Garda pleads not gulity to rape in station

A garda sergeant has gone on trial at the Central Criminal Court for allegedly raping a woman in a Donegal garda station four years ago after they had been drinking in a local pub.

The 55-year-old accused is pleading not guilty to raping and sexually assaulting the woman on June 21, 2000.

Ms Deirdre Murphy SC (with Mr Sean Guerin BL), prosecuting, told the jury the complainant was 20 years old at the time and was home on some days leave from work. Her sister gave her a mobile telephone before she went to the pub at about 6.30pm.

Ms Murphy said the young woman drank "quite a lot of pints of Guinness" but there would be evidence from others there that she wasn’t drunk.

Counsel said the accused was the sergeant in the local garda station and the jury would hear he came in to the pub at about 11pm. The complainant was friendly with him and his family and at about 1am they were the only two people left.

Ms Murphy told the jury they left the pub together to see if the accused could get a patrol car to give the woman a lift home. They went to the garda station but he failed to get a car for her.

There would be evidence that she tried to use her mobile phone and there would be an audio tape of a message left on her brother’s answering machine which includes part of the accused’s conversation on the station telephone when trying to get a patrol car for the complainant.

Ms Murphy said the woman would claim in evidence that the accused began kissing and fondling her and continued to do so despite her saying "No" more than once.

The woman would tell the jury the accused took off her trousers and panties and had sexual intercourse with her against her will before ejaculating on the floor. She would say she "froze"..

Ms Murphy said the jury would hear they then walked up to the accused’s house and that he drove her home. The woman went to the Derry Wellwoman centre later that day and after that she lodged a formal complaint with the gardaí in Letterkenny.

A garda investigation began and this included preservation of the scene. Gardaí at first could not get into the station because nobody had a key but eventually gained admission. The woman was telephoned at about 4am and as a result of the details she gave a portion of carpet was removed.

Ms Murphy said the woman’s clothing was given to gardaí by her sister and brother and gardaí got search warrants from the District Court to search the accused’s house and car. He volunteered his clothes and car to the gardaí.

Counsel said that on June 23, the woman pointed out "exact locations of the alleged assaults" to gardaí which resulted in a further portion of carpet being lifted. Semen stains recovered from the carpet and from the gusset of her panties matched the accused’s DNA profile, said counsel.

Ms Murphy said the accused presented himself to gardaí in Letterkenny on June 24 for interview and made a voluntary statement in which he said there was sexual activity between him and the complainant and that it was consensual.

The accused was arrested at 5pm on June 27 for further interviews which continued until 2.40am on June 28 when he was released from custody.

Ms Murphy told the jury the issue it had to decide was whether the accused raped the woman as she claimed or whether there was consensual sexual activity between them as he claimed.

Mr Michael O’Higgins SC, defending, told the jury he was authorised by the accused to make eight specific admissions in relation to the evidence and this would speed up the trial because it would not be necessary for witnesses to testify concerning them.

Mr O’Higgins said the defence had no issue with the handling of the samples taken, with his client’s arrest, detention and extension of his detention, his statements, the telephone records and the audio tape arising from the woman’s call to her brother’s house.

The hearing continues before Mr Justice Henry Abbott and a jury of six men and six women.