UPDATE: Mr Howard's convictions were subsequently overturned on appeal and he was granted a retrial. At the conclusion of his retrial, on 30 October 2023, he was acquitted of all charges.
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A man will spend years in prison and has been placed on the sexual offender registry for life after being sentenced for sexually abusing a child when he was her karate teacher.
Lachlan Howard appeared via video link for sentencing in the County Court on Thursday.
On April 14 this year, Howard was found guilty of two charges of indecent acts and two charges of sexual penetration of a female student under the age of 16. It followed a 10-day trial, with the jury then deliberating for four days before making a decision.
Howard had originally faced eight charges, but a judge directed he was not guilty of one charge of an indecent act and one charge of sexual penetration of a child.
Further, the jury found he was not guilty of two counts of sexual penetration of a child under 16.
The offending occurred after the complainant began karate classes when she was about 10 years old.
Judge Frank Gucciardo said Howard met the complainant at her first grading when he stated she looked older than her age.
With her mother's work meaning she was not always able to pick her up from training on time, on some occasions trainers would drive her home.
"She was talented at karate and progressed up the grades. As she did so she trained more than one night a week," Judge Gucciardo said.
One night her mother was late to pick her up and accepted Howard's offer to drop her daughter home, with it then becoming routine.
"As she progressed up the grades you would drop her home more than one day each week."
Explaining he had re-analysed the transcript of the trial and all of the evidence on Thursday, Judge Gucciardo said he was persuaded "beyond reasonable doubt" that Howard began driving the girl home regularly when she was 13 and continued to do so when she was 14.
A diary from when she was aged 14 was used as evidence but Judge Gucciardo said it was "an impossible task" to arrive at a complete number of times the offending occurred, but the diary provided a clear picture of the frequency of the abuse.
The court heard the complainant looked up to Howard as her senior and enjoyed the attention she was receiving.
At the time of offending, the court heard the young girl had developed a "crush" and thought Howard had a romantic interest in her.
"You began to dare her to act sexually towards you during the drive.
"It occurred nearly every time you drove her home and progressed with you upping the dares.
"She gave unequivocal evidence that masturbating you happened in the vast majority of cases you drove her home, your digital penetration of her occurred routinely, as did fellatio."
The court heard Howard would sometimes take longer routes when driving her home to "allow more time for sexual touching".
"You exploited this situation for your sexual gratification. This conduct was rendered more brazen not just by the age difference but by the clear power imbalance between you," Judge Gucciardo said.
You exploited this situation for your sexual gratification. This conduct was rendered more brazen not just by the age difference but by the clear power imbalance between you
- Judge Gucciardo
The sexual abuse continued even after Howard became engaged and later married.
Judge Gucciardo said the complainant had read out a "measured and dignified" victim impact statement about the damage Howard had caused.
He said she demonstrated courage and resilience as she endured a "protracted and traumatic judicial process" and was angered by Howard's lack of admission and remorse.
She endured "arduous and forceful cross examination" which had "brought her career, mental health, her mother's occupation, family circumstances and not just her allegations into focus, but into question, in an endeavour to discredit her".
He said seeking justice had required her to relive the offending, the locations and circumstances in graphic detail.
"This has had an irreparable and devastating impact upon her and has affected her enjoyment of life.
"The offending has alienated her from family and relationships with loved ones, estranged her from her mother and family.
"She experiences pervasive feelings of worthlessness and inadequacy," the judge said, adding she had written:
"Most overwhelmingly I feel grief for the life I could have had if I were not abused."
The judge said that instead of enjoying her young life, it had been "blighted by grooming, manipulation and sexual abuse".
"She feels a keen sense of betrayal by those who could have protected her. The bitterness and resentfulness is accompanied by the stigma and shame of being abused.
"Her sleep is troubled with recurring nightmares and post traumatic stress disorder. Her executive function and concentration has been affected, as well as her eating patterns. She experiences flashbacks and incidental touching causes her distress"
The judge said she suffered financial consequences from her physical and mental state, disabling her from working full-time and maintaining stable employment - not only a loss of earnings but also the amount she pays for health-related expenses and therapy.
Judge Gucciardo said the complainant had described feeling like a burden on everyone, causing her to withdraw, feel suicidal and distrustful of most people. She also feels fearful of ever having her own child.
"Her life has been impacted in every aspect from sleep to hours of therapy, managing other people's reactions, processing the information for statements, looking through evidence, countless hours of anxiety and a life unlived," he said.
He read out another quote from her:
The abuse you inflicted upon me has created a black hole that consumes my time, intellect, energy and leaves room for little else. My life has suffered and I will never get that time back.
- The complainant
"The abuse you inflicted upon me has created a black hole that consumes my time, intellect, energy and leaves room for little else. My life has suffered and I will never get that time back."
He said Howard's moral culpability was "high", as was the gravity of his offending.
"Coupled with the absence of remorse, it is cause for clear denunciation and just punishment.
He said one of the primary functions of the court was to impose appropriate punishment for offending upon a child, deterring others from such "vile and abhorrent conduct" and denouncing the behaviour as "unacceptable, falling far from the values and expectations of society".
"The situation you created required her to understand discovery would have repercussions, that the attention and affection was predicated on her engaging in sexual acts with you and that the relationship you nurtured with her was designed to ensure she continued to provide you with sexual gratification," Judge Gucciardo said.
"The responsibility for this abhorrent and repulsive conduct rests entirely on you. It entailed acts which violated her physical integrity, exploited her feelings towards you by psychological manipulation, which violated and corrupted her innocence and abused the trust she and her mother had in you."
IN OTHER NEWS:
The court heard Howard, now 47, had no prior criminal history and it was his first period of incarceration.
A consequence of Howard's conviction meant he had been prevented from contact with his two children or seeing photographs of them while on remand.
The judge took into account Howard's otherwise "good character" and "excellent work history", and said it had a bearing on the prospects of rehabilitation, as well as the support of his family.
He also considered that Howard did not drink or take drugs, the significant delay in the case and added complexities of being in prison during the COVID-19 pandemic.
But said that "without an acceptance of wrongdoing and remorse the weight to be given to delay is reduced."
Judge Frank Gucciardo said there were significant penalties which reflected the "seriousness and gravity the legislators had viewed this kind of offending" as a starting point in his consideration for sentencing.
Some of the charges can attract sentences of a maximum of 10 years in prison.
Howard has been in pre-sentence detention for 141 days.
Howard was registered as a sexual offender and will be subject to the obligations under the act for life.
He was sentenced to eight years and six months in prison, with a non-parole period of 5 years and six months.
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