I felt I was being abused all over again, but this time by my rapist’s lawyer. I had to fight back... for the sake of every sex abuse victim
Brave rape survivor who shamed top lawyer after ‘brutal’ court interrogation speaks out...
AS she sat in the court watching her rapist finally being led away in handcuffs, Ellie Wilson should have been consumed with feelings of relief and vindication after her brave three-year battle for justice. Yet at the exact moment she watched her tormentor Daniel McFarlane disappear down the court stairs to begin his five-year prison term, her thoughts immediately turned to the next battle she knew she would have to face.
For Ms Wilson had been subjected to ‘brutal’ treatment at the hands of McFarlane’s defence lawyer who questioned whether she had a personality disorder and suggested his client had fallen in love with the ‘wrong person’.
She knew, as she sat in the austere surroundings of the High Court in Glasgow, his public attack on her meant she had to stand up for herself all over again. Incredibly, after her fight to get her rapist into court, she would, yet again, have to seek justice for herself.
She complained that advocate Lorenzo Alonzi broke rules designed to protect women in rape trials from inappropriate questioning about their sexual history and character. Last week the Faculty of Advocates’ complaints committee found him guilty of five counts of unsatisfactory professional conduct.
Ms Wilson’s success – after a £3,000 crowdfunding campaign to secure vital court tran
I was suicidal after what I experienced but my case is not unusual
scripts – drew a crucial legal line in the sand. More importantly, it marked a powerful victory for every rape victim whose character is called into question during the ordeal of bringing their attacker to justice.
Ms Wilson, who has waived her anonymity, said she hoped the finding would show that advocates ‘can’t act with impunity’.
Last night the 26-year-old said: ‘It feels like a victory now, it has been so hard fought and it has taken so much effort to get here.
‘I’m not a lawyer but I had to essentially learn about the law, so I’m very proud of myself for being successful.
‘I was suicidal after that court case after what I experienced, but my case is not unusual – we need to act urgently.
‘We cannot be retraumatising people when they are at their most vulnerable and gambling with their lives and mental health. It’s absolutely not acceptable.’
McFarlane, from Inverness, was jailed in July 2022 after being convicted of raping Ms Wilson between December 2017 and February 2018 when he was a medical student at the University of Glasgow.
He was also found guilty of attempting to defeat the ends of justice when he asked a friend to delete messages after he admitted carrying out ‘despicable things’. A secret recording made by Ms Wilson helped convict him after she found the courage to report McFarlane to the police.
However, after her attacker was convicted and jailed, far from being relieved, she felt humiliated and powerless. Such was the treatment dished out by Mr Alonzi, Ms Wilson felt she was the one on trial and accused of being an abuser. She said: ‘I had no idea what to expect going to court.
‘When I was led from the witness room to the court, it felt like I was being led to my own execution.’
The experience was made even more traumatic when Mr Alonzi ‘repeatedly crossed the line’ with his questions.
This included him asking her if she had heard of narcissistic personality disorder and whether she had it, which the lawyer told the judge was not based on any medical report or diagnosis but his own assessment based on messages he had seen.
The court experience did not just force her to relive the trauma she faced during her relationship with McFarlane but actually created a new one.
She said: ‘I felt I was being abused publicly in court by this lawyer and unable to do anything.’
The Faculty of Advocates ruled that ‘asking the questions he did without having seen such a report or diagnosis by a medical professional was discourteous to the court and abused the privileged
position held by the member’. Even after the jury was discharged, Mr Alonzi continued on his crusade to attack her character.
Ms Wilson had the courage to attend McFarlane’s sentencing hearing, to watch him be sent to prison for what he had done to her.
It was then, as he spoke in mitigation for his client, that Mr Alonzi took further aim at Ms Wilson.
He said McFarlane ‘fell in love with the wrong person’, that he didn’t belong in court and that it was ‘difficult not to imagine some sense of injustice in it all’.
Ms Wilson said: ‘Daniel had brought his entire family to the hearing. Just seeing the huge army of supporters was really intimidating and to hear all that horrible stuff being said was humiliating and disempowering. I expected what Mr Alonzi said that day to be focused on his client, not on me.
‘Sentencing was worse than being cross-examined because I couldn’t say anything. So that’s what this complaint is about, finding my voice and reclaiming my power.
‘I decided then I was going to do something about that.’ It was ruled that at the sentencing hearing Mr Alonzi ‘appears to make complimentary statements about the accused’s morals and upbringing and then imply that the complainer is the exact opposite by describing them as “chalk and cheese”.’
The Faculty added: ‘The member states the accused “doesn’t belong here” which again can be taken as suggesting the jury made an error and convicted an innocent man.
‘The implication of that is that the complainer has unfairly done well in life, despite lying about the accused’s behaviour, whereas the accused is innocent and has been wrongly convicted on the basis of the complainer’s false testimony.’ Leaving court, Ms Wilson should have had a sense of closure and been ready to try to rebuild her life, but was left feeling suicidal.
Somehow she found the strength to take the matter further and crowdfunded £3,000 to pay for the trial transcripts. This landmark moment has led to other victims of sexual assault being given access to such transcripts for free, as part of a pilot scheme.
Using her transcript, Ms Wilson channelled her pain and trauma and lodged a complaint challenging the behaviour of the advocate.
She said: ‘The battles have been endless. After the sentencing people expected me to be happy and move on but I was deeply depressed and that was largely down to Mr
Alonzi.’ Reading the transcripts, piecing her complaint together and learning the law, Ms Wilson has been empowered to continue in her quest to help other women.
She said: ‘There will be more cases like this and that’s why I will keep campaigning.
‘There’s this secrecy surrounding the courts and advocates say things knowing nobody can really prove what has been said.
‘That’s part of this culture of impunity so having free transcripts will serve as a warning.’
The news her complaint had been upheld last week finally gave her a sense of justice. She said: ‘The language in the report is quite strong saying he had abused his position.
‘I have been vindicated and the hard work has paid off, everything I suspected has been proven to be true. He violated the laws put in place to protect victims.’
The final wait now is to find out how Mr Alonzi will be sanctioned.
The Faculty of Advocates said: ‘The process remains ongoing. Therefore it would not be appropriate to comment.’ Mr Alonzi was contacted for comment.
Ms Wilson said: ‘I expect an apology. If I don’t get one I’ll be protesting outside the Faculty of Advocates’ chambers. The least I deserve is an apology but I want compensation as well. I came out of the court feeling suicidal and needing time off work, it has had an enormous impact on my life.’
Ms Wilson said she won’t stop now. She wants more to be done to prevent this happening for victims still to give evidence at court.
She added: ‘I am going to extend invites to the people in power to meet with me and talk about this.
‘The sad reality is my case is not unique, there are probably thousands of women across Scotland in a similar situation. The most heartwarming moment I’ve had is hearing that other women had cited me as the reason for reporting abusers and having the courage to talk about what happened to them.
‘By them doing that, other women will do the same and it is like this chain effect, which is so beautiful.’
I was deeply depressed and that was largely down to Mr Alonzi