Married Royal Marine who climbed naked into bed with female colleague cleared of sexual assault

A married Royal Marine who climbed naked into bed with a female colleague has been cleared of sexual assault after saying he was too drunk to have touched her intentionally.

‘Exceptionally drunk’ Corporal Brook Hirst clambered into bed with the woman before she woke up to him repeatedly ‘tugging’ at her jeans as he attempted to take them off. 

Cpl Hirst of the Commando Logistic Regiment Medical Squadron was so disorientated he mistakenly believed he was in his own bed when someone attempted to remove him and he tried to continue sleeping, Bulford Military Court in Wiltshire heard.

The court was told he had drunk at least nine pints of beer and cider plus more than five shots during drinking games before he lost track.

When questioned about touching the woman in her bed, he said: ‘I have no recollection of touching her at all.’ 

Bulford Military Court (pictured) heard Cpl Hirst had drunk at least nine pints of beer and cider plus more than five shots during drinking games before he lost track

Today, after a two-day trial and board deliberations of three hours, the commando was cleared of one count of sexual assault.

Prosecutor Captain Rebecca Slee previously told the court Cpl Hirst had been celebrating moving to a different unit by indulging in drinking games at a bar on his barracks.

‘It was Cpl Hirst’s leaving do,’ she said. ‘From 6.30pm those in attendance were drinking and playing games.

‘By 11pm, the group – including the complainant – left the bar and ordered a pizza from their accommodation.

‘The defendant had gone for drinks elsewhere. The complainant went to bed at 11.30pm feeling unwell, and woke up in the early hours feeling a hand down her trousers and saw Cpl Hirst was in her bed naked with his hands inside her underwear.

‘She ran out of her room in shock and sought assistance from others in the vicinity.’

The incident was reported by the woman to her superiors the next day, and her interview with the service police was played out to the court.

Recounting how she was awoken after going to bed, she said: ‘The next thing I remember was being woken by the forceful tugging of my jeans.

When questioned about touching the woman in her bed, Cpl Hirst said: ‘I have no recollection of touching her at all’

‘I remember a hand down down my pants. My jean button and zip was undone and I don’t remember doing that myself.

‘The first thing I saw when I woke up was clothes on the floor. I slowly turned around and saw it was Brook spooning me, fully naked.’

The court heard the woman was left trying to ‘sneak’ out of her own bedroom, to avoid waking Cpl Hirst, who appeared to be ‘in and out’ of sleep.

Giving evidence, Cpl Hirst told the court at the first bar he drank six pints of cider, three pints of beer and ‘five plus’ shots as punishment in the drinking games they were playing.

He told the court his final memory of the night was holding a rum and coke at the next bar, when the others had returned to their accommodation to order a pizza.

As to why he was naked, Cpl Hirst claimed that he has slept naked ever since he joined the marines.

The court had heard the ‘really upset’ woman went to the rooms of other marine friends, crying as she told them what had happened and also asking one to get Cpl Hirst out of her bed.

The marine who helped the female by removing Cpl Hirst, told the court the naked, disorientated and sleepy corporal had told him to ‘leave me alone, I’m in my bed’ before pulling the bed covers back over him.

He also described Cpl Hirst as having been ‘exceptionally drunk’, with speech ‘blurred’ and ‘eyes everywhere’ during the evening of celebration.

The court heard that the following morning, after being told of his conduct the previous evening, Cpl Hirst went to the woman’s room and said ‘I heard I was inappropriate last night’.

His female colleague highlighted the seriousness of the incident and said ‘inappropriate would not be the word I would use to describe it’.