'I ask you, members of the jury, how many of you could defend yourself if you were falsely accused? How many of you could produce 16 witnesses and 100 letters of reference to defend yourselves?'
So said the defence barrister in the Winchester Crown Court in October 1999 after nine days of gruelling cross-examination.
The defendant had been a Christian youth worker in an evangelical church; a devout Christian and devoted family man. For seven years, he and his wife had given themselves to the church youth in the age range of 13-18. This was not just Saturday and Sunday evenings; they ran an open-house policy for the various members in the group. Whether in the evenings, to unburden their teenage frustrations and moans about parents, or at lunchtime as a haven close to the sixth-form college, there was a welcome for the youngsters.
