Mark Cameron acquitted in rape trial

A married army sergeant charged with allegedly raping a colleague at her home following a drunken Christmas function has learnt his fate after a week-long jury trial.

A married Australian Army sergeant has been acquitted of raping a female military colleague following a boozy Christmas function after a week-long jury trial in the District Court.

Mark Anthony Cameron, 43, was charged with sexual intercourse without consent in November 2020 – almost two years after the alleged assault in December 2018.

Cameron consistently denied the accusation and faced a trial at Sydney District Court presided over by Judge Penny Musgrave, where he was found not guilty and acquitted on July 5.

The Crown and Cameron’s defence – high profile silk Margaret Cunneen – agreed the complainant and Cameron had sexual intercourse following a boozy social function they attended with several military colleagues in the Sydney CBD on December 1, 2018.

The court heard the woman was refused service by bar staff at the final venue and was given water before she and Cameron took a taxi to her home, where the encounter occurred.

Mark Cameron at Sutherland Local Court in 2021. Picture: Liam Mendes

The trial centred around whether the woman could consent to having sex due to her level of intoxication at the time, and whether Cameron also knew she was not consenting.

The defence submitted the complainant invited Cameron into her home and initiated kissing before the sexual encounter occurred.

But the woman gave evidence she had no memory of inviting Cameron into her home, before she became lucid, realised she was naked, and understood Cameron was having sex with her.

The woman testified that she said “what are you doing, I don’t want to do this, stop” and Cameron replied “just let me finish”.

Multiple Crown witnesses – including some military colleagues – confirmed the woman had conveyed a similar account shortly after the incident, in which she said she had asked what Cameron was doing and he had reportedly responded “just let me finish”.

The woman told the court she felt “disgusted” after Cameron left, explaining “I did not choose to do that … because I was so drunk”.

Cameron had consistently denied the rape allegation. Picture: Liam Mendes

The court further heard the woman never had a sexual interest in Cameron – who was married and a father – and though she did not remember inviting him in or kissing him, and did not think it was something she would do, she conceded she may have done so.

But Cameron was steadfast in his own version of events, insisting the sex was both consensual and initiated by the complainant.

“The defence says she said come in, and she started kissing him at the front door … she led him to the bedroom and undressed him and herself,” Judge Musgrave said in her summary of the defence case to the jury.

“(The defence says) the complainant did not say stop, and he did not say ‘shut up’ or that he wanted to finish – he says she invited him in and initiated the sex.”

The defence said the encounter concluded only when Cameron’s wife called him around 2am – which was reinforced by call charge records – to ask where he was.

“In his mind, there was no doubt she was consenting,” Judge Musgrave said.

“He says she initiated the kissing and the sexual intercourse … if you believe him, you must acquit the accused.”

Cameron in an undated social media photo.

In her closing argument, Ms Cunneen had urged the jury not to get caught up in the “Me Too movement” and believe all women and disbelieve all men.

“Yes, he was unfaithful to his wife in circumstances many men wouldn’t be able to withstand – the sexual temptation offered to him quite freely from an disinhibited, young, usually talkative woman,” Ms Cunneen said.

“It was a soon-regretted by both parties sexual event, probably fuelled by a reasonable amount of alcohol, but it was not sexual assault – this woman didn’t feel any pain, there were no bruises, she didn’t fight back, she didn’t scream.”

Ms Cunneen also highlighted the fact the woman had texted a friend hours after the incident to say the drunk version of herself “made poor choices”– rather than characterising the incident as rape.

The friend then responded “that sounds like rape”.

“A woman with her training, background and maturity, if she got raped she would know about it,” Ms Cunneen said. “It wouldn’t take some friend to tell her.”

Cameron’s barrister Margaret Cunneen. Picture: Chris Pavlich

On June 30, Judge Musgrave instructed the jury their verdict must turn on three key points.

In order to find Cameron guilty, they had to be convinced beyond a reasonable doubt he had sex with the complainant – which was not in dispute by either side.

The jury also had to be convinced the complainant had not consented to sex, and that Cameron knew she was not consenting – otherwise they had to find him not guilty.

It took the jury seven hours and 35 minutes of deliberation to ultimately find Cameron not guilty – following a note earlier in their consideration indicating they could not come to a unanimous conclusion.

For five days of the trial, Cameron was flanked by two male supporters and his legal team – and in the final two, also his wife.

Ever the soldier, he stood sharply at attention in the dock every time the judge and jury entered and exited the room.

Cameron leaving an earlier court appearance as he noticed media waiting for him. Picture: Liam Mendes

His wife – who cannot be legally identified – gave evidence her husband had always been respectful of women, and testified to his good character despite his infidelity to her.

She was stoic through multiple recounts of her husband’s actions, though was seen to shed a tear the first day the jury could not come to a verdict.

At another point, Cameron’s wife brought a copy of Ms Cunneen’s newly released biography – The Boxing Butterfly – for the barrister to personally sign.

Ms Cunneen had earlier told jurors her client did the “wrong thing morally” when he cheated on his wife with another soldier, but he was not guilty of a crime.

“Mr Cameron is a good husband and father but he is still a man – men in circumstances can be tempted by perfectly consensual sex, it is as common as anything,” Ms Cunneen said at one point in her closing argument to the jury. “This is not a court of morals.”

Cameron has one final date in the Local Court – July 20 – to address issues pertaining to an apprehended violence order previously sought by police.