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A MAN serving 17-years behind bars for the repeated sexual abuse of his step daughter has been ordered to pay $1.36 million in damages.
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He will pay more than $950,000 in damages to his step daughter, who was subjected to three years of sexual assault which began when she was 12.
He will also pay more than $407,000 to the girl's mother, who continues to suffer post traumatic stress disorder following her daughter's disclosure.
The family moved from the Hunter region to Queensland after the matter was reported to and investigated by police in 2015.
Guilty
On the day the matter was due to go to trial, the man, who cannot be named to protect the identity of the family, pleaded guilty to 24 offences.
In August, 2018, he was sentenced to 17 years and nine months, with a non-parole period of 11 years and nine months.
He did not object to the damages claim and appeared only briefly to excuse himself from the proceedings which took place in the District Court before Justice Fitzsimmons SC.
In a written judgement, the judge said the abuse occurred during the girl's most formative teenage years and that she was fundamentally robbed of her innocence.
"The abuse was mostly perpetrated in (her) home where she was entitled to feel safe and constituted the most fundamental breach of trust."
She was fundamentally robbed of her innocence.
- Justice Fitzsimmons SC
The abuse has had a profound impact on her and the consequences have permeated every part of her life, including her relationships on a social, personal, and intimate level.
"I find that the plaintiff is reminded of the abuse daily, triggered by life experiences," Justice Fitzsimmon said.
"The plaintiff's suffering because of the abuse will be lifelong. She will require ongoing psychological treatment during periods of exacerbation. It will undoubtedly impact on her capacity to relate to intimate partners and a consideration as to whether she will have children of her own."
The damages awarded include a sum for future and past economic loss, as well as general, aggravated and exemplary damages.
Disclosure
The mother became aware of the abuse during an argument between her daughter and husband at the time, about text messages on her mobile phone and whether or not she had spent time alone with a boy.
The step father called the girl a 'slut' and told her that she was ground for a year, when she said it was "nothing more than you've ever done to me dad".
Her mother looked shocked, and the step father put his hands on his head and began pacing around the room, before admitting some abuse had occurred. The next morning was the last time she ever saw him.
She later told her mother she thought it was normal.
The mother went on to develop PTSD and anxiety disorder, leaving her with a fundamental lack of trust with people in a social and professional context, difficulties sleeping, intrusive memories, and difficulty concentrating.