Editor’s note: This article includes descriptions of alleged sexual offences that some readers may find upsetting.
Channel 4’s 2023 investigation into Russell Brand did not act as a “magic force” that led six different women to alter their memories and accuse the Despicable Me actor of rape and sexual assault, the prosecution told jurors on Friday.
Prosecutor Riel Karmy-Jones set out her closing speech at Southwark Crown Court in London, where Brand faces trial on three counts of rape, three counts of sexual assault and one count of attempted indecent assault. Deadline has been covering the proceedings each day via a live video feed from the courtroom.
Karmy-Jones opened by stressing that the six complainants behind the seven charges are “entirely unconnected” — they do not know one another and have never met. She emphasised that these are “six women who have nothing to gain, who have not sought publicity, who have not participated in documentaries, who have not claimed compensation … There is no benefit to them.”
The prosecutor said the Channel 4 film, Russell Brand: In Plain Sight, together with reporting by The Times of London, prompted the women — who retain their lifelong right to anonymity — to come forward and disclose encounters with Brand that had “disturbed them for years.”
Karmy-Jones dismissed Brand’s contention that the documentary was “evil and untrue” and that it led the women to “recast what actually happened.” She challenged the defence’s suggestion: “Could a documentary or a Times article really exert that kind of influence over fully rational women? Could it make them completely reinvent events?”
Her argument was that there was no supernatural effect or “woo-woo” power in the film. Rather, she said, the women realised they were not alone and found the courage to appear in court and tell their accounts.
“They have clear, vivid memories of what occurred,” the prosecutor told the jury, noting that their evidence “was not shifted” during cross-examination by defence counsel Ian Winter. By contrast, Karmy-Jones said, Brand’s recollection of the women was minimal and that he adjusted his version after seeing the prosecution’s case.
Earlier on Friday, Mr Justice Bennathan, who is presiding over the trial, directed the jury to ignore the Channel 4 documentary when reaching their verdicts. “Do not think that a few women making anonymous complaints in a TV show adds any support at all to the prosecution,” he said. “The defendant denied the allegations [in the documentary] in robust, detailed terms. They were never tested in any court.”
Bennathan reminded jurors that they must return unanimous decisions on each individual charge if they are to convict Brand. He reiterated that the prosecution carries the burden of proof and that the defendant is entitled to the benefit of any reasonable doubt. The judge indicated he expects the jury to retire to consider their verdicts next Tuesday, November 3.
The trial is ongoing.
Daniel Hayes is a business journalist with a focus on market trends, startups, and corporate strategies.
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