NZ Herald
  • Home
  • Latest news
  • Video
  • New Zealand
  • Sport
  • World
  • Business
  • Entertainment
  • Podcasts
  • Quizzes
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
  • Viva
  • Weather forecasts

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • New Zealand
    • All New Zealand
    • Crime
    • Politics
    • Education
    • Open Justice
    • Scam Update
  • Budget 2025
  • On The Up
  • World
    • All World
    • Australia
    • Asia
    • UK
    • United States
    • Middle East
    • Europe
    • Pacific
  • Business
    • All Business
    • MarketsSharesCurrencyCommoditiesStock TakesCrypto
    • Markets with Madison
    • Media Insider
    • Business analysis
    • Personal financeKiwiSaverInterest ratesTaxInvestment
    • EconomyInflationGDPOfficial cash rateEmployment
    • Small business
    • Business reportsMood of the BoardroomProject AucklandSustainable business and financeCapital markets reportAgribusiness reportInfrastructure reportDynamic business
    • Deloitte Top 200 Awards
    • CompaniesAged CareAgribusinessAirlinesBanking and financeConstructionEnergyFreight and logisticsHealthcareManufacturingMedia and MarketingRetailTelecommunicationsTourism
  • Opinion
    • All Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Editorials
    • Business analysis
    • Premium opinion
    • Letters to the editor
  • Sport
    • All Sport
    • OlympicsParalympics
    • RugbySuper RugbyNPCAll BlacksBlack FernsRugby sevensSchool rugby
    • CricketBlack CapsWhite Ferns
    • Racing
    • NetballSilver Ferns
    • LeagueWarriorsNRL
    • FootballWellington PhoenixAuckland FCAll WhitesFootball FernsEnglish Premier League
    • GolfNZ Open
    • MotorsportFormula 1
    • Boxing
    • UFC
    • BasketballNBABreakersTall BlacksTall Ferns
    • Tennis
    • Cycling
    • Athletics
    • SailingAmerica's CupSailGP
    • Rowing
  • Lifestyle
    • All Lifestyle
    • Viva - Food, fashion & beauty
    • Society Insider
    • Royals
    • Sex & relationships
    • Food & drinkRecipesRecipe collectionsRestaurant reviewsRestaurant bookings
    • Health & wellbeing
    • Fashion & beauty
    • Pets & animals
    • The Selection - Shop the trendsShop fashionShop beautyShop entertainmentShop giftsShop home & living
    • Milford's Investing Place
  • Entertainment
    • All Entertainment
    • TV
    • MoviesMovie reviews
    • MusicMusic reviews
    • BooksBook reviews
    • Culture
    • ReviewsBook reviewsMovie reviewsMusic reviewsRestaurant reviews
  • Travel
    • All Travel
    • News
    • New ZealandNorthlandAucklandWellingtonCanterburyOtago / QueenstownNelson-TasmanBest NZ beaches
    • International travelAustraliaPacific IslandsEuropeUKUSAAfricaAsia
    • Rail holidays
    • Cruise holidays
    • Ski holidays
    • Luxury travel
    • Adventure travel
  • Kāhu Māori news
  • Environment
    • All Environment
    • Our Green Future
  • Talanoa Pacific news
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Property Insider
    • Interest rates tracker
    • Residential property listings
    • Commercial property listings
  • Health
  • Technology
    • All Technology
    • AI
    • Social media
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
    • Opinion
    • Audio & podcasts
  • Weather forecasts
    • All Weather forecasts
    • Kaitaia
    • Whangārei
    • Dargaville
    • Auckland
    • Thames
    • Tauranga
    • Hamilton
    • Whakatāne
    • Rotorua
    • Tokoroa
    • Te Kuiti
    • Taumaranui
    • Taupō
    • Gisborne
    • New Plymouth
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Dannevirke
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Levin
    • Paraparaumu
    • Masterton
    • Wellington
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Blenheim
    • Westport
    • Reefton
    • Kaikōura
    • Greymouth
    • Hokitika
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
    • Wānaka
    • Oamaru
    • Queenstown
    • Dunedin
    • Gore
    • Invercargill
  • Meet the journalists
  • Promotions & competitions
  • OneRoof property listings
  • Driven car news

