A North-West offender has been jailed for rape with the judge telling them that unconsensual sex was a crime regardless of the form in which it was committed.
The offender, who cannot be named, was sentenced in the Supreme Court in Burnie on Tuesday.
The offender identifies as non-binary and their victim identifies the same way.
The pair were partners at the time of the crime but were also seeing other people.
Justice Tamara Jago said the offender had continued to use a vibrator on their handcuffed partner’s vagina despite being told repeatedly it was causing pain and the victim wanted it to stop.
Instead, the victim was told “you are enjoying this” as the rape continued for about 30 minutes.
When arrested, the offender told police they did not have a very good understanding of consent but recognised they had assaulted their partner.
Justice Jago told the offender the victim now repelled intimacy.
The offender has no prior sexual crimes on their record.
The court was told the offender had been raped by a boy at school and likely had a personality disorder.
Justice Jago said she was satisfied that the offender was in a state of disassociation at the time of offending but she was not satisfied there was a nexus between the offender’s mental health and the crime they committed.
She told the offender jail could be a tough place for non-binary prisoners but there were many vulnerable inmates in custody and it was up to prison staff to keep them safe.
“This has been a difficult sentencing exercise,” Justice Jago said.
“Your victim was handcuffed and their persistent protests ignored.”
She said rape was a crime, no matter in what form it happened.
The offender was sentenced to two years and six months in prison.
The last 12 months were suspended on the condition they not commit another crime for two years after their release from custody.
Source: The Advocate