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| Paddy Jackson and Stuart Olding not guilty of rape | Paddy Jackson and Stuart Olding not guilty of rape |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| Ireland and Ulster rugby players Paddy Jackson and Stuart Olding have been cleared of rape. | Ireland and Ulster rugby players Paddy Jackson and Stuart Olding have been cleared of rape. |
| They both deny raping the same woman in Mr Jackson's house in the early hours of 28 June 2016. | |
| Blane McIlroy, who was accused of exposure, and Rory Harrison, who was charged with perverting the course of justice and withholding information, were also found not guilty. | Blane McIlroy, who was accused of exposure, and Rory Harrison, who was charged with perverting the course of justice and withholding information, were also found not guilty. |
| The verdicts came in the ninth week of the trial. | The verdicts came in the ninth week of the trial. |
| The jury of eight men and three women deliberated for three hours and 45 minutes before delivering their unanimous verdicts. | |
| Before discharging the 11-person jury, Judge Patricia Smyth told them: "This has probably been the most difficult trial that any jury in Northern Ireland has ever been asked to adjudicate on." | |
| Blane McIlroy was the first of the four men to leave Laganside courts in Belfast. | |
| He made no comment as he left with his parents and his legal team. | |
| More than 100 people gathered outside the courthouse after the verdicts were announced. | |
| At the court | |
| by Mark Simpson, BBC News NI | |
| There was no reaction from the four defendants in the dock as the verdicts were announced. | |
| They simply stood and stared in front of them as, one by one, the not guilty verdicts were read out by the chairperson of the jury. | |
| A number of their friends and family were in tears in the public gallery. | |
| Outside Court 12, Paddy Jackson hugged members of his legal team, as well as friends and family. | |
| Relatives of all the four accused attended every day of the 42-day trial. | |
| The case was only scheduled to last five weeks. In the end, it went on for eight-and-a-half weeks. | |
| The 12-person jury which started hearing the case was later reduced to 11 after a juror took ill. | |
| In total, 30 witnesses gave evidence, including 10 police officers, the four defendants, the alleged victim and the taxi driver who drove her home on the night in question. | |
| The court sat on weekdays, but, to try to make up lost time, there was one Saturday sitting. | |
| In total, the court has sat on 42 days, but some hearings have been taken up with legal arguments, in the absence of the jury. | |
| On the second week of the trial, the jury was taken to see the layout of Paddy Jackson's house. | |
| All the other proceedings have taken place in Court 12 at Laganside courts complex. On most days, the 100-seat public gallery has been full. | |
| Paddy Jackson, 26, from Oakleigh Park, Belfast, and his Ireland and Ulster teammate Stuart Olding, 25, of Ardenlee Street in the city, denied raping the same woman at a house in south Belfast in June 2016. | |
| Mr Jackson denies a further charge of sexual assault. | |
| Blane McIlroy, 26, of Royal Lodge Road, Belfast, denies exposure while Rory Harrison, 25, of Manse Road, denies perverting the course of justice and withholding information. |