Convicted rapist Russell Brand is reportedly "furious" with the performance of his barrister in court, which culminated in the disgraced comedian being sentenced to 10-and-a-half years.
Brand, 51, was convicted on Thursday for raping one of his fans and sexually assaulting three TV and radio workers during his rise to fame. The shamed star is reportedly looking at hiring a new legal team if he faces new charges. Barrister Ian Winter KC drew criticism over his controversial moves during the trial.
Barrister criticised over cross-examination
The barrister's aggressive cross-examination of the female complainants was described as "very close to victim blaming" by the chief of the Metropolitan Police. At one point, Mr Winter told jurors considering the case that "none of the complainants had in his words 'resisted, screamed or even tried to leave'".
Metropolitan Police Chief Sir Mark Rowley told the BBC that was "very close to victim blaming, which is something we've thought very hard about in policing and make sure we don't do".
Judge dismisses mitigation points
The judge, Mr Justice Bennathan, also appeared to dismiss several points made by Mr Winter during the mitigation. This included the barrister telling the court that Brand was a "fundamentally different person today" and was "extraordinarily famous" at the time of the offences.
Mr Justice Bennathan said: "To say 'He got away with it for 17 years' is not necessarily a huge piece of mitigation, is it?"
The barrister also told the court that a woman who was sexually assaulted at a Soho bar in 2004 was "tipsy", and said: "Being tipsy is not something that gave rise to vulnerability and there's no evidence the defendant knew she was tipsy so to be vulnerable."
The sentencing judge however later said women always "retain the right to say no and demand justice in the criminal courts" from sexual predators.
Brand considers new legal team
Brand is said to be "furious" with Mr Winter and will look to employ a different legal team in the future, according to legal sources, reported the Daily Mail.
Mr Winter has since reported himself to the Bar Standards Board following a foul-mouthed outburst against a journalist moments after the verdicts. The barrister launched the rant at Sunday Times chief news correspondent Rosamund Urwin, outside Southwark Crown Court, on Friday. The journalist had been part of a joint investigation into Brand by the Sunday Times and Channel 4's Dispatches.
Mr Winter said: "I hope you're pleased with yourself." Ms Urwin replied: "I'm pleased justice has been done", to which Mr Winter replied, "Well it wasn't… you f***ed it," storming away.
In a statement, issued on Friday, Mr Winter said: "Having seen the ways matters have been characterised in today's press I consider my professional duty requires me to self-report those allegations to the Bar Standards Board, so the matter can be subject to proper scrutiny. I have made such a report."
Brand has been accused of further violence towards women as Jemima Goldsmith – who reportedly dated Brand for around a year in 2014 – shared a post on X in which she claimed she called police on the TV personality to get him removed during a "violent incident".
Goldsmith, 52, shortly after Brand's sentencing posted: "I have had my own personal experience of his violence, coercive control and abuse. I had to call the police to have him removed from my house in 2014 during a violent incident.
"I chose not to press charges at the time and not to go public with this, as I was worried about the impact of the press attention on my then teenage children. I have neither seen nor spoken to Brand since that period in 2014.
"Whilst my pain in relation to this pales in comparison to what the women have testified in court have suffered, this was a difficult period in my life which has had a lasting impact."
