A woman filmed performing sex acts on a man in front of hundreds of people in a busy city centre square said she considered taking her own life in the resulting backlash. Kelly Cousins, 35, said she was hounded with threats and abusive comments after footage from her actions on August 1 went viral on social media.
Mum-of-four Cousins drank heavily with a man during a date before they began performing sex acts as people watched on laughing and filming, a court heard.
A number of the videos, taken from Concert Square in Liverpool, subsequently went viral on social media, including some shared by Cousins herself, and went on to attract widespread criticism, including from Liverpool Mayor Joanne Anderson.
Cousins appeared at Liverpool Magistrates Court on Tuesday after earlier admitting to a charge of outraging public decency and was spared jail. After the hearing Cousins, who has since left Liverpool, told the Liverpool Echo about the incessant abuse she received.
She said: "I would get messages from people saying 'have you killed yourself yet?'. And let me tell you, I thought about it. I felt like it would go away if I wasn't here any more. I am still getting them today, just from total strangers. It made me feel like s***"
Cousins said on one occasion she had ordered food from a popular fast-food chain when she suspected staff had interfered with her food, which was "covered in bits".
In a statement shared after the hearing, she said: "We knew each other from the gym. We went on a date. Things got out of hand, this was never planned. I deeply regret it. I have always taken responsibility for my actions and I now just want to make a new start and put this all behind me."
During the hearing, Andrew Page, prosecuting, told the court: "The defendant was in Concert Square with a male whose identity has been established. While in Concert Square she and the male became engaged in sexual activity in in public view, much of which was filmed by the general public."
Mr Page said Cousins herself posted the footage on her social media pages under the username Ruby Rose VIP. One post was captioned: "Where next, Crosby, Mathew Street, St John's Gardens, the Docks?".
The footage went viral in a matter of hours with thousands of people sharing and commenting on it. However, Mr Page said no-one present in the city centre when the offences occurred made a formal complaint to police.
Mr Page said Cousins was reported, however, when a social worker recognised her and passed that information to the police. She was arrested at her former home in Netherton on August 4.
However her solicitor, Heather Toohey, suggested to magistrates that much of the commentary around the case was driven by "misogyny". "There was two people involved in this offence, but only she is here today," she said.
"On social media there was 'hashtag Concert Square girl' and 'hashtag Concert Square slut', all in relation to her. All of this bad press in relation to this, and I hate to say it, was driven by misogyny".
Cousins was sentenced to 10 weeks in prison, suspended for 12 months, and ordered to complete 40 hours of unpaid work. She was also told to complete 25 Rehabilitation Activity Days with the Probation Service. Prosecutors said the man involved 'was equally culpable' and was being 'pursued by the police'.
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