Friends of Grace Millane give evidence about her BDSM interests

Friends of Grace Millane, who was allegedly killed by her Tinder date, said the British backpacker had an interest in BDSM.

Warning: The Grace Millane murder trial is hearing evidence of a graphic and sexual nature. Reader discretion is advised.

The man accused of Grace Millane’s murder won’t take the stand and give evidence in his own defence but friends of the British backpacker have.

The case, which is being heard in the High Court at Auckland, New Zealand, is now in its third week, the New Zealand Herald reports.

Crown prosecutors allege that on the night of December 1 last year – the eve of Millane’s 22nd birthday – the accused strangled Millane to death in his CityLife hotel apartment in downtown Auckland.

The accused’s lawyer, Ian Brookie, told the court this morning: “The defendant elects not to give evidence but as may be apparent now he elects to call evidence.”

Friends of Grace Millane have given evidence to court.

FRIENDS OF MILLANE GIVE EVIDENCE

A former sexual partner of Millane’s had his statement read to the court, however, much of the detail cannot be reported by media due to a suppression order.

He said during their relationship Millane talked of how she had a friend who enjoyed choking during sex.

“I got the impression that this was Grace’s own interest,” he said.

The pair then began experimenting with rough sex, BDSM, blindfolding and role play.

He said the two trusted each other and used a safe word. Millane would also tap him three times if she wanted to stop.

“Grace and I were careful to discuss not only the physical but psychological effects of BDSM.”

A friend of Millane, whose identity is suppressed, also had her statement read to the court.

She said Millane had “a type” in a man.

Footage shown in court of the date Grace Millane went on with the 27 year old accused of murdering her.

“Grace liked the rugby player type of look. Grace’s taste rarely went away from that type.”

Part of “girl talk”, she said, included discussing their sexual preferences.

Millane “enjoyed her partner putting her hands around her neck”, BDSM and rough sex, she said.

She also mentioned Millane would use handcuffs on occasions.

The court further heard evidence that Millane held accounts on Whiplr and FetLife, online BDSM and sexual fetish communities.

She last accessed her Whiplr account on December 1 last year – the day she met the accused – from her backpackers in Auckland.

ALCOHOL MAY HAVE PLAYED A ROLE IN DEATH

Dr Fintan Garavan, a forensic pathologist and expert in the effect of drugs and alcohol on the body, gave evidence to the court.

The accused’s lawyer, Brookie, asked the doctor about the bruising found on Millane’s body.

“It’s a bruise, [but] it doesn’t tell me what caused it necessarily,” Garavan commented on a bruise on Millane’s neck.

He also said there were no signs of any defensive injuries on Millane’s body.

“The fingernails are not particularly helpful,” he said.

Millane sen with her accused killer the night she died.

Garavan further explained – as had been evident in fatal hanging cases – that a “sharp force applied around the neck” in the right place can “stop the heart very quickly”.

Millane’s alcohol intake, he continued, could “very well have been a secondary factor in the cause of death”.

The backpacker had several drinks on the night she died, including shots of tequila and cocktails, which Garavan said was “a significant amount of alcohol to ingest over a short amount of time”.

He likened Millane’s alcohol consumption as an “iceberg that’s making its way for the shipping lane”.

He said it was “very likely [it] has became a very important indirect layer in causing death”.

‘NO MOTIVE’ FOR ASSAULT

Defence lawyer Ron Mansfield told the jury the Crown’s prosecutors had shown no evidence of “some assault, for which we have absolutely no motive for”.

He said the accused and Millane were an “otherwise happy couple, having fun, and consensual sex” on the night of December 1.

CCTV footage of the pair shows them drinking, laughing and kissing throughout the evening.

The accused claims Millane died during rough consensual sex, where she had asked him to choke and hold her neck.

There was no anger or violence, Mansfield said.

“There is an absence of any motive.

“None of the people who were occupying the room right next door heard any disturbance.”

Millane was backpacking in New Zealand when she was killed.

What the accused did after Millane died “doesn’t stand him in good stead”, Mansfield said.

“People do things when they’re stressed, when they’re panicked,” he added.

“The opportunity for him to do the right thing was relatively narrow.”

The lawyer said his client “panicked out of a fear of the consequence” when he disposed of Millane’s body and evidence.

“Because who was going to believe him that death occurred during a consensual sexual activity?

“Nothing you do from that point on is going to look good.

“As reprehensible as you might find some of his conduct, you might find it tells you very little about when Ms Millane died.”

Mansfield said the sexual interests of Millane would be discussed as part of the defence as the accused’s had during the Crown case.

“I want to be very clear that no one is trying to shame Ms Millane or her family and no one is trying to blame Ms Millane and her family. And I’m certainly not suggesting that she’s not normal.”

Millane was a “loving, bright, engaging, intelligent and well-liked woman”, Mansfield said.

“That is her reputation and that should be her reputation and memory at the start of this trial and at the conclusion of it.”

This article originally appeared on the NZ Herald and is republished with permission.