Nicholas lying, top policeman tells court

Alleged rape victim Louise Nicholas was lying when she claimed Clint Rickards wore a police uniform during sexual abuse, the policeman told jurors in the High Court at Auckland today.

Rickards said he never wore uniforms when he was in the Rotorua CIB during the time Mrs Nicholas claimed he raped and sexually abused her.

He began to give evidence in his own defence today as he and two former policemen, Brad Shipton and Robert Schollum stood trial on 20 historic charges of raping Mrs Nicholas and indecently assaulting her in Rotorua more than 20 years ago. All three have pleaded not guilty to all charges.

On day eight of the trial Rickards, who is suspended from the police on full pay, was asked by his lawyer John Haigh, QC what his reaction was to Mrs Nicholas' claims that he wore a police uniform when he was alleged to have raped and sexually abused her.

"Mrs Nicholas is lying," he said, from his seat in the witness box.

He said he had had sex with Mrs Nicholas twice and both times it was consensual. The first involved conventional vaginal sex and the second involved oral sex, but at neither time did she say anything to suggest she was unwilling.

"If she had I would have stopped."

Mrs Nicholas said that during one incident at a police house in Rutland Street in January 1986, all three men raped her before a baton was used to indecently assault her.

The three men have denied all charges, saying the Rutland Street incident did not happen.

Rickards told the court he had never used a baton sexually on a woman, nor had he been present when a baton had been used.

He said the first time he had sex with Mrs Nicholas he knew it was consensual because she sat on his knee, put her arm around him and began kissing him on the ear.

They went into the bedroom and had sex in the presence of Shipton.

Yesterday as he opened the defence case, Mr Haigh said Mrs Nicholas' recollection of the events was "a series of calculated lies."

Her evidence last week was "made up of delusional recollections that are utterly false".

The claims had virtually destroyed Rickards' career.

The trial was expected to last until the end of next week although there would be no hearing on Thursday afternoon or on Friday while Justice Tony Randerson attended a judicial conference.

- NZPA