Victim Impact Statement Example for Sexual Assault

A note before you read

These are example victim impact statements. They are fictional. We wrote them to show you what a finished statement can look like, not to retell anyone's real experience. Some of them describe harm, loss, and the effects of crime. The language is honest, and it may be hard to read. If you have been through something similar, parts of these examples might bring up strong feelings or difficult memories. This example contains no details of the offence itself, only the impacts of the offence on the victim-survivor.

Please read at your own pace. You can stop at any time. You do not need to read an example to use Justice Draft. The guided form will help you write your own statement in your own words, whether or not you look at these first. If you need support, you can call 1800RESPECT on 1800 737 732 or Lifeline on 13 11 14. Both are free and available any time.

Document details

Name: Aisha OkonkwoOffence type: Rape, section 38 Crimes Act 1958 (Vic)Date of statement: 14 April 2026Matter reference: VIC-2025-CR-03317Court: Melbourne County Court

How I felt at the time

I was 24 years old when this happened and I am 25 now. I study nursing at university, and I was walking home from a late shift at the hospital where I do my placements. I was in a lit street.

After he left, I sat on the ground for a long time. I remember feeling very cold, and very far away from myself, like I was watching everything from somewhere else. I did not know what to do. I called my friend Priya and she came and sat with me, and later we went to the hospital together. I did not want to call my parents that night. I was not ready to tell them what had happened. I did not even understand it myself.

I reported to police the same night, and it was the hardest thing I have ever done. I was examined by a doctor while I was still in shock, and I answered questions for hours. I did it because I did not want this to happen to someone else.

Emotional wellbeing

I have been in therapy since October 2024. I see a psychologist every week. She is helping me, but I want to be honest: I am not okay yet. Some weeks I feel like I am making progress. Other weeks I feel like I am back at the beginning. I have been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder and major depressive disorder. I take medication now. I did not before.

I do not walk anywhere alone after dark. I have not done that since it happened. I take taxis or I ask Priya to pick me up. My world has become smaller than it was. That makes me angry when I let myself think about it, because I did not do anything wrong.

I struggle to be in closed spaces with men I do not know. I can feel my heart racing, and my ability to think shuts down. Sometimes I wonder if I am cut out to be a nurse if I cannot think properly when I am alone in a room with a male patient. It has created problems with my training. I have had to ask to be placed with female supervisors where possible. My clinical coordinator has been understanding, but it makes me feel exposed that my workplace has to know about my trauma. I do not want to be known for that.

Relationships

I stopped going out socially for about four months. I missed a close friend's birthday, an engagement party, and our group study sessions at university. These were things that mattered to me, but I could not face people. I did not explain why. I just said I was not well. Because I have pulled away, my friends do not text me or send me funny videos as much as they used to.

My parents know what happened now. Telling my mother was one of the worst conversations of my life. She cried for a long time. She wanted to come and stay with me. I said no, because I was trying to manage her grief on top of my own and I did not have the capacity.

My father struggled more than he showed. He is from a generation and a culture where this is not spoken about easily. I know it hurt him deeply. I know he felt that he had failed to protect me, even though he was in another city and there was nothing he could have done.

There are also things that are hard to write here. I was seeing someone when this happened. That relationship ended within two months. I do not blame him. I could not be close to anyone, and I do not know yet when that will change.

I have a close group of friends and they have been wonderful. But I am aware that I have leaned on them heavily, particularly Priya. She has been with me to police appointments and court mentions. She has listened to me at 2am when I could not sleep. She should not have had to carry that.

Physical health

I was physically injured that night. I had bruising and lacerations that took several weeks to heal. There are photographs in my medical records. Since then my physical health has been affected in ways I did not expect. I am not sleeping enough. I have lost weight. I grind my teeth in my sleep now, which my dentist noticed before I did. My menstrual cycle is not regular anymore, and when my period does come, the pain is bad enough that I do not want to leave my bed. My doctor is monitoring this.

Financial impact

Psychology sessions (weekly, 18 months): approximately $4,320 after Medicare rebates.Medication: approximately $540 to date.Additional rent (new apartment): approximately $2,160 over 12 months.Lost income from deferred semester and reduced work hours: approximately $6,800.Transport costs (no longer walking or taking public transport alone at night): approximately $1,200 over 12 months.

The total financial cost to me of what happened that night is in excess of $15,000. I have kept receipts and records for these costs and can provide them. I am 25 years old and studying full time. I do not have $15,000 to absorb.

Daily life and routine

I deferred one semester of my degree because I could not concentrate. I could not sit in lecture theatres or study in the library, which is where I used to spend most of my evenings. I will graduate a semester later than I planned.

I moved to a new apartment. I could not go back to the street where it happened, even to pick up my things. My friends helped me move. The new apartment costs $180 more per month than my old one. Over the past year that is an extra $2,160 I have spent just because I could not live where I used to live.

Sense of safety

I do not feel safe anymore. Not in the way I used to. At home I check the locks more than once. I check them before bed, and then I get up and check them again. I have asked my landlord to fix the latch on the front window twice. When I hear a noise at night I lie still and listen until I am sure. Some nights I do not get back to sleep after that.

In public I am always watching. I notice who is behind me. I notice the distance to the next person, the next lit doorway, the next shop that is still open. I used to walk through my city without thinking. Now part of my mind is always doing this work, even when nothing is wrong. It is exhausting to be alert all the time.

It is hard to explain how much this has taken from me. Safety was something I had without noticing it. I did not know it was a gift until it was gone. I would like to feel calm in my own home again. I would like to walk somewhere in daylight without planning my route around where I could run. I am not there yet.

Spiritual and cultural wellbeing

I was raised in a close community. Family, faith, and the people around us were a big part of who I am. Gatherings, shared meals, and our traditions gave my life shape. I belonged somewhere, and I knew it.

Since this happened I have pulled away from that too. I have not gone to community gatherings the way I used to. Part of it is that I cannot face crowds and noise. Part of it is harder to say. In my culture this is not something people speak about, and I have felt a shame that I know is not mine to carry but that I carry anyway. I have stayed quiet to protect my family from the questions and the talk.

My faith was a comfort to me before. I want to be honest that it has been complicated since. There were weeks when I could not pray at all, and that frightened me, because it was something I had always been able to do. Some of that comfort has come back slowly. Some of it has not.

What I have lost here is not easy to put into numbers. It is a sense of belonging, and a peace that I used to feel as part of something larger than myself. I am working to find my way back to it. I include it because the harm did not stop at my body or my studies. It reached the part of me that I think of as my centre.

Who I was before this happened

I was confident. I walked places by myself without thinking about it. I stayed late at the library. I went to parties and walked home through lit streets and felt safe.

I chose nursing because I wanted to spend my career helping people through frightening experiences. I still want that. But this has changed how I see the world, and I worry about what will happen the first time a patient tells me about their own trauma.

I was someone who trusted my instincts and felt at home in my own city. I do not feel that way anymore. I hope I will again.

What I want the court/assessor to know

I am here because I reported. I reported because I did not want him to hurt anyone else. What I want the court to know is that what happened to me on that street was not an incident that is over. It is something I carry every day, in my body and in how I move through the world.

My psychologist expects I will need support for some time yet, and I am committed to that work. I am 25 years old. I have a long career ahead of me. I intend to be a good nurse. What happened took the ease out of my life. It has not taken my future. But I will carry the weight of something that should never have been there, and I ask the court to take that seriously.