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| Dave Lee Travis jury retires to consider indecent and sex assault case verdicts | Dave Lee Travis jury retires to consider indecent and sex assault case verdicts |
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| Jurors in the trial of the veteran DJ Dave Lee Travis, who is accused of indecently assaulting two women and sexually assaulting a third, have retired to consider their verdicts. | Jurors in the trial of the veteran DJ Dave Lee Travis, who is accused of indecently assaulting two women and sexually assaulting a third, have retired to consider their verdicts. |
| Prosecutors say the former BBC presenter was an "opportunist" who acted as if he had the "perfect right" to grope young women. | Prosecutors say the former BBC presenter was an "opportunist" who acted as if he had the "perfect right" to grope young women. |
| The allegations against him date to the 1990s, when he was starring in panto, with the most recent alleged to have taken place during an interview with a journalist at his home in 2008. | The allegations against him date to the 1990s, when he was starring in panto, with the most recent alleged to have taken place during an interview with a journalist at his home in 2008. |
| Travis, who is on trial under his real name, David Griffin, has undergone a retrial on these two counts – one of indecent assault of a woman between 1 November 1990 and 31 January 1991, and another of sexual assault on a different woman between 1 June 2008 and 30 November 2008 – after a jury was unable to reach verdicts on them at a trial earlier this year. | Travis, who is on trial under his real name, David Griffin, has undergone a retrial on these two counts – one of indecent assault of a woman between 1 November 1990 and 31 January 1991, and another of sexual assault on a different woman between 1 June 2008 and 30 November 2008 – after a jury was unable to reach verdicts on them at a trial earlier this year. |
| He has also pleaded not guilty to an additional count of indecent assault alleged to have taken place on 17 January 1995 on a young woman working on the Mrs Merton Show. | He has also pleaded not guilty to an additional count of indecent assault alleged to have taken place on 17 January 1995 on a young woman working on the Mrs Merton Show. |
| Prosecutors claim that Travis approached the woman in the corridor, where she was smoking, and put his hands on her chest for at least 10-15 seconds until she ran away. | Prosecutors claim that Travis approached the woman in the corridor, where she was smoking, and put his hands on her chest for at least 10-15 seconds until she ran away. |
| The first charge relates to a woman who was working on a production of Aladdin. The woman, who was in her 20s at the time, said the DJ assaulted her while they were alone in his dressing room, holding the door closed as he put his hand inside her trousers. She managed to prise open the door to the corridor – where comedy stars the Chuckle Brothers were standing – and escape, Southwark crown court heard. | The first charge relates to a woman who was working on a production of Aladdin. The woman, who was in her 20s at the time, said the DJ assaulted her while they were alone in his dressing room, holding the door closed as he put his hand inside her trousers. She managed to prise open the door to the corridor – where comedy stars the Chuckle Brothers were standing – and escape, Southwark crown court heard. |
| Jurors were told that the final charge involved an accusation that Travis groped a journalist, allegedly touching her chest and holding his hands there for several seconds. | Jurors were told that the final charge involved an accusation that Travis groped a journalist, allegedly touching her chest and holding his hands there for several seconds. |
| Giving his own evidence, the former Top of the Pops presenter denied the claims, telling jurors the women had been lying. He also called on a host of other defence witnesses, which heard him described as the "perfect gentleman" rather than a sexual predator. | Giving his own evidence, the former Top of the Pops presenter denied the claims, telling jurors the women had been lying. He also called on a host of other defence witnesses, which heard him described as the "perfect gentleman" rather than a sexual predator. |
| As he summed up the evidence on Wednesday, judge Anthony Leonard told the jury of six men and six women to forget about allegations against other celebrities in the wake of the Jimmy Savile scandal as they deliberate their verdicts. | As he summed up the evidence on Wednesday, judge Anthony Leonard told the jury of six men and six women to forget about allegations against other celebrities in the wake of the Jimmy Savile scandal as they deliberate their verdicts. |
| He also told them to "not allow yourselves to become overawed or deflated by the interest this case has attracted". | He also told them to "not allow yourselves to become overawed or deflated by the interest this case has attracted". |
| "You are trying allegations of historical sexual assaults against someone who has been in the public eye for many years," the judge said. "The fact that the defendant is a well-known media personality does not change the rules of this case." | "You are trying allegations of historical sexual assaults against someone who has been in the public eye for many years," the judge said. "The fact that the defendant is a well-known media personality does not change the rules of this case." |
| Referring to the fact that the investigation into Travis is part of Operation Yewtree, the inquiry set up two years ago following the Savile scandal, the judge said: "There is no such thing as guilt or innocence by association. It follows that you will try this defendant on the evidence in this case and ignore as irrelevant any allegations which have been made against others or the results of trials they have faced." | Referring to the fact that the investigation into Travis is part of Operation Yewtree, the inquiry set up two years ago following the Savile scandal, the judge said: "There is no such thing as guilt or innocence by association. It follows that you will try this defendant on the evidence in this case and ignore as irrelevant any allegations which have been made against others or the results of trials they have faced." |
| Judge Leonard also said the trial was not a place for jurors to debate the changing attitudes to sexual offences in the workplace. | Judge Leonard also said the trial was not a place for jurors to debate the changing attitudes to sexual offences in the workplace. |
| Travis, of Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire, was accompanied to court on Thursday by Marianne, his wife of 43 years. |