony.
The trial was the culmination of a three-year legal battle which started after several derogatory comments appeared online about Mrs Brose following her suspension – for reasons which have never been made public.
Mrs Brose, who was reinstated to her post several months later, launched a $1 million law suit against several parents but only three – Donna Baluskas, her husband Miguel and Laura Lawson, went the distance in the month-long trial.
During closing submissions, Mrs Baluskas fought back tears as she told Judge Muir how she stood to “lose everything”, before collapsing in her chair overcome with emotion.
She was helped from the courtroom by family supporters as she screamed “rot in hell bitch” towards Mrs Brose.
Judge Muir also raised several questions about the case.
“How do I unravel this?” she asked Mrs Brose’s barrister Holly Blattman.
“(Your client) talks about hurt and distress but there is no medical evidence in this case at all.
“There were other circumstances at the time, including the suspension.”
She also questioned the inconsistencies in settlements reached with other defendants.
“What do I make of the decision to settle with the seventh defendant – who just happened to be the only one who was represented, for nil, when their barrister was about to cross-examine the plaintiff (Mrs Brose) in court?”
Judge Muir hopes to deliver her findings early next year.