Vic car park shootout haunts officer

A retired Melbourne police officer who had a loaded gun pointed at him during a shootout says just seeing the letter "O" reminds him of staring down the barrel.

His assailant, Joseph George Christiansz, was on bail when he pulled the revolver out of his pants and pointed it towards Sergeant Sean Raab in an inner-Melbourne car park more than two years ago.

"If I see the letter 'O' ... I am reminded of staring down the barrel of Mr Christiansz' gun," Mr Raab told the Victorian Supreme Court on Thursday during a plea hearing for Christiansz, 37.

Mr Raab said he had violent nightmares daily, suffered physically because of related stress and had installed CCTV and large fences around his home.

A jury this week found Christiansz guilty of assaulting Sgt Raab and using a firearm to resist arrest in November 2012.

He will be sentenced at a later date.

The incident happened when four police officers were surveying two stolen cars at a Melbourne high-rise and Christiansz approached one of the vehicles.

Sgt Raab called out to Christiansz, who pulled the loaded revolver from the front of his pants.

A shootout followed, during which Christiansz was struck by three bullets.

Two went into his arm and another hit his buttocks.

Defence barrister Carmen Randazzo SC said Christiansz had suffered lifelong injuries as a result, and had been through a number of surgeries.

He was an educated person whose life had spiralled out of control after he began using drugs, she said.

There were prospects for his rehabilitation, and before the shooting incident he had never been involved in any violence.

Christiansz testified during his trial that he was unarmed and the police officers planted the gun on him and tried to murder him.

Justice Betty King said she was not sure he had showed any remorse or had real prospects for rehabilitation, considering the story he made up in a bid to paint himself as the victim.

"He has a narcissistic personality disorder, and that doesn't just get cured," she said.