The man claimed the sexual assault was consensual despite the victim being asleep, intoxicated and having already told him no. Photo / 123RF
WARNING: This article discusses sexual assault and may be distressing.
A man who sexually violated his co-worker at a flat party continued to maintain the encounter was consensual, despite the woman being asleep, intoxicated, and having already told him no.
The woman was then subject to workplace bullying, being called a “sl**” and “tease” and shamed for being “unfaithful” to her partner as rumours of the assault spread.
The man, who cannot be identified to protect the identity of the victim, appeared at the Christchurch District Court on Friday for sentencing where he was jailed for two years and four months.
He continued to maintain he was wrongly accused, stating the woman consented to the act and had made a false allegation out of concern for what her boyfriend would think.
The 30-year-old took his case to trial; however, the jury was unconvinced by his defence and found him guilty on one charge of sexual violation by unlawful sexual connection.
Now, Judge Gerard Lynch has blasted the man for his views on consent, stating there was no reasonable possibility he could have believed the woman was truly consenting.
In July 2020 the woman was hosting a party at her flat and invited the man, along with some other colleagues. The court heard the woman drank too much and was assisted to bed.
The partygoers continued drinking and then went to town, leaving the man and a flatmate and his partner at the flat, with the woman asleep in her bed.
The man was asked multiple times by the flatmate if he wanted a taxi organised for him to get home which he refused.
The flatmate and his partner went to bed, leaving the man alone. He went to the victim’s room, climbed into her bed and began cuddling and touching her in what she described as “grabby and feely”.
The woman, a rising sports star, was confused but put it down to being intoxicated.
Later in the evening the partygoers returned to the flat and phoned the woman, asking to be let inside. She asked the man to go and let them in.
After the man let the partygoers in, he returned to the woman’s bedroom and got into bed with her, while she was asleep. He asked her if they could have sex among other sexual acts.
The womanrefused the man’s advances. Eventually, he stopped persisting and the woman fell asleep again.
She later woke to the man pulling her underwear down and sexually violating her. She pushed him off and wriggled away, telling him to stop.
He continued making sexual comments about her body and she turned away from him and began to cry.
After the assault, the victim was bullied in her workplace, victim-blamed and portrayed as a “slut and a tease”. She was shamed for being “unfaithful” to her partner because of the sexual assault.
She suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder and anxiety and had to withdraw from her university studies. Her international sporting career was also “severely impacted”.
Judge Lynch commended the woman for her bravery, describing her as a “compelling’ witness, who demonstrated “incredible strength and resilience” throughout the trial.
The man, who was supported in court by his wife, attends church regularly and was described as “respectful and humble” by his pastor and this offending was “out of character”.
The judge refused this argument and said the man “took advantage” of the woman by “essentially helping himself to her” while she was incredibly vulnerable.
The man’s lawyer Jessica Bibby asked the judge to impose a sentence of home detention and give her client discounts for his remorse.
But Judge Lynch refused and said the only discount available to the man was for previous good character, seeing him jailed for two years and four months.
The man’s wife wept in court as he was taken away to begin his sentence.
Emily Moorhouse is a Christchurch-based Open Justice journalist at NZME. She joined NZME in 2022. Before that, she was at the Christchurch Star.
Armed police stood guard as the patched members were led out in handcuffs.