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Premier Steve Bracks yesterday encouraged victims of the notorious pedophile priest Gerald Francis Ridsdale to take their allegations to police, despite official reluctance to prosecute him further. Mr Bracks said that if there was any further evidence against Ridsdale it should be brought forward. Ridsdale, 70, was jailed 10 years ago and has at least five years to serve. Mr Bracks' comments follow the revelation that the Office of Public Prosecutions has refused to act on a police brief of evidence. The brief is based on allegations from nine complainants who have come forward since Ridsdale was sentenced to a maximum 18 years' jail. Prosecutors have told police that Ridsdale's sentence was unusually long and because of his age it was "a virtual life sentence". They concluded that it was not in the public interest to launch a further series of charges. Mr Bracks yesterday said decisions about prosecutions were a matter for the DPP but he would prefer to see new allegations examined in court. AAP (18-8-2004) |
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The Office of Public Prosecutions is refusing to press charges against one of Victoria's most notorious pedophiles, former priest Gerald Francis Ridsdale, despite nine more victims coming forward since his conviction on 46 charges. The OPP told a police investigator that although it sympathised with the nine complainants, prosecuting Ridsdale further was "not in the public interest". A four-year investigation by Detective Sergeant Kevin Carson of Ballarat CIU uncovered the allegations against Ridsdale, 70, who was sentenced in 1994 to a minimum of 15 years' jail. Among the latest complainants is a western Victorian man, 35, whose account of abuse includes 12 instances of rape. He claims he was subjected to oral sex several times a week when he was a child in Edenhope. A psychiatrist's report on the man, seen by The Age, notes there were few situations "which would exceed this in terms of the level of cruelty and degradation suffered by the victim". Dr William Glaser said it was a tribute to the man that he had been able to achieve even a semblance of a normal life, but he would still be left with chronic, serious psychiatric problems. In a letter to victims telling them of the decision not to prosecute, Sergeant Carson said: "While you may well believe that current community standards differ markedly from the view expressed by the OPP, I point out that I cannot take this matter any further for you." The man's family, who cannot be identified, released a copy of the letter. His mother said Ridsdale's jail sentence was unrelated to the offences against her son. "My son doesn't ever want to see Ridsdale out of jail because he will offend again," she said. "I know from a mother's point of view it will help them get peace of mind when they know he will not get out of jail." Sergeant Carson would not comment on the OPP's refusal to pursue charges. A spokesman for the OPP said that even if Ridsdale was found guilty of the new allegations, he would be unlikely to receive an increased sentence. The Court of Appeal in 1995 "described Ridsdale's sentence as a "virtual life sentence . . unusually long". At such a late stage of his life it was "harsh punishment and a severe burden". The court said he would not be eligible for parole until he was 75. The OPP spokesman said: "Out view is he would not get a substantial increase in his sentence, if any. We are prosecuting all of these cases in the context of limited resources in the criminal justice system. The question becomes 'what's to be gained for the public?' "While we understand the concern of the individual victims, and we are concerned for the victims, it's a question of balancing all of the considerations." However, the western Victorian man's mother said that while the courts might view Ridsdale's sentence as severe, her son would always carry a burden. "This follows every one of the children (Ridsdale abused) into teenage and into adulthood. They still carry their scars." It is also believed that further allegations not to be acted on have been levelled against two of Ridsdale's co-offenders, former Christian Brothers Robert Best and Edward Dowlan, both of whom taught primary classes at St Alipius school. Ballarat. At Dowlan's County Court trial in 1996, the prosecution alleged that three St Alipius boys were each sexually abused by Dowlan, Best and Ridsdale. Ten complainants are believed to have made further allegations against Dowlan and Best. AAP (16-8-2004) |
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