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Belfast rape trial - all 4 found not guilty Mod Note post one

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    #122
    Omackeral
    Registered Users Posts: 32,956 ✭✭✭✭Omackeral


    yerwanthere123 wrote: »
    Oh Jesus, Louise O'Neill is already out in force on Twitter. Didn't take long.

    If you have Twitter can you kindly tell her to shut her fcuking mouth from me? Her “woke bae” Tupac was a sex offender, remind her of that. Idiot.


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    #123
    GLaDOS
    Moderators, Regional East Moderators Posts: 23,203 Mod ✭✭✭✭GLaDOS


    The reaction on twitter (I know, I know) is something else. A lot of people were convinced of their guilt and only wanted one verdict.

    Cake, and grief counseling, will be available at the conclusion of the test



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    #124
    The Talking Bread
    Closed Accounts Posts: 18,050 ✭✭✭✭The Talking Bread


    BoJack Horseman wrote: »
    The Talking Bread wrote: »
    Not how it works. .....

    Aah.... ok.

    That's a shame.

    False accusations of this life-changing nature should have consequences.


    Who said that they are false (or true). Christ. Do you understand how a trial by jury works


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    #125
    _Dara_
    Closed Accounts Posts: 3,971 ✭✭✭_Dara_


    py2006 wrote: »
    oh surprise surprise!

    Don’t be such a child. I stand by what I say. I have limited energy these days. I can’t waste it on someone with an entrenched viewpoint who is in like Flynn using an all-round unfortunate case to rant about their preoccupation.


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    #126
    awec
    Administrators Posts: 53,379 Admin ✭✭✭✭✭awec


    bluewolf wrote: »
    Was it the second day? I was only reading they went to deliberate today, maybe i am out of date
    Deliberation started yesterday afternoon.


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    #127
    Owryan
    Closed Accounts Posts: 4,024 ✭✭✭Owryan


    Twitter has gone into maximum outrage mode. Apparently they got away with it cause they are famous/rich/men/ part of the establishment, it was all a con.

    Plenty of women now claiming it should be all female juries for rape cases from now on.


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    #128
    weldoninhio
    Closed Accounts Posts: 14,311 ✭✭✭✭weldoninhio


    padd b1975 wrote: »
    This won't affect their careers in the slightest, nor should it.
    They are innocent.

    They are not guilty. Completely different. Only those there that night know what really happened.


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    #129
    jimgoose
    Registered Users Posts: 20,174 ✭✭✭✭jimgoose


    castletownman wrote: »
    I have been following this case from the off, and my opinion virtually meandered from one side to the next every second day. I initially believed her version of events as the stigma associated with rape, the false reporting of it and the process the "victim" had to go through led me to believe that she couldn't possibly be making it up.

    Gradually, as some holes started to be unraveled I felt that they simply had to be acquitted as there wasn't enough concrete evidence to nail them. So I suppose justice prevails in the end, even if I do think they are slime-balls still.

    I will say though that they are part of a misogynistic/sex-obsessed culture within rugby circles. The only real-life stories I have known of fellas having threesomes and other "adventurous" sexual encounters all involved lads that play the game. There is certainly an element of "jock culture" associated with those particularly from a private-school background.

    ^^^
    This.


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    #130
    seamus
    Registered Users Posts: 68,317 ✭✭✭✭seamus


    BoJack Horseman wrote: »
    False accusations of this life-changing nature should have consequences.
    Absolutely...if they're false.

    Based on the reporting I've heard, I don't think anybody actually lied. She believed she was raped. They disagreed. The jury weighed the evidence against the legal definition of rape and agreed with the defendents.

    It is possible to tell the truth and still lose a court case, because ultimately it comes down to whether the law was broken.


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    #131
    padd b1975
    Registered Users Posts: 10,703 ✭✭✭✭padd b1975


    _Dara_ wrote: »
    What are the stats on

    1) false accusations of rape or sexual assault

    2) wrongly-convicted men sitting in jail for same

    One is too many.


