Student appeared 'upset and in a state of shock', nurse tells rape trial
A student allegedly raped by two men after a night out drinking appeared upset and in shock the day after the incident is alleged to have happened, a witness has told the Central Criminal Court.
The complainant was a student at a college in Co. Donegal in February 2015 when she says the two defendants raped her after a night of drinking.
The men, who have a legal entitlement to anonymity, have pleaded not guilty to two counts of rape of the woman in a town in the county.
The defendants are now aged 29 and 33 and are residents of Donegal. The complainant is now aged in her 20s.
The alleged rapes happened after she and her female friend accepted a lift from two men at the end of a night out and ended up in an apartment. She has told the trial that she was too drunk to consent to any sexual activity.
On day seven of the trial a nurse told Seamus Clarke SC, prosecuting, that she was told by a colleague that there were two “extremely upset” girls who wished to see her.
She said:
“They were upset and appeared to be in a state of shock. They were crying.”
Earlier in the trial the complainant testified that she told the nurse “we thought we'd been raped” and then “we burst into tears”.
The nurse told the jury that the complainant was talking more than her friend, who sat back and was very quiet, and “seemed to be in a complete state of shock”.
She noted at the time that the complainant “was feeling guilty” and was saying “I shouldn't have drank so much”.
She said that she organised for the women to telephone home. She said the complainant calmed down a bit during this call.
Asked by Mr Justice Alex Owens if she noted evidence of intoxication the witness replied: “Not as a nurse, but as a mother, they still appeared drunk”.
She said she contacted gardaí and they arrived “promptly”.
Another witness gave evidence of examining the complainant at a Sexual Assault Treatment Unit. She said she identified five areas of bruising in the genital area.
Under cross-examination, she said it is not possible to “age” bruising so she could not say if the bruising took place before the night of the alleged offences.
She said she asked the complainant if any of the bruising identified in her examination was pre-existing. She said she would note if a patient says something is old or pre-existing.
Due to a legal issue the jury will not hear any evidence until Monday. The trial continues in legal argument tomorrow before Justice Owens.
