The case continues at the Wellington District Court. Photo: RNZ / Richard Tindiller
Warning - This article discusses discussions of rape and sexual assault
A 25-year-old man accused of rape took the stand for the first time today as the defence opened its case in Wellington District Court.
He has pleaded not guilty to four charges of rape, two of unlawful sexual connection and two of indecent assault, against six young women.
In his opening statement, lawyer Sam Campbell argued the complainants either consented to sexual activity, or the defendant was not involved at all.
He said the defendant was a victim of a "social media frenzy".
The case was sparked by online sexual abuse allegations about the defendant and other young men.
"The defence says [it] was ultimately based on untruth, gossip and rumour," Campbell said.
"All of this has spiralled out of control, to such an extent that we find ourselves here today."
Campbell said the defendant, complainants and their mutual friends were regularly partying, drinking, taking drugs, and sleeping with each other
"It's not an uncommon experience of growing up.
"I think it's safe to say that young people in particular have been experimenting with sex, alcohol and drugs since time immemorial.
"The law recognises that people can still consent when they've got alcohol or drugs on board, and the defence says that is exactly what happened here.
"Just because someone has no memory of it, or they later regret having sex, doesn't mean it wasn't consensual."
Campbell argued not only were the sexual encounters consensual, but that the defendant believed they were consensual.
This is a crucial threshold for the case. For the jury to find the defendant guilty they must agree that he knew he had not been given consent, and that a hypothetical "reasonable person" in his shoes would have thought the same.
Campbell described the defendant as an innocent, vulnerable young man.
Defendant shares his side of the story about two rape allegations
The defendant told the jury the first complainant invited him into her room after they had been at her birthday party, and they had consensual sex.
She previously testified that she woke up to him raping her.
He said they first met and got to know each other at the party.
"We just hit it off, we just engaged in conversations and yeah, she was interesting, and yeah I was interesting to her as well."
Later, he stayed at her family home with others from the party, and said the complainant and her mother were arranging bedding.
"I asked her where I was sleeping, and [the complainant] said that I could sleep with her in the bedroom."
After going to bed together the defendant said the sex began mutually, the defendant said.
He denied the complainant was excessively drunk or asleep, nor that he was aggressive or choked her, which she testified to last week.
He said they cuddled afterward, he thanked her for the party invite, and wished her luck for her job interview the next day.
The defendant testified that the second time the pair had sex it was consensual - which the complainant also recounted - but that it was not aggressive like she said it was.
He also said they had consensual sex a third time, which the complainant previously denied.
He said he stopped social media contact with her when he met his then-girlfriend, but the complainant said it was she who cut contact.
Friend group regularly slept with each other, defendant said
Under questioning about the second complainant, the defendant testified the pair were in a friend group - which also included a third complainant - who slept with each other regularly and consensually.
At a flat after a "regular" night out with that group, he said it was agreed he, the complainant, and another man would sleep in a bed together, which he said was not unusual.
He said the pair cuddled for a while before she rolled over and they began kissing, mistakenly thinking the other man was asleep.
"[The other man] said, 'Are you guys doing what I think you're doing?'," the defendant said.
"We both laughed, me and [complainant].
"He said 'I knew you guys were going to do this', and [the complainant] said, in a joking way, a little bit snappy, 'Well you can leave then'."
He said the third man left, and the pair went on to have consensual sex before falling asleep.
The complainant previously testified she awoke to him raping her, holding her arms above her head.
"Not true," the defendant said, when the allegation was put to him.
"That doesn't make sense, we did not do those positions."
He said he told the rest of the group, who had all stayed at the flat, about what happened the next morning.
"It was just normal, it was not unusual for us to sleep with people, especially in that group.
"We were all sleeping with each other, I know people that [the complainant] was sleeping with in that group and yeah, she knows that I've slept with other people in that group, too."
The defendant's testimony continues tomorrow.