Fight to close 'loophole' after DV offender charged interstate while on bail

ABC NEWS (Australia)

WARNING: Some viewers may find this content distressing. Jessica Seage fought for six years for the man who raped her to be convicted. Experts say her experience is a stark example of how perpetrators abuse the system to inflict more pain on their victims.

Transcript

00:00A short drive to court, on a long road to justice.

00:07Now that it's sort of all setting into reality, it's a bit scary.

00:12Jessica Seeger's ex-husband is finally being sentenced for his crimes against her.

00:18It's taken six years, three trial attempts and more than 50 court mentions.

00:24Seeing him and him seeing me is pretty awful.

00:28William Wells was jailed in 2016 for strangling Jessica.

00:33He's now pleaded guilty to 12 more charges, including rape and assault.

00:38The court heard when Wells raped Jessica, he quoted a Bible verse and told her to submit as she struggled to get free.

00:46He grabbed her by the throat, whacked her across the head and punched her in the stomach.

00:52These six years have been really gruelling and almost like he's just had power and control over me.

00:58The court and the system have allowed him to continue to perpetrate violence against me.

01:02On the day of sentencing, with Jessica's faith in the justice system already wearing thin,

01:08Wells is handed a jail term of six years and six months.

01:13But with time already served, he's immediately eligible for parole.

01:18And I feel like I've lost again today.

01:20He smirked as he left the courtroom.

01:23It's just like a big game.

01:25You know, this is not a game.

01:27This is my life.

01:28This is my children's life.

01:29The ABC has followed Jessica's journey for 18 months.

01:33Our investigation has raised major concerns about how perpetrators used the court system to further their abuse

01:39and about the process itself, including how Jessica's perpetrator was granted bail to another state

01:46where he was later accused of strangling another woman.

01:49I think it's just messy, incredibly messy and needs to be looked at so that perpetrators are not able to,

01:56you know, freely leave a state and commit acts of violence against other people.

02:01We think that the victim survivors' rights, human rights, should be front and centre in these matters and they're just not.

02:10In her victim impact statement, Jessica details how the court process prolonged her suffering.

02:16Each delay, each adjournment, some by the court and others caused by the offender's own actions and refusal to take accountability sooner,

02:24kept me trapped in this process.

02:26I don't think that you could call it anything else but systemic abuse of the victim.

02:31But this time the victim didn't give up for the sake of her children.

02:36Should they ever go through anything even slightly similar, I hope that the system is much better for them at that time, like truly.

02:45And that's what I'll keep fighting for.

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