Latest news with #DeanHurlston
ABC News
01-07-2025
- Politics
- ABC News
Court finds 'vile' posts by Council Watch head not political commentary
The head of a ratepayer advocacy group has been hit with a two-year intervention order after a magistrate ruled he stalked and harassed an inner-city Melbourne mayor under the guise of political discourse, and was likely to do so again. Stonnington mayor Melina Sehr was on Tuesday granted a Personal Safety Intervention Order (PSIO) against Council Watch president Dean Hurlston over allegations Mr Hurlston had harassed her for six years. Magistrate Michelle Hodgson ruled that while some of the content put before the court did constitute legitimate political commentary, the nature, frequency and persistence of Mr Hurlston's communication had caused it to "lose its political character". Ms Hodgson told the court Mr Hurlston's content showed "ample evidence of ill-will, spite and animosity" towards Cr Sehr, and that Mr Hurlston's "reckless disregard for the truth", denial of intent and justification of harm in court meant she did not find him a credible witness. The magistrate also said personal malice could not be concealed "under the superficial veneer of political discourse or public-interest journalism". She said Mr Hurlston knew his conduct would cause harm or fear of harm. Throughout the four-day hearing in the Melbourne Magistrates Court, Ms Hodgson noted some of Mr Hurlston's social media posts, texts, emails and videos were fair comment and some were "pretty vile comments". Ms Hodgson said the concern was ultimately how they were communicated. She pointed to multiple examples of Mr Hurlston pairing genuine criticism with personal attacks, including one instance in which he accused Cr Sehr of financial impropriety alongside a "pretty personal attack" that alleged the councillor had weaponised the death of her mother for political gains. Cr Sehr told the court she had been subject to an "unrelenting stream of mockery, belittlement and abuse" from Mr Hurlston since 2019, when Stonnington council decided to build a series of netball courts near his home. Giving evidence, Cr Sehr referred to a 486-page document containing commentary and correspondence from Mr Hurlston, Council Watch and other online users that included posts likening Cr Sehr's conduct to the Holocaust solution, a pinned map showing where she lived, comments that Cr Sehr "might need a spare pair of undies", doctored images that allegedly fat-shamed her, and allegations she inappropriately touched staff. Cr Sehr also told the court Mr Hurlston had emailed her questions under an alias and claimed he worked for a non-existent media organisation. She said Mr Hurlston also contacted her employer and her contract was subsequently terminated. Mr Hurlston admitted in court he was responsible for the email sent under a false identity, telling the court he believed Cr Sehr would not respond to correspondence from him. The court heard from three other current and former female Stonnington councillors who alleged Mr Hurlston also targeted them and continued to do so despite repeated requests to stop. During cross-examination of Cr Sehr, Ms Hodgson repeatedly warned Mr Hurlston's lawyer, Gordon Chisholm, to stop trying to prove the alleged misconduct was true and to stop introducing fresh allegations. "It's not an opportunity to raise other allegations in relation to Ms Sehr." Mr Hurlston told the court Council Watch was a "very complex multifaceted organisation" that balanced consulting work, lobbying and media coverage. He acknowledged it published material that was "salacious" and "intentionally click baiting" to "to hook people in". "But in amongst that there are some very real stories." Mr Hurlston told the court his tactics against Cr Sehr were not unique to her. He said he had suffered "unrelenting attacks" from Stonnington councillors and their associates and that explained why he had made comments about those councillors' vaginas. "I would say it's rude, deeply offensive, but you're not looking at the context when asking if it's decent," Mr Hurlston told the court. Mr Hurlston is not facing criminal charges but could be jailed if found in breach of the two-year intervention order. The order does not prevent Mr Hurlston from engaging in legitimate political commentary of Cr Sehr, but all content must be factual and relate exclusively to her public political position. Ms Hodgson prohibited Mr Hurlston from posting anything "degrading or demeaning" and personal, and he was not permitted to create, administer or author any forum for that purpose.
ABC News
23-06-2025
- Politics
- ABC News
Council Watch head fights intervention order bid from Victorian mayor
The head of a local government advocacy organisation is in court this week for an intervention order hearing over allegations of harassment. An inner-city Melbourne mayor is seeking a protection order against Dean Hurlston, who runs the Council Watch organisation, over allegations of ongoing harassment. Stonnington Mayor Melina Sehr told a civil contest hearing in the Melbourne Magistrates Court she had endured six years of targeted harassment from Mr Hurlston. In April, Cr Sehr was granted an interim order against Mr Hurlston. She is now seeking a full personal safety intervention order (PSIO). A PSIO protects an individual from unwanted behaviour, including physical and mental harm. An interim order can be made until an application for a final order is determined. Mr Hurlston is not facing criminal charges and denies he is a safety threat to Cr Sehr. Giving evidence on Monday, Cr Sehr referred to a 486-page document containing social media posts, comments, texts, and emails from Mr Hurlston, Council Watch, and other users engaging with the content that she told the court had humiliated, harassed, mocked and intimidated her. Cr Sehr alleged Mr Hurlston's "unrelenting stream of mockery, belittlement and abuse" began in 2019, after Stonnington council's decision to build a series of netball courts near his home. She told the court that by 2022, 85 per cent of all posts on the Council Watch and Stonnington Council Watch pages referred to her. The hearing, which is expected to go for four days, continues.
