A former teacher at a north Dublin girls' school has gone on trial accused of two counts of unlawful carnal knowledge of a transition-year student in the grounds of the school five years ago.
The 48-year-old man pleaded not guilty at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to two counts of unlawful carnal knowledge of the then 16-year-old girl at the school on dates in March 2002.
Vincent Heneghan, prosecuting, told the jury that this was not a case of sexual assault or rape, but that it was illegal to have sex with a girl under 17 regardless of the circumstances.
The now 22-year-old woman told Mr Heneghan the man had been her teacher for several subjects while she was a student in the school. She said he had "a very friendly relationship" with her group of friends, and they would often gather in his classroom informally to talk or work on projects, and they exchanged text messages. She said the man had asked her out to lunch while she was on work experience and had kissed her on this occasion and mentioned that he thought they were "more then friends".
She told Mr Heneghan they first had sex on the occasion of a school musical when they separated from the main group to seek parts for her broken mobile phone.
She said she remained in contact with her teacher and later that month went alone to meet him in his classroom. She said he told her he was worried about what had happened and did not think it should happen again.
She said they had sex again following that conversation. She said that although he asked her if she was "okay", she thought at the time that "he did not seem too concerned about how I was feeling". She said they stayed in touch for the rest of the school year but he did not contact her during the summer holidays, and when they returned to school the following September he told her that it would be very serious for him if others knew what had happened and she should not tell anyone.
The woman denied a suggestion by defence counsel Feargal Kavanagh SC (with Ronan Kennedy) that she had researched statutory rape on the internet but said, "I was aware what we were doing was very wrong".
She agreed with Mr Kavanagh that she thought she was in love with the teacher and that the sex she claims to have had with him was consensual.
She denied being upset that her teacher had not taken up her advances, saying: "He took up my advances in the most serious way possible."
She denied "rumours" had been spreading in the school about her relationship with the man and said she only discussed it with a close group of friends.
The trial continues before Judge Frank O'Donnell and a jury of eight men and four women.