Lismore’s mayor Isaac Smith has this morning been granted an interim protection order against Big Rob, the man who ran against him in the last local government election.
Cr Smith and Mr Rob both appeared in Lismore Local Court this morning before Magistrate David Heilpern.
The court heard Cr Smith had a written statement to tender regarding the apprehended personal violence order (APVO) application and Mr Rob tendered a submission requesting a change of venue for the APVO due to his claimed bias of Mr Heilpern.
Copies of both Cr Smith’s statement and Mr Rob’s submission were then provided to both parties.
Mr Rob’s submission was dismissed by Mr Heilpern.
‘There are no grounds for actual or percieved…bias,’ Mr Heilpern said.
Mr Heilpern allowed Mr Rob 15 minutes to cross examine Cr Smith about his statement.
Cr Smith then took to the witness box to be cross-examined by Mr Rob.
The cross examination related to Cr Smith’s statement and a photo, taken on January 5, that Mr Rob published on Facebook of the Mayoral car outside his house displaying L-plates.
‘Do you have any evidence that I took that photo,’ Mr Rob asked.
‘No only that you communicated it,’ Cr Smith replied.
‘If I told you that someone else took that photo, would you still proceed,’ Mr Rob said.
‘Yes,’ Cr Smith replied.
‘You were the one that went to my house on the ninth of February, and spent 24 minutes filming my house.’
The court heard Mr Rob was served with the Apprehended Personal Violence Order application on the same day.
‘I believe it was an act to harass and intimidate my family,’ Cr Smith said.
The court heard Cr Smith complained to police about Mr Rob filming outside his house.
‘Was your complaint to police acted on,’ Mr Rob asked.
‘I don’t know what action police took,’ Cr Smith said.
‘The police were notified before I went there,’ Mr Rob said.
‘It constitutes an action you took that caused fear, according to Mr Smith,’ Magistrate David Heilpern said.
He then reminded Mr Rob he only had 15 minutes for cross examination.
‘I’m not going to let this form part of a hearing,’ Mr Heilpern said.
‘I don’t think there is any orders to be made at all,’ Mr Rob said.
Mr Rob then ‘informed’ the court that research conducted two years ago found he was the most high-profile person in Lismore, behind the Mayor.
After adjourning for 10 minutes to consider his verdict, Mr Heilpern returned to court and granted Cr Smith the interim APVO.
Mr Heilpern ordered Mr Rob not to assault, molest, harass, threaten or otherwise interfere with Cr Smith or people he has a domestic relationship with.
Mr Rob must not go within 200m of Cr Smith’s house.
He must not publish or cause to be published or allow to be published any material about Cr Smith, his house, or his family, excluding the Mayoral car.
Mr Heilpern also ordered Mr Rob to remove any reference, or picture of, or any material concerning Cr Smith and his family, excluding the Mayoral car, from his various Facebook pages within 12 hours.
The penalty for breaching these orders, Mr Heilpern said, was a significant fine or up to 2 years in prison.
‘Failure to comply with these orders may result in contempt of court,’ Mr Heilpern said.
Mr Rob objected to the second condition on the APVO preventing him from going within 200m of Cr Smith’s house as he claimed it prevented him from going to university.
Cr Smith then asked the court to adjourn the matter to a date in April so his counsel had time to see material submitted by Mr Rob.
‘I don’t want to keep coming to court for these trivial matters,’ Mr Rob said.
When Mr Heilpern asked Mr Rob if he could prepare his material a week before the next adjournment date, he replied ‘no your honour.’
Once the decision was handed down, Mr Rob went to the court registry to lodge an appeal to stay the interim orders, as he didn’t agree with all conditions.
The court heard Mr Rob would not agree to keeping 200m away from Cr Smith’s house, as he travelled within that distance to go to university, and claimed he had a friend who lived within 100m of Cr Smith’s house.
Mr Rob also took issue with removing all material concerning Cr Smith and his family from his various Facebook pages within 12 hours
Mr Heilpern said he consulted a map which revealed many alternate ways for Mr Rob to get to university.
‘I reject the contention whatsoever that Mr Rob must drive past that house,’ Mr Heilpern said.
‘The orders remain in force as they are.’
Mr Heilpern adjourned the matter until a date in April.
Big Rob still wants to argue the impossible against the judge. Bloody typical.
It is interesting to contrast your journalists clear unbiased account of what happened at Court this morning to the account of Robert Boo Hoo Hamdan AKA Big Rob. Ppt. Over on the Unofficial: Big Rob Facebook page it is more of the same. The Magistrate was biased. The Mayor told lies. The Mayor was acting. The Magistrate made advere findings. On and on the show rolls.
However, of great interest to all citizens is the fact that on a 10 minute rambling video Big Rob once again and very publicly confirmed that if he goes down on 2 out of any 3 matters he will leave Lismore forever. Today was Strike One. Roll on the next Court date.
You sound like you support this petulant mayor who comes across as a self righteous political vigilante trying to drive people out of town because they happen not to agree with the way he does things. The mayor should not use the courts to wage a vendetta against a private citizen. This whole case clearIy shows what hypocrites most people are theses days. The judge is biased because the judge is part of the same social crowd that the mayor mixes in. They are of the same political persuasion and the mayor knew from the get go the judge would act in his favour. There is no violence involved in this case so how does the judge manage to issue an APVO against a man who has done nothing more than criticise a politician on facebook? This is a blatant misuse of the court system by a heavy handed politician . Is the mayor so pathetically and easily offended ? Maybe he should never have become mayor.
Yes I do support the Mayor. You talk of vendetta. It’s not the Mayor undertaking a vendetta. And that is why Robert ‘Boo Hoo’ Hamdan AKA Big Rob went down in a screaming heap the other day.
As to your attack on the Magistrate. Where is there any evidence of Magistrate Heilpern’s political affiliations? When & where does Heilpern mix with the Mayor’s crowd? You are just like Boo Hoo. You spin a story, throw it out there, then sit back & pretend it’s the truth.
What’s more had you attended Court you would have seen the Magistrate put up with Boo Hoo in all his glory. Wearing shorts and thongs he was argumentive (as opposed to making a rational legal argument) rude & time & time went off line. Over & over the Magistrate attempted to get Boo Hoo to focus on the facts & over & over Boo Hoo launched into political statements.
For me the funniest moment was when Boo Hoo stated that a Survey taken a few years ago had found he was the most recognised person in Lismore after the Mayor! Serious! I mean can you believe this! What survey? The only Survey I can think would show this is one taken by Boo Hoo himself. You can picture it. It’s 3am on a cold wet winter Saturday outside a deserted Kebab Shop in Lismore. There is Boo Hoo reeking from Chicken & Tabouli. In one hand he holds an election poster of his. ‘Vote Big Rob’ it proclaims beneath a wild eyed Orwellian depiction of his hairy face. In the other, is a poster of Mayor Smith. “Who do you recognise?” he demands from 3 punters on their way home from a nearby pub, slightly worse for wear. Two say Smith. The other after shifting his gaze between the poster and Boo Hoo’s face for several minutes finally says, “You….I think”! Boo Hoo slinks off into the night satisfied that almost as many people recognise him as recognise the Mayor.
Sadly, Boo Hoo forgets to lock the door of his shop. It is ransacked by homeless drug addicts and mentally ill women from Goonellabah. The next day Boo Hoo launches an attack on all the ‘bent coppers’ at Richmond LAC and all the druggo drongo journalists he saw skating around town at midnight……. And on and on the Big Rob train wreck rolled……