Overview
- Magistrate Mike Wardell said the Office of Public Prosecutions had not proven conduct that was "deeply or seriously insulting" under Victoria’s objective test.
- The case centered on a December 3, 2023 march of about 30 men in black to the Eureka Stockade, with police audio capturing anti-immigration remarks and chants including "heil victory" and "white man, fight back".
- Prosecutors argued the speech, chants and presentation encouraged violence, while witnesses gave mixed accounts, including police who felt intimidated and a defence witness who saw nothing offensive.
- The court had earlier excluded a proposed expert on Nazism as irrelevant to the offence, shaping the evidence considered.
- Thomas Sewell represented himself after an adjournment request to obtain counsel was denied, and the multi-day contested hearing concluded with his acquittal.