A jury is expected to begin deliberations on Wednesday in the trial of a man accused of repeatedly raping a pre-teen girl.
Noel Baker, 50, denies three counts of rape and two counts of indecent assault in relation to the child. The crimes allegedly occurred over several months in 2022.
The girl, now a young teen, who testified via videolink and whose video-recorded police interview was played to the jury, alleged that Baker, after touching her thigh underneath her skirt on several occasions, escalated after a couple of months into rape.
Justice Cheryll Richards began her summing up of the case to the jury of four women and three men on Tuesday, 20 Aug., as the two-week trial neared its end.
The girl had said she had not initially reported to anyone what was happening to her, as she had been scared because Baker told her not tell anyone. She said she had also not told her mother because she did not think she would believe her.
The matter came to light after the girl told a school counsellor about the abuse.
During the trial, Baker admitted he had lied in his initial police interview about spending any time in the home of the girl and her mother, saying he had been confused and upset about the serious allegations being made against him.
Prosecutor Nicole Petit, summing up the case for the prosecution, said it was evident that Baker had lied to police.
She said, in contrast, the girl had been truthful to police and had been consistent in relating her allegations about what had happened to her at the hands of Baker.
She said the child clearly had had difficulties in her life, “but that does not change the fact of what Noel Baker did to her”.
She noted that abuse does not happen to “perfect children from perfect families”, saying that it can happen to “any child from any family”.
The five charges against Baker are “example” or “specimen” charges, the judge explained to the jurors.
Richards will continue her summing up on Wednesday, and the jury is expected to begin deliberations on Wednesday morning.
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