‘He ruined my life’ — domestic assault victim

In the County Court in Shepparton on Friday, March 22, the woman read her own victim impact statement, remembering the attack on January 26, 2021, in her Cobram home.

On that occasion, the woman’s former partner, from whom she had split five months earlier, kicked her door in and assaulted her during a struggle.

The woman’s daughter, who was 16 years old at the time, jumped on her father’s back in an attempt to protect her mother.

“He ruined my life, and I have to rebuild it piece by piece,” the mother told the court.

“I feel like I am always in survival mode.

“His eyes that day will forever be etched in my brain.

“I am always over-aware of my surroundings.

“I am fearful and scared of what will happen when he is released.”

The woman said she was no longer able to do pilates due to injuries to her lower back and coccyx suffered during the attack.

The couple were together for more than 20 years, and the victim said she had also lost connections with his family through the attack.

“We spent every weekend with his family in some form,” she said.

“I helped build his sister’s career; I helped build his career.

“For over 20 years, his family was mine.

“I didn’t put him there (jail). He was there due to his own actions.”

Called by his defence counsel, Christopher Terry, to give evidence, the man said he didn’t have a good recollection of the offending but said he didn’t take any issue with the victim impact statement.

“Essentially, I’ve done a lot of soul searching, and I agree with a lot of things my ex-partner has said,” the man said.

“It’s taken such a toll on me emotionally and mentally.

“Instantaneously, I was disgusted with myself.

“I never in a million years wanted (my partner) and (my daughter) to see me in the light they see me in.

“I will never be able to make amends.”

The man said the case had also taken a toll on his family, his new partner and their eight-month-old boy.

“I’m trying to be a better person,” he said.

The man’s defence counsel said his client accepted his actions were wrong but argued he had good prospects for rehabilitation given he had expressed remorse, undertaken a men’s behavioural change program and was addressing his drug and alcohol issues.

“It’s absolutely conceded that this is serious offending,” Mr Terry said.

“He’s a person that seems to be genuinely remorseful.

“He’s got good prospects for rehabilitation.”

The prosecution argued the only “realistic outcome” was a period of imprisonment with a non-parole period.

“The victim was a vulnerable person who clearly wasn’t safe in her own home,” the prosecution said.

“It’s obviously a violent incident.

“Three years later, the victim still experiences difficulty due to being bashed by (her partner).”

The case before Judge Wendy Wilmoth was adjourned until Tuesday, March 26 for sentence.

During that sentencing hearing Judge Wilmoth said she’d rejected the defence’s suggestion to combine a term of imprisonment and a community corrections order, saying the offending called for “a firm denunciation by this court”.

“In this case, it has caused serious physical injury and pain,” she said.

Judge Wilmoth acknowledged that the man had expressed remorse, engaged in a behavioural change program and written a letter to the court explaining the matters, but said a breach of an intervention order in 2005 involving the victim, although some years ago, remained “relevant and concerning”.

She said his record of offending was limited, with no offences between 2010 and 2021, but added that perpetrators who inflicted violence against their partners must know that it would not be tolerated.

“The sentence I impose must reflect the need for general deterrence,” she said.

The man was sentenced to a combined three years in jail for the two charges, with a non-parole period of 18 months.

He had already served 145 days at the time of sentencing.