A woman has told a trial that she regrets having consensual sex with a married man aged in his 40s when she was underage a decade ago.
The woman, who was dating the accused's son at the time, claimed the man took pictures of her on his phone in compromising positions after having sex with her at secluded locations in Connemara, Co Galway and at his home.
She claimed he took possession of a “very short” white miniskirt she was wearing when they first met and got her to wear it for him when they had sex between 2009 and 2010.
The man (51) has pleaded not guilty to 31 counts of having sexual intercourse with a child aged under 17 on dates between April 1st, 2009 and November 19th, 2010, contrary to Section 3 of the Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) Act 2006.
He also denies eight additional charges of defilement of a child by having the girl to perform oral sex on him during the same period.
The woman was asked on Friday at Galway Circuit Criminal Court by prosecuting barrister Conor Fahy what had she to say now about having had consensual sex with the man back then.
‘Attention’
“I don’t know what to say,” the now 25-year-old said. “It wasn’t right, but I couldn’t give up the attention and looking-after that I had from him and it just kills me now to think of it.”
Mr Fahy also asked her if there was any reason the accused man would have a doubt about her age at the time.
“No, I was dating his 15-year-old son then and once he hit 16 we stopped having sex because he said he would get into trouble because I was still underage at 15, as there was six months between us.”
The trial, which was in its fourth day on Friday, heard evidence earlier in the week that the complainant had been dating and having sex with the man’s then 15-year-old son after first meeting him on St Patrick’s Day in 2009.
The complainant recalled today that her mother had bought her the miniskirt, which she wore on that first date. She said she met the accused that day too while dropping off his son and he was very friendly.
A few week later, when he started to have sex with her, the complainant said the man told her he loved seeing her that first day in the white miniskirt and he asked to have it. She gave it to him and, at his request, always wore it whenever they were having sex.
Texting
The complainant told the jury on the first day of the trial earlier this week that two weeks after she started seeing the man’s then 15-year-old son, the accused got her number and started texting her.
He arranged for her to come and stay at his home so that she could date his son and when the teenagers had a row, the father contacted her saying he wished he was 20 years younger. She said they sent each other messages regularly after that and soon began a sexual relationship, while she was still dating and sleeping with his son.
Mr Fahy told jurors at the start of the trial that the issue of consent “does not apply” in such a case.
“The fact that she may and did consent to sexual intercourse while she was aged between 15 and 17 is irrelevant in criminal law because the law is there to protect young girls from predatory men,” he said.