Once there, the man said the intimacy was consensual, and the complainant had been the one who suggested it.
Jurors had to contend with contrasting accounts.
The woman told the court she recalled being denied entry to a bar, then her next memory was of waking up in the back of the defendant’s car.
She called police almost immediately after the incident to make the rape complaint and officers found her minutes later alone on Signal Hill Rd.
Under cross-examination, though, she was uncertain about how much she drank that night, whether the defendant had suggested sex and whether she moved to the back seat of the vehicle without assistance.
But the complainant remained unequivocal about whether she consented to the sexual contact.
“No. I was asleep, passed out,” she said.
Police found the defendant in town after they had spoken to the woman.
He said while she had been “wobbly”, she appeared to be communicating relatively normally.
“I know she was awake — she talked to me,” he said.
After the jury’s verdict the defendant was allowed to leave the dock.
SEXUAL HARM
Where to get help:
If it's an emergency and you feel that you or someone else is at risk, call 111.
If you've ever experienced sexual assault or abuse and need to talk to someone, contact
Safe to Talk confidentially, any time 24/7:
• Call 0800 044 334
• Text 4334
• Email support@safetotalk.nz
• For more info or to web chat visit
safetotalk.nz
Alternatively contact your local police station -
click here for a list.
If you have been sexually assaulted, remember it's not your fault.
