Five elected members of a Central Victorian council and their CEO could be returning to work in a matter of days following an intervention by the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP).
Hepburn Shire Councillors Tony Clark, Don Henderson, Lesley Hewitt, Pat Hockey and Shirley Cornish, plus outgoing chief executive Bradley Thomas, all saw the charges brought against them withdrawn during a hearing at the Ballarat Magistrates Court on Wednesday, August 5th.
They had previously been charged with misuse of public office under a private prosecution led by Daylesford businessman David Penman.
The legal saga began in March of this year when Mr Penman served Cr Henderson – a former Mayor of the Shire – and Mr Thomas with criminal charges, a move that saw both suspended from their council duties under the state’s Local Government Act.
Then in July, the current Mayor Cr Clark was charged, followed by the other three elected members, all of whom were also forced to stand aside.
This left the council without the quorum needed to govern the Shire and pass motions during meetings, and could have resulted in an Administrator being appointed by the state government.
But after taking over the case, the DPP concluded there were insufficient grounds for prosecution and offered to withdraw the charges.
Speaking to the media outside the Court on Wednesday, Mr Penman said he accepted the decision, while Hepburn Shire issued a statement describing it as “a great outcome for democracy and our community.”
Those thoughts were echoed by Rural Councils Victoria and its chair, Campaspe Shire councillor Rob Amos.
“These withdrawals will be welcomed by the Hepburn councillors whose lives and careers have been disrupted,” Cr Amos said.
“This episode has created significant disruption to local representation and the functioning of the council in Hepburn.”
He also urged the government to act and ensure similar issues don’t afflict other councils.
“The underlying legislative flaw still remains unresolved,” Cr Amos said.
“Until the Victorian Government changes the law and closes the loophole that forces councillors to stand aside for private criminal prosecutions, the threat will continue.
“We urge the new Premier, Ben Carroll, and the new Minister for Local Government, Tim Richardson, to fix this flawed law as a matter of urgency.”
Mr Richardson’s predecessor, Paul Hamer had previously said that legislation would be put before parliament to prevent the issue from happening elsewhere in Victoria.
A timeline on when Hepburn’s councillors and CEO will return to work is yet to be made public.
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