A Melbourne court has sentenced Jesse James Tumalian to 26 years in jail after he was found guilty of murdering his estranged wife, Serena Tumalian. The court heard that he killed her in March of last year, in her own home, following years of abuse, with Justice Mandy Fox presiding over the sentencing hearing.
The court heard that Tumalian had repeatedly assaulted and abused his former partner over the course of years before killing her. Over an eight-year span he committed numerous acts of domestic violence and even went to jail, but despite those punishments he kept re-offending, continuing the pattern of violence that the court described in detail.
Justice Mandy Fox said the victim, Serena Tumalian, had done everything she could to keep herself and her four children safe. Despite her efforts, the judge said, Tumalian was not deterred, remaining a danger to the woman who had been trying to build a life away from him after the years of abuse.
According to the court, the killing came after Serena Tumalian had gone on with her life without him. On the day of the murder, after she had completed the school drop-off, Tumalian broke into the house. An argument broke out between the couple before he committed what the court described as the ultimate act of violence.
Justice Fox said the killer's actions had robbed four children of a loving mother and shattered a family. The judge framed the murder as the devastating culmination of years of domestic violence that had repeatedly been brought before the courts, yet had not been enough to stop his offending against his former partner.
Tumalian showed no emotion during the sentencing hearing, where he was handed the 26-year jail term. The court was told that upon his release he will be deported to his home country, the Philippines, bringing to a close a case marked by a long and documented history of abuse.