THE conviction of Milton Brown heralded a change in the law to prevent alleged rapists cross-examining their victims at trial.
The end of Brown’s trial for attacking Susan McDonald received prominent coverage in The Times in January 1998.
He was jailed for five years for causing her grievous bodily harm and his conviction allowed the media to identify him for the first time.
Brown had been convicted the previous November of raping a woman at knife- point and subjecting another woman to a prolonged sexual assault and jailed for 16 years.
The cases made headlines after Brown cross-examined both women for days after opting to defend himself.
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But he could not be named in the press because of fears that identifying him might prejudice the fair conduct of his trial for the attacks on Miss McDonald.
Jack Straw, then the Home Secretary, expressed his determination to prevent other rape victims suffering in court at the hands of their attackers. The law was changed to give judges the discretion to prevent such cross-examination.