Liam Anthony Thornton, 26, pleaded not guilty to 14 charges in his trial. Photo: Albert McKnight.
CONTENT WARNING: This article refers to alleged sexual assault.
A Canberra Reptile Zoo employee accused of sexually or indecently abusing two teenage girls made claims about his interactions with them that didn’t make sense, a prosecutor argued as his trial came to a close.
Liam Anthony Thornton pleaded not guilty to 14 charges when his ACT Supreme Court jury trial began last month.
Jurors heard that the then-reptile zoo worker met both girls through their shared interest in reptiles when he was in his early to mid-20s.
It is alleged that at different times in the early 2020s he indecently assaulted the first girl, who was under 16, then indecently assaulted the second girl, who was under 18, at a social gathering and raped her in his van.
When the second girl gave evidence, she denied the defence barrister’s suggestions that she never told him no or pushed him away, and she consented to sex.
Jurors might have thought both girls were quietly spoken and matter-of-fact when they gave evidence, the prosecutor said when she gave her closing submissions on Wednesday (10 September).
“They had to remember very traumatic incidents that happened to them at the hands of a man they regarded as a friend,” she said.
She said Mr Thornton denied anything had happened between him and the first girl, and he claimed they had only talked about reptiles.
He said he blocked the first girl on social media when someone told his girlfriend he had been cheating on her with the girl, before unblocking her, telling her he was sorry for blocking her, then blocking her again.
“This just does not add up,” the prosecutor said.
“The narrative of the accused just doesn’t make sense.”
The prosecutor said Mr Thornton “peculiarly” claimed he didn’t like the second girl, but still admitted kissing her at the social gathering.
“He told you and he wants you to believe that he regularly kisses people he doesn’t like,” she told the jurors. She said this didn’t make sense either.
The second girl claimed she “shut down” during the alleged rape and gave up as she thought it would be over quicker.
“When that van door closed, he persisted with what he wanted,” the prosecutor alleged,
“She did not want what was happening to be happening.”
The prosecutor said Mr Thornton claimed the second girl was touchy, flirty and discussed having sex with him, but she said if a person was flirty, that was not consent. Also, even if a person consented to one sexual act, that did not equal consent to all acts.
“If she is lying there not resisting, that is not free and voluntary consent,” the prosecutor said.
Mr Thornton’s barrister, Tahn O’Rourke, said the first girl admitted she was upset when her client blocked her on social media, and she argued that this girl’s evidence changed during the trial.
For instance, she said the girl claimed to police that Mr Thornton discussed having sex with her, but in court, she said he never said anything like that to her.
She said the girl originally claimed Mr Thornton messaged her every day and asked for nude photos every time they spoke, but in cross-examination, she agreed he didn’t ask for nudes every day.
Also, the barrister said the girl thought the way her client touched her body during the alleged indecent assault could have been accidental.
Ms O’Rourke also argued the second girl gave inconsistent evidence and asked jurors to accept her client’s evidence of what happened at the social gathering and inside the van.
The first incident involving the second girl took place when he allegedly repeatedly kissed her at a social gathering, even though she told him to stop.
Ms O’Rourke said another person at the gathering said he hadn’t seen anything untoward before he went to sleep, and the girl admitted she may have consented to the first kiss between her and Mr Thornton.
Mr Thornton, now 26, pleaded not guilty to three charges over the first girl, being grooming, committing an act of indecency on a young person and using a carriage service for child abuse material.
He pleaded not guilty to 11 charges over the second girl, which were three counts of committing an act of indecency without consent, three counts of attempted sexual intercourse without consent, four counts of sexual intercourse without consent and one count of choking.
Justice Belinda Baker has begun giving her summary of the trial to the jury.
If this story has raised any concerns for you, 1800RESPECT, the national 24-hour sexual assault, family and domestic violence counselling line, can be contacted on 1800 737 732. Help and support are also available through the Canberra Rape Crisis Centre on 02 6247 2525, the Domestic Violence Crisis Service ACT 02 6280 0900, the Sexual Violence Legal Services on 6257 4377 and Lifeline on 13 11 14. In an emergency, call Triple Zero.
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