A Connecticut man on trial for sexual assault was allowed to drop his trousers and expose his penis to a stunned New Haven jury — to prove that it doesn’t match his accuser’s description, the NY Post reports.

The accuser says she was raped in 2012 by a stranger whose penis was lighter than the rest of his skin — and picked Desmond James, 26, out of a photo line-up as her attacker.

But James’ lawyer argued that his client’s private parts are actually darker than the rest of his body — and the best way to prove it was to display his manhood.

Judge Elpedio Vitale agreed it was within James’ Sixth Amendment rights to defend himself by whipping his bits out in the hall of justice.

But when Vitale brought the two women and six men of the jury into the courtroom, he didn’t warn them what they were going to see — saying only the defence was going to offer “nontestimonial” evidence that is “sensitive in nature and highly personal.”

So the jurors were shocked when James walked into the middle of the courtroom, dropped his pants, lifted his shirt and pulled out his penis — standing wordlessly for a full 10 seconds, according to people who witnessed the spectacle.

Shocked, at least one juror looked away, while others in the room tried to suppress grins and snickers at the explicit evidence, witnesses said.

James then pulled up his pants — and the defence rested its case.

“You saw a penis that is darker than the rest of his skin. For that reason alone, you must acquit,” defence lawyer Bussert said in closing statements. Bussert noted that the display had brought more people into the courtroom that day.

“You may have noticed because of my client having to show his penis … the gallery’s a little more full today,” Bussert said.

But prosecutor Stacey Miranda said the graphic exhibit was far from hard evidence — arguing James might have done something with his pubic hair since the assault.

more at news.com.au