Jury deliberates in St Patrick’s Day teen rape trial
The jury in the trial of a teenager accused of raping a young woman in Killarney at a B&B after St Patrick’s Day celebrations will resume their deliberations today.
Mr Justice Paul McDermott concluded his address to the seven women and five men and the jurors deliberated throughout yesterday. The judge sent them home at 5pm and told them to return to continue deliberating today, advising them there was no time limit on them.
The defendant pleaded not guilty to charges of rape and attempted anal rape at the Central Criminal Court in Cork. He is now 17 and denied both charges which relate to alleged events at an address in Killarney on St Patrick’s Day in 2017.
All parties were visiting Kerry and the defendant and complainant met each other when they were out socialising. The complainant said the defendant seemed to be a nice person when they met. She said she agreed to go back to his B&B when she was told there would be other girls going there too.
“I was 19. As far as I was concerned it was a house party. I did not consent to have sex,” she testified from a room linked by video to Courtroom 6 during the trial.
The defendant did not give direct evidence in the trial. However, his words — as spoken to gardaí when interviewed — were outlined to the jury.
Colman Cody, defending, quoted the words of the defendant’s interview in which the teenager claimed, “She got her groove on, she was mad for it.” He also referred to the complainant moaning with pleasure.
The young woman replied to the cross-examination: “I wonder does [name of accused] recollect sliding down from his bed and putting himself beside me and putting his hands over my mouth. Moaning? That was crying for help that I never got.”
