Judge rules Russell Brand is not guilty of indecent assault and has charge changed
An indecent assault charge against Russell Brand has been changed to attempted indecent assault after a judge told jurors on Tuesday morning they should find Brand not guilty of the indecent assault allegation.
Mr Justice Bennathan concluded 'there was insufficient evidence' to support the charge as the trial of the actor at Southwark Crown Court continues.
The judge told the jurors: "At the end of the prosecution case and with the agreement of the lawyers one of my jobs is to review the evidence.
"Not to decide whether the evidence is accurate or false, whether the defendant is guilty or not, but to review is there evidence there that the jury could return a verdict.
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"In respect of count 2 I have reached the decision there is insufficient evidence of indecent assault.
"That is my decision not yours. You will be directed to return a not guilty verdict in count two."
The charge relates to an allegation that Brand grabbed a female MTV worker by the arm and tried to drag her into a toilet.
In court on Tuesday, the judge chose one of the jurors to deliver a not guilty verdict on the indecent assault count.
Speaking of the new charge of attempted indecent assault, the judge said: “The defendant Russell Brand has entered a not guilty plea to this count.”
As well as the new charge of attempted indecent assault, Brand is on trial accused of three counts of rape and three charges of sexual assault, which he denies.
One woman alleges she was raped by Brand in a Bournemouth hotel room in 1999, while another claims she was orally raped by the comedian and actor at a bar in Soho, London, in 2004.
The jury was read a 999 call made by latter after the alleged assault.
In the call, which was made in September 2023, she alleges: "I was at a friend's party. He arrived and he was talking to me at the bar and he grabbed my breasts and forced me into the men's toilet and tried to force me to give him oral sex."
She claims to have 'started screaming' while trying to open the door, before another person asked if she was OK, which allegedly lead to Brand letting her out, the 999 call claims.
Allegations have been made by six different women, spanning a ten-year period between 1999 and 2009.
Those defending Brand say any sexual activity was consensual and that accounts have been twisted following the release of a 2023 documentary which made sexual abuse allegations against the Brit.
The defence's case starts on Wednesday.
Topics: Russell Brand, World News, Crime
Callum Jones