Victims of a home invasion have told a court that the intruder, who was naked when he straddled a grandmother while she slept, destroyed the sanctity of their beloved family home.
Anthony Doyle, 26, was found guilty of assault with intent to rape and aggravated serious criminal trespass over the random and "bizarre" incident at a stranger's home in Adelaide's northern suburbs in September 2020.
The District Court heard Doyle took off his clothes and surreptitiously entered the couple's home, then straddled the 68-year old woman while she slept.
She woke up and screamed for her husband, who ran to her aid and restrained the intruder until police arrived.
In statements read to the court, the victim and her husband, who both work in medical professions, described their ongoing trauma.
The court heard the couple had since sold their much-loved family home where they had lived for decades; a home where they had brought up their children and enjoyed regular visits from their grandchildren.
"Our home was generally full of love, safety, happiness and laughter — until September 2020 when you entered my home uninvited and shattered this," the victim said.
"Since the attack I've felt unsafe, I constantly check to see where my husband is."
The couple told the court the attack has caused ongoing psychological impacts and the trauma meant the victim had to retire from a career she had worked hard to build.
Victim calls husband 'hero' despite family criticism
The woman said her children and other family members understandably felt angry about what happened and wished they had been there to protect her.
The victim's husband said he was "livid" when he saw the intruder naked in his bedroom, but told the court that his decision not to assault the assailant had been an ongoing source of friction with other family members.
"Knowing what he tried to do to my wife, my first thought was to assault him; instead I opted to restrain him without violence," the man told the court through his victim impact statement.
"My conscious decision to not harm this man and not use any more force than absolutely necessary has been the cause of several heated arguments with relatives who believe I should have enacted retribution that night."
The man, who attributed his calm demeanour to his professional training, said he also kept details of the intruder's identity from family members who wanted to seek him out.
"I believe my decisions had been in the best interests of [my wife], the assailant and my family," he said.
"Different decisions would surely have led to more suffering for all parties involved, although the constant pressure and criticism has caused some self-doubt."
In her statement, the victim said her husband was a hero that night.
"My husband is, I think, the hero in all of this," she told the court.
"He handled the situation in a calm and safe way, ensuring I was protected from further abuse.
"He still struggles to understand why you would enter our home and completely wreck our safe place," she told Doyle as he sat in the dock with his head down.
"I was generally a very trusting person; unfortunately now I feel I'm more distrusting of people.
"This is very sad for me because I was always ready to help people."
The victim told Doyle that she wanted him to use his time in prison to "fully understand" the impact of his crimes.
"Hopefully you will learn that if you are ever to enter society again you will need to treat women with respect and dignity and not just someone to meet your sexual urges," she told him.
Case labelled 'bizarre' by defence lawyer
Doyle's lawyer, Adam Gaite, told the court his client was a "peculiar person" and there were many "unusual" and "bizarre" aspects of the case.
The court heard Doyle's intention to rape the victim was "momentary".
Mr Gaite said his client, who had no prior convictions, should receive some leniency when the court sets a non-parole period.
"He's a young man, he's been locked up for two years and it's a bit of a sad situation; he just tries to keep to quiet and remain away from other people [in prison] and that's really his life at the moment," Mr Gaite told the court.
Prosecutor Carmen Matteo said the offending was serious and the court should be concerned about Doyle's prospects of rehabilitation.
"It is concerning, in the director's submission, that having no psychotic illness and being, in the opinion of [forensic psychiatrist] Dr Raeside, in control of his conduct and knowing the wrongfulness of it, this young man set about to act and admitted conscious thoughts about having sex with a stranger, in a house that he broke into," Ms Matteo told the court.
"That is such serious conduct, such troubling conduct, that it bears upon the moral culpability of the defendant and it must bear on his prospects of rehabilitation."
While Ms Matteo agreed there were many "unusual features" of the case, she said that should not "assuage concerns" about the safety of the community and any risk of reoffending.
She said it was important to note that Doyle had shown no real insight into his offending.
Doyle, who was brought to court from prison to hear the victim impact statements and sentencing submissions, looked down for most of the hearing and avoided eye contact.
Judge Jane Schammer will sentence Doyle next month.