Laura Brand testifies at husband Russell Brand's rape trial: 'Caring and a wonderful father'

Russell Brand's wife Laura told Southwark Crown Court he is caring, kind and a wonderful father. Brand faces seven charges including three counts of rape, which he denies.

Laura Brand takes the stand at husband's rape and sexual assault trial

Russell Brand's wife Laura told the jury at his rape and sexual assault trial that her husband is "caring, kind and a wonderful father to our children", bbc.com reports.

The 39-year-old gave evidence at Southwark Crown Court in London on Thursday, telling the court: "The way he treats me is to know me. I feel very seen by him... I love him very much."

Brand faces seven charges in total — three counts of rape, three counts of sexual assault and one of attempted indecent assault. He denies all the charges and has pleaded not guilty.

Asked by the defence barrister whether her husband respected her wishes when she did not want to be sexual with him, Laura Brand replied: "Yes, absolutely."

Background to their relationship

Laura Brand is the daughter of former golfer Bernard Gallacher and sister of TV presenter Kirsty Gallacher. She married Brand in 2017 and they have three children together.

She told the court she first encountered him at the Edinburgh festival in 2006. After his performance, she said, she approached him: "I went over and said, 'I'm Laura, Kirsty's sister. That was a great show'." He contacted her the following day and they began a relationship shortly afterwards.

She said that on an early meeting they had oral sex, adding: "He might have wanted to have sex but I didn't want to." She said he accepted that.

Laura Brand acknowledged she had known before they met that "he liked women", and later discovered during their courtship that he had been involved with others simultaneously. "I wasn't interested in having a relationship with him if he was sleeping with other people," she said.

She described Brand as having found monogamy difficult despite both having declared their feelings for each other. She remained friends with him during his marriage to singer Katy Perry, which lasted from 2010 to 2012, and the two rekindled their relationship in 2015.

Asked whether she had been aware of his promiscuity during the years apart, she said: "I was very aware of it. I could read about it regularly in the papers, so I was aware of it, and he also told me."

She described their current marriage as characterised by honesty: "We have a very honest, frank, and clear relationship and marriage. It is one of the most important parts of our marriage, and our relationship has always been honest."

Charges span a decade of allegations

The charges against Brand relate to allegations brought by six female complainants, covering a ten-year period between 1999 and 2009. Brand displayed little emotion through much of the proceedings but was seen smiling broadly during portions of his wife's evidence. He laughed when she told the court: "We do have many friends and there are colleagues, and we are grateful for those people."

Brand's own testimony a day earlier

Laura Brand's appearance in the witness box followed the entertainer's own testimony on Wednesday. He told the jury that the allegations had a "devastating" impact on his relationships with friends and colleagues, saying they would not go near him "with a bargepole."

He also stated that while he had been promiscuous, he considered sexual consent to be "fundamental, essential, necessary and indeed in many ways more important than sex itself."

Statements from two former girlfriends

Also on Thursday, the court heard written statements from two of Brand's former partners.

Elia Alvarez Diaz said she and Brand lived together for approximately a year between 1998 and 1999. She described him as "gentle" and "loving", as well as "highly persuasive… a complex character" and "exciting to be with." She stated that when she said no, "he accepted it." Their relationship ended, she said, because he repeatedly cheated on her.

Amanda Alguero Alejos similarly told the court that Brand had cheated on her repeatedly. "He was undoubtedly promiscuous, never in front of me and never when I was around," she said. She recalled women "circling" around Brand "like birds", even when the two were out together as a couple.

The trial continues. The jury is expected to retire to consider its verdicts on Tuesday.

Source: Google News MT