Southwark Crown Court in London has heard further testimony in the trial of British actor and comedian Russell Brand. The charges he faces relate to alleged rapes and sexual assaults involving six women between 1999 and 2009.
The court was shown recorded statements from one of the women bringing the allegations, who also answered questions from defence lawyers. She alleges that Brand raped her at his home in 2009.
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Describing how she met the actor, the woman said their first encounter took place in 2009, after a show at London’s Hammersmith Apollo. She said she then went to his dressing room, where they had sex.
The second time, the two met at Brand’s home. The woman acknowledged that she had gone there intending to have sex, but clarified that this did not amount to consent to any sexual act.
Asked about the alcohol she had consumed before this meeting, she said she had had two drinks at home and another at a restaurant while waiting for Brand’s driver.
According to her account, when she arrived at the home, the actor asked her to shower and brush her teeth before they had sex. Defence lawyers suggested that the request could be explained by the fact that Brand did not drink alcohol and might have been unable to tolerate its smell, but the woman rejected that explanation.
When police had asked her whether they had discussed anal sex beforehand, she had said no such discussion had taken place. The woman alleges that Brand performed a sexual act without her consent and then behaved as though nothing had happened.
Her testimony also covered what she said was an exchange with the actor approximately six months after the alleged incident. She said Brand sent her messages proposing another sexual encounter.
The woman said the contact had surprised her and that she had asked the actor why he was messaging her. According to her statement, the reply she received was insulting and left her even more distressed.
She had then sent him a message saying he had pushed her far enough and had treated her like an animal. According to her statement to police, Brand responded immediately with an apology.
Evidence presented during the trial indicates that she had told close friends and her parents about the incident. Her parents had accompanied her to a clinic for a medical examination, but she had not reported it to police at the time.
At the end of her testimony, she began to cry and reiterated that consenting to their first sexual encounter did not mean she had also consented to the act she alleges was rape.
Brand denies all the charges: three counts of rape, three of sexual assault and one of indecent assault. He has repeatedly maintained that he has not had sex without the other person’s consent.
