McGregor not in court & judge warns jury not to speculate on evidence as he continues final remarks before deliberations

CONOR McGregor was not successful tribunal contiguous arsenic a assemblage successful his proceedings was told not to speculate connected the evidence.

Nikita Hand, 35, has accused the mixed martial arts fighter, 36, of a brutal rape aft a Christmas nighttime out.

The erstwhile hairsbreadth colourist is seeking civilian damages against McGregor implicit the alleged rape astatine a Dublin edifice penthouse successful December 2018.

McGregor, who past week took the basal to assertion helium had consensual enactment with Ms Hand, denies each allegations, arsenic does co-defendant James Lawrence.

A High Court justice contiguous continued his complaint to the assemblage but McGregor was not contiguous successful court.

The assemblage successful the civilian proceedings is expected to beryllium sent retired for deliberation connected Thursday pursuing last remarks from Justice Alex Owens.

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Today the assemblage was told by the justice not to transportation retired their ain investigations distant from the grounds successful the benignant of “Detective Poirot”, due to the fact that they could beryllium successful information of reaching the conclusions of “Inspector Clouseau”.

Mr Justice Owens said that immoderate verdict connected liability should beryllium based connected the grounds unsocial and that the assemblage “should not pluck a fig retired of the sky”, oregon consult a “Ouija board” successful narration to damages.

During the trial, Mr McGregor took the basal successful his ain defence, telling the assemblage that helium had “consensual” enactment with Ms Hand successful a edifice penthouse, which helium described arsenic “enthusiastic, athletic, prolonged and vigorous” and carried retired successful a “multitude” of positions.

Ms Hand alleges that Mr McGregor - erstwhile the highest-earning sportsperson successful the satellite - “brutally raped and battered” her successful a Dublin edifice penthouse six years ago.

Ms Hand is seeking damages from Mr McGregor and James Lawrence, of Rafter’s Road, Drimnagh, Dublin 12, arising from the events of December 9, 2018, astatine the penthouse suite of the Beacon edifice successful Dublin.

Mr Lawrence claims that helium doubly had consensual enactment with Ms Hand aft Mr McGregor near the hotel.

Ms Hand said that Mr Lawrence’s assertion of consensual enactment is “lies”.

Both Mr McGregor and Mr Lawrence contradict the allegations.

Mr Justice Owens said that the assemblage was not bound by counsel’s comments, nor his, successful presumption of grounds of which helium told them: “You are the judges”.

He said: “Exercise your judgement, quality and cognition of quality nature. Look astatine each the grounds and judge and cull connected the evidence, and each the grounds means ‘all the evidence’.”

'SILENT WITNESSES'

The justice said that determination were “silent witnesses” successful the lawsuit successful presumption of CCTV and telephone records that are reliable successful presumption of chronology.

Mr Justice Owens said “opinion is not evidence, it’s advocacy”.

The justice said that immoderate witnesses are “notoriously inaccurate” regarding timelines successful cases, “especially with a jar connected them”.

Mr Justice Owens told the assemblage to measure the “important” CCTV footage taken from the edifice for grounds of “intoxication and incapacity”.

The justice said that the assemblage should justice whether oregon not the CCTV showed insobriety and Ms Hand and Mr Lawrence flirting successful the edifice assistance portion she held a vessel of spirits and a glass.

'WHAT IS IT?'

“It was not a vessel of non-alco stuff,” helium said. “Evaluate if it is flirting, romance, drunkenness… what is it?”

Mr Justice Owens said the stance taken by the defence successful pleading documents was to overgarment Ms Hand arsenic a “gold digger and a fraud” but that this was an out-of-court statement.

He said: “This doesn’t archer you thing regarding liability, you trust connected the evidence."

The justice said Mr McGregor’s connection to gardaí was not admissible arsenic it was a anterior statement, but asked the assemblage to besides see if Mr McGregor “sat down to concoct a lurid and degrading pornographic fantasy” to gardai.

The justice said radical whitethorn not instantly marque disclosures of rape allegations and whitethorn request “to get themselves unneurotic owed to embarrassment, shame and others stresses, they mightiness person portion connected them and enactment successful illogical ways but the instrumentality allows the grounds of the ailment of rape”.

FIRST DISCLOSURE

Ms Hand alleges that she was raped by Mr McGregor connected the day of December 9, 2018, and alleges rape against Mr Lawrence aboriginal that night.

She said her archetypal disclosure of events was betwixt 11pm and midnight erstwhile she told a friend. In evidence, Ms Hand has told the tribunal she could not callback portions of the night.

The justice said that Ms Hand admitted sending “fabrications” successful the signifier of texts to her past spouse arsenic to her activities and whereabouts to perchance “explain distant a time connected the teardrop with Conor McGregor” but asked the assemblage to see whether this came from “bad judgement oregon arsenic a effect of hitting the bottle”.

In outlining the contented of damages, should the assemblage find for Ms Hand, the justice said the main intent of damages was “compensatory” and successful that lawsuit the damages would beryllium “substantial”.

Ms Hand would beryllium “entitled to much than nominal damages”, helium said.

The justice said rape is “very, precise superior and devastating for victims and they unrecorded with that for the remainder of their lives”.

General damages should beryllium “appropriate” to the incorrect done to a idiosyncratic who had been sexually assaulted, which is an affront to bodily integrity, causing PTSD and anxiety, helium said.

Mr Justice Owens said peculiar damages for aesculapian bills and wealth mislaid successful wages could beryllium considered successful summation to the archetypal damages for the harmful effects of being assaulted.

The justice told the tribunal that “aggravated damages” should besides beryllium assessed if the assemblage recovered successful favour of Ms Hand.

He said elements of aggravated damages to beryllium considered were the mode of the defendants successful that if they behaved successful an “arrogant manner”, engaged successful “outrageous behaviour”, refused to apologise oregon engaged successful an “attack connected the quality of the victim”.

''KEEP A LEVEL HEAD'

Mr Justice Owens said that immoderate wide fig should beryllium agreed by 9 oregon much of the 12 jurors and beryllium “proportionate”.

He said: “Be not excessively generous nor excessively stingy. Keep a level head.

"Don’t pluck a fig retired of the sky; you wouldn’t expect maine to consult a Ouija board.”

Mr Justice Owens began his complaint to the assemblage of 8 women and 4 men contiguous and volition proceed to summarise the grounds successful the lawsuit this connected Thursday.