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Lucy Powell condemns Russell Brand victims’ courtroom questioning as depressing
Labour deputy leader and education secretary Lucy Powell has condemned the cross-examination of Russell Brand’s victims as “depressing”, saying she thought the culture behind such questioning had passed. Her comments follow Brand’s sentence for rape and sexual assault, and have renewed attention on how victims are treated in court.
Brand was jailed for 10 and a half years for raping one woman and sexually assaulting three others. His barrister questioned why the women had not resisted or left, and described one rape as a “short and momentary failure”; the sentencing judge said the women had suffered additional distress because of the court conduct. Powell also said she and former Labour leader Ed Miliband regret arranging a 2015 interview with Brand, whom she said was then a prominent public figure.
In short
- Powell called the courtroom questioning of Brand’s victims depressing.
- Brand received a 10-and-a-half-year prison sentence.
- Powell regrets arranging Miliband’s 2015 interview with Brand.
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Originally published by The Guardian as “Brand barrister’s cross-examination of victims shocking and depressing, says Labour deputy”.