A number of social media posts have made hostile and inaccurate claims about our story on the private prosecution of Hepburn Shire Council CEO Bradley Thomas and Councillor Don Henderson. We want to address these directly.
The story is solid
The story reports on a private prosecution brought by David Penman against Mr Thomas and Cr Henderson. It is grounded in matters of public record and reputable media reporting including by the ABC, which we linked to prominently.
The story notes that proceedings have been delayed, and that under State Government legislation Cr Henderson is required to stand down from Council while the prosecution continues. These are facts. The conduct of a council CEO and an elected councillor in the context of legal proceedings is unambiguously a matter of public interest, and we make no apology for reporting on it. However, we are conscious of the subjudice requirement to avoid making comments on the merits of the case.
One correction, handled transparently
An earlier version of the story indicated that a full brief of evidence had not been provided to the court. Mr Penman advised us that evidence has been provided in stages while subpoena proceedings are ongoing. We updated the story to reflect his position. That is what responsible journalism looks like — and it is in stark contrast to the claims circulating on social media, which have been made without correction, without evidence, and in some cases without basic civility.
Who we are
The Wombat Post is an incorporated not-for-profit community news service run by the Daylesford District News Association, with over 120 members. We publish under an Editorial Committee that reviews all content before publication and takes collective responsibility for it. This is a recognised and reputable model — used by many publications, including some of the world’s most respected mastheads — that maintains editorial standards while protecting individual contributors in a small community setting.
Our editorial policy, committee membership and governance arrangements are published on our website. We operate transparently. We would invite our critics to meet the same standard.
Our position
We stand by our article unreservedly. We reported accurately on a matter of significant community concern, we corrected the record when new information was provided, and we will continue to cover this story.
