"Falling" and "accidentally penetrating" somebody is a rape defence now.

[BertieBotts]

WTAF?

www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/i-fell-and-penetrated-her-by-accident-millionaire-rape-suspect-claims-a6767486.html

Hopefully - surely - this will never go down in court, right? How ignorant of basic biology would you need to be, exactly? I've heard of some ridiculous defences to rape before but this really takes the biscuit.

No , I knew about getting odd things stuck -my "eh" was in relation to an apple-I could not work out what an apple might do (and don't tell me)

Oh right

Yeah me neither but then the brain bleach worked well.

The same thing as any other object inserted into an orifice would do. Usually not talking Bramleys here, but, depending on what the person is into fell on, it might be.

Enjoy your morning coffee

Fucking hell. I am rapidly losing faith in humanity. If this millionaire gets away with this... I don't know. I have no words.

Thank God that poor girl was quick thinking enough and brave enough to report it straight away and be able to get a DNA sample. Or I suspect he'd DEFINITELY have got away with it.

What a terrible ordeal.

Don't lose faith, Aye.

Criminal tells lies in court has always happened - no indication the jury will believe him.

Agreed that criminals tell lies in court all the time and it doesn't mean the jury believe them.

I do wonder about defence barristers putting forward this bollocks though.

Delroy Grant convicted in 2011 of rapes of Police suspect - potentially hundreds of elderly people and the defence presented in court was his ex - wife committed the crimes and planted his DNA.

How the hell do well - paid, well- educated legal professionals agree to present such obvious bullshit?.

That should read - the Police suspect 100s of victims but he was prosecuted for a much smaller number.

Maybe he could demonstrate how it works for the jury.
Him naked and a human like doll.
With paramedics on stand by for when he broke his erect penis trying to insert him in a hole while falling.
And good luck to him.

I hope I am right to place my faith in the jury to see this for what it is.
I don't know how his legal team were happy to support that one.

I get that slug - but surely an effective defence team should say 'don't go with that, it's ridiculous'.

Then again I've had quite a bit of experience of criminal trials working in MH and have known lots of defendants be advised to not give personal evidence or present their own defence at all. I'm guessing in these cases that advice has been given but the defendant insists on proceeding?. Which of course the defence team has to go along with.

So I've probably just explained why this ridiculous stuff happens myself!. In the cases I've been involved with, the defendant took that advice.

I am sure this defence will have as much persuading power with the jury as Ian Huntley's far fetched defence did.

I don't think it is fair to blame his defence team. They are INSTRUCTED by their client. The guy is clearly refusing to plead guilty, and concocted this ridiculous defence after his semen wAs found inside the victim. so the legal team are presenting the absurd bollocks he is telling them to.

I hope he goes to prison a long time!

Maybe someone can accidentally lose the key

Presumably they are working on the idea that they merely have to introduce reasonable doubt into the proceedings.

It's whether they can convince the man on the Clapham omnibus that it is possible to slip and your erect penis to enter someone. How that negates any need for consent though after the initial "accident" is beyond me.

I don't think it is fair to blame his defence team. They are INSTRUCTED by their client.

I would find it hard to motivate myself to put much energy in defending such an asshole. Would probably go with whatever he tells me to do, too. (As he is so obviously guilty, I wonder whether the defence team lack any sense of ethics, or whether they shower two hours each evening and will have to get therapy for their feelings of guilt when it is all over.)

Oh I totally believe this happened the way he said it.

Vestal - I had a similar feeling when I knew someone accused of a serious offence be advised by his solicitor in cells to not be interviewed as he would 'incriminate himself'. Because he was guilty!.

That made me question our criminal justice for a long time but I was advised that was perfectly legitimate and legal advice. He got sent down in the end but the prosecution was (IMO)significantly delayed and a victim put through a trial by that original advice.

Maybe this was what someone up thread was thinking of! (sfw)

m.imgur.com/a/tXCpI

Defence lawyers defend people they know are guilty all the time, it's part of the job. If they thought defending crims was unethical, they wouldn't last long in that line of work. We have an adversarial legal system in this country and need good defence lawyers so we can have fair trials. I'm glad someone does it and also glad it's not me.

I'm glad someone does it and also glad it's not me.

Yes ... but I do wonder whether they are all sociopaths or have to get therapy.

I mean, in most cases defending criminals is probably things like "Yes, my client stole, but he shouldn't go to prison because X", not defending asshole millionaires who raped someone.

Of course they aren't sociopaths.

Everyone deserves a defence and the justice system
Is flawed without that.

The fact that something needs to be done doesn't mean that those who do it can not be sociopaths.

Surgeons are apparently more likely to be sociopaths than other professions, as a lack of fear is a good thing in that job.

I imagine that constantly doing something one knows to be wrong on a deeply personal moral level, even if it is necessary for our justice system, would have a devastating effect on the average person.

Surgeons only have to cope with the risk that someone dies under their care, despite them having tried their best to avoid it.
Lawyers have to cope with the risk that a rapist walks free because they did their job.

In an adversarial justice system we absolutely need people willing to be defence lawyers, but that doesn't mean they don't often use utterly underhand means to win their case, often completely shredding victims' reputations.

Sad case here of a prominent defence lawyer who took his own life - he clearly was not a sociopath.