RTÉ journalist found guilty of sexually assaulting woman as she slept

Ardent · 16-05-2022 9:14pm #1

I'm probably going to be accused of being all sorts, but curious to know what others think....

Just read this article, which is currently the lead item on the Independent homepage:

https://www.independent.ie/irish-news/courts/rte-journalist-found-guilty-of-sexually-assaulting-woman-as-she-slept-41655437.html

I don't know the guy from Adam, but I have to say I feel some sympathy for him.

Out drinking, meets lady, pub crawl with said lady, kissing at the end of the night, back to his place, sexual foreplay, she hints at sex the following morning, they share a bed together, etc. Absolutely no excuse for his incredibly blunt attempt to initiate in the middle of the night, but when she says no he backs off.

She claims she is traumatised by what happened. But I find it weird that, rather than report the incident immediately, she waited almost an entire year before going to the Gardai.

Anyway, this guy's career and life is ruined. Sentencing will happen next week.

Given the above contributing circumstances, can we really say this guy is a sexual deviant that needs to be locked up?

sam t smith · 16-05-2022 9:22pm

You have never heard the word ‘consent’?

Augme · 16-05-2022 9:25pm

The moral of the story is don't touch people up when they are asleep.

sam t smith · 16-05-2022 9:28pm

Extremely creepy behaviour. (As well as criminal obviously.)

Ardent · 16-05-2022 9:33pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119072473#Comment_119072473

But this is the thing - there was consent for foreplay throughout the night.

Donald Trump · 16-05-2022 9:33pm

Dude obviously wasn't famous. When you are famous you can grab them by wherever you want and they just let you.

Or so I've heard

Obviously your man was convicted so the jury found him guilty. People can't really condone it even though it seems a bit harsh to have had his life ruined over. We don't know the facts though and the jury did

sam t smith · 16-05-2022 9:34pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119072534#Comment_119072534

Which ended when they went to sleep.

Donald Trump · 16-05-2022 9:38pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119072547#Comment_119072547

Yes. And it was wrong what he did.

That she went back to sleep though it seems a bit weird if she was so upset. Unless she was a bit drunk or something or only started getting upset from it later. Which isn't impossible

Strumms · 16-05-2022 9:39pm

What’s done for him is him trying to initiate with the girl asleep… never a clever move in any situation but especially with someone you just met on a drunken night out..ffs.. that’s creepy x 1000.

i guess it must have been txt messages that led to his arrest and conviction…

certainly some oddness on behalf of the plaintiff…. In your eyes a guy tries to ‘sexually assault’ you, but you still stay in the same bed ? for a number of hours ? Then waiting almost one year to report it ?!

cap.in.hand. · 16-05-2022 9:43pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119072547#Comment_119072547

he gave his consent for her to go into his bed... she'd know he'd be there as well...it's not like she was in another bed in another room

Furze99 · 16-05-2022 9:49pm

Read to me like a bit of a misunderstanding that came to nothing. That's assuming it was, as reported. They're in bed by/ with consent. He feels a bit horny, she tells him to stop, he stops, they have a chat about it afterwards.

What then happens - he loses his job and ends up in court. Bit drastic.

How did this ever end up in the courts?

ahappychappy · 16-05-2022 9:52pm

Christ this thread is depressing. Please read up on consent it has always existed but some ignored . No means no at any and all point and the onus is on everyone to check in to establish consent.

sam t smith · 16-05-2022 9:52pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119072639#Comment_119072639

Did you miss the part where she was asleep?

Atlantic Dawn · 16-05-2022 9:53pm

Note to men...have 2 seperate sleeping bags in your bed if someone agrees to go back to your home of an evening of their own free will and sleep in the same bed as you when multiple other options were available.

Furze99 · 16-05-2022 9:56pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119072654#Comment_119072654

She didn't consent - so he stopped.

For most sane people, that is reasonable and respectable behaviour.

Multipass · 16-05-2022 9:57pm

Waste of court time. She went home with him, slept in his bed. He tried it on, she said no. Now she’s apparently traumatised for life, give me a break. This kind of case undermines real assaults.

Furze99 · 16-05-2022 9:58pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119072660#Comment_119072660

Why does it make any difference whether she was asleep or awake when he initiated more foreplay. Clearly she woke up, told him to stop and he stopped. Should be end of story.

ahappychappy · 16-05-2022 9:58pm

Eh he started when she hadn't the capacity to consent i.e. was asleep. If you don't understand consent then please go get educated.

sam t smith · 16-05-2022 10:00pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119072688#Comment_119072688

She was ASLEEP. She couldn’t give consent while asleep. Full stop. It doesn’t matter that he stopped when his actions woke her up and she asked him to stop.

He should not have started.

As per the article he accepts that himself. I don’t really understand how there can be any ambiguity here…

Jequ0n · 16-05-2022 10:01pm

Cases like this make a mockery out of actual sexual abuse situations.

Furze99 · 16-05-2022 10:02pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119072727#Comment_119072727

Grand, I'll leave you to your perfect wee world. Good luck with it.

sam t smith · 16-05-2022 10:03pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119072707#Comment_119072707

I’ll paste my response to the other lad who tried the same point:

”She was ASLEEP. She couldn’t give consent while asleep. Full stop. It doesn’t matter that he stopped when his actions woke her up and she asked him to stop.

He should not have started.

As per the article he accepts that himself. I don’t really understand how there can be any ambiguity here…”

osarusan · 16-05-2022 10:04pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119072534#Comment_119072534

Where are you getting that from?

They fooled around a bit, he tried to initiate penetrative sex, she said no, but maybe in the morning. How does that equal consent for foreplay throughout the night?

What they did together before she went to sleep is irrelevant, as is what she said might happen the next morning.

StevenToast · 16-05-2022 10:13pm

Id say there is alot of men sweating reading up on this case....thinking back on their past "conquests"....

Jesus......the stories you'd hear over the years.....

Suckit · 16-05-2022 10:14pm

Not excusing anything. But this line stuck out a little

She was unable to get public transport for a long time because the “touch from a stranger was unbearable”.

Surely if there was consensual foreplay, it was no longer a "touch from a stranger"?

monkeybutter · 16-05-2022 10:18pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119072793#Comment_119072793

Sure don't be a tease...

The story seems mad, just based on what's in the story

Imagine 1 fuukin year later getting a knock on the door

MEGA BRO WOLF 5000 · 16-05-2022 10:26pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119072797#Comment_119072797

It's waffle people like this insert into court cases to get more $$$

kaymin · 16-05-2022 10:26pm

She insisted on him being named as if he's a danger to society. Complete head banger.

Princess Consuela Bananahammock · 16-05-2022 10:31pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119072707#Comment_119072707

The woman then fell asleep and woke later to find Ó Leidhin on top her of her and groping her breasts. She said she told him to stop and get off her. He did stop and told her “sorry I'm horny”

So... climbing on her and groping her breasts was ok...?

And some people say we don't need consent as part of sex and relationships education...