AFL wins drug-test names case
Peter Gregory, Jordan Chong
August 30, 2006 - 10:35AM
The Age and other media organisations have failed in a bid to name three AFL players alleged to have twice tested positive for social drugs.
Justice Murray Kellam today said he would uphold an application for a permanent injunction suppressing the players' names.
He gave lawyers for the AFL and media interests further time to discuss the terms of the court order, and maintained an earlier court order preventing publication.
In a published summary of his decision, Justice Kellam said AFL footballers had agreed to be tested out of competition in the interests of the code's illicit drugs policy, but on the proviso that the first two positive tests were confidential.
"The public interest does not require, nor is it served by, the breach of such confidentiality," he said.
Justice Kellam said media interests argued that information about the players' identities was already public, and it revealed criminal conduct on their behalf.
He said there was no evidence the material had been disseminated to the public at large.
The confidentiality orders were not being sought to prevent information disclosure to investigating authorities, and the information did not reveal misbehaviour or a crime that affected the community as a whole, he said
Outside the Supreme Court, AFL football operations manager Adrian Anderson said: "This decision enables the AFL to continue its fight against illicit drugs."
Anderson said keeping the players' names suppressed had nothing to do with protecting the AFL's brand.
"If we were more concerned about brand, you wouldn't bother testing players when you don't have to. We didn't go into this policy to protect our brand," he said.
AFL chief execeutive Andrew Demetriou welcomed the ruling and defended the league's approach to protecting the identities of players who returned positive drug tests.
"Drug experts tell us that this is the best way to make a difference and stop drug use," he said.
Demetrious said players needed counselling, education, treatment and rehabilitation to prevent them taking drugs during and after their careers.
In March, the AFL and AFL players' association obtained an injunction stopping The Age, Sydney Morning Herald and West Australian from publishing the names of three players who allegedly twice tested positive for illegal drugs.
The AFL also asked the police to investigate how the players' names were leaked to the media.
During the hearing before Justice Kellam, Will Houghton, QC, for the AFL, argued that publication of the footballers' identities would destroy the code's illicit drugs policy.
The policy, due to expire after the 2006 season, allowed disclosure of a first positive result only to an AFL medical officer. A second positive result could be revealed to a football club doctor, while a third finding meant the player would be named, front the AFL Tribunal and be suspended.
But Simon Marks, SC, for the newspapers, said the public had a substantial interest when a public figure was allegedly involved in conduct that society regarded as unacceptable.
theage.com.au
http://www.theage.com.au/news/national/afl-wins-drugtest-names-case/2006/08/30/1156816938773.html
