The emotional harm of the years of abuse was still with her "to this day", a woman said of her brother’s sexual offending against her which began when she was 9 years old.
At the sentencing of her brother (now 39) in the Dunedin District Court yesterday, the woman was reading to the court her victim impact statement.
Her brother, whose name was suppressed to protect her identity, had been convicted of a representative charge of indecently assaulting her, and four charges of having unlawful sexual connection with her.
He had pleaded guilty.
Judge Kevin Phillips sentenced him to three years and 10 months’ jail.
In addition, he is to pay $7000 emotional harm reparation.
The judge also made a protection order in favour of the victim.
The fact summary said the offending began when the victim’s brother was 14 and she was 9, and continued until she was 23 or 24.
In the nine years when she was aged between 9 and 18, her brother indecently assaulted her several times.
The unlawful sexual connection offending began when her brother was 21 and she was 16.
The victim told the court the defendant had preyed on her innocence. She self-harmed. At times she did not want to live anymore. She felt isolated and did not know where to go for help. She did not go to her parents because she knew if she did it would destroy the family "and I did not want that".
And she always felt guilty and ashamed, she said.
"I know it doesn’t make sense. But I thought people would think in some way I was responsible."
She eventually went to her doctor and accessed counselling, she said. To this day she was still living with the emotional harm of the years of abuse.
Public defender Andrew Dawson said the defendant voluntarily and completely accepted there had been a number of wrongs "and apologised to her".
Part of his explanation was the offending became a pattern he did not know how to stop. If he had understood the harm it was causing it might have been a catalyst for him to stop.
The offending did not progress to full intercourse.
The defendant had not previously been before the court.
