A female police officer left for dead after she was savagely beaten over the head with a brick by a drug addict has pleaded with the parole board to keep the ‘animal’ that attacked her behind bars.
Sergeant Samantha Barlow was on her way to work in Sydney‘s busy Kings Cross in 2009 when she was attacked by Roderick Holohan, who fractured her skull, broke her nose, and injured her neck.
Holohan was sentenced in 2010 to 21 years behind bars over the savage attack but appeared at Sydney West Trial Court on Thursday for a hearing into his potential release on parole.
Almost 15 years after the brutal attack, Sergeant Barlow told the media outside court that her attacker could ‘go and have a great life somewhere and stay away from everyone’ but ‘clearly cannot follow any laws’.
‘I hope the parole board make a sensible decision, and I would like to feel protected and for other female members of the state to feel safe and to keep that animal locked up for as long as possible,’ she said.
‘It’s pretty sad that clearly he cannot behave on the street, but he can’t even behave in jail. He’s still committing violent offences in jail … Clearly, he does not know how to behave as a human.’
Sergeant Barlow’s husband, Laurence Barlow, who supported his wife in court, described Holohan as a ‘coward’ who had avoided looking at the couple throughout the two-hour parole hearing.
‘My wife is the third woman he has attempted to kill. Do we just keep on doing it until he has four, five, six – 20 chances. How many chances is enough,’ Mr Barlow said outside court.
Earlier taking the stand, Sergeant Barlow told the State Parole Authority and her attacker that she believed Holohan had ‘given up his right to get parole’ having beaten her while on parole already.
‘He bashed me until I was unconscious. When he went through my bag and discovered I was a sergeant he went back and kept smashing me in the head until he thought he killed me,’ she said.
She went on to state: ‘So, why are we even considering letting him back into the community we all live in? He ruined my life. I lost my career. I cannot smell or taste food and never will.
‘I have been treated by a neuropsychologist for the last 15 years as a result of what he did to me. Surely he has no right to any form of freedom until he has served 100 per cent of his sentence.’
Appearing before the parole authority, state representative Ghassan Kassisieh argued that Holohan should remain behind bars in lieu of possible ‘reclassification’, allowing for incremental parole.
By reclassifying Holohan while in custody, Mr Kassisieh said Holohan would be eligible for escorted and temporary leave to venture into the community ahead of the end of his sentence in four years.
He told the authority that Holohan was rated at a ‘high risk of violent reoffending’ and had allegedly offended while in custody, including intimidation and having a weapon in his cell.
‘Those are warning signs the State would say would need to be given due weight and consideration, and a more cautious approach may be taken at this juncture,’ the representative said.
Mr Kassisieh said earlier intention to grant parole had been based on ‘practical support’ Holohan would have received from the William Wilberforce Foundation, including accommodation.
But, he said, it had since arisen that upon release Holohan would have only five days of accommodation and while having previously engaged with the foundation, was not doing so now.
Mr Kassisieh conceded Holohan had shown improvement in his behaviour and argued that waiting to make the decision to grant parole would allow him to ‘make good’ on that improvement.
For his part, Holohan’s lawyer, Bill Agha, told the parole authority that his client had completed all custodial program pathways while behind bars and had ‘reduced the amount of custody misconduct’.
While he conceded Holohan had no familial and community ties in Sydney should he be released, Mr Agha argued Holohan needed extended supervision on parole, not an incremental release.
‘Any further time in custody is just going to increase his institutionalisation. Whether there is an incremental release plan or not, he is in need of that support,’ Mr Agha told the Authority.
Mr Agha told the Authority Holohan had come from significant disadvantage and had spoken with the Wilberforce Foundation and recognised they were a pathway to future employment.
The parole authority reserved its judgment, which will be delivered at a later date.
Sergeant Barlow was walking to work in Sydney’s busy night-life district when her skull was shattered, her nose was broken, and her neck injured in the brutal and savage attack.
Holohan admitted to the attack and was sentenced for it and two separate offences; an attempted robbery of a woman in Sydney the night before and the robbery of a woman in Wollongong.
During the hearing, Holohan was frequently heard mumbling, including after claims he had refused drug treatment. When the hearing was adjourned, he said ‘youse (sic) are kidding me’.
Outside court, Sergeant Barlow described Holohan as an ‘animal’ who should not be eligible for parole, with her husband, Laurence, stating that the safety of the community was at risk.
