ACT Supreme Court hears from victim of Parker Bellette in Mooseheads dancefloor rape case

"You chose the wrong f---ing girl," the victim told Parker Jae Robert Bellette in the ACT Supreme Court on Tuesday, when the rapist stared straight ahead rather than look at her.

The woman spoke as Bellette faced court for the start of sentence proceedings, having been found guilty last month of engaging in sexual intercourse without consent.

Bellette admitted putting his hand up his unsuspecting victim's skirt as she danced with another man at Mooseheads, a Civic nightclub Justice Michael Elkaim branded "an unseemly establishment", in March 2021.

While Bellette pleaded guilty to back-up charges of committing an act of indecency without consent, he denied sexually penetrating the woman when he crept up behind her. A jury ultimately found he did.

On Tuesday, the victim began her impact statement by stating her wish to "address the convicted rapist in this room".

She told Bellette she had been a kind, innocent, empathetic, outgoing and happy person before the rape.

Now, she said she would never again be able to go into a nightclub with fearing a "monster" was behind her.

"The things that you took from me, I will never get back," she told the rapist.

"I am a shell of the beautiful person I once was."

The woman cried as she told her assailant of how he had "ruined the best parts of her youth" through his actions and his failure to own up to their extent, recalling how she had suffered a panic attack on her 21st birthday because Bellette's trial was looming and she feared being "berated" in cross-examination.

"I will forever resent and hate you for this," the victim told the rapist.

She also took aim at the entitlement Bellette had felt to sexually violate a stranger in public, describing it as "astounding beyond belief".

While the victim told the court she had been retraumatised by Bellette's trial, she said she had battled through the ordeal because speaking up would stop him being able to hurt someone else.

"I am so proud of myself for putting up with the bullshit you put me through," she said, expressing hope the rapist would be "reduced to an inmate number".

Bellette's adoptive mother, Carmel Bellette, later took the stand to describe being "so shocked and dismayed" when her son, who had never been in any trouble, told her he was likely to be charged.

"He was ashamed, absolutely ashamed," Mrs Bellette said.

"That's not the person he's been brought up to be."

She also said her son's potential incarceration would have a "devastating impact" on his two daughters.

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Bellette's barrister, Margaret Jones SC, urged Justice Elkaim to consider this as she pushed for an intensive correction order rather than a sentence of full-time imprisonment.

Ms Jones said the evidence showed her client was, outside of what occurred on the night in question, a person of good character who had turned to alcohol after breaking up with the mother of his children.

She told the court CCTV of the incident, which was "not pretty", showed Bellette was "clearly extremely drunk" at the time.

"He's boisterous, he's rowdy, and he commits this highly intrusive and highly criminal act," Ms Jones said.

While Ms Jones argued her client was remorseful following a "relatively short" rape, prosecutor Beth Morrisroe said the roughly one minute it lasted had been "a prolonged period in the circumstances".

She said CCTV showed Bellette "pretending" to dance while selecting and then assaulting his victim.

Ms Morrisroe also questioned the extent of Bellette's remorse, noting his mother had detailed encouraging him to seek help when she saw him struggling with the breakdown of his relationship.

The prosecutor said it appeared Bellette had not done anything about this either before or after the rape.

Ms Morrisroe also urged Justice Elkaim against placing too much weight on the impact Bellette's incarceration would have on the offender's children, saying "they don't even live in the same town".

Justice Elkaim indicated he would sentence Bellette on Wednesday afternoon.

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