Man accused of naming woman in rape trial is due in court tomorrow
A MAN is due in court tomorrow accused of revealing the name of the woman who alleged she was raped by two Ulster rugby stars.
Sean McFarland is charged with breaching the woman’s right to lifetime anonymity during the trial.
Ulster and Ireland players, Stuart Olding and Paddy Jackson, were unanimously acquitted of raping the woman at a party in Jackson’s house after a night out in Belfast in June 2016.
Blane McIlroy was unanimously cleared of a charge of exposure. Rory Harrison was cleared of charges of perverting the course of justice and withholding information.
The Belfast Telegraph revealed in August that a man was due in court accused of naming the woman at the centre of the trial.
A second person suspected of committing the same offence was not prosecuted due to insufficient evidence.
Complainants in rape cases are granted anonymity for life, and it is illegal to identify them.
McFarland (35), from the Lenadoon area of west Belfast, is due in court tomorrow on a single charge under the Sexual Offences (Amendment) Act 1992.
If convicted he could face a fine of up to £5,000.
When approached by the Sunday Life, he declined to comment, saying: “I don’t want to say anything, you need to speak to my solicitor.”
His case is listed at Belfast Magistrates Court.
The nine-week rape trial at Belfast Crown Court was halted on numerous occasions.
One such delay was caused by an allegation that the complainant had been named on the internet. The matter was referred to the Attorney General John Larkin.
At the end of each day, Her Honour Judge Patricia Smyth QC warned the jury not to read news reports on the trial and singled out social media as posing a particular risk of prejudice.
On several occasions defence lawyers raised the issue of comments on social media jeopardising the men’s right to a fair trial.
Following the verdict, it emerged that one such comment was a tweet sent by Alliance leader Naomi Long.
She had criticised comments by a defence lawyer concerning the social backgrounds of some of the witnesses in the case.
Last week, the Belfast Telegraph reported that the cost of the trial has topped £550,000 to date.
The costs include £336,000 spent on legal aid, £160,000 spent by the Public Prosecution Service (PPS) on prosecution costs, and £53,000 on other court costs.