JACKSON KEEPS HIS COOL AND STARES JURORS SQUARELY IN EYE
AS a fly-half, Paddy Jackson consistently kept his nerve on the rugby pitch, even when those six-foot-plus forwards were bearing down on him. And it was no different yesterday when the questions came thick and fast, as he sat in the witness box at his rape trial in Courtroom 12 of the Belfast Crown Court.
After weeks sitting alongside his co-defendants, as he listened to the prosecution outlining its case, the 26-year-old walked to the witness box with long strides, his arms swinging and his eyes firmly on the ground.
Dressed in grey trousers, a navy jumper and open-necked shirt, it was only when he settled, shuffling his seat closer to the microphone, that he looked up. For four hours, he answered questions in the stuffy courtroom, in a clear, level tone
Even during an intense crossexamination by prosecutor Toby Hedworth QC Mr Jackson’s voice never appeared to falter.
Mr Hedworth, in a long, back cloak and wig, put to him that he was playing games with the accuser when he went upstairs the second time and thought she might follow.
‘You thought you would play these interesting cat-and-mouse games?’ the lawyer asked.
Mr Jackson responded: ‘I wasn’t playing a game.’
He was then asked: ‘That young woman went upstairs and you followed her didn’t you?’
Keeping his eye firmly on the barrister, Mr Jackson replied: ‘No.’
He was asked: ‘Did you think this time, “I’m not going to take no for an answer”?’ Mr Jackson replied: ‘No I didn’t.’ During questioning by his counsel Brendan Kelly, he claimed the woman performed oral sex on him before Stuart Olding walked into the bedroom. He said it was a ‘bit embarrassing’ but that he kind of smiled and offered a wave.
‘It was a bit stupid, kind of “hi, look what’s happening”,’ he said.
As Mr Jackson spoke about what he claimed happened in the room, Mr Olding sat upright facing the witness box.
Mr Jackson appeared to direct his answers to the 11 jurors, and seemed to make eye contact as he gazed from one to the other.
When the defence barrister asked a question, he looked at him and immediately turned his attention to the eight men and three women in the jury.
He used a hand – sometimes both – to make gestures as he spoke and raised his eyebrows in what appeared to be an attempt to emphasise certain points.
However, he never once directed his gaze towards the packed public gallery where his parents sat with other family members, friends and members of the public. The gallery was full to capacity.
Yesterday, the jurors, who had not sat since last Thursday, stared intently at Mr Jackson, appearing to study his facial expressions. Several sat with head on hands, while others were hunched over, often frantically scribbling notes.
The heat in the courtroom on the fourth floor of Langanside courthouse was so hot that the air seemed to have been sucked out of the crowded room.
MR Jackson sipped from a cup of water, refilling it when needed. As he spoke about his friendships, charity work and love of painting and films, he looked directly at the jurors. He said: ‘I am put under pressure with rugby so I like to spend a lot of my time with family, friends and my dog.
‘I like watching films and I do a bit of art – drawing, sketching and painting.’
He added: ‘I draw a lot of superheroes; I would be into comics.’
He also told the court he enjoyed miming and rapping, and making videos of himself doing it.
He said: ‘It was something I did as a kid. I have done it with my little sister since we were six or seven – it was funny.
‘I send them to friends, it is just stupid videos.’
Mr Jackson, who has 25 caps for the Irish rugby union team, also spoke about his friendships with some well-known rugby players – including the Ireland captain Rory Best.
Inquiring about social interactions involving Mr Best, Mr Kelly asked: ‘You were tasked with babysitting his children?’
Mr Jackson replied: ‘Yeah, I would have and I got invited to his son’s sixth birthday.’
After nearly a full day of questioning, Mr Jackson took a long drink of water before leaving the witness box at around 3.30pm, and then resumed his position with the other defendants in the dock, following a short recess.