Puzzles & Quizzes

  • Puzzles
    • All Puzzles
    • Sudoku
    • Code Cracker
    • Crosswords
    • Cryptic crossword
    • Wordsearch
  • Quizzes
    • All Quizzes
    • Morning quiz
    • Afternoon quiz
    • Sports quiz

Regions

  • Northland
    • All Northland
    • Far North
    • Kaitaia
    • Kerikeri
    • Kaikohe
    • Bay of Islands
    • Whangarei
    • Dargaville
    • Kaipara
    • Mangawhai
  • Auckland
  • Waikato
    • All Waikato
    • Hamilton
    • Coromandel & Hauraki
    • Matamata & Piako
    • Cambridge
    • Te Awamutu
    • Tokoroa & South Waikato
    • Taupō & Tūrangi
  • Bay of Plenty
    • All Bay of Plenty
    • Katikati
    • Tauranga
    • Mount Maunganui
    • Pāpāmoa
    • Te Puke
    • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua
  • Hawke's Bay
    • All Hawke's Bay
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Havelock North
    • Central Hawke's Bay
    • Wairoa
  • Taranaki
    • All Taranaki
    • Stratford
    • New Plymouth
    • Hāwera
  • Manawatū - Whanganui
    • All Manawatū - Whanganui
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Manawatū
    • Tararua
    • Horowhenua
  • Wellington
    • All Wellington
    • Kapiti
    • Wairarapa
    • Upper Hutt
    • Lower Hutt
  • Nelson & Tasman
    • All Nelson & Tasman
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Tasman
  • Marlborough
  • West Coast
  • Canterbury
    • All Canterbury
    • Kaikōura
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
  • Otago
    • All Otago
    • Oamaru
    • Dunedin
    • Balclutha
    • Alexandra
    • Queenstown
    • Wanaka
  • Southland
    • All Southland
    • Invercargill
    • Gore
    • Stewart Island
  • Gisborne

Media

  • Video
    • All Video
    • NZ news video
    • Business news video
    • Politics news video
    • Sport video
    • World news video
    • Lifestyle video
    • Entertainment video
    • Travel video
    • Markets with Madison
    • Kea Kids news
  • Podcasts
    • All Podcasts
    • The Front Page
    • On the Tiles
    • Ask me Anything
    • The Little Things
    • Cooking the Books
  • Cartoons
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • What the Actual
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / World

Alleged rape victim who was asked by judge why she didn't just 'keep her knees together' is asked controversial question

By SNEJANA FARBEROV
Daily Mail·
12 Nov, 2016 08:32 PM4 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

Photo / 123RF
Photo / 123RF

Photo / 123RF

A lawyer for a Canadian man on trial for the second time in a controversial rape case has sparked outrage by asking the alleged victim on cross-examination whether his client's penis size may have swayed her to have consensual sex with him.

Alexander Scott Wagar, 29, is being retried in Calgary for an alleged sexual assault of a woman, then aged 19, which took place at a house party in 2011.

Justice Robin Camp acquitted Wagar in 2014, but that verdict was overturned on appeal and a new trial was ordered after it has emerged that the judge asked the alleged victim, "why couldn't you just keep your knees together?"

According to the Globe andMail, Camp also said: "Some sex and pain sometimes go together...that's not necessarily a bad thing."

During the woman's cross-examination this week, Alexander Wagar's defense attorney, Pat Flynn, asked her if she was drawn to his client after he flashed his manhood to a room full of guests at the party and she saw that "he was larger than most men," reported The Canadian Press via Huffington Post Canada.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

The 24-year-old woman, who has repeatedly testified that she was attracted to women, responded to Flynn, "No".

The lawyer also argued that the sexual encounter was consensual because Wagar and his accuser had engaged in 'aggressive foreplay"- to which she again said "No" - and that she had concocted the rape story because she was angry that his client had sex with another woman at the party later that evening.

