Russell Brand has been sentenced to 10 years and six months in prison after being convicted of rape and three sexual assaults at Southwark Crown Court in London.
Judge Justice Bennathan imposed the sentence on Monday, after hearing impact statements from women who had brought the case against the comedian. Brand, 51, denies all the charges and has said he never had non-consensual sex.
A jury found him guilty last week on four of seven counts. The convictions related to the rape of a woman he had met at one of his shows in 2009, and sexual assaults against three women at a bar, a radio station and a television studio between 2004 and 2009.
Six women gave evidence during the four-week trial, which attracted extensive media attention. None of the women has been publicly named.
Women describe lasting impact of assaults
The prosecution read a statement from the woman Brand was convicted of raping at his home in 2009. She said the experience was “something I carry with me every day and it often feels never-ending”.
She said she doubted her ability to make good decisions and no longer trusted her instincts as she once had. Because of Brand’s fame, she said, she had not believed she would be believed if she reported him.
Another woman, whose breasts Brand was found to have grabbed at a bar in 2004, said she had been left confused about what she “should” or “could” do for more than 20 years.
Speaking from behind a curtain in court, she said she had felt “physically sick” when she later saw Brand in the press as his fame grew.
A third woman said the assault in 2005 had had “a lasting impact on her life”, adding that hearing Brand’s voice on television or seeing his image had made her jump. A fourth said the incident at the television studio had badly affected her and left her feeling that her working environment was unsafe.
Judge describes Brand as a ‘sexual predator’
Brand, who had spent the weekend in prison, sat holding white rosary beads as the statements were read, according to media attending the hearing. His wife, Laura, who has supported him throughout the case, and his father were also in court.
The prosecution argued for a lengthy sentence and cited aggravating circumstances in the rape case, including Brand removing a condom. His defence told the court he was “a fundamentally different person” from the man he was at the time of the offences.
In passing sentence, Justice Bennathan described Brand as “a sexual predator” and paid tribute to the “determination and bravery” of the women who had come forward.
He then ordered Brand to be taken to the cells.
