17yo juvenile to go to trial over alleged rape at rodeo

A 17-year-old boy will go to trial after a 21-year-old woman alleged he raped her outside a regional Queensland rodeo grounds.

Close-up of boots in the horse's stirrup. Picture: istock

A woman has alleged that a teenage boy raped and sexually assaulted her outside a North Queensland rodeo with the juvenile’s defence claiming the woman’s story doesn’t line up with evidence.

The 17-year-old boy appeared in Townsville Magistrates Court this week for a scheduled directions hearing to go over the evidence for trial.

He has been charged with rape, sexual assault, observations or recordings in breach of privacy, distributing prohibited images and common assault.

No pleas have been entered.

It’s alleged the pair met at the rodeo last year while on the dance floor, before the boy raped the 21-year-old woman in bushland nearby.

Defence lawyer Claire Grant instructed by Anderson Telford Lawyers said it would be argued that there was “no resistance” from the woman.

“And what occurred was done entirely with her willingness, preparedness and consent,” she said.

Ms Grant said on the night of the alleged offences, the woman unknown to the juvenile was originally interested in another man.

“It was contended they were going to find her a cowboy,” she said.

“And the inference was she was socialising with intent to meet a mate.

“Unfortunately the man she was originally interested in rebuked his interest… she engaged in flirtatious behaviour with other men to gain his attention.”

It was after this, Ms Grant claimed the woman met the defendant.

She said the woman claimed the teen was “aggressive from the get go” which didn’t line up with the CCTV of the pair leaving arm in arm.

“The CCTV footage is wholly inconsistent with the complainant’s narrative,” the lawyer said.

TSV Generic Townsville Courthouse Court

Police prosecutor Lisa Plessius said the first alleged offence occurred on the dance floor as soon as the pair met.

“Her first complaint says, ‘as soon as he introduced himself he kissed me and his tongue was in my mouth and he put his hand under my shirt and squeezed my breast really hard’,” she told the court.

The boy’s lawyer said it was alleged that he assaulted the woman outside the grounds by touching her breast.

“There are many hundreds of people all leaving the rodeo at that particular time,” Ms Grant said.

“… such that if any circumstances gave rise to a woman distressed or unwillingly being taken from a rodeo against her will, that it would’ve been apparent.”

Ms Grant said the defence’s case would be that the woman was heavily intoxicated which brought rise to issues of her “reliability, credibility and memory”.

The court was told the woman didn’t recall the boy’s name and described him by the clothes he was wearing – however the defendant’s identity would not be contested due to information found on his phone by police.

The woman will also allege it was the boy’s suggestion to go into bushland near the rodeo and that she resisted by saying no which will be denied by the defence.

Ms Grant said during the woman’s first complaint which occurred with paramedics present, she didn’t include details about being raped from behind, which now forms part of the official complaint.

“It’s wholly inconsistent with the statement given to police,” the lawyer said.

After the woman’s complaint she was taken to hospital and photographs of alleged injuries were taken.

The defence said it’s the case that the alleged injuries in the photos “don’t form the key issues in dispute”.

The court was told there was urgency to the charges as the teen would be turning 18 at the start of next year.

Acting magistrate Kerri Fredericks adjourned the charges to May 23.

Originally published as 17yo juvenile to go to trial over alleged rape at rodeo