The complainant testified during the original trial that she was at the house party in Calgary in December 2011 when Wagar entered the bathroom, locked the door behind him, ripped off her clothes, then bent her over the sink and sexually assaulted her for 15-20 minutes.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

But Judge Camp, who presided over Wagar's first trial, demanded to know "why she allowed the sex to happen if she didn't want it?"

"Why didn't you just sink your bottom down into the basin so he couldn't penetrate you," he asked the homeless woman. "Why couldn't you just keep your knees together?"

He also noted that the alleged victim, whom he repeatedly called "the accused," had asked Wagar if he had a condom - a question which he perceived to have "an inescapable conclusion [that] if you have one I'm happy to have sex with you".

This fall, a Canadian Judicial Council launched an inquiry into Camp's professional conduct, and the panel is currently in the process of determining whether he should be removed from the bench.

In September, the alleged victim tearfully told the Council that Camp, 64, made her feel "like a slut" with his line of questioning.

Camp, who was a provincial judge during the original trial and is now a federal justice, apologized for being "rude a facetious."

He also said his questions were "offensive" and "carried with them the implication that the complainant should have done something", the Huffington Post reported.

In court this week, Alexander Wagar again insisted that his encounter with his accuser was consensual, staunchly denying that he would ever force himself on anyone.

"I am not a f***ing rapist," he protested. "If she would have made any sort of objection, I can tell you beyond a shadow of a doubt, swear on the Bible, I am a Christian.

"My mother put it in my mind since I was a kid that if a woman says no, it means no."

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Presenting his version of events in graphic detail, Wagar said, referring to the accuser: "She grabbed my penis and complimented the size of it," reported The Guardian.

He later admitted that while the woman never expressly gave him her consent, "she never told me 'no.' She never said 'stop,' or 'you're hurting me.'

Save

    Share this article

Latest from World

World

Rising tensions: Chinese arms in spotlight after Pakistan-India clash

20 May 06:30 AM
World

Gaza rescuers say 44 killed in new Israeli strikes

20 May 05:53 AM
World

Australia's opposition coalition falls apart after election bloodbath

20 May 05:25 AM

The Hire A Hubby hero turning handyman stereotypes on their head

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Recommended for you
Widespread internet outages reported across New Zealand
New Zealand

Widespread internet outages reported across New Zealand

20 May 08:52 AM
'Straight-out thuggery': Boxing chief slams Dan Hooker-backed $50k fight event
New Zealand

'Straight-out thuggery': Boxing chief slams Dan Hooker-backed $50k fight event

20 May 08:35 AM
NZ scraps $100m a year tax after Donald Trump's 'extortion' claims
Politics

NZ scraps $100m a year tax after Donald Trump's 'extortion' claims

20 May 08:10 AM
'Heartbroken': Father jailed after breaking baby's leg, arms, ribs and skull
Crime

'Heartbroken': Father jailed after breaking baby's leg, arms, ribs and skull

20 May 08:00 AM
'Stop it': Denzel Washington's tense exchange with snapper at film premiere
Entertainment

'Stop it': Denzel Washington's tense exchange with snapper at film premiere

20 May 07:58 AM

Latest from World

Rising tensions: Chinese arms in spotlight after Pakistan-India clash

Rising tensions: Chinese arms in spotlight after Pakistan-India clash

20 May 06:30 AM

Pakistan claims Chinese jets downed six Indian aircraft, including French-made Rafales.

Gaza rescuers say 44 killed in new Israeli strikes

Gaza rescuers say 44 killed in new Israeli strikes

20 May 05:53 AM
Australia's opposition coalition falls apart after election bloodbath

Australia's opposition coalition falls apart after election bloodbath

20 May 05:25 AM
Erin Patterson's phone records analysed in triple-murder trial

Erin Patterson's phone records analysed in triple-murder trial

20 May 05:14 AM
Gold demand soars amid global turmoil
sponsored

Gold demand soars amid global turmoil

NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • NZ Herald e-editions
  • Daily puzzles & quizzes
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Subscribe to the NZ Herald newspaper
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • What the Actual
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven CarGuide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP
search by queryly Advanced Search