At 2013 rape trial Pacteau said he hated rapists and claimed he was homosexual

ALEXANDER PACTEAU had previously been cleared of carrying out a sex attack on a woman just a mile from where he murdered Karen Buckley.

The killer was charged with attempting to rape his 24-year-old victim in Baliol Lane off Woodlands Road in Glasgow on November 27, 2011.

Some 14 months later, he appeared at the High Court in Paisley where he told a jury: “I believe rape is the lowest of the low. I’d rather be charged with murder than attempted rape.”

He was cleared by a jury who found him not guilty by majority verdict after a five-day trial.

He appeared in court on crutches after being involved in a serious car crash in August 2012, which led to him being hospitalised for a month and requiring surgery on his hip.

In evidence, he told the court he was homosexual. He also said he had suffered from depression.

Pacteau told jurors: “I’ve cried endless nights because of this.”

The alleged victim said she had been returning home from a birthday party when she met Pacteau, then aged 17, and he suggested they share a taxi home.

Walking up Baliol Lane, she said he grabbed her and threw her to the ground before carrying out the sexual assault.

But Pacteau said the alleged victim had slapped him in the face and then pushed him to the ground. His defence lawyer described it as an incident that went “horribly wrong”.

Sandy Brindley, Rape Crisis Scotland national co-ordinator, said the court system was often stacked against rape victims.

Last year there were 87 convictions for rape or attempted rape, out of 214 court cases – out of 1,808 alleged rapes or attempted rapes reported to police during the same period.

Ms Brindley said: “Rape usually takes place somewhere where there are no witnesses and it comes down to a question of ‘was it consensual sex or not’.

“This often means it’s the complainer’s word against the accused. It’s not just a denial of justice to the complainer. We have real worries that guilty men are walking free.”

Dr Marsha Scott, chief executive of Scottish Women’s Aid, said: “We need better access to an advocacy system and we need to be much more serious about access to the criminal justice system.”

Speaking of Karen Buckley’s murder, she added: “I feel so bad for the friends and family of this woman. It’s so hard to see this happen time and time again.”

Yesterday it also emerged that a juror in the attempted rape case had made an official complaint he had not been able to hear all the victim’s courtroom testimony.

A spokeswoman for the Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service said jurors were told by court officials to raise any concerns with staff and they would be immediately acted on.