ADELAIDE (Reuters) -
Former
Australian prime minister Malcolm Fraser was ordered to pay more
than A$400,000 (US$264,000) damages over an incident in 1994
when a runaway bull trampled a farming couple on his family's
property.
The Fraser family was ordered to pay the money to Christopher
and Glenys Tippett, who were trampled by a 800 kilogram (1,760
pound) Simmental bull during a cattle sale at the property in
western Victoria state.
A South Australian court heard the bull, named Mountbatten,
charged between two temporary grandstands after catching sight
of other bulls in a nearby paddock, the Australian Associated
Press (AAP) reported.
The animal broke Christopher Tippett's leg and fractured his
wife's arm and two ribs, the court heard.
South Australian Supreme Court judge David Wicks found the
Frasers had breached their duty of care and were guilty of
negligence.
AAP said Fraser, who was prime minister from 1975 to 1983, did
not want to comment on the finding, but had earlier told the
court he had been distressed by what he regarded as a freak and
unforeseeable incident.
