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Jessica Taylor jailed for recklessly causing serious injury over Leopold stabbing

The family of a man who was almost stabbed to death following an ice-fuelled night has described the horror they saw when they walked into his house following the attack.

Jessica Taylor pleaded guilty in the County Court at Geelong to recklessly causing serious injury. Picture: supplied.
Jessica Taylor pleaded guilty in the County Court at Geelong to recklessly causing serious injury. Picture: supplied.

A woman who reduced a man to “a dull shadow of his former self” in a vicious stabbing attack has been jailed.

Jessica Taylor, 24, appeared in the County Court at Geelong on Friday via videolink for a plea hearing, having earlier pleaded guilty to a single count of recklessly causing serious injury, stemming from an incident in Leopold on August 21, 2022.

Taylor was jailed for 10 months, minus 220 days of pre-sentence detention, to be followed by a 30 month community corrections order (CCO).

Taylor had been taking ice with victim Nicholas Lloyd, then 38, at his home prior to the attack.

Mr Lloyd took Xanax and slept, before “coming to” and, after realising he was profusely bleeding, being attacked by Taylor, the court heard.

Taylor fled and Mr Lloyd was rushed to hospital with life-threatening injuries, including a stab wound to his right upper back.

Victim Nicholas Lloyd in hospital following the stabbing. His sister told the court there were “no words” that can convey how terribly our family has been impacted”. Picture: supplied.
Victim Nicholas Lloyd in hospital following the stabbing. His sister told the court there were “no words” that can convey how terribly our family has been impacted”. Picture: supplied.

He also had injuries to his hand, multiple cheek fractures and an injury to the side of his head, however the prosecution’s case only alleged Taylor was responsible for the stab to his back.

He still suffers chronic pain, frequent headaches, ongoing neurological issues and had subsequently developed deep vein thrombosis and pulmonary embolism, the court heard.

The impact of the stabbing on Mr Lloyd and his family was evident with six victim impact statements submitted at the plea hearing.

Mr Lloyd’s brother described walking into his brother’s house and seeing blood everywhere.

His sister wrote “the beautiful soul that once shone through my brother’s eyes, has been replaced by fear and anxiety … he has become a dull shadow of his former self”.

Nicholas Lloyd prior to the stabbing. The court heard his family have been burdened by “emotional turmoil, unrelenting financial stress and … crippling physical impacts”. Picture: supplied.
Nicholas Lloyd prior to the stabbing. The court heard his family have been burdened by “emotional turmoil, unrelenting financial stress and … crippling physical impacts”. Picture: supplied.

She said she was haunted by the “endless nights” her brother now spends pacing, checking windows and doors, “panicked in fear as his PTSD cripples his mind”.

In sentencing Taylor, Judge Gerard Mullaly said a crime of this gravity would ordinarily result in a long prison stint, however in Taylor’s case there were several factors that lowered her moral culpability including her “very significant impaired mental functioning”.

The court heard Ms Taylor had endured traumas in her childhood and was introduced to drugs by an abusive partner, the first of several toxic relationships.

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Judge Mullaly said a psychologist who had seen Taylor following the attack found she had dissociated during the stabbing, of which she has no memory.

The court heard Taylor, who has been diagnosed with complex-PTSD and borderline personality disorder, would often descend into psychosis induced by ice and GHB.

She also suffered “episodes of auditory hallucinations” and found it difficult to distinguish what is real.

“You do not have a defence of mental impairment … but it is a circumstance much closer to that level of impairment than many other cases,” Judge Mullaly said.

He said Taylor had shown some improvement, and the court was “seizing on this moment to facilitate (her) rehabilitation”.

He warned Taylor not to waste the opportunity.

Judge Mullaly said if Taylor faced a sentence longer than 12 months she could be deported to New Zealand.

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Originally published as Jessica Taylor jailed for recklessly causing serious injury over Leopold stabbing

Original URL: https://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/news/geelong/jessica-taylor-jailed-for-recklessly-causing-serious-injury-over-leopold-stabbing/news-story/5e97089ad675a50ba471f5cae9f001ce