ABC News
26-05-2025
- Politics
- ABC News
Ratepayer group Council Watch accused of abusing councillors, staff across Victoria
Amid debate about library funding and illegal rubbish dumping, Victorian councils have gathered to discuss an organisation a growing number of councillors consider a threat to their personal safety. That organisation is Council Watch Victoria Inc. The ABC has spoken to more than 20 councillors from 13 Victorian councils who expressed concerns about Council Watch, with 17 of them reporting they have either been allegedly threatened, harassed or abused by Council Watch, its president Dean Hurlston, or its supporters. Their claims include that Mr Hurlston and Council Watch published allegations of sexual harassment, an abusive relationship, drug-fuelled mood swings, coercive control, theft, cyberstalking and bullying. It's also alleged Mr Hurlston and Council Watch have attacked public government officials and staff, including allegedly calling a queer community representative a "pedo sympathiser" online. This month's Municipal Association of Victoria (MAV) conference initially received a motion that would have asked representatives from the state's 79 councils to condemn the alleged personal abuse and misinformation "conveyed regularly online by Council Watch" and call for a state government investigation into the pro-ratepayer group. That motion, submitted by Moonee Ponds councillor Rose Iser, was amended before it was put to a vote, but it was ultimately defeated. Instead, the gathering voted in favour of a more general motion targeting online abuse and misinformation that did not mention Council Watch or Mr Hurlston. Upon publication of Cr Iser's initial motion in the MAV agenda, Council Watch, in a letter signed by Mr Hurlston, told the MAV and Cr Iser the motion was defamatory, stating he would seek damages "to the tune of $100,000". He also threatened to launch defamation action against 68 councillors, who were all carbon-copied on the same email, should they proceed with the vote. Cr Iser said she thought it was an "absurd" attempt to scare the group, while another councillor described it as "threatening". MAV president Jennifer Anderson confirmed the MAV sought legal advice ahead of the motion, and was advised it could proceed. Cr Iser's initial motion is the latest attempt by councillors, some of whom said they fear for their safety, to get something done about Council Watch and Mr Hurlston. The 21 current and former councillors the ABC spoke with painted a dark picture about the alleged behaviour of Council Watch and Mr Hurlston. The ABC is aware of a further 14 current and former councillors from eight additional councils who told Cr Iser they have allegedly been affected by the pro-ratepayer group. A Melbourne councillor told the ABC Mr Hurlston allegedly shared her address online and suggested disgruntled ratepayers "march on her home". She wore a necklace with an emergency response button for six months and moved to an address she had kept private from even her closest friends. A former inner-Melbourne mayor told the ABC Mr Hurlston sent him repeated text messages threatening to "go public" with false accusations if he didn't respond to his questioning. The alleged abuse extended beyond elected representatives. Mr Hurlston has posted on social media that an LGBTQIA+ council advocate from regional Victoria was a "pedo sympathiser". The councillors who spoke to the ABC on the condition of anonymity have been unanimous in calling Council Watch "ground zero" for misinformation, "vile" slogans and "personalised hate" campaigns being conducted online and in person. Mr Hurlston was approached for comment but did not respond to the ABC's questions. Council Watch was founded more than 20 years ago as Ratepayers Victoria. It launched on Facebook in 2018 and was taken over by Mr Hurlston the following year. Mr Hurlston has since become a regular voice in parliamentary inquiries, where he has appeared as an authority on local government matters. Council Watch calls itself a "media/news company" on social media and its website describes it as a specialist body with "lobbying strength". Melton councillor Phillip Zada had been in local government for five months when he said he received his first text message from Mr Hurlston. During a closed-door meeting of councillors, executives and government representatives, Cr Zada asked what could be done about the "rise of unregulated groups that spread misinformation, push hidden agendas and fuel public mistrust". "What protections can be put in place to support those of us who are being targeted simply for doing our jobs," he asked. Cr Zada said at no point did he mention Council Watch. Minutes later he said he received a text message that said, "You don't need protection from Council Watch — we pose no threat to you … the minister has better things to do than play KGB to councillor paranoia". Cr Zada said the message was from Mr Hurlston, who was not in the room at the time. The ABC has seen a multitude of text messages, letters, complaints to external employers, cease-and-desist emails and legalistic notices Mr Hurlston and Council Watch sent to councillors threatening defamation action. Earlier this month, a Melbourne court heard allegations that Mr Hurlston, posing as a journalist with a fake name working for a non-existent news organisation, emailed questions to a councillor's employer. Mr Hurlston, who is not facing criminal charges, will contest the allegations in June. Multiple councillors told the ABC any correspondence with Mr Hurlston would be published on the Council Watch website with "excessive use of the word 'allegedly'". "When he makes a comment which is a lie he throws in the word allegedly," one councillor said. Sean Mulcahy co-leads the Victorian Pride Lobby's Rainbow Local Government campaign, which advocates for greater LGBTIQA+ representation on councils. While not a councillor, he claimed he had endured five years of abuse from Mr Hurlston, including the use of his photo and name in various iterations of Mr Hurlston's social media profiles. Among the vitriol directed to Mr Mulcahy was the allegation that he was a "pedo sympathiser". "It can cut to your core when there's an insinuation that the work you do is tantamount to child abuse," Mr Mulcahy said. The MAV said that "as with all resolutions that were passed at [this month's] State Council, the MAV team will now action" the motion relating to online abuse and misinformation. Local Government Minister Nick Staikos did not answer questions about Council Watch, but said "everyone has the right to a safe, inclusive and respectful workplace". "We are seeing too many politically charged personal attacks and conspiracy theories spread on social media," Mr Staikos said. "This behaviour deters people from standing for public office and limits the representation of diverse communities within local governments across Victoria."
