Verdict expected today in “serious” child sex abuse case

Tuesday 27 November 2018

A jury, who have heard four days of evidence relating to allegations of “serious” sexual abuse against two young girls, have now retired to consider their verdict.

The 12 members of the jury need to decide whether Jason Mark Le Chevere (43) is guilty of the 13 counts of sexual misconduct, including allegations of rape and indecent assault – accusations brought by two young girls.

Mr Le Chevere denies all the allegations made against him, having pleaded ‘not guilty’ to all 13 counts.

Yesterday, both the prosecution and defence lawyers addressed the six men and six women of the jury with their closing arguments. 

Crown Advocate Simon Thomas said that this was “a difficult trial for [jury members] to sit through”, acknowledging that their task to evaluate this evidence was also not easy.

Pictured: The jury has retired to consider their verdict during the trial of Jason Mark Le Chevere which started in the Royal Court last week.

“Two girls have gone through what must have been an ordeal for them… they’re still young," he said, before inviting the jury to consider, “...how stressful this whole experience must have been for them.”

The Crown Advocate then asked the jury: “Why would the girls make this up? On any view, fabricating a serious sexual allegation would be particularly wicked… Did either child strike you as wicked?”

He argued that the girls’ testimony was not characteristic of fabrication, but rather “...more consistent with telling the truth and struggling to do so."

Pictured: The two alleged victims gave evidence before the jury via video link during the trial.

In his closing argument, Defence Advocate Ian Jones justified the fact that the defence offered no evidence in this case by reminding the jury that it is for the prosecution to prove their case and not for his client to prove his innocence.

He also invited the jury to consider what they would do if they were in his client’s position: “If you were in this position, the position Mr Le Chevere is in, what would you do? What would you say?... If the truth of the matter is that these things didn’t happen… what else can you say? That’s the reality of the situation that Mr Le Chevere finds himself in.”

Advocate Jones reminded the jury that they must not be swayed by their emotional responses to the girls’ evidence: “Your emotional response or your pity for them [the alleged victims], unfortunately must be put out of your mind… The brutal reality is that’s not the point, I’m afraid to say.”

Pictured: The trial, which is being heard in the Royal Court, is reaching its end with the jury having retired to consider their verdict.

Mr Le Chevere’s lawyer also described the girls’ evidence as “unreliable” and “inconsistent”.

Throughout the trial, the jury were shown several hours of taped Police interviews with both of the alleged victims. The Court also heard evidence from both of the young girls via video link where the older of the two described the impact the alleged abuse has had on her life.

The Court also heard that, when the accusations of the older alleged victim were put to him, the defendant told Police that it made him feel “disgusted” and accused the girl of “attention seeking”. 

The defendant has maintained his innocence throughout the proceedings and today broke down into tears in the dock as his lawyer addressed the jury.

Royal Court Commissioner Sir John Saunders, presiding over the trial, then summed up the case and gave the jury legal directions before they retired to consider their verdict.