Russell Brand's barrister has told a jury there is 'no evidence' the comedian is a 'psychopath who rapes people and thinks it's normal' and that he respects when women say no, in his closing speech at Southwark crown court on Monday. Brand, 51, denies seven offences, including rape and sexual assault, against six women.
In his closing speech, Ian Winter KC said the 2023 reporting of sexual misconduct allegations in a Channel 4 Dispatches documentary and Times and Sunday Times stories had 'poisoned the wells' of justice by prompting the women to come forward afterwards. 'They poisoned the wells in the hope and intention that other people come forward and make allegations against him,' he told jurors.
The allegations span 10 years from 1999, when a woman accused Brand of raping her after he performed at a fringe cabaret event during the Labour party conference in Bournemouth. The woman told the court Brand had left his email address after the alleged rape while asking if she was enjoying herself.
Winter said Brand had an 'immense amount of sex' and none of it was unlawful, questioning why only three of the many women he slept with alleged rape. 'Living a highly promiscuous life is entirely lawful however morally distasteful you may find it,' he said. He argued the three rape complainants had described Brand as 'normal' after the alleged incidents, which he said was inconsistent with guilt: 'He obviously genuinely believed that they were consenting because that's the only thing that would explain why his behaviour was normal.'
Winter said there was 'no evidence he is some sort of psychopath who rapes people and thinks it's normal' and that Brand respected when a woman said no. 'He respects it when a woman says no so that makes him someone who is not a rapist,' he told the jury. Challenging the woman's account, Winter said she was not a 'naive and wilting flower'. 'You would have to be a psychopath to be raping someone and asking them if they were enjoying it,' he said, adding that rapists did not try to please their victims and that Brand had said he was trying to please the woman but was not successful.
In her closing speech on Friday, prosecutor Riel Karmy-Jones KC denied that the 2023 reporting had had 'such a subliminal hold on the minds of six perfectly rational women' to make them 'invent, reimagine, recharacterise, recast' their encounters with Brand.
An allegation of indecent assault was changed to a charge of attempted indecent assault during the trial. Brand has pleaded not guilty to all charges. The trial continues.
Analysis
Why This Matters
- The jury is deciding whether Brand, whose public career has been defined by these allegations since 2023, is guilty of seven sexual offences against six women.
- The case tests how courts treat complaints that emerged after investigative journalism brought the allegations to public attention.
- The verdict will be closely watched as a high-profile example of how decades-old sexual misconduct claims are weighed in a criminal trial.
Background
Russell Brand is a comedian who was publicly accused of sexual misconduct in 2023 after a Channel 4 Dispatches documentary and investigations by the Times and Sunday Times. He has pleaded not guilty to all charges in this trial, which concerns seven offences against six women with allegations spanning 10 years from 1999. The case is being heard at Southwark crown court.
Key Perspectives
Defence (Ian Winter KC): says Brand is not a 'psychopath who rapes people and thinks it's normal', that the 2023 media reporting 'poisoned the wells' of justice and prompted women to come forward with allegations, and that his promiscuous lifestyle was lawful.
Prosecution (Riel Karmy-Jones KC): denies that the 2023 reporting had a 'subliminal hold' on six rational women or that they would 'invent, reimagine, recharacterise, recast' their encounters with Brand.
What to Watch
- The jury's verdict, once deliberations begin in the trial, which continues at Southwark crown court.
- Whether the jury accepts the defence argument that the 2023 media coverage poisoned the case.
- How the change of an indecent assault allegation to attempted indecent assault affects the proceedings.
Checked
12 claims in this story checked against 1 source: 10 supported.
Show each claim
- Partly supportedThe headline quotes Winter as saying there is no evidence Brand is a “psychopath who rapes people and thinks it’s normal.”World news | The Guardian: “The barrister said there was “no evidence he is some sort of psychopath who rapes people and thinks it’s normal”.”
- Partly supportedThe summary says the reports “poisoned the wells” of justice.World news | The Guardian: “He said that the 2023 reporting of sexual misconduct allegations in a Channel 4 Dispatches documentary and Times and Sunday Times stories had “poisoned the well of justice” in Brand’s case”
- SupportedWinter said Brand respects when a woman says no.World news | The Guardian: “He also said Brand respected when a woman said no”
- SupportedBrand is accused of seven offences, including rape and sexual assault, against six women.World news | The Guardian: “Brand, 51, is accused of seven offences, including rape and sexual assault, against six women in allegations spanning 10 years from 1999.”
- SupportedBrand denies all the charges.World news | The Guardian: “He denies all the charges.”
- SupportedWinter delivered his closing speech at Southwark crown court on Monday.World news | The Guardian: “In his closing speech at Southwark crown court on Monday, Winter questioned why Brand had been accused of “only three rapes in 10 years””
- SupportedWinter said the 2023 reporting poisoned justice by prompting the women to come forward afterwards.World news | The Guardian: “He said that the 2023 reporting of sexual misconduct allegations in a Channel 4 Dispatches documentary and Times and Sunday Times stories had “poisoned the well of justice” in Brand’s case by prompting the women to come forward with accusations afterwards.”
- SupportedThe allegations span 10 years from 1999, when a woman accused Brand of rape after a fringe cabaret event during the Labour party conference in Bournemouth.World news | The Guardian: “The court has heard the earliest allegation dated back to 1999, when a woman accused Brand of raping her after he had performed in a fringe cabaret event during the Labour party conference in Bournemouth.”
- SupportedThe woman told the court Brand left his email address after the alleged rape while asking if she was enjoying herself.World news | The Guardian: “The woman told the court Brand had left his email address after raping her, while asking her if she was enjoying herself.”
- SupportedWinter said Brand had an “immense amount of sex” and none of it was unlawful.World news | The Guardian: “On Monday, Winter told jurors that Brand had an “immense amount of sex” and none of it was unlawful.”
- SupportedKarmy-Jones denied the 2023 reporting had a “subliminal hold” that made six women invent or recharacterise their encounters with Brand.World news | The Guardian: “In her closing speech on Friday, the prosecutor, Riel Karmy-Jones KC, denied that the 2023 reporting had had “such a subliminal hold on the minds of six perfectly rational women” to make them “invent, reimagine, recharacterise, recast” their encounters with the comedian.”
- SupportedAn allegation of indecent assault was changed to a charge of attempted indecent assault during the trial.World news | The Guardian: “On Tuesday, an allegation of indecent assault was changed to a charge of attempted indecent assault.”