A teacher accused of tying a young boy to her bed and blindfolding him before an alleged sex act was 'trusted' by his family, a trial has heard. Deborah Franklin, 65, who taught at a preparatory school in Hertfordshire at the time of the alleged offences in the 1990s, denies eight counts of gross indecency against the boy, who was aged between nine and 12. Franklin became the boy's private tutor and is said to have subjected him to 'repeated sexual activity', jurors at St Albans Crown Court heard.
Prosecution's case
Prosecutor Gavin Pottinger said the complainant alleged that on one occasion, Franklin, who was married, tied him to her bed and blindfolded him. Mr Pottinger also told jurors that during another sex act, Franklin called out her husband's name. He said others had seen her in the boy's bed at his house with 'no work being done'. During his closing argument, Mr Pottinger asked: 'Have you heard any real reason for him to make this up?' He noted that the 'world has changed' from when the incidents allegedly took place, adding people were more 'trusting' then. He said Franklin was often at the boy's house: 'You know she was trusted because she was up there in the bedroom without an adult.'
Defence response
Defence barrister Aisling Byrnes said in her closing argument: 'Sadly we know that from time to time people make allegations, even forceful, repeated, vigorous allegations that are simply not true.' She said the complainant's account has 'too many difficulties' and 'too much inherent unlikelihood'. She asked jurors to consider when a 'busy' teacher could have taken 'the opportunity to carry out this sexual abuse', adding: 'How on earth did it happen?' Ms Byrnes also said the complainant's family members were often at home: 'It's so unlikely that anything happened in that bedroom.' She said: 'There was nothing to stop (the complainant) complaining about this to everyone and anyone.' The barrister later said: 'This is, in essence, at heart a case of one person's word against another.'
Judge's directions and defendant's account
Judge Kamran Choudhry told jurors that prosecutors say the complainant, now in his 40s, has 'consistently recounted the substance of the allegations over many years to many people.' The judge said the prosecution argues those disclosures are broadly consistent with his current account. The defence says Franklin's relationship with the boy was 'entirely proper' and not 'unusually close and inappropriate'. Franklin told jurors on Monday it was 'quite common for teachers and parents and children to socially interact'. She told police she could not recall tutoring the boy, but that 'little bits have come back' from looking at old photographs and talking with her legal team. She added: 'Things pop into your mind, I've had a long time to think about it.' Mr Pottinger asked if she remembered the boy more than she admitted; she replied: 'No.' When asked if she was choosing not to remember anything that happened in those years, she said: 'No.' Ms Byrnes asked if there was 'any truth' in the allegations that she sexually touched the boy during tutoring sessions; Franklin replied: 'No.' The defendant said it would not have been 'unusual' to be in a pupil's bedroom or on their bed while tutoring. The trial continues.
