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Allegations
of Sexual Abuse |
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Alleged rape victim Louise
Nicholas was lying when she claimed Clint Rickards wore a police uniform
during alleged sex 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. Rickards 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 and on Friday while Justice Tony Randerson attended a
judicial conference. |
