Russell Brand will learn how long he must serve behind bars as a judge sentences the disgraced celebrity for raping one of his fans and sexually assaulting three other women. The former comedian and actor, now 51, was found guilty at Southwark Crown Court of raping a woman in 2009, as well as sexually assaulting female TV and radio workers between 2004 and 2009.
Judge Orders Immediate Imprisonment
Mr Justice Bennathan ordered Brand to start his prison sentence immediately after the guilty verdicts were delivered last Thursday afternoon, sending him straight to prison. The judge will pass sentence on Monday.
Brand's wife, Laura Gallacher, left court in tears after the verdicts, while Brand was last seen mouthing "I'm OK" to his lawyers before being led to the cells. On Monday, the judge is expected to hear impact statements from Brand's victims and legal submissions from the lawyers before passing sentence.
Trial Details and Victim Testimonies
A four-week trial heard how Brand preyed on women he encountered on his way to becoming one of Britain's best-known comedians, a lauded TV and radio host, and a Hollywood actor who was briefly married to singer Katy Perry. He claimed to have only ever had consensual sex during a "promiscuous" life, which he insisted had been packed with "idiocy" but never illegal.
But his victims told a different story, of a famous and powerful man who kissed and groped women within seconds of meeting them, pursued his sexual ambitions relentlessly, and laughed at and gaslit women after the attacks. Friends and former colleagues also came forward to give evidence of his ambition to sleep with 5,000 women, an "insane" sexual appetite, and his bad behaviour towards women being "normalised" as he became increasingly famous.
Brand was convicted by the jury of raping a 21-year-old fan in 2009, after meeting her following one of his stand-up shows at the Hammersmith Apollo. The woman told jurors she was a huge Brand fan and had willingly engaged in a threesome with him backstage despite having a boyfriend at the time. She agreed to go to Brand's Hampstead home for sex a few days later, but a consensual encounter turned into rape when the comedian suddenly forced the woman into anal sex.
Further Allegations and Aftermath
In the wake of his convictions, the Metropolitan Police revealed that Brand is currently under investigation over two further rape allegations. Met Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley said his officers are braced for "many, many more" possible victims of Brand to come forward, while Prime Minister Andy Burnham called Brand's crimes "horrifying".
Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy warned there has not been enough change in media organisations to stop celebrities like Brand from preying on women. "We need far more robust processes in place to protect women like the women who bravely came forward in the Russell Brand case to make sure that they are protected and treated seriously," she said on Sunday. "Hand on heart, I don't think we can say that this couldn't happen today."
One of the comedian's former producers, Jack Bayles, who was accused of encouraging the 2009 forced massage, has been asked to "step back" from production of two BBC sitcoms by TV production company Various Artists Limited in the wake of the verdicts. Victims Commissioner Claire Waxman has called for a new legal duty on judges to direct juries on rape myths and misconceptions, if they have been ventured during a trial.
Brand's barrister, Ian Winter KC, who put forward arguments that the comedian could not be a rapist as his accusers had not screamed, fought back, or run away, announced on Friday that he has self-referred himself to the Bar Standards Board after seeing media reports of an incident where he verbally abused Sunday Times journalist Rosamund Urwin in the courthouse corridor. Brand, who boasts millions of online followers and had still been broadcasting his Christian sermons during the trial, has now spent four nights in prison since the conclusion of his trial. The judge has already warned him to expect a lengthy prison sentence.
