Russell Brand’s defence team come under fire for damaging rape myths – prompting the Judge to say wherever a woman goes, whatever she wears or drinks ‘they retain the right to say no’
Russell Brand’s barrister has been accused of repeating “damaging myths about rape” after claiming one of his victims was “not particularly vulnerable”.
Ian Winter KC has been slammed over the remark, which were made about a woman whose breasts the celebrity groped at a Soho bar in 2004.
He made the comments on Monday while mitigating for the disgraced celebrity before his client was jailed for more than ten years.
Mr Winter argued the incident falls at the bottom of culpability under sentencing guidelines as it was a “very, very short incident”.
On the rape conviction, Winter says it occurred after “fully consensual vaginal intercourse” and “was quite a short… momentary total failure to respect her consent”.
He was already under fire for comments made about the victims during the trial., after saying in his closing speech: “Not one of them resisted, or screamed or even tried to leave.”
But on Monday during Brand’s sentencing, Mr Justice Bennathan blasted Brand’s “staggering arrogance” and the arguments put forward to lessen his sentence.
“Whatever women wear, wherever they go, indeed whatever they drink, they retain the right to say no and to demand justice from the criminal courts when sexual predators like you, Russell Brand, act without their consent,” he said.
Dr Charlotte Proudman, barrister specialising in violence against women and girls, said of Brand’s defence: “These remarks perpetuate some of the most damaging myths about rape.
“Rape does not become less serious because it lasts seconds rather than minutes. Consent is not a blank cheque. Agreeing to one sexual act does not mean agreeing to another.
“Defence barristers have a duty to represent their clients, including making submissions in mitigation. But describing rape as a momentary lapse or a man simply ‘going too far’ risks trivialising a serious sexual offence.
“We must stop measuring the seriousness of sexual violence by how long it lasted, how much a woman drank, or whether she initially consented to sexual activity. The law must recognise the violation of consent and the harm suffered by the victim.
“These narratives do not just minimise individual assaults. They reinforce the myths that make survivors afraid to report rape in the first place.”
Metropolitan police commissioner, Sir Mark Rowley previously said Brand’s defence comments should be “considered”.
He said: “We have to look out for the danger of having rape myths and that seems to be what the defence were doing there. The evidence is really clear, there is not one way a victim of a rape will react.
“Some people will freeze, some people will fight, some people will tell everyone straight away, some people will bottle it up for years….And it’s wrong to put in the jury’s mind that a reaction in a particular way undermines the credibility of the victim and I am concerned about the way that was attempted in this case.”
The Victims Commissioner Claire Waxman has now called for a new legal duty on judges to direct juries on rape myths and misconceptions, if they have been ventured during a trial.
In an incident after the guilty verdicts, Brand’s barrister, Mr Winter was also seen verbally abusing Sunday Times journalist Rosamund Urwin after the guilty verdicts.
He spoke to the journalist, whose investigation led to Brand’s victims coming forward, telling her: “I hope you are pleased with yourself.” Ms Urwin responded: “I’m pleased justice has been done”, before Mr Winter said: “Well, it wasn’t. You f***** it.”
In a statement issued on Friday lunchtime, Mr Winter said he has now referred himself to the Bar Standards Board, his professional regulator.
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