The protester accused of forcing the evacuation of Woodside’s headquarters on Thursday after orchestrating a faux gas leak has been placed under house arrest, as police mull further charges amid claims workers have fallen ill.
But it was an allegation rubbished by Disrupt Burrup Hub protester Kristen Morrissey’s lawyer Zarah Burgess, who told the court there was no evidence any of the 2,500 workers forced from their offices had suffered adverse health effects.
Morrissey fronted Perth Magistrates Court on Friday after being charged with acts creating false apprehension as to the existence of threats or danger.
Morrisey, a music teacher at two top Perth private schools, was bailed to the Floreat address of her elderly parents and ordered not to leave, other than for work, or come within 100 metres of property owned or occupied by Woodside.
The 49-year-old was warned more charges could be laid once police had finished interviewing the hundreds of workers affected after she allegedly released non-toxic ethyl mercaptan (“stench”) gas into Woodside’s headquarters, some of whom, police allege, had since reported feeling ill.
WA Police indicated the matter may be escalated to the District Court and could land Morrissey a jail term, supplying as evidence data on the possible side effects of the chemical, and a video of Morrissey calling on other members of the public to join the group’s cause.
Morrissey’s court appearance came 24 hours after Morrissey released the non-toxic stench gas, which the court was told emanated over 20 floors and sent thousands of workers fleeing.
Police prosecutors opposed bail, telling the court no conditions imposed would be sufficient to deter her from engaging in further action.
“My concerns arise around the risk to the community, the risk of reoffending, and her ongoing engagement with anyone part of the groups as the investigation is ongoing,” the police prosecutor said.
“She is willing to endanger the health of other people.
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“It’s so serious. My point is, there was a significant impact on all the individuals involved and that can’t be understated.”
Burgess told the court Morrissey had a history of protest-based offending but was an intelligent woman capable of restraint.
She also indicated Morrissey may run a climate emergency defence.
Magistrate Kevin Tanever said there had been a progression of offending by Morrissey, which had now placed others at risk, but said there was not enough information before the court to warrant keeping her in custody.
“What she has allegedly done has placed people at risk, and I’m not exaggerating that risk,” he said.
“That number of people moving in fear is a concern and there’s the impact of the gas itself. There could be people who react poorly to it.
“While imprisonment is not inevitable, if the allegations change over time, if further charges are laid, then that changes it and the pendulum swings toward imprisonment.”
The matter is expected to return to court on June 13.
In a statement read outside court, Morrissey said the stench gas was harmless.
“Disrupt Burrup Hub will continue to sound the alarm about the dishonesty of the claims by the WA government about Woodside’s Burrup Hub, already causing permanent damage to ancient, sacred Murujuga rock art and emitting six billion tons of CO2 over its lifetime,” she said.
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The sentiment was echoed by Human Rights Watch senior researcher Sophie McNeill, who described the house arrest as an “outrageous” punishment that should be reserved for those who posed a serious risk to the community, not for a peaceful climate activist.
The incident prompted a large-scale operation by firefighters and police, with the building remaining cordoned off for several hours until the bomb response unit and government chemists could examine and remove the source of the gas.
The incident is the latest in a series of protests by the Disrupt Burrup Hub campaign, which is rallying against Woodside’s $50 billion Burrup Hub projects over environmental concerns.
Hours later, the City of Perth revoked the group’s booking for a gathering at one of its premises, telling WAtoday it deemed the event to pose a danger to staff, volunteers and city operations.
The group instead opted to meet on the lawn outside council house, with police arriving shortly beforehand.
Perth Lord Mayor Basil Zempilas backed the decision when asked about it on Radio 6PR.
“Safe gas? Is that what you’re calling it?” he told the station.
“The decision was made based on the incident that occurred earlier that day.”
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