Statement from Peter Faris QC and SHORTEN rape complainant Kathy Sherriff
Monday, 01 March 2021
Joint statement from Peter Faris QC and alleged Bill Shorten rape victim
Tuesday, 14 May 2019
Peter Faris QC is the former head of the National Crime Authority.
I know him well.
He is an eminent barrister and an expert in the criminal law.
I have been corresponding with Kathy for some months.
I believe her allegations against Shorten.
This is Kathy with Peter Faris QC in Melbourne today.
And this is their joint statement.
Statement of Kathy Sherriff
In 1986 I was raped by Bill Shorten.
I was 16 years old at the time.
At a later point the matter was reported to Victoria Police.
In August 2014, after a long investigation, the Victorian Police told me they were not proceeding to prosecute Bill Shorten for my rape. I was devastated.
Part of the reason the police gave me was that the Victorian OPP thought there was no reasonable prospect of conviction - because it was only my word against Bill’s. Another reason was that some of the people I said were witnesses could not be found by the police.
The police told me that if new witnesses were located or other evidence was found, then they would look at reopening my case.
Since then I have worked hard to find the people I knew were at the conference that weekend in August 1986 and who knew what happened to me. I looked for all the evidence I could find to support my case. For 5 years this has been my focus so that I can have justice and this matter can go to trial.
My whole life has been impacted by the events of that weekend and until this case is dealt with by the courts, I cannot move past it.
Today, Peter Faris QC has agreed to assist me in my pursuit of justice and we have arranged to meet with Victorian Police to present the new evidence.
We call for my case to be reopened.
I have done this on my own accord without the assistance of the media or the many friends and supporters who have tried to help me in the past or in recent months.
This is my journey alone.
I know that many people will criticise the timing of my actions - but my right to justice and the rights of rape victims everywhere, is more important than politics.
If anyone has any questions they can contact me through face book or contact
Mr Peter Faris QC.
Statement of Mr Peter Faris QC.
I am a retired Criminal Barrister and I am assisting Kathy in her endeavour to get Justice.
In my view the Police should reopen the investigation into this matter and the Office of Public Prosecutions should prosecute Shorten.
This is a serious complaint of rape and Kathy is entitled to her day in court as is Shorten.
This case is similar in circumstances to the Pell case where the victim was the only eye-witness.
As we know in that case a conviction was obtained on that evidence.
Kathy is entitled to be heard in a criminal trial and to have a jury decide guilt or innocence.
Peter Faris QC
ENDS
And this is a photo taken around the time of Shorten's alleged offending.
The alleged offender Bill Shorten is the young man with the clenched fist raised in the centre of the photo.
And this is my take on the implications of the guilty verdict against Cardinal George Pell - a jury verdict delivered after only one witness, the complainant, gave evidence against the Cardinal.
