Stonnington mayor takes out court order banning council watchdog from demeaning online posts
The head of a prolific council watchdog has been hit with an intervention order after the mayor of Stonnington Council sought protections for alleged online abuse and harassment.
Magistrate Michelle Mykytowycz granted the interim public safety order on Tuesday after a long-running feud between Council Watch president Dean Hurlston and Stonnington mayor Melina Sehr escalated following the local government elections last October.
An affidavit by Sehr, part of which was aired in Melbourne Magistrates' Court, alleged that Hurlston used pseudonyms to contact her and her then-employer, which she claimed led to her losing her job. A Facebook post also accused Sehr of using the recent death of her mother to dodge media inquiries.
Sehr said she had been suffering from anxiety, depression, sleeplessness and had lost income following 'an unrelenting stream of mockery, belittlement and abuse, together with a constant stream of criticism, ridicule and misogynistic attacks'.
Council Watch is a long-running association that positions itself as a self-styled local government watchdog, managing Facebook groups that discuss council matters in different municipalities across Victoria.
Hurlston's partner, Joe Gianfriddo, served as Stonnington mayor before Sehr. Gianfriddo lost at last year's council elections in a one-on-one battle against councillor Jami Klisaris, an ally of Sehr.
Sehr first applied for an interim intervention order against Hurlston in January, but this was refused. The matter returned to court this month after Sehr collated new material for the magistrate to consider.
Sehr, a councillor for 23 years, gave evidence about the impacts on her of a now-deleted post on Stonnington Council Watch that accused her of weaponising the death of her mother.
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