Russell Brand sentenced to 10½ years in prison for rape and sexual assaults

A London judge on Monday ordered Russell Brand, the British comedian and actor, to serve 10½ years behind bars for one rape and three sexual assaults, according to Associated Press coverage published by The Philadelphia Inquirer, WKOW and the Anchorage Daily News. CBS Philadelphia reported the same 10.5-year term.

The crimes reach back to 2004, when Brand's career was gaining momentum. Jurors, eight men and four women, convicted him on charges tied to four of the six women who accused him. The jury cleared him of two rape charges and a charge of attempted indecent assault, the outlets reported.

Speaking at Southwark Crown Court, Judge Joel Bennathan said Brand had displayed a "casual and arrogant disregard" toward women who turned him down. The Anchorage Daily News reported that the judge also faulted Brand for giving false testimony.

Brand, 51, denied the allegations throughout and said every encounter had been consensual. He was not held in custody while the trial ran, but he was jailed once the jury returned its decision last Thursday, the Inquirer and WKOW reported.

Prosecutor Riel Karmy-Jones argued that Brand exploited his celebrity status to reach women. "It also fed his own view that he could commit such offenses with impunity," she said, according to the Inquirer.

Ian Winter, representing Brand, urged leniency based on his character. Winter said Brand's sole prior conviction, from 1995, involved marijuana, and he cited Brand's charitable efforts and support for people fighting addiction. According to the Anchorage Daily News, Winter also asked the court to consider how a sentence would affect Brand's three young children.

The four women in the cases that ended in convictions told the court of lasting damage. One addressed the hearing while screened by a curtain; the prosecutor read statements on behalf of the rest. The convictions involved incidents at a London bar in 2004, at a London radio station around 2004 or 2005, at an advertisement shoot in 2009, and the 2009 rape of a fan at Brand's home. Under British law, the women cannot be identified.

They reported the abuse after The Times and Channel 4 published an investigation in 2023. The Anchorage Daily News said the verdicts have prompted questions about why employers such as the BBC put up with his behavior.

Brand's wife, Laura, and father, Ron Brand, were present. Before officers took him away, Brand silently signaled to his wife that things would be fine, the outlets reported. Outside, a few supporters displayed a banner alluding to his recent embrace of Christianity.

Brand became well known in the early 2000s through television and a BBC radio program, acted in films such as "Forgetting Sarah Marshall," and had a short marriage to singer Katy Perry. He later settled in Florida and gained a large audience online.

Compiled by True News from reporting by The Philadelphia Inquirer, WKOW, CBS Philadelphia and Anchorage Daily News. Each outlet's original story is linked below.

Originally published by True News: https://truenews.bagleyenterprises.net/stories/906