A family once full of hope and joy has been thrown into grief, sadness and regret due to the actions of Samah Baker's murderer.
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After a jury found James Hachem guilty in July, he returned to the NSW Supreme Court on Tuesday where he faced the family of the 30-year-old victim who vanished from Sydney's west in 2019.
Elena Baker read an emotional statement to the court in which she described the deep hurt caused by her sister's death.
Her mother was "emotionally drowning" because of the murder of her daughter, whose body has never been found, Ms Baker told the court.
"She has crumbled with sadness, grief, regret and the never-ending taunting dialogue that it was somehow her fault," she said.
Ms Baker told Justice Robertson Wright that her family now approached life with extreme caution and distrust of others.
Speaking about her own experience, she said she suffered panic attacks and had developed an addiction to perfect grades at university which she described as exhausting and taxing.
"I had nightmares and night terrors frequently, constantly reminding me that my sister and I left on a bad note," she said.
She expressed sadness she would never again hear her sister's voice, have fun arguments with her, visit the beach as a complete family, or celebrate special occasions together such as graduations or weddings.
"She made humanity seem a whole lot brighter because of those hopeful sparkling green eyes," Ms Baker told the court.
Hachem was arrested on March 8, 2019 while he was unemployed and living at the family home in Hurstville Grove.
He was in an "intermittent intimate relationship" with Samah Baker, a TAFE worker who was reported missing on January 5, 2019 after a friend dropped her off in Parramatta. The jury found Hachem committed the murder on January 4.
Defence lawyers are trying to reduce Hachem's sentence, saying childhood abuse he suffered at the hands of his father caused PTSD and other emotional harm.
Joseph Hachem on Tuesday described how he and his younger brother would be whipped on the back and arm with tree branches by their father, a taxi driver who was a problem gambler.
"I hate eggplant and I was forced to eat it and if i didn't eat it, I would get a beating," Mr Hachem told defence counsel Daniel McMahon.
"We had a tree in the backyard. That was the go to, I'd say, arsenal where he'd pull down thin branches ... and shave off the leaves and there'd be these little pricks."
Whipped with these branches from the age of seven, Mr Hachem said he eventually poisoned the tree with bleach and detergent from his mother's laundry.
After the tree died, his father resorted to using his belt, the court heard.
Under cross-examination, prosecutor Fiona Gray said that in prior affidavits, Mr Hachem had not said anything about the alleged abuse.
In fact, he had been silent about the beatings, failing to make complaints to his mother, other family members or the police until now when his brother was due to be sentenced, the barrister pointed out.
The defence team has also argued the impacts of COVID-19 restrictions on Hachem's time in custody should result in a reduced sentence.
Hachem has made guilty pleas to two fraud charges which will be taken into account when the judge hands down his sentence for murder.
The hearing will continue on April 14 next year when evidence is given by Hachem's psychologist.
Australian Associated Press
