Donald Trump Jr. is defending Russell Brand after the British comedian was sentenced to 10 years and six months in prison following convictions for rape and sexual assault.
Brand was convicted on one count of rape and three counts of sexual assault involving four women. Jurors cleared him on two additional rape counts and one attempted indecent assault charge.
Trump Jr. used his Rumble show to argue that Brand had been targeted by what he called Britain’s “two-tier justice system,” questioning the evidence behind the convictions and suggesting the comedian’s religious and political evolution had made him a target.
“He was convicted, by the way, with no forensic evidence, no DNA, no police report at the time, now decades old, to allegations dating back to 1999,” Trump Jr. said.
That argument centered in part on a 1999 accusation that did not result in a conviction. Brand was acquitted on the charge involving an alleged rape at a Bournemouth hotel during the Labour Party conference.
The rape conviction that did stick involved a different woman, a 21-year-old fan whom prosecutors said Brand met backstage at a west London comedy show in 2009 and later raped at his home.
Trump Jr. also contrasted Brand’s current legal troubles with the years when he was a major celebrity and married to Katy Perry.
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“So when he was married to Katy Perry, he was one of the most famous actors in the world, no one seemed to have a problem, no one seemed to think he was a rapist then,” he added.
The president’s son tied the shift to Brand’s move toward Christianity and some conservative political positions.
“He finds God, I guess, changes his ways, sees some aspects of conservative life and talks about them,” Trump Jr. said. “And now he’s going to spend 10 and a half years imprisoned for rape when no one had a problem with it in the prior 27 years.”
Judge Joel Bennathan rejected Brand’s denials and described him as a sexual predator whose conduct worsened as his fame grew. The judge also said Brand had shown a “casual and arrogant disregard” for women.
The sentence included nine years for rape, along with additional terms of eight, nine and 18 months for the assault convictions. Those terms will run concurrently with one another but consecutively to the rape sentence, bringing the total to 10 years and six months.
Bennathan told Brand he would serve two-thirds of the sentence before release on license and would remain subject to notification requirements under Britain’s Sexual Offenses Act.
The judge also rejected Brand’s testimony that he had never touched a woman sexually without consent, describing that denial as one of several lies.
Trump Jr. closed his commentary by comparing Brand’s punishment with sentences handed down in Britain’s grooming-gang cases.
He had also defended the comedian in 2023 after the first allegations became public, when Andrew Tate publicly welcomed Brand to “the club.”
Brand’s father, Ronald, also criticized the case outside court, claiming the accusers were women who had pursued his son and suggesting the jury could have been corrupted.
His remarks added another public challenge to the verdict as Brand began serving the sentence handed down Monday in Britain after trial.
Megyn Kelly joined the backlash over the sentence on her SiriusXM program, calling the case “a political witch hunt against Russell Brand.”
She had hosted Brand as a guest in April while he was awaiting trial and told listeners Monday that she did not believe the charges against him.
“This is an outrage,” Kelly said. “This is an obvious double standard. And if you needed any further proof that this is a political witch hunt against Russell Brand, that judge just gave it to us.”
The former Fox News host accused Bennathan of bias and argued that the judge and press had treated Brand unfairly.
“He absolutely had a finger on the scale,” Kelly alleged. “He clearly didn’t like Russell, and neither does the press.”
Kelly also criticized the nine-year term attached to the rape conviction, repeatedly questioning the underlying allegation and describing the total sentence as excessive.
During the segment, she reduced the conduct behind the convictions to acts including groping, kissing and sniffing while challenging the prosecution’s portrayal of Brand.
Her comments came as London police confirmed Brand remains under investigation over rape allegations made by two additional women.
The Metropolitan Police said he had previously been interviewed under caution and that files involving both complainants had been submitted to the Crown Prosecution Service.
Kelly’s defense of Brand drew a blunt response from Rosie O’Donnell. The comedian and longtime Trump critic replied on Threads to a repost of Kelly’s comments with, “Go f–k urself Megan.”
Elon Musk also weighed in after Brand’s conviction. Responding on X to a post about the sentence before the hearing, Musk called it “Unjust.”