Taylor’s lawyer Marie Dyrhberg KC today challenged the young woman’s account.
She said that there were inconsistencies between her original complaint to police at the College Hill Police Station and her later, formal interview with a police detective.
During cross-examination, Dyhrberg said that her two statements made different claims about how many times Taylor came into her bedroom at her stepfather’s house and what she did in the room.
She had originally said Taylor entered her room only once and assaulted her.
“Would you accept that … is not consistent with your video interview?” Dyrhberg asked.
“I can’t say, I don’t remember,” the complainant replied.
Dyhrberg also questioned the woman’s claim that she called out for help during the alleged assault.
“You did not call out for help at all that night, did you?” Dyrhberg said. “That’s not true, is it?”
The woman responded: “What you have said is not true, actually.”
Dyrhberg: “I am saying that is in fact a lie, because nothing was happening to you to shout about.”
Complainant: “I say that that’s incorrect.”
Dyrhberg suggested to the woman that at the time she made her police complaint in 2021, she had become estranged from her stepfather because he had a new family and a new baby on the way.
“Are you making false allegations against Jemma Taylor to punish your father for rejecting you at this time?” she asked.
“No, mam,” the woman replied.
Dyrhberg: “You don’t really care about Jemma Taylor because she’s not your target, is she? You are wanting to punish your father for rejecting you around the time you were making these false allegations.”
Complainant: “There is no target, mam.”
The complainant’s stepfather, whose name is suppressed, also appeared in court today.
He said he ended his relationship with Taylor the night of his birthday party, because his stepdaughter had made it clear that she did not feel safe around her.
However, his stepdaughter did not tell him at the time that she had been abused, the court heard.
He did not find out about the allegations until police contacted him to make a statement in 2021.
The young woman’s mother told the court she was texted by the 11-year-old on the night of the birthday party in 2012.
She recalled the text said: “Jemma is being weird. She won’t leave me alone. She won’t get out of my room.”
She did not initially realise the gravity of the situation, but the text messages gradually escalated in seriousness.
Her daughter was “very, very upset” by the time she decided to go and pick her up, she said.
The next day, she refused to go back to her stepfather’s house. She did not tell her mother what happened, and she only found out about the alleged abuse in 2021.
Taylor has pleaded not guilty to three charges of sexual conduct on a child under 12 years old.
She is facing a jury trial before Justice Ema Aitken, which is set down for five days.
Isaac Davison is an Auckland-based reporter who covers health issues. He joined the Herald in 2008 and has previously covered the environment, politics, and social issues.
