Kerry rape trial jury urged to disregard previous 'rape-play' between accused and complainant

During closing speeches, the defence said the prosecution was categorising his client as “some kind of low-grade pimp”.

Mr Justice Michael White adjourned the case late this evening until Monday at the Central Criminal Court sitting in Cork.

The prosecution in a case against a “low-grade pimp” for allegedly raping a sex worker in Kerry urged them to disregard the prior sexual history between the two parties but the defence said the alleged rape was consensual and similar to what occurred between them in the past.

During closing speeches, the defence said the prosecution was categorising him as “some kind of low-grade pimp”. The defence claimed the complainant made her allegations against him to rid herself of him from her life.

Prosecution senior counsel Roisín Lacey gave her closing speech to the jury of six men and six women saying they had heard a lot about sexual preferences, fetishes, games, erotic asphyxiation, sexual role play and specifically something that was referred to during cross-examination of the complainant as, “rape-play”, all consensual and occurring prior to September 25, 2017. 

Ms Lacey said that with these myriad versions of sex the jury could be forgiven for losing sight of what the case was about. She reminded them that what it was about was sexual assault of the most egregious kind – vaginal and anal rape.

“What happened in the past between them is not relevant. What you are looking at is the question of what happened in that moment in that ‘now’… She might have consented to erotic asphyxiation on another date and another type of role-play in 2017.

“But her evidence was very clear, very unambiguous. She did not want any type of sexual behaviour with him on September 25, 2017,” Ms Lacey said.

The prosecution senior counsel referred to the defendant saying to gardaí that it was hard to know the difference between what happened on September 25, 2017, and any other time they had sex. Ms Lacey said the difference was: “She said, ‘No’. She repeatedly said, ‘Stop’. 

She said, “I was bawling my eyes out like a newborn baby. I said, ‘stop’, I was hysterically crying, I was begging him to stop.

Defence senior counsel Colman Cody said in his address: “She is the complainant. She is not the victim. She does not become the victim until decided by you. She has to earn the right to be believed by you.” Mr Cody was critical of people in the media and in social media campaigning to the effect that, “if she makes a complaint she must be believed.” He said that a complaint must be carefully scrutinised by the jury.

Mr Cody said that they should not be swayed by moments where the complainant became upset in the witness box saying that it was at times when challenging questions were being put to her that she became upset. He urged the jury to adopt a critical and wary eye.

“There is a particular narrative put forward by the State which is that violent rapes occurred… that he was an abusive, coercive, domineering and bullying person who cowed and subjugated her in the control of her business and in what transpired on September 25, 2017… 

"But there is an alternative narrative that sexual intercourse on the evening in question was an occasion which was similar to other occasions in which sexual intercourse had taken place,” Mr Cody said. 

She was a feisty, independent, assertive woman who gave as good as she got. 

As an illustration of this, he said that in a conversation between the two parties secretly recorded by the complainant the only person who struck the other person was the complainant striking the defendant and the defence senior counsel said: “She admitted he never hit her.” 

Mr Cody said she was not a woman coerced or trafficked into prostitution and that by her partnership with the defendant she saw opportunities for how her business could be enhanced.

Mr Justice Michael White adjourned the case late this evening until Monday at the Central Criminal Court sitting in Cork when he will address the jury on the law governing their deliberations.

The accused denies rape, sexual assault (or anal rape), organising prostitution and intimidation of a witness.