Media host Megyn Kelly denounced Russell Brand’s prison sentence of 10 years and six months on Monday, calling the penalty an outrage and claiming the British comedian is the target of a political vendetta, even as legal fallout against him expanded across the Atlantic.
Brand, 51, was sentenced Monday at Southwark Crown Court in London following his conviction on one count of rape and three counts of sexual assault dating from between 2004 and 2009. The jury acquitted him of two other counts of rape and one count of attempted indecent assault. Brand, who denied all wrongdoing and maintained his encounters were consensual, was placed on the sex offenders register for life and sent to London’s HMP Wandsworth to begin serving his term.
Kelly Dismisses Verdict on Podcast
Speaking on Monday’s broadcast of “The Megyn Kelly Show,” the former television anchor rejected the court’s findings and downplayed the conduct detailed during the trial, The Mirror US reported. Kelly questioned the severity of the punishment, saying Brand had merely touched women inappropriately and engaged in consensual acts.
“This is insane,” Kelly said, describing the trial as an “outrage” and adding, “This is an obvious double standard. And if you needed any further proof that this is a political witch hunt against Russell Brand, that judge just gave it to us.”
Kelly, 55, stated on her podcast that she had hosted Brand for an interview in April and met him previously at NBC News, finding him engaging and polite. “Utterly charming guy, sweet, interesting, funny, and I had a very difficult time believing that he was capable of rape, as I do right now,” she said, according to The Mirror US. “I don’t believe these charges. I’m going to be honest. I don’t.”
Judicial Condemnation and Praise in the UK
Kelly’s reaction stood in sharp contrast to the reaction in Britain, where legal figures and victims’ advocacy organizations praised presiding Judge Joel Bennathan for confronting pervasive myths about sexual violence during sentencing, The Guardian reported.
Bennathan called Brand a sexual predator who used his fame as a shield and demonstrated arrogance toward women. The judge emphasized that regardless of what a woman wears, where she goes, or what she drinks, she retains the legal right to say no. Bennathan also condemned members of Brand’s entourage who witnessed him assault women at a radio station and a television studio without intervening, telling Brand that his companions treated the crimes as laddish behavior.
Andrew Thomas KC, the chair of the Criminal Bar Association, praised the clarity of the judge’s statements, telling The Guardian that misconceptions regarding assault must have no role in courtrooms. Ciara Bergman, chief executive of Rape Crisis England & Wales, and Deniz Uğur, deputy director of the End Violence Against Women Coalition, also commended the judge for rebuking the culture of enablers who ignored Brand’s misconduct.
Brand’s wife, Laura Gallacher, was visibly shaken during the sentencing hearing on Monday, bending forward in distress before friends guided her out of the courtroom, Radar Online reported. Brand’s defense attorney, Ian Winter KC, told the court that the convictions had brought devastation to the family.
New Allegations Emerge Across the Atlantic
Even as Brand began his sentence in London, additional allegations began surfacing in the United States. Page Six reported that another woman has come forward claiming Brand victimized her and has consulted prominent American attorney Gloria Allred regarding potential legal steps.
British authorities are also not finished investigating Brand. The London Metropolitan Police confirmed that inquiries remain active into two separate rape claims that were not part of the recent trial, according to Radar Online. Detective Superintendent Andy Furphy said investigators hope the guilty verdicts encourage other women to come forward.
