Moira Deeming misunderstood meaning of ‘headlock’ but won’t apologise to Matthew Guy for assault allegation

Victorian Liberal MP Moira Deeming says she misunderstood the “technical meaning of the term ‘headlock’”, but will not apologise to her colleague Matthew Guy over the allegation he assaulted her.

Last week it was revealed Deeming had in June reported to police that Guy, the opposition’s public transport spokesperson, had assaulted her at a Macedonian community event in Sunshine, Melbourne in May.

Deeming alleged Guy had placed her in a form of headlock.

CCTV footage of the event was circulated on Thursday, with police confirming that evening they had concluded their investigation, with no offence detected.

In a statement released to media on Monday, Deeming’s lawyer, Cornerstone Legal’s Tim Houweling, said her complaint was based on her own recollection and she was only able to view CCTV footage for the first time after it was released to media.

Houweling said Deeming, who is currently overseas, conceded she misunderstood the technical meaning of “headlock”.

“She accepts that she misunderstood the technical meaning of the term ‘headlock’, but maintains that she used it in good faith to describe what happened,” he said.

“Without attributing motive to the other party, our client maintains that from her perspective this physical contact by a senior male colleague in the workplace was unexpected, unwelcome, physically painful and caused her to feel fear and confusion.”

Houweling said Deeming would not apologise “for making what has been described as a ‘false complaint’ to Victoria Police”.

“She will not apologise for something she has not done,” Houweling said.

“Our client instructs us to make clear that she categorically rejects any suggestion that her complaint was falsely made and considers any such allegation to be entirely without foundation and highly defamatory.”

Houweling said Deeming’s complaint was made only as a matter of last resort after unsuccessful attempts to resolve the incident through the Liberal party’s internal processes.

“Throughout the process, her intention was to deal with the matter confidentially, appropriately and in the appropriate way, rather than through the media or public commentary,” Houweling said.

Houweling said the incident was exacerbated by Deeming’s prior history of being a victim of rape and sexual abuse, “and having PTSD both from that and from what has occurred over the last more than three years”.

“She considers it deeply regrettable that this matter was not able to remain within the Party’s confidential processes and that it has instead become the subject of public commentary, causing unnecessary distress to all those involved,” he said.

Deeming will meet with senior Liberals to work towards an internal resolution, Houweling said.

On Friday, a visibly emotional Guy called on Deeming, the premier, Jacinta Allan, and the attorney general, Sonya Kilkenny, to apologise.

“My family name, my reputation is not a political toy. No one’s is. So I want – and my family deserve – those apologies, particularly from Moira Deeming,” he said.

“There was no ambiguity. I did not do what was alleged, the CCTV proves this. It did from the start, and Victoria police agree.”

Earlier in the week, Kilkenny said the Victorian opposition leader, Jess Wilson, had questions to answer, including about whether it was “appropriate for a member of her caucus to be in the party room when they are the subject of a complaint to police”.

Allan later told reporters Kilkenny’s questions “go to the heart of the leadership of the Liberal party”.

Guy claimed the premier’s and attorney general’s comments “told every Victorian male over 40 they don’t have your back”.

“To Aussie males who are sick of this treatment, who are sick of not being believed, some of us in parliament still have your back. I have your back,” he said.

On Monday, Allan said she would not apologise to Guy as there was “nothing to apologise for” and Wilson still had questions to answer on the “chaos and dysfunction in her Liberal Party party room”.