Convicted Canberra rapist Thomas Earle has avoided time in prison after he was sentenced to a three-year intensive corrections order (ICO), leaving his victim "devastated".
Warning: this story contains details that may confront some readers.
In February, Earle was found guilty of rape and committing an act of indecency.
He had pleaded not guilty and an ACT Supreme Court jury acquitted him of two counts of sexual intercourse without consent. But it convicted him of a third, as well as the indecency charge.
ACT Chief Justice Lucy McCallum told Earle the ICO would be served in the community. It requires him to complete 300 hours of community service and 20 hours of counselling by 2026.
The judge pointed to evidence of Earle's "good character", having read several character references, including from his employers.
She also noted he was from a "good family" and had little to no chance of re-offending.
Chief Justice McCallum said the prosecution had argued Earle had "no remorse" and a "lack of insight into the offending", and that weight should be given to general deterrence over the possibility of rehabilitation in sentencing.
However, she said she was persuaded that the offender did not pose a risk to the victim, future partners or the community.
Earle's victim, Emily Campbell-Ross, said she was devastated by the result.
"The women of the ACT were just told that if the right to their own body is removed, community service is a justified punishment," she said in a statement.
"The men of the ACT were just told that they can rape a woman and never see the inside of a prison cell.
"The justice system has once again failed women.
"I get the life sentence, and Thomas merely gets a slap on the wrist."
'I couldn't feel clean'
In a victim impact statement read to the court at a previous hearing, Ms Campbell-Ross spoke of how the assault had affected her livelihood.
"I don't think there are words in the English language to fully encapsulate the extent to which this act has affected my life," she said.
"From the pain I felt between my legs, to the blood stain on my sheets, I was reminded that I was assaulted.
"The physical impact didn't stop there. I was so terrorised by the idea that he was in me in the weeks following, that no matter what I did, I couldn't feel clean."
Ms Campbell-Ross spoke of scrubbing herself with bleach so thoroughly that she acquired eczema and bacterial vaginosis.
She said the rape continued to derail her financial "stability and independence", and she had repeatedly missed work and moved back in with her parents.
The judge also referred to this, saying Ms Campbell-Ross was a "financially independent young woman" before the rape.
In her closing remarks, Chief Justice McCallum said Ms Campbell-Ross had been "absolutely devastated by the offences" and "her life as she knew it has been torn apart".
"I have given careful consideration to the complexities of consent," she said.
"The shadow of that trauma will be long."
'The result is tragic indeed'
Earle met his victim on a night in December 2021 at her house, where they ate dinner, smoked marijuana and inhaled jungle juice, also known as amyl nitrate.
The victim said she woke later to find Earle's hands inside her. She said she then became frozen and "couldn't do anything with her body".
The court had previously heard he performed oral sex on her and then intercourse, but there were different accounts from the two about their movements in bed and how they were interpreted.
The judge went over the different versions of events, highlighting that she believed that, in Earle's mind, the victim had consented.
"He believed there had been consent to some acts but proceeded in a selfish way without turning his mind to consent," she said.
"The offender honestly but mistakenly believed the victim was consenting to the first two acts but didn't turn his mind to the issue of consent.
"The result is tragic indeed."
She also read from a letter Earle had sent her, which included that media reporting on the trial had "triggered feelings of shame".
Chief Justice McCallum went on to say that media coverage was "an ordinary" part of most trials and can act as a deterrent.
Earle wrote in the letter: "I see now that I should have communicated better, in the future I will be much more wary.
"I acknowledge due to my actions that someone has been hurt."
