Cairns District Court rape trial told of events at 2018 birthday party

A Cairns man is on trial for alleged rape in the back of his car after a mutual friend’s birthday party in Aeroglen in 2018.

A TRIAL involving the alleged rape of a young woman st a birthday party in 2018 began in the Cairns District Court on Monday before judge Dean Morzone QC.

Defence barrister Tony Kimmins and crown prosecutor Aaron Dunkerton made their opening addresses about the event which occurred in August and was held in the shed behind a property.

Mr Dunkerton said the trial concerned an incident at a mutual friend’s birthday party.

The court heard that the victim, defendant and witnesses were all inebriated at the birthday party.

He said that the woman who cannot be named for legal reasons, was alleged to have been sexually assaulted by the defendant in the back of his station wagon.

“This trial is about what happened in the back of this defendant’s car in 2018 at a birthday party in Aeroglen,” he said.

He said the victim could remember putting her hand on the defendant’s shoulder before she fell asleep and then later woke and found him assaulting her.

A Cairns man is facing Cairns District Court, charged with an alleged rape in 2018.

“That afternoon a friend took her the Cairns Hospital,” Mr Dunkerton said.

“On January 20, 2020, the victim went to the Cairns Police Station and made a complaint.”

Mr Kimmins said “there is no challenge that there was some (sexual) penetration, all facts are undisputed,” he said.

“The real battleground in the case is what happened from the time she put her arm around in the back of the car and eventually removed his hand.”

A number of witnesses were called to give evidence.

All said that they recalled that the victim was visibly distressed the morning after the party.

The trial will resume on Tuesday March 15 before Judge Morzone.

Originally published as Cairns District Court rape trial told of events at 2018 birthday party