Child abuse royal commission: Headmaster was warned about paedophile teacher

By Jorge Branco
Brisbane Times
November 10, 2015

http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/queensland/child-abuse-royal-commission-headmaster-was-warned-about-paedophile-teacher-20151110-gkvnhg.html

Former Brisbane Boys' College headmaster Graham Thomson leaves the Brisbane Magistrates Court on Tuesday. Photo by Jorge Branco

Former St Paul's teacher Gregory Knight.

Former Brisbane Boys' College headmaster Graham Thomson gives evidence.

A prestigious Brisbane school hired a now-convicted paedophile after the headmaster was warned he had been dismissed for "improper, irregular and highly odd behaviour" toward students, a royal commission has heard.

Disgraced music teacher Gregory Robert Knight started teaching at St Paul's School in 1981, under headmaster Gilbert Case.

The year before he was forced out of Brisbane Boys' College after complaints he instructed boarders at the school to walk from their beds to the showers with towels slung over their shoulder, not around their waist so he could watch them.

The boarding master was also accused of breaching school policy by allowing a boy to shower in his personal school quarters.

On Tuesday afternoon, former BBC head