Eight years jail for rape of patient

Press, 4 March 1989, Page 7

Eight years jail for rape of patient

Phillip Michael Robertson was yesterday sentenced to eight years prison by Mr Justice Hardie-Boys for the rape of a “sick and disturbed” hospital patient. “I sentence you today on the basis that you took advantage of this woman and treated her as an object to satisfy your own desires,” Justice HardieBoys told Robertson, aged 30, unemployed, as he sentenced him in the High Court.

Robertson was led from the dock saying, “Eight years for five minutes —

that’s not too bad.” His Honour told Robertson the effect his sexual assault had on the woman was "enormous” and had severely set back her recovery. The woman is at present in a psychiatric hospital. His Honour declined an application from the prosecuting counsel, Mr David Saunders, that Robertson be sentenced to preventive custody. However, he warned Robertson he already qualified for that punishment and if he ever sexually offended again “that could well be imposed.”

He added an order for counselling while Robertson was in prison because of the convicted man’s “more than fair share of life’s problems.” Robertson was the victim of a sexual assault when he was young, a probation report revealed. Counselling may help prevent “the very clear possibility' that you may spend the rest of your life in prison,” he told Robertson.

Robertson had pleaded not guilty to a charge of

raping the woman, a patient at the Princess Margaret Hospital, on November 4.

The woman, aged 25, had told the Court she went for a walk from the hospital and had been picked up by Robertson in a car in Wilsons Road. She asked to be taken to Cathedral Square, but Robertson drove her to Haytons Road, near Wigram Air Base, where the offence took place. Robertson’s counsel, Mr John Halls, said in mitigation that the offence, while being rape, had shown “a very real lack of conspicuous violence.” He also said Robertson had returned the woman to the hospital “rather than simply leaving her where she was.” Mr Halls said Robertson had been affected himself after being sexually violated as a child. He had received no psychiatric help for this. Mr Saunders told his Honour that Robertson had sexually offended before and sexual attacks seemed to be a “pattern” of his life. •