Rape helpline calls almost doubled after McGregor case

Calls to a rape helpline almost doubled over the weekend following the verdict of the civil rape case against Conor McGregor, the Dublin Rape Crisis Centre has said.

On Friday, a jury at the High Court in Dublin found the mixed martial arts fighter had assaulted Nikita Hand by raping her in a hotel in Dublin in December 2018.

McGregor was ordered to pay Ms Hand almost €250,000 (£206,000) in damages.

Rachel Morrogh, chief executive of the crisis centre, added that the number of first-time callers increased by 50% over the weekend.

"In the six hours immediately after the verdict was delivered on Friday afternoon the calls surged by 150%," she continued.

“I think the trial has resulted in the scales falling off some people’s eyes as to what the victim experience is in an adversarial legal situation," Ms Morrogh said.

"It has also thrown up some societal questions around the blame and shame placed on the victim when it really needs to be solely at the door of the perpetrator.”

Speaking to BBC Radio Ulster's Good Morning Ulster programme, Ms Morrogh said the "number of people who disclose sexual violence in any case is really small".

"In Ireland, one in two people who have experienced sexual violence will never tell another person.

"At each point along the justice pathway fewer and fewer people stick with it," she added.

On Monday evening, several hundred people marched in Dublin in support of Ms Hand.

The protesters marched from Dublin City Hall, along the River Liffey and to the office of the Irish director of public prosecutions (DPP) to express concern at what they believe to be a failure in not taking a criminal case against McGregor.

A higher legal threshold applies to a criminal case than a civil case as in a criminal case the burden of proof is beyond reasonable doubt.

In a civil case it is on the balance of probabilities.

Ms Morrogh believes there are social issues which "need to be addressed to encourage victims into the justice system".

"There are wider questions about what kind of society we have where people can’t disclose experiences of sexual violence and know that the person they are talking to does believe them, won’t judge, won’t shame them and won’t blame them," she said.

In 2020 the DPP told Ms Hand there was "insufficient evidence" to bring a criminal case and there was not a reasonable prospect of conviction.

Ms Hand asked the DPP to review the decision, saying she felt she was being treated differently because one of the suspects was famous.

When asked about the DPP's decision not to prosecute, the outgoing Irish Justice Minister Helen McEntee said: “We have a very independent system in this country, and I think that's right".