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Allegations of Abuse
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A woman who alleges she was
handcuffed and raped by a Northland police constable 18 years ago has told a
court she tried to leave behind forensic evidence in case she did not get out
of the situation alive. The complainant told a jury of her
fear on the opening day in the Auckland District Court trial of the former
constable, who faces four counts of rape, three counts of attempted sexual
violation by unlawful sexual connection and one count of assault. All counts relate to an alleged
attack in a police station office one night in March 1988. The court has made non-
publication orders preventing the identification of the accused, some
witnesses and the town in which they lived. The complainant cannot be
identified by law. The orders are aimed in part at
avoiding the types of controversies associated with the Louise Nicholas rape
case this year. The present case is unrelated to that trial. The complainant in the Northland
case, now in her 60s, said yesterday that she was raped after reluctantly
giving the "very drunk" officer a ride from a pub. Her main concern
was that he would vomit in her car, but she became "suddenly really
quite frightened" when he banged handcuffs on her when they stopped
outside the police station to pick up some of his gear. Her partner had introduced the man
earlier in the night and they had had a couple of dances, but the younger man
turned "dark" when they were alone. She thought he would release her
and accompanied him to his office to get the handcuff key – but he forced her
to have sex instead. "I was unable to stop
him," the woman said. "I told him it was sore to start with, I kept
on saying I wanted to go home, that I wanted to go back to (her partner),
really that (her partner) was waiting for me, that he would be missing me, I
wanted him to realise he was raping me." She hit him and yelled, and bit
him on the shoulder, leaving a mark. She pulled out some of her own
hair and tried to leave fingerprints on a desk so there would be evidence
that she had been there. "I thought that if I didn't make it out alive .
. ." The man threatened to hit her and
said he could "get her in all sorts of ways" if she told. Judge Michael Lance, QC, opened the
trial by urging the jury of seven women and five men to keep an open mind
till all evidence had been heard. He warned jurors against trying to research
the case's extensive history as their job was to consider the case only on
evidence delivered and tested within the trial. The jury was told that the
complainant had previously taken an unsuccessful civil case, alleging that
her original complaint was not properly investigated. Defence lawyer Gary Gotlieb
indicated that the accused had maintained there was consensual sex instigated
by the woman, who was 16 years older than the accused. He urged the jury to
closely examine the woman's motivation for later complaining, and her
credibility. No charges were laid at the time
because of insufficient evidence, but the woman had later twice tried to
claim financial compensation. The constable lost his job. |
