A man who filmed state Liberal MP David Elliott while questioning the legality of NSW’s COVID-19 lockdowns has avoided a conviction despite a court finding he intimidated the then police and emergency services minister.
On Friday afternoon, Local Court magistrate Eve Wynhausen found Daniel Joseph Luland intimidated Mr Elliott on August 20, 2021 by following the MP for almost 140 metres and recording the conversation on his mobile against the politician’s wishes.
“It seems to me that on that occasion, Mr Luland did overstep the mark from what was annoying and bothering and perhaps disturbing to what was intimidating … And I am satisfied that it amounted to intimidation.”
This was at the lower end of intimidation but was not trivial, the magistrate said.
A second charge of intimidating a Baulkham Hills man, Stephen Parnell, who came to the aid of Mr Elliott, was dismissed.
The magistrate found Mr Luland’s conversation with Mr Parnell, in which he told him to “f*** off”, was “rude and discourteous” but did not amount to intimidation.
Mr Luland avoided conviction and was instead sentenced to a six-month conditional release order after Ms Wynhausen took into account PTSD from serving in the Australian Defence Force, a lack of any prior convictions and testimonials attesting to his good character.
A 12-month personal violence order was also imposed barring Mr Luland from approaching or contacting Mr Elliott or his electoral office.
Giving evidence on Friday, Mr Elliott called Mr Luland’s conduct “quite aggressive” and “quite physically intimidating” as the pair walked down Old Northern Road towards Baulkham Hill’s Grove Street Shopping Centre.
“When people pass that threshold, I think a reasonable person would probably be quite cautious when this sort of behaviour is conducted. And let me tell you it is very unusual for that kind of behaviour to occur in the Hills District,” Mr Elliott said.
The now transport minister said he was on heightened alert after having a “gutful” of death threats and stalking experienced during his seven years as a politician.
In recorded footage of the August 2021 conversation, which was posted on social media and played to the court, Mr Luland describes how the “tyrannical” NSW government had illegally taken away citizens’ rights through its COVID-19 lockdowns.
Mr Luland, who was not wearing a mask despite the state’s strict COVID-19 restrictions at the time, is also heard talking about a “media blackout”, amendments to federal legislation which permitted the use of United Nations forces on Australian soil and the “racist” lockdown of southwest Sydney during the Delta outbreak.
Mr Luland pleaded not guilty to both intimidation charges. He did not give evidence on Friday.
From the witness box, Mr Parnell described Mr Luland’s behaviour as harassment.
“I thought that this guy’s up to no good. This could be actually a bit nasty,” he said.
The prosecution claimed Mr Luland’s tone, behaviour and persistence in following Mr Elliott amounted to intimidation and that both he and Mr Parnell felt fearful for their safety.
Luland’s defence lawyer Vinny Vijay told the court that his client’s behaviour may have been annoying, but it did not rise to the level of intimidation and that the footage did not show any intent to intimidate.
Mr Vijay said the conversation had begun “quite cordially”, noting that his client had maintained his distance and had not attempted to physically block the NSW politician from walking to the shopping centre.
A third charge of failing to comply with COVID-19 orders was dropped before Friday’s hearing.
