There was no sign of Brand the comedian or Brand the YouTuber when the defendant took to the witness stand—though he did begin his testimony defiantl
There was no sign of Brand the comedian or Brand the YouTuber when the defendant took to the witness stand—though he did begin his testimony defiantly, answering the first question with a “No” so noisy he seemed to shock even himself. From then on, he diminuendoed so far that the judge jumped in: “You are starting to drop your voice.”
Brand’s silences began when prosecution advocate Karmy-Jones took to her feet. A distinguished prosecutor and defender, she’s worked with and around murderers, sex offenders, and organized crooks. She’s also done time with terrible showoffs, having begun her career as a theater director. Kristin Scott Thomas or a juvenile Lauren Bacall might play her in the film version of the trial.
Karmy-Jones was achingly polite as she unpicked what Brand called his “escalating recollection” of events. In four police interviews across 18 months, claimed Brand, he had no memory of the six women accusing him—even when given photographs, names, and some details. The British version of the Miranda warning tells suspects under caution, “You do not have to say anything. But it may harm your defense if you do not mention when questioned something which you later rely on in court.”
According to the police tapes, so-called Woman 3 did not ring a bell for him back then. But in the witness box, Brand described meeting her at a bar, recalling that a friend had said something like, “There’s a bird here who really wants to meet you.” He remembered that she had “prominent eyes,” was “lithe, elfic, pixyish,” and consented to go to the toilet for “kissing..fondling.” He was found guilty of sexually assaulting her, and acquitted on that charge of rape.
“Are you sure you aren’t piecing an account together from the evidence that was served?” Karmy-Jones asked.
Maybe the lack of spotlight and vodcaster microphone lowered his guard. This proud wordsmith did not seem ready for his words to be used against him. He wouldn’t have sexually assaulted a woman he was flirting with, Brand said. He would have been “complimentary, flirtatious, tactile.” Yet when Brand tried to drift into generalities, he was dragged back to specifics.
