Russell Brand's defence lawyer has told the court that the comedian is innocent and is on trial because a "perverted" 2023 Dispatches documentary "prompted" alleged victims to come forward. Ian Winter KC, Brand's lead barrister, began giving the defence's closing speech at Southwark Crown Court this morning.
Defence cites 'poisoning the wells'
Winter read out an 1864 quote from the philosopher John Newman: "What I insist upon here, now that I am bringing this portion of my discussion to a close, is this unmanly attempt of his, in his concluding pages, to cut the ground from under my feet…. this I call poisoning the wells."
He alluded to a 2023 Channel 4 Dispatches programme which aired allegations against Brand that were never tested in court, and the subsequent coverage. Winter said these journalists had "poisoned the well of justice" in Brand's case by prompting the women to come forward.
Trial details and defence argument
Brand is standing trial accused of three counts of rape, three counts of sexual assault and one of indecent assault. He denies all allegations. The comedian was accompanied by wife Laura Gallacher and her father, Ryder Cup winning golfer Bernard Gallacher.
Winter told the jury that living a "high promiscuous" life was not a crime and that Brand had consensual sexual encounters with "many, many women". He asked jurors to: "Put out of your mind any distaste you may feel for the way he lived his life... That way of living is not criminal."
He urged the jury to: "Do what the journalists totally failed to do, put all condemnation completely out of the mind and apply pure, cold logic to the question: 'Are we sure on the evidence we have seen [Brand] did do what is alleged?'"
Criticism of the Dispatches programme
Winter called the 2023 Dispatches programme on Brand "one-sided" and "produced in a dramatic manner", with actors playing parts of anonymous women making allegations. He said Brand was not spoken to by any journalist in the making of the programme other than to "protect their defamation risk" by asking him for a "right of reply".
He accused the journalists involved of "covertly recording the women they were talking to" as well as "setting WhatsApp to disappearing" for conversations with them. The defence suggested to the jury that this is very far from a formal investigation.
Impact on Brand and the case
The defence told the court "Brand is innocent" and reminded the jury of what he described as the "devastating impact" the allegations have had against Brand. Winter noted that in 2023 Great Ormond Street Hospital would not let Brand go to the bedside of his baby son just after he had undergone heart surgery. Brand told the court this when he gave evidence last week, again using the word "devastating".
The documentary caused people to "shun" the defendant, the barrister said. Winter told jurors: "It caused people to change what they thought about events that had happened a very long time ago because they now see what has happened through the lens of that programme. It caused people to shun Mr Brand, positively wish him ill before his trial took place and refuse to stand by him and give evidence for him."
Winter said the women in the case are "not random, not independent" and are "each thoroughly contaminated by the (Dispatches) programme". He added that the Crown's case is "fundamentally compromised" by the programme, rendering the allegations "unfair". He said: "It is an extremely curious feature of this case that out of the many, many women that Mr Brand had sex with during this period only three of them say they did not consent to anal, oral or vaginal sex."
The defence will proceed to give its closing speeches into Monday afternoon. The trial continues.
