Driver charged with ramming Australian lawmaker with car in ‘targeted’ attack

By Hilary Whiteman, CNN

Brisbane, Australia (CNN) — A 43-year-old man has been charged with ramming an Australian lawmaker with a vehicle in what police said was a “targeted” attack that inflicted serious injuries requiring the amputation of her leg, according to media reports.

Helen Haines, 65, who represents the federal seat of Indi, was struck by a Toyota four-wheel-drive Land Cruiser in the rural city of Wangaratta at about 3:30 p.m. local time on Monday. The attack generated nationwide debate about the driver’s motives and the safety of Australia’s politicians.

Police have not confirmed the suspect’s name, nor his motive, but local media have identified him as Brendan Nugent.

He’ll face court on Wednesday charged with dangerous driving causing serious injury, intentionally causing serious injury and the Commonwealth offense of causing harm to a Commonwealth public official.

On Tuesday, his father, Rod Nugent, released a statement describing Haines as a friend and a “deeply respected, valued and much loved member of our local community.”

“Helen has been our friend for more than 20 years and what happened to her yesterday is devastating and unfathomable,” the father said, according to the Associated Press.

In a series of interviews on Tuesday, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said the vehicle drove down the main street before turning around and ramming the popular independent politician, who has represented her constituents for seven years. At the time, she was standing at the rear of her car, taking items out of the trunk.

Local media suggests she was pinned between two vehicles, and Australian Broadcasting Corp. and CNN affiliates report that one of her legs was so badly damaged it had to be amputated. Doctors are trying to save the other, local reports added.

In the immediate aftermath, witnesses rushed to Haines’ aid and detained the vehicle’s driver until police arrived, according to Victoria Police Acting Superintendent Ashley Mason.

Barber Ricky Jefferies told the ABC, he ran out of his shop, grabbed a knife from the driver’s pocket and pulled the driver from the car, before attempting to calm him down. Jefferies has since been hailed as a hero.

“I had no choice but to take him out of the car because it was the right and safest thing to do,” Jefferies said. “They didn’t even check the danger. They just ran to help,” he said of other bystanders.

Political violence is rare in Australia, but reports of harassing and threatening behavior against politicians have been rising in the past year, according to Australian Federal Police (AFP) statistics cited by the government. AFP Commissioner Krissy Barrett said in a statement that the attack appeared to be an isolated incident.

Late Tuesday, Haines remained in a critical but stable condition, according to Victoria Police.

A lawmaker ‘full of integrity’

While police had yet to question the suspect, Albanese was quick to inform the nation that it was a “deliberate act.”

He said he wasn’t aware of any individual threats against Haines. But he added that the “temperature” of political discourse has “increased in recent times” and called for turning it down.

“There’s no place for political violence in a democracy,” he told the ABC on Monday.

Haines was airlifted to Melbourne, where she underwent surgery at the Alfred hospital that night. In a statement posted to social media, her family thanked bystanders for their “swift assistance.”

A multi-tiered investigation is underway led by Victoria Police, involving members of the Joint Counter-Terrorism Team, including the AFP and the Australian Security Intelligence Organization (ASIO).

Haines was elected to federal Parliament in 2019 as an independent candidate who fought for better healthcare services in rural areas. She has focused her time on integrity in politics and called for gambling reform, better mental health treatment and an end to the war in Gaza.

Before entering politics, she worked as a midwife, establishing one of the country’s longest-running rural midwifery services, according to her website.

“Helen Haines is incredibly hardworking,” Albanese said at a press conference on Monday. “She is fiercely intelligent, but most importantly, she’s just a thoroughly decent human being, full of integrity, and respected right across the Parliament, and from everyone who comes into contact with her.”

Politicians from all sides of politics paid tribute to Haines, who is admired and respected within the Australian Parliament and variously described by colleagues as a “force for good” and a “beacon of light.” Liberal Party leader Angus Taylor said Monday was a “shocking day for the nation.”

“Australians will be angry and appalled by the attack on Helen outside her electorate office in Wangaratta,” he posted to X. “Our nation cannot become a place where violent attacks are normalised.”

Pauline Hanson, leader of the right-wing One Nation party that has risen in popularity in recent months, also said there was no place for violence against any elected representative.

“Members of parliament and their staff must be able to serve their communities without fearing for their safety,” she said on X.

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