WARNING: This story details sexual abuse and will be distressing for some readers.

A teenage girl says she does not laugh, she does not make jokes and she cries often.

She can not cope with the quiet of the night, her thoughts are intrusive and her dreams are haunted.

It has been almost five months since she has self-harmed.

The ongoing tally of harm free days is one strategy she has used to help prevent herself from self-harming as she learns to cope with the harrowing sexual abuse she suffered at the hands of her father.

The Taranaki man raped and sexually violated the girl when she was primary-aged, every second weekend for 12 months.

“To say your offending has had a significant impact is an understatement,” Judge Gregory Hikaka told the man, who can not be named, when sending him to prison.

The hearing in the New Plymouth District Court last week heard that the offending occurred from 2016 to 2017.

It came to light after the girl’s mother saw her simulating sex with a toy and asked her where she had learned to do that.

The man was sentenced in New Plymouth District Court. Photo / Tara Shaskey

She responded: “Dad had sex with me”.

Soon after, the girl repeated the information to a social worker and later in a child witness interview.

A medical examination in 2017 revealed she tested positive for a sexually transmitted disease.

The man was interviewed by police soon after and denied sexually abusing his daughter, stating he would “never have the guts to do anything like that”.

It was not mentioned in court why a prosecution did not take place at this time.

Years later, in 2021, the girl requested to meet with the police.

She disclosed the offending in detail, including the pain she suffered during the offending and that it continued even when she cried.

The girl said that he used his phone to take videos and photos of her while he abused and raped her.

They were saved in the gallery on his phone, she said.

While the videos and photos have never been located, their existence has not been disputed.

Abuse linked to man’s background

In court, the man faced two admitted representative charges - one of sexually violating the victim by unlawful sexual connection, and one of sexual violation by rape.

He was also being sentenced on two charges of breaching his reporting conditions in relation to the child sex offenders register, which stemmed from his failure to report Snapchat accounts he owned and an internet router he had in his possession.

Crown prosecutor Jo Woodcock argued for a sentence starting point of 17 years’ imprisonment.

She submitted the aggravating factors included the victim’s vulnerability, the seriousness of the offending, the extent of the harm caused, that it was premeditated offending and was an egregious breach of trust.

The girl being filmed while being abused, adding to her degradation, and that she had been infected with a sexually transmitted disease, were further aggravating features.

Defence lawyer Nathan Bourke acknowledged the offending was grave and accepted the aggravating features.

In mitigation, Bourke, who argued for a starting point of 16 years, pointed to a presentence report that showed the man had expressed regret, hated himself for his actions and acknowledged he had “ruined his little girl’s life”.

The man had substance abuse issues and had suffered his own “unfortunate and sad upbringing”, which included sexual abuse.

Bourke submitted there was a causal link between the man’s abuse and his offending, stating evidence showed some people subjected to sexual abuse go on to become sexual abusers themselves, much like those who are exposed to violence.

Woodcock submitted that any discount for the man’s background needed to be measured against the seriousness of his offending.

Judge Hikaka said that an offender having been abused themselves was generally presented as reducing the culpability, but it sometimes could be seen as an aggravating factor.

It was often hard to assess the link between the abuse and the offending, he said, because for many, it would be expected that they would never abuse others in the way they had been abused.

“Particularly someone who looked to you in a trusting way to care for them, and that wasn’t the case,” the judge said to the man.

“You’re actually presenting a scenario that, because it happened to you, it somehow excuses you from behaving in an even worse fashion.”

However, based on reports provided to the court, Judge Hikaka accepted there was a causal link in the case.

He said a report outlined that the man’s predisposing factors to the offending included childhood violence, sexual abuse, substance abuse, insecure attachment patterns, and trouble with emotional regulation.

In addressing the harm caused to the victim, who was not in court, the judge said the impact has been significant.

It appeared she was still struggling to comprehend just what had occurred and to manage the ongoing impact, he said.

While a victim impact statement was not read in court, Judge Hikaka highlighted the mental, emotional and physical effects the father’s actions have had on her.

The offending has changed her view of the world; she no longer trusts people, and it has affected her learning and relationships.

She has a history of self-harm and was engaged with a psychologist and taking medication.

Judge Hikaka took a starting point of 17 years’ imprisonment, accepting that the recordings of the abuse were a further aggravating factor.

He applied 20% credit for the man’s guilty plea and 5% for his background, but refused to give a discount for remorse.

While the man may have expressed regret to a report writer, those comments were undermined by his earlier “ambivalence”.

The judge said that when the man had previously been asked if he had committed the offending, he responded, “It’s a hard one”.

He claimed to have been having difficulty with his memory and said, “If she said it happened, then it must have”.

As an end sentence of 12 years and nine months’ imprisonment was then handed down, a man seated in the public gallery yelled out to the defendant, “Kill yourself, bro. You’re never going to get out”.

The defendant’s mother, who was in court, responded that “the truth was not told”.

SEXUAL HARM

Where to get help:
If it's an emergency and you feel that you or someone else is at risk, call 111.
If you've ever experienced sexual assault or abuse and need to talk to someone, contact Safe to Talk confidentially, any time 24/7:
• Call 0800 044 334
• Text 4334
• Email [email protected]
• For more info or to web chat visit safetotalk.nz
Alternatively contact your local police station - click here for a list.

If you have been sexually assaulted, remember it's not your fault.

Tara Shaskey joined NZME in 2022 and is currently an assistant editor and reporter for the Open Justice team. She has been a reporter since 2014 and previously worked at Stuff covering crime and justice, arts and entertainment, and Māori issues.