Before I start, this isn't a 'Did they or didnt they rape her' post. The jury retired and returned with their verdict. Not guilty. That was the verdict and we'll argue it in pubs and on street corners and in shops for a few days but we'll revert back to our lives and the fallout and pain of everyone involved will be forgotten by us in time and we'll forget that for 42 days we were on that jury and living the trial for many different reasons.
Was she raped that night? I wasn't there so I can't say she was or wasn't. I can assume many things but I can't hand on my heart swear what happened.
Do I believe she was raped? Yes over and over again. And when she thought the rape was over it happened again and again. She was raped the minute she entered the court as a witness for the psni...
She didn't bring this case so she had no lawyer to defend her against their 4 lawyers, she had nobody to stand up and give her a reference as a good person like they did. Nobody could speak for her. No matter how much she was screaming inside nobody could help her. She stood alone. She had nothing except her voice.
Footage of her dancing at the night club was reviewed over and over to assert whether she was looking for a bit of fun at the end of the night, her fake tan was assessed over and over, was she preparing her body for a little sexy time?.... her underwear was passed around the court as though it was a game of pass the parcel.....
Did she want it... Did she get what she apparently dressed for? These were the questions she had to face.
Does it matter how sexy her underwear was? I wear it and I'm not looking for an orgy or to get raped or to have fun and regret it... it's fuck all to do with anyone what's underneath my clothes.
She was told over and over again for nearly two years what would happen when she entered that court yet she entered it anyway.
Victims of all kind of abuse will tell you that you can't say how you'll react unless you're in that situation. A child being abused will never scream or kick out because of the threat of what's happening to them. Because of the fear of what might happen if they do. A victim of domestic violence will almost never fight back... again for fear. A rape victim is trapped in a fear that only a rape victim will understand.. as only an abused child will understand... as only an abused spouse will understand.
Forget gender, all of the above are male and female and all of the above are terrified of what happened to them, of what might happen to them the next time.
The girl in Paddy Jacksons house knows what happened that night... the 4 lads accused know what happened but regardless of the truth, She was raped in and out of that court and thats something we as Irish citizens should fight to change. .
Nobody should have been named and the court should not have been open for the general public to come and go as they please.
In a world of WhatsApp banter and Twitter trolling, raped or not raped that night turned out to be the least of her problems.....
We sadly live in a society that is rarely shocked anymore by any storyline. How the hell do we protect our children from this?
There are no grey areas regarding consent and all children regardless of gender should be taught that bullying, discrimination and rape of any kind is not acceptable, whether it's their character or their body being raped.....
Bullying kills more people than we care to admit
Enough is enough. It's time for change and understanding and maybe, just maybe we might learn something from the trial that captured everyone's minds.....
The trial that leaves us wondering why we're living in 2018 and we still tolerate shitty behaviour
Valerie Masters
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