A Perth woman has successfully sued a soldier for raping her after a night out in Dundee – four years after he was acquitted by a high court jury.
In a landmark civil ruling – only the second of its kind in Scotland – a sheriff has found that Sean Diamond raped the woman after she fell asleep on a friend’s sofa in 2015.
Sheriff KJ Campbell has now awarded her damages of nearly £120,000.
Speaking after the ruling, the woman, known as Ms AB for legal reasons, said she was “overcome with emotion” after nearly six and a half years of “fighting for justice”.
Charity Rape Crisis Scotland said the case “exposed cracks in the criminal system”.
Attacked as she slept
At the time of the attack, Ms AB lived in Perth and was working in retail.
She travelled to Dundee on July 14 2015, and went with a friend to the Underground nightclub.
There she met Diamond and two of his pals. They spent the night drinking and dancing together.
Later, Diamond and one of his friends took at a taxi with Ms AB and her friend to the friend’s flat.
Ms AB and Diamond slept in the living room. She was on the sofa, still wearing the dress she had worn out that evening.
Sheriff Campbell notes that at no point did they discuss having sex.
Sometime between 3.30am and 4am, Ms AB woke to find Diamond raping her.
“She was prevented from getting up,” the judgement states.
She lost consciousness, and when she came round she was in pain.
Ms AB went to her friend’s room and was “visibly upset”.
The men were asked to leave and Ms AB’s friend called the police.
Diamond, who was a serving soldier at RAF Leuchars, stood trial at the High Court in Edinburgh in 2017. He walked free from court after jurors found the case against him not proven.
‘Radically different’ versions of events
In his written ruling, Sheriff Campbell said he found Ms AB to be a “credible and, in most respects, reliable witness”.
He said: “She was emotional at a number of points in her evidence and almost strident at others, which appeared to me to be a response to recounting traumatic events and the lasting effects of those.”
The sheriff said of Diamond: “I have not found him to be credible in his account of the event which is at the heart of this case.”
He said Diamond’s version of events was “radically different” to Ms AB’s.
“There is no other evidence which might amount to an indication of consent,” he said.
“I am satisfied on the balance of probabilities that the defender (Diamond) raped the pursuer. That is sufficient to establish liability.”
Ms AB has been awarded damages of £119,250.
‘A never-ending ordeal’
Ms AB, who attempted suicide a year after the assault and has since been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder, said: “I am overcome with emotion receiving the judgement.
“It has been six years and five months of fighting for justice.”
She said: “I have had to relive the trauma repeatedly in what felt like a never-ending ordeal and now, I feel, finally have some closure.”
Ms AB added: “I only hope this judgement sends a message to survivors of sexual assault and rape that justice is possible.
“It took a huge amount of perseverance – and it should not have taken so much – but with the support of family and friends, you can survive.”
She said it was time for a “major overhaul” of the justice system.
“I went to hell and back, but now what I want is for us to reflect and to unite to fix the justice system for survivors.”
Sandy Brindley, chief executive of Rape Crisis Scotland, added: “This is a hugely significant judgement which exposes the cracks in a criminal system that all too often is not delivering justice for survivors of sexual crimes.”
Rape in Scottish civil cases
It is only the third successful civil damages case for rape in Scotland, and the second following a criminal prosecution.
In October 2018 a former St Andrews University student – known as Miss M – successfully sued her attacker, Stephen Coxen.
The court found that he had raped her while she was too drunk to consent. Coxen had been prosecuted for rape but, like Diamond, a jury found the case not proven.
Miss M has since campaigned to end the ‘not proven’ verdict.
In December a row erupted over Dundee United footballer David Goodwillie who, although never convicted in a criminal court, was branded a rapist during a civil court action five years ago.
