A man who sexually abused a boy on several occasions in the 1990s will serve 12 months' home detention. Photo / Getty Images
A man who sexually abused a boy on several occasions in the 1990s will serve 12 months' home detention. Photo / Getty Images
WARNING: Distressing content
It's taken more than four years in the court system for Waikato man Reginald Scouse to be held to account for his prolonged sexual abuse of a young boy - abuse the victim's family says ruined his life. Journalist Kelly Makiha reports.
Reginald Victor Scouse once drove a young boy he paid for sexual acts to a church, sat him in a pew and sexually abused him.
Scouse has admitted seven counts of sexual abuse on a boy in the 1990s and been sentenced to 12 months' home detention — a sentence reduced from a prison term due to his worsening health.
The victim held on to his secret much of his adult life but came forward in 2016, resulting in Scouse's arrest in 2017.
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After more than four years of court hearings, adjournments and rescheduling, on May 21 the victim was finally able to face the now 59-year-old perpetrator in the Rotorua District Court.
When Judge Greg Hollister-Jones handed down the sentence, Scouse's victim yelled at the judge, "you call that justice?".
Rotorua Courthouse. Photo / File
Scouse had previously pleaded guilty to four charges of sexual violation by unlawful sexual connection and three charges of doing an indecent act on a child in the Waikato.
Details of the sentencing can now be reported after court documents were released to the Rotorua Daily Post.
The judge's sentencing notes said the boy would often wander the streets after school and on weekends.
A friendship developed between the two and Scouse would often give the boy cigarettes and cannabis.
The friendship progressed, then Scouse's offending started. He would give the boy $70 to $100 for sexual acts.
Once, they went to a church together where the boy was made to sit on a pew and he was sexually abused.
The victim, who cannot be identified, read his victim impact statement to Scouse in court. In it, he disclosed he went on to have troubled years in his teens and adulthood.
He suffered drug issues, lifelong trauma and difficulty with relationships and said he was "robbed of childhood and dignity".
The offending led him "down a dark road of self-sabotage and self-harm" and he resorted to substances to blot out memories of the offending. He said he attempted suicide several times.
Scouse had a criminal history dating between 1980 and 2003 but no convictions for sexual offending.
Judge Hollister-Jones said it was apparent Scouse had had many years of substance abuse that resulted in criminal charges.
His sentencing notes described a court process that including two sentencing indication hearings - where a defendant is given an idea of the sentence they may receive if they plead guilty - and two trial dates adjourned due to Covid lockdowns.
The notes indicated Scouse's worsening health was a factor in the reduction of his sentence from the first sentencing indication of four years in prison, to the second of two years.
Scouse had been diagnosed with schizophrenia, a major depressive disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder and alcohol use disorder. All conditions have resulted in him suffering from severe cognitive deficits meaning his daily functioning is significantly limited.
By March this year, Scouse was having to be supported in accommodation 24/7.
Judge Hollister-Jones took this into account, as well as the resulting reduced risk of re-offending and other new information that cannot be published, in indicating a sentence of two years in prison.
After this, Scouse pleaded guilty.
The judge said at sentencing the acceptance of responsibility was significant.
"It has allowed [the victim] to speak to you today in a direct way and for you to receive from him the effect of your offending on his life."
Home detention can replace prison sentences of two years or less.
The judge said he was satisfied the maximum sentence of 12 months' home detention was appropriate "despite the seriousness of your offending and the trauma to the victim".
Scouse has been accepted into the care of Delamore Trust in Auckland.
The Crown did not seek to have Scouse put on the Child Sex Offender Register because of his decreased risk of reoffending. The judge did not direct it as part of the sentence.
Victim's mother speaks out
Sexual abuse doesn't only happen to kids of parents who don't care.
That's the advice of the distraught mother of Reginald Scouse's victim. She said Scouse's offending ruined her son's life.
The mum, who can't be named, said she felt there was blame pointed at their family. But she said it was a different era and they would forever be upset they didn't notice the offending.
Scouse was known as a "weirdo" in the community but she did not know her son had befriended him, she said.
It was a time when children played together on their own all day and it wasn't uncommon for parents to tell their kids to "come home by tea time or when it gets dark".
"It doesn't just happen at night behind closed doors. It happens on a bright sunny day when you think your kids are outside playing."
She said her son went on to develop addictions and struggled to stick to anything or anyone for long.
She said it took so much courage for him to tell the truth as an adult about what had happened to him but since then he had failed to get the help he needed.
"It's ruined his life ... he has gone off the rails completely."
The woman said court delays only increased his anxiety.
She said the worst thing was that Scouse was not added to the Child Sex Offender Register as the family had expected to happen.
"We waited five years for this. I think he was let down by the system," she said.
"Who is the actual victim here? ... Nothing changes for him [Scouse]. He gets to live in the same place but just has a bracelet around his ankle for 12 months."
Where to get help
* If it's an emergency and you feel that you or someone else is at risk, call 111.
* If you've ever experienced sexual assault or abuse and need to talk to someone contact the Safe to Talk confidential crisis helpline on: Text 4334 and they will respond Email support@safetotalk.nz
* Visit https://safetotalk.nz/contact-us/ for an online chat
* Alternatively contact your local police station.
* If you have been abused, remember it's not your fault.
