Ebony Bell, 28, had charged with multiple counts of reckless assault and battery for an incident that occurred after an AFL Dreamtime match between Essendon and Richmond on May 25 at around 10.30pm.

The alleged assault was reported the next day and Victoria Police arrested Bell in Melbourne’s north-east on July 25.

He was granted bail and appeared in the Melbourne Magistrates Court on Monday via video link.

Bell’s lawyer, Emanuele Nicolosi, said an offer to settle the case was made by prosecutors on Friday, but they did not have enough time to review it.

He claimed there were “some real shortcomings” with the charges.

The court was told that two of the five charges relate to the alleged attack on Senator Thorpe.

Mr Nicolosi questioned whether the alleged injuries revealed by Senator Thorpe were related to the alleged offenses his client had been charged with.

“The alleged victim of the assault did not nominate when or where … just a very oblique reference to an (alleged) assault,” he said.

The allegations first came to light after questions were raised about Senator Thorpe’s standing in the Senate and her attendance rate after she publicly disavowed King Charles during his visit to Australia.

In 2023, Senator Thorpe attended only 38 of 66 sitting days (58%) and voted in only 206 of 558 divisions.

This year, the senator’s attendance improved slightly, attending 28 of 44 session days (64 percent) and voting in 222 of 493 divisions.

Responding to a report in The Australian, Senator Thorpe wrote on X that she was “absent from work after being seriously assaulted at a public event”.

“I needed surgery on my spine and now I have a metal plate in my neck,” she said.

In subsequent remarks to SkyNews.com.au, the senator provided more details about her injury but said she was unwilling to speak openly about the alleged attack.

“There’s a scar on the front of my neck because of it. The doctor ordered me not to travel and I could not go to parliament. My doctor told me to take time off work,” she told SkyNews.com.au.

“A police investigation is currently underway.

“It’s unfortunate that I was pushed to reveal this to defend myself when I would have preferred to keep this private, but this is just another day in the colony for you.”

Despite Senator Thorpe’s description, Victoria Police told Skynews.com.au “the woman suffered minor injuries during the incident”, echoing Mr Nicolosi’s comments about the seriousness of the alleged attack.

SkyNews.com.au is in no way suggesting that Senator Thorpe deliberately exaggerated claims about the extent of his injury.

Bell appeared in court via video link because of “some threats”, Mr Nicolosi told the court.

“My client is a Koori woman. The reason it appears remotely is because there have been some threats recently,” Mr Nicolosi said, as reported in The Australian.

Mr Nicolosi also called for Ms Thorpe’s name to be removed from the charges, but Magistrate Belinda Franjic sided with the media as the senator identified himself publicly.

Ms Thorpe and Bell are understood to have known each other before the incident.

The case will return to court on November 22, where it will appear again via video link.

Ms Thorpe made international headlines last week after shouting at King Charles in the Great Hall of Parliament.

“Give us back what you stole from us: our bones, our skulls, our people. You destroyed our land. Give us a treaty. We want a treaty in this country.”

She also said, “You are not our king…Give us back our land.”

“You are not my king. You are not our king… To hell with the colony. Fuck the colony. Fuck the colony.”

Her public disavowal of her majesty, along with a deliberate pun during the swearing-in ceremony when she pledged allegiance to the late Queen’s “hair” rather than her “heirs”, prompted calls for an inquiry into her status in the chamber superior.

Opposition Leader Peter Dutton described her outburst at the king as “disrespectful” and called for her to resign.

“I think there’s a very strong case for someone who doesn’t believe in the system, but is willing to take a quarter of a million dollars a year from the system, to resign on principle,” he said on Sunrise last Tuesday.

Speaking to Sky News Australia on Thursday, Australian Institute of the Rule of Law Chris Merritt questioned whether Senator Thorpe’s disapproval of the King could justify the Victorian independent being kicked out of the Senate.

“Did she disavow that oath after her outburst in front of the king where she said she wasn’t a king? Does that mean he’s reneging on his oath? These are not insignificant issues,” he said.

“The constitution is very clear on the requirements that must be met before senators can take their seats and if those requirements are not met, the senator cannot validly take a seat in the Senate.

“So I think the starting point is that there needs to be a factual investigation to find out exactly what happened. The Senate offices might be the starting point, but I wouldn’t be at all surprised if this ends up in the High Court.”

With NewsWire.