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    #132
    Nerdlingr
    Registered Users Posts: 4,385 ✭✭✭Nerdlingr


    eviltwin wrote: »
    Does it really take 8 days to cover the events of one night? I don't want innocent people going to prison but equally I don't want anyone going free because a victim is afraid of a similar experience.

    Four different accused with different barristers so they all had to question her.
    2 days per accused seems reasonable enough.


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    #133
    Strazdas
    Registered Users Posts: 18,032 ✭✭✭✭Strazdas


    ricero wrote: »
    A liar and a hussie. May she suffer for what she put these young men through.

    Maybe she believes she was raped and it was non consensual? A "liar" would be someone who concocts a completely invented story about a fictitious event......everyone accepts that sexual activity took place that night


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    #134
    sightband
    Banned (with Prison Access) Posts: 670 ✭✭✭sightband


    eviltwin wrote: »
    I don't think she's a liar. I believe she felt what happened was a rape, assault.

    That doesn't mean they raped her though. It's entirely possible they believed she was completely up for it.

    Having sex with strangers when you are under the influence of alcohol is a risky thing to do.

    Agreed, I reckon she had some different expectations as to how things manifested when they ended up going to town on her. Bad combination of naivety and drunk rugby lads without an ounce of decency in them...don’t think either side was wholly innocent nor guilty. Very unfortunate for all concerned.


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    #135
    DEFTLEFTHAND
    Registered Users Posts: 16,500 ✭✭✭✭DEFTLEFTHAND


    eviltwin wrote: »
    I don't think she's a liar. I believe she felt what happened was a rape, assault.

    That doesn't mean they raped her though. It's entirely possible they believed she was completely up for it.

    Having sex with strangers when you are under the influence of alcohol is a risky thing to do.

    Yes but the Law relies on facts not feelings.

    The amount of time and money wasted on this case not to mention the trauma inflicted on everyone involved is truly terrible. It should never have gotten this far.


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    #136
    py2006
    Registered Users Posts: 9,847 ✭✭✭py2006


    Guys in their position and more so footballers, boybands and movie stars have women throwing themselves at them. You can't blame young blokes for taken advantage (perhaps poor choice of word) of the situation. High fiving each other. Its just blokes being blokes.

    However, today's climate may change that.


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    #137
    Laois_Man
    Registered Users Posts: 5,758 ✭✭✭Laois_Man


    SEPT 23 1989 wrote: »
    can she be named so other men in the future can stay well clear of her?

    Hang on a second

    The accused being found not guilty or rape does not equate to the accuser being found guilty of being a lying bitch!


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    #138
    Koobcam
    Registered Users Posts: 828 ✭✭✭Koobcam


    jammiedodgers wrote: »
    None of them should ever have been named in the first place.

    Totally agree, though in the case of Jackson and Olding, it would have been impossible to hide the fact that it was them as their absence from Ulster and Ireland would have kind of given the game away.


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    #139
    Vlad Kelly
    Banned (with Prison Access) Posts: 32 ✭Vlad Kelly


    Delighted! Wonderful verdict. The system works.


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    #140
    Omackeral
    Registered Users Posts: 32,956 ✭✭✭✭Omackeral


    py2006 wrote: »
    Too many men are falsely accused of harassment and even rape. Many are in jail today too.

    Lets assume their innocence and not guilt purely because they are men.

    And let’s grant them anonymity while we’re at, if the accuser is afforded it.


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    #141
    Roadtoad
    Registered Users Posts: 746 ✭✭✭Roadtoad


    The law is an ass.

    Where one side is granted anonymity, so too should the other side. After one side is found guilty, then the protection may be lifted, unless the harmed party would suffer or be identified.

    Is the GB/NI interpretation of this the same as in the Republic?


