A second woman who alleges she was sexually abused by Australian rules football legend Barry Cable says when she confronted him about it years later, he told her he was dealing with it by "going to church".
Key points:
- A second woman has accused Barry Cable of inappropriate sexual behaviour
- The behaviour allegedly began when she was just 8
- She said his 'high profile' deterred her from taking action
The witness, who cannot be identified, was giving evidence at a civil case in the District Court brought by another woman who alleges Mr Cable abused her for years when she was a teenager in the late 1960s and early 1970s.
The woman is suing the now 79-year-old for about $1 million in damages, claiming she suffered catastrophic psychological and physical harm as a result of the alleged abuse.
Mr Cable categorically denies all the allegations and, while there was a police investigation in the late 1990s, he has never been charged.
Today the second woman, who gave evidence via video link from the United States, testified about three alleged instances of sexually inappropriate behaviour by Mr Cable.
One was when she was eight years old when she claimed he asked her to have a shower with him, the second when she was 14 and he was massaging her, and the third, a year later when he was alleged to have propositioned her.
Cable 'apologised' to woman, says witness
The woman testified that years later when she was an adult he came to her work and apologised but she believed that was only because a relative had spoken to him.
The woman said she also went to police around the same time, for an "off the record" chat so she could find out what her options were.
By that time, she said she had been told about the alleged abuse of the other woman, so she questioned the officer who interviewed her why Mr Cable had not been prosecuted.
She became emotional as she testified, saying that had not "made a whole lot of sense" to her, but that the officer explained it was something to do with the statute of limitations.
She said she was informed her case was different, and Mr Cable could be charged, but she decided not to make a formal complaint for personal reasons.
The woman also said Mr Cable's high profile also played a part.
"He's famous … there are repercussions about coming forward," she said.
"If he was a bricklayer or a plumber, it would very different."
"Everybody's very, very concerned about shielding him, shielding the public from knowing about what he does."
She told the court that a few months later she arranged to meet him in a cafe because she was concerned he had "a problem, that he was not doing anything about it and there would be more victims".
Cable became 'stand-offish'
The woman described Mr Cable as initially being "stand-offish" but that his demeanour changed when she raised the abuse alleged to have been suffered by the other woman.
"He stopped me. He got a little bit kind of nasty," she said.
"He said I don't know what you've heard … that was an affair only and it happened after the age of consent.
"I said 'I didn't know of any 12-year-olds who can consent'.
"He just looked defeated. His demeanour changed and at that point it became a different conversation.
"I asked him what he was doing to get help. His response was that he 'was going to church' … I didn't find that answer satisfactory."
Under questioning from the barrister for the woman who is suing Mr Cable, the witness said she had never met or spoken to his client.
Mr Cable denies all allegations
Mr Cable is not represented by a lawyer and is not taking any part in the civil trial, instead relying on written material that has already been filed, in which he denies all the allegations.
Yesterday, the court was told his son had sent an email asking if he could act for his father and ask the witnesses questions, but Judge Mark Herron said he would only allow that if Mr Cable was also present in court.
There was no sign of either Mr Cable or his son when proceedings started this morning.