slippery pete slips out

This is going to be good. Pity parliament isn't sitting. The histrionics would be riviting.

The sexual harassment case brought against former Parliamentary Speaker Peter Slipper by his ex-staffer James Ashby has been thrown out of the Federal Court

In his judgment handed down on Wednesday, Justice Steve Rares found the case was made "improperly", with the intention of damaging Mr Slipper and the Federal Government.

Justice Rares said the sexual harassment case was an "abuse of the judicial process". He dismissed the claim with costs.

Mr Ashby, wearing a grey suit with a purple checked shirt and dark purple tie, was red faced and looked down at his lap as the judgment was read out.
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Mr Ashby had claimed that he was the target of "unwelcome sexual advances, unwelcome sexual comments and unwelcome suggestions of a sexual nature" while working as Mr Slipper’s aide and media advisor between January and March this year.

Mr Ashby had revealed hundreds of text messages in which he claimed Mr Slipper made lewd comments, including comparing female genitalia to shell fish, and asking ‘‘can I kiss you both?’’. He also claimed that Mr Slipper attempted to victimise him when he rebuffed his advances.

But the former speaker had maintained the allegations were false and that the lawsuit was a "character assassination" undertaken in an attempt to "hurt my political career, hurt me financially, destabilise the government and destroy my marriage".

He pointed to the fact that Mr Ashby made serious criminal allegations against him regarding the use of cab charges which were then withdrawn before the matter came to court as evidence that the entire lawsuit was little more than an attempt to generate negative publicity.

Justice Rares today upheld that argument, hitting out at the former advisor and his lawyers for making the claim for political and personal purposes.

Soon after Justice Rares finished reading his judgment, Mr Ashby dashed out of court and into a meeting room with his legal team.

Read more: http://www.theage.com.au/opinion/political-news/slipper-case-thrown-out-20121212-2b8o9.html#ixzz2EmwXUN7k