Conor McGregor set to appeal civil rape verdict, as large crowds take to street in support of woman involved
By Ben Church and Amy Woodyatt, CNN
(CNN) — MMA fighter Conor McGregor, who lost a civil rape case on Friday, has said he will instruct his legal team to appeal the verdict, as large crowds in Dublin showed support to the woman involved in the case.
McGregor was accused of raping Nikita Hand in a Dublin hotel room in 2018. On Friday, a civil court jury awarded Hand nearly 250,000 euros (roughly $263,600), after finding McGregor liable for assault, according to the Courts Service in Ireland.
On Monday, he addressed the incident and the verdict, writing on X, formerly known as Twitter: “I have instructed my legal team to appeal the decision.”
According to the Associated Press, Hand said during the trial that the assault, after a night of partying, left her bruised and suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder.
Addressing the media after the verdict on Friday, she described the trial as a “nightmare,” and the assault as something “that I’ll never forget for the rest of my life.”
“I want to show (my daughter) Freya and every other girl and boy that you can stand up for yourself if something happens to you, no matter who the person is, and justice will be served,” she added.
“To all the victims of sexual assault, I hope my story is a reminder that no matter how afraid you might be – speak up, you have a voice and keep on fighting for justice.”
During the trial, McGregor maintained he never forced Hand to do anything against her will and said she fabricated the allegations after the two had consensual sex, according to the AP.
“As much as I regret it, everything that happened that night was consensual and all the witnesses present swore to that under oath,” McGregor wrote on X Monday.
When reached by CNN, the Courts Service in Ireland confirmed the decision but said that a written judgement was not available for a civil case.
Protests in Dublin
Large crowds gathered in Dublin Monday to show solidarity with Hand and criticize the decision made by the Irish director of public prosecutions (DPP) not to pursue a criminal case against McGregor.
According to AP, police investigated Hand’s complaint but prosecutors declined to bring charges, saying there was insufficient evidence and a conviction was unlikely.
Posting pictures of the protest, Fingal County councilor Ruth Coppinger wrote on X: “Huge questions over DPP turning down cases of #genderviolence. Nikita Hand was intoxicated & couldn’t give consent, she had massive injuries. Why can’t our legal system respond to survivors?”
A spokeswoman for the DPP told CNN that in Ireland, reasons for not pursuing a criminal case are generally not made available to the media or general public.
The-CNN-Wire
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