Man jailed for filming himself touching woman while she slept and assaulting her

Standing in a courtroom shaking, her voice breaking with emotion, a Taranaki mother described how her abuser’s actions had stripped her of her power and made her attempt suicide more than once.

‘‘What you did has had a devastating effect on my whole life.

Every day has been a battle.

‘‘I live in constant fear that you will find a way to get me again,’’ she told Michael Paul McAlister in New Plymouth District Court.

‘‘You made me feel powerless and you made me feel scared for my own life, many times.’’

The woman read her victim impact statement through tears at McAlister’s sentencing before

Judge Gregory Hikaka.

McAlister had admitted eight charges: one count each of strangulation, indecent assault, unlawful sexual connection, attempting to pervert the course of justice, and four counts of making an intimate recording.

‘‘I tried to take my own life twice and you took away my ability to function in a daily life.

‘‘I was unable to be mum,’’ the victim said.

‘‘I hate what you did, I feel like I’ve lived a life sentence because of what you have done.’’

On Sunday, February 16, 2020, the victim went to sleep after she and McAlister had an argument at her home, the police summary of facts said.

While she was sleeping the then 53-year-old went into her room, removed her pyjama pants and filmed himself touching her intimately.

Over the next two hours he went back three times and filmed her naked lower body as she slept, with recordings spanning from eight seconds to one minute.

In the days that followed, the pair, who were friends, got into another argument at the victim’s home and McAlister grabbed her by the throat and held her down

on the bed.

As she tried to fight him off, McAlister blocked her and held her arm down, while he squeezed her throat until she started to lose consciousness.

He released her and then picked up the bed as if he was going to flip it on her, before her flatmate intervened.

The victim had laid charges and sought a protection order when McAlister turned up at her house on March 10, attempting to convince her to drop the charges.

He had a letter for her to sign to say she would and when she refused they started arguing.

He grabbed her by the shirt and threw her to the floor, before taking off in her car.

The victim said she had since been diagnosed with PTSD, had developed learning difficulties, found it hard to be around people and had daily triggers that made her stutter and shut down.

‘‘You changed the course of my life and you stripped me of my power and my dreams,’’ she said.

‘‘I have chosen to face you today to take back my power and face fear so I can start healing,’’ she said.

Judge Hikaka said McAlister’s charges added up to seven and a half years in prison, but his time was discounted due to early guilty pleas and his willingness to take part in restorative justice.

McAlister was sentenced to four years and four months in prison at Wednesday’s hearing.

Hikaka said the victim’s statement showed the ‘‘impact’’ of his offending on her, and hoped her sharing that with him was the first step toward her recovery.