A staff nurse told a jury a drunken girl who had been brought to Huddersfield’s A &E unit became hysterical, claiming an ambulanceman had sexually assaulted her.
Julie Lord said the 18-year-old had been brought in during the early hours of November 30, 2014 almost unconscious.
She told Leeds Crown Court she had tried to cover the girl with a blanket because her dress was riding up and when she found the teenager’s blood pressure was a bit low decided to put in a cannula to give her some fluids. But when she went to do that the teenager came fully round and was quite hysterical and shouted out ‘He’s touched me.’
“She was hysterical and crying. I tried to calm her down and asked who had touched her. She was still hysterical and I asked her again who had touched her and she said: ‘the ambulanceman touched me’.”
On trial is Dale Kirby, 34, who denies two charges of assaulting the teenager during the journey to hospital.
The jury has seen a video of the complainant’s evidence in which she described Kirby putting his hand up her dress on two occasions while she was on a stretcher in the back of the ambulance.
Under cross-examination by Michael Collins defending Kirby she denied any contact by him might have been accidental when he was adjusting her clothes and was jolted by a bump on one occasion.
“Do you accept that your judgment may be clouded by your intoxicated state,” said Mr Collins.
“No” she replied. “I know what happened.”
Paramedic Stephen McTigue who drove the ambulance which took the teenager and a friend of hers who was also drunk to the hospital said they had been sent from the Brighouse station after a report a teenager had been fitting.
He was accompanied by Kirby, an advanced medical technician. The jury has heard Kirby referred to as a paramedic during the trial but Mr McTigue explained there was a difference because a paramedic is able to give some drugs and treatment that a technician cannot.
He said he did not remember anything unusual in the journey as he drove back but told Mr Collins when he was on duty in the back on other trips he had lost his balance. “It happens on almost every shift.”
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The jury heard after his arrest Kirby was interviewed and told police the teenager had started thrashing around throwing her blanket off and pulling down her knickers saying “she wanted a wee.”
He said he told her not to do that and was pulling up her knickers and the skirt dress down to cover “her modesty” and accidentally might have touched her genital area.
“What happened was by accident with the movement of the vehicle over a bump or round a corner. It was purely accidental with me wanting to protect her modesty.”
The trial continues.
