A young woman told a Dunedin District Court jury she was raped by two young male friends after she became ill and was vomiting into a bucket following a night of drinking and games 16 months ago.
In evidence yesterday the 21-year-old complainant said she did not remember how much alcohol she drank before becoming ill. She recalled having about four drinks then drinking water for a while because she ‘‘didn't feel too good''.
After that, she remembered lying on the couch with her head over the edge and a bucket in front of her. One of the men was rubbing her back, the other was holding her hair.
She was feeling ‘‘very intoxicated'' and did not remember anything else until she felt someone on top of her, pulling down her pyjama pants and underwear. The light was off and the person was touching her breasts, kissing her neck and cheek. The alleged offending then took place.
The young woman said she could see the other male standing near the door, looking down the hallway.
As a result of allegations about what happened at a Mosgiel property on the night of December 20, 2014, both young men were charged with sexual violation.
Sean Raemond Struthers, a 22-year-old Mosgiel cleaner, is accused of raping the young woman and Logan Peter Black (21), chef, is charged as a party to that alleged rape.
He also faces two additional charges of rape as well as allegations of indecent assault and unlawful sexual connection.
Crown counsel Craig Power said both men had sex with the complainant without her consent. The Crown alleged the woman was so ‘‘out of it'' she was not in a position to give her consent and neither of the defendants had reason to believe she was consenting.
But Black and Struthers deny any offending, counsel Sarah Saunderson-Warner (Black) and John Westgate (Struthers) telling the jury the defendants both believed the woman was consenting.
They believed the complainant was able to give consent and that she did so freely and voluntarily and willingly engaged in the sexual acts. And while the complainant might later have regretted it, that did not make it rape, Ms Saunderson-Warner said.
Neither did the fact they were drunk. And Mr Westgate said while there might be a lot of evidence about various alcoholic drinks, drinking games, and other behaviour, Struthers believed, at the time he had sex with the complainant, that she was consenting and he had reasonable grounds for that belief.
The complainant told Judge Kevin Phillips and the jury it was Struthers who had sex with her. The person smelled of cigarette smoke and Lynx and she knew Black was not a smoker at that time and that he did not use Lynx.
She was sure she had no sexual activity with Black that night, the complainant said. But she remembered police asking her about having sex with Black as both defendants had told police in their interviews that Black did have sex with her. She had a memory lapse, then she remembered ‘‘the Sean stuff, then nothing after that'', the complainant said.
But she did not consent to either of the defendants touching her or having sex with her. If it was suggested the group had engaged in slow dancing while naked and she and Struthers' partner were involved in ‘‘dirty dancing''. She did not remember that. The trial continues today.
