Former Shepparton High mentor James ‘Jamie’ Taig found guilty of sexual penetration of a child

He was looked upon as a mentor, a dedicated volunteer as a Central Goulburn Football League coach.

James 'Jamie' Taig was found guilty of sexual penetration of a child under 16. Facebook.

Editor's Note: Following the publication of this article, Mr Taig's conviction was quashed by the Victorian Supreme Court of Appeal on October 6, 2022. All charges against him were subsequently dropped.
A former Shepparton High mentor who sexually penetrated a child, showing a “lack of empathy” to his victim, has avoided an immediate jail term.

James ‘Jamie’ Taig, 31, fronted the County Court on Thursday after he was found guilty of indecent assault with a child under 16 and sexual penetration of a child under 16.

Taig was in a “position of trust” when he violated his child victim multiple times in Victoria more than a decade ago.

The court was informed Taig’s effect on the victim, an eight or nine-year-old boy, was “severe” and “unlikely to be reduced with the passage of time”.

The victim told the court Taig’s offending left him angry.

“I wanted to blow his f***** head off …”, the victim said.

“I didn’t want to waste away in prison for him … The things I had planned for him I would’ve got life.”

Taig was a talented footballer who dreamt of attending Assumption College but instead graduated VCE at Shepparton High, according to defence submissions tendered to the court.

Taig was as a Koori mentor at Shepparton High for two years where he worked in the canteen and sports shed and ran homework classes after school.

Taig then worked at the SPC Cannery before landing a jobs as a youth support worker at Rumbalara Aboriginal Co-Op and then a drug and alcohol worker at Prime Care Connect.

Taig returned to Rumbalara where he assisted young Koori persons caught up in the criminal justice system.

Rumbalara stood Taig down after the allegations first surfaced in November 2018.

Taig worked at Yitjawudik Men’s Recovery Centre but was stood down after he was charged in February 2020.

The court was informed Taig, whose promising football career was cruelled through injury, currently assists Rumbalara Football Club as an assistant coach, water runner and canteen volunteer.

The defence submitted sentence should be mitigated because Taig lost his employment and is unable to volunteer coach Rumbalara Football Club juniors.

The prosecution submitted Taig was in a “position of relative authority over the victim” which created a “power imbalance”.

Judge John Smallwood said Taig had shown “no remorse” and his former title as Shepparton high Koori student of the year was “absolutely untenable”.

“You claim to be an Aboriginal man of pride of in your community … (the offending) would prove to be opposite to that proposition,” Judge Smallwood said.

Taig was handed a 30-month jail term wholly suspended for three years.

He was not made a registered sex offender.

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