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Allegations
of Sexual Abuse |
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Defence lawyers for
three men accused of raping a Rotorua woman Louise Nicholas finished giving
their closing addresses in court on Tuesday. Assistant Police Commissioner
Clint Rickards, and former officers Bob Schollum and Brad Shipton deny
charges of rape, sexual violation and indecent assault during the 1980s. The
jury is due to begin considering its verdicts on Wednesday after the judge
has summed up. Earlier on Tuesday the
lawyers for Rickards and Shipton made their final statements. Rickards' lawyer told
the High Court in Auckland that if the allegations made by Nicholas were not
so tragically serious, they would be laughable. John Haigh QC told the
jury that Nicholas may be deluded, or that she may be a consummate
liar. He detailed what he called "gaps a mile wide" in her
evidence. During its closing
address, the Crown said Nicholas was ill-quipped to deal with the predatory
advances of the three police officers when she was 18 years old. Prosecutor Brent
Stanaway told the jury during his closing arguments that the credibility of
Nicholas was central to its case. He said she is not
eloquent, cultured or educated, but someone with a nuggety, down-to-earth personality. Stanaway said her
evidence of being allegedly raped by the three men was compelling and at
times chilling, and had a ring of truth to it which was powerful. He described the
then-18-year-old in her own words as "playdough" in the hands of
the three accused, and said how she couldn't just tell them to go to hell. He said she was as an
unfortunate teenager who was not socially or physically equipped to handle
the predatory advances of three police officers. The prosecutor also
told the jury of what he called the sheer audacity of what the accused could
do to young women in the 1980s, and what they could get away with as police
officers. He described the
behaviour of Rickards and the other two officers as "outrageous,
audacious and cruel". Defence lawyers
finished presenting their evidence earlier on Monday. One of them said his
client had spent more than a decade denying the claims. Paul Mabey QC told the
court that his client Bob Schollum continues to deny the allegations, as he
has done since 1995, calling them total lies. A witness from the
bridal party of Louise Nicholas' brother's wedding was called to give
evidence earlier on Monday. Matron-of-honour
Kerry-Anne Best told how Schollum was chatting with Nicholas when she lifted her
bridesmaid's skirt and showed him the garter all the bridal party were
wearing at the wedding in 1993. But the Crown later
told the jury she had promised her family she would behave civilly toward
Schollum at the wedding despite their previous encounters. Schollum is not being
called to give evidence himself. |
