The jury has retired in the Joseph Eubank rape trial after the judge told the two men and ten women: “Ultimately, only two people know precisely what happened.”
Eubank, 27, of Hill Drive, Hove, denies two counts of rape on the beach near the Palace Pier, Brighton, on a Saturday night in July 2022.
The complainant, whose identity is protected in law, was 16 at the time and had been out in a group celebrating a friend’s birthday.
She became separated from her friends and ended up “being dragged down the beach” where, she said, she and Eubank had sex.
Judge Christine Laing, the honorary recorder of Brighton and Hove, summed up the evidence given by both Eubank and the girl as well as from others including toxicologists.
The experts estimated – defence barrister Kate Blackwell said guesstimated – that she could have been more than twice the drink driving limit.
Judge Laing told the jury: “We can all be affected differently on different occasions – and at different points in the evening – when alcohol has been consumed.
“She was just 16 at the time. The agreed evidence is that she is likely to have been less tolerant to the effects.”
Eubank had not been drinking at all and his evidence was that she did not seem to be drunk and that she was happy to go down the beach with him.
Judge Laing said that Eubank’s account was that they “both had intentions to do something that was better to do in private”.
Both agreed that they had had sex – and as she and Eubank were doing so, Judge Laing told the jury that the girl had later said: “I remember thinking: ‘How did I get into this position?’”
Within minutes, Eubank had said that he had to go – and he left the girl on the beach. She left the beach by herself and contacted her friends.
Their evidence was that she was slurring her words and obviously drunk and said that she had been raped.
Eubank’s trial started on Monday at Lewes Crown Court
The jury retired at 10.43am.