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    #142
    coffee_cake
    Moderators, Category Moderators, Politics Moderators, Recreation & Hobbies Moderators, Society & Culture Moderators Posts: 81,310 CMod ✭✭✭✭coffee_cake


    What's the reason the accused are named in advance anyway? Does it happen for other cases? I thought in other cases the accused could only be named if the accuser also agreed to be public,I've definitely seen that before


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    #143
    _Dara_
    Closed Accounts Posts: 3,971 ✭✭✭_Dara_


    GLaDOS wrote: »
    The reaction on twitter (I know, I know) is something else. A lot of people were convinced of their guilt and only wanted one verdict.

    My sis and I were discussing the case. She said “I tend to believe women when they say they were raped”. “Always?”, I asked. “Always”. This is commonplace. I wonder would she be grand with her husband being falsely accused?

    Not all feminists are like this though. I have a friend who is a feminist and she thought the men were innocent based on what she had read of the case.


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    #144
    qo2cj1dsne8y4k
    Closed Accounts Posts: 23,646 ✭✭✭✭qo2cj1dsne8y4k


    py2006 wrote: »
    Guys in their position and more so footballers, boybands and movie stars have women throwing themselves at them. You can't blame young blokes for taken advantage (perhaps poor choice of word) of the situation. High fiving each other. Its just blokes being blokes.

    However, today's climate may change that.
    If it’s just blokes being blokes speaking about a girl like they spoke about her the following day, then blokes need to take a good long look at themselves.


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    #145
    seamus
    Registered Users Posts: 68,317 ✭✭✭✭seamus


    Roadtoad wrote: »
    Is the GB/NI interpretation of this the same as in the Republic?
    No, in the Republic all sides are afforded anonymity until the outcome of the trial.


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    #146
    Skid X
    Registered Users Posts: 21,444 ✭✭✭✭Skid X


    I don't know if the Jury made the right decision,

    but it seems unfair that the woman in question (and all prosecution witnesses) had to be interrogated by four different QC's (one for each of the defendants).

    If I had to account for my actions on any random day, I would end up contradicting myself several times if I had four of the best lawyers in Northern ireland poking holes in my story.


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    #147
    eviltwin
    Registered Users Posts: 17,495 ✭✭✭✭eviltwin


    Nerdlingr wrote: »
    Four different accused with different barristers so they all had to question her.
    2 days per accused seems reasonable enough.

    That's the right of the accused and I've no issues with that. I'm just stating my belief the length of time she was on the stand will have a negative impact on those who might be considering bringing a case against an abuser.


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    #148
    jr86
    Closed Accounts Posts: 2,930 ✭✭✭jr86


    Owryan wrote: »
    Twitter has gone into maximum outrage mode. Apparently they got away with it cause they are famous/rich/men/ part of the establishment, it was all a con.

    Plenty of women now claiming it should be all female juries for rape cases from now on.

    Scary stuff

    There are some absolute unhinged headcases out there

    Some of the comments during the trial were worrying to say the least


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    #149
    ChikiChiki
    Closed Accounts Posts: 4,950 ✭✭✭ChikiChiki


    Someone actually said "I believe her solely because I have no idea why you would put yourself through that incredibly public and humiliating trial if nothing bad actually happened at all'

    Jesus wept, people can be fierce naive...


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    #150
    py2006
    Registered Users Posts: 9,847 ✭✭✭py2006


    Omackeral wrote: »
    And let’s grant them anonymity while we’re at, if the accuser is afforded it.

    That is one of the most unjust aspects of these cases. Mens names and pictures are all over the media. While they're accuser remains anonymous. Even in the cases were it was clearly a false allegation.

    Lives destroyed regardless of innocence.


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    #151
    storker
    Registered Users Posts: 5,644 ✭✭✭storker


    ChikiChiki wrote: »
    How the bloody hell can you feel sorry for a liar??

    To be fair to her, the verdict doesn't say she was lying, merely that what she said combined with the evidence wasn't enough to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.


This discussion has been closed.
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