Rape trial hinges on consent

A man accused of rape and assault didn’t stop his attack on a woman because ‘‘rough sex’’ might have been consensual, the Palmerston North District Court has been told.

James Charles Loads is on trial, facing six charges, including rape, assault and unlawful sexual connection.

But crying, swearing and using words such as ‘‘no’’ and ‘‘stop" were considered part of the thrill for the couple, defence lawyer Roderick Mulgan said. They had a ‘‘safe word’’ – avocado – and the woman didn’t use the code word.

The Crown says the woman was hit, choked and raped, and she vomited at one point.

The court was told the man and woman had experimented with role play for about a year.

Crown prosecutor Truc Tran said the woman contacted a friend immediately after she was raped, and the friend took her to hospital and alerted police.

The main issue in the trial would be whether there was consent, he said.

Mulgan said the trial was about one word – avocado – and the fact the complainant never said it.

Resisting Loads’ advances and begging him to stop was part of the couple’s typical role play, he said.

‘‘They didn’t have conventional sex. They had rough sex. Rough sex is dangerous. Rough sex can go wrong.’’

The law stated it was not rape if Loads believed, on reasonable grounds, that consent was given, Mulgan said.

The court also heard yesterday that Loads forced the woman to perform sex acts on him.

In a police video played to the court, the woman said she was invited to Loads’ flat to put makeup on him. Loads pulled her on to his lap as she was applying eyeshadow, she said, and smacked her bottom. ‘‘I told him we can’t be doing any of this any more because I had a boyfriend.’’

He refused to listen and instead removed her clothes. He pulled her hair, choked her and forced her on to the bed, where the rape happened, she said. Loads ignored her requests for a reprieve, telling her she wanted to be abused, she said. The woman said it only stopped when Loads heard someone, believed to be his girlfriend, return home. He dressed her and told her she could go home.

The trial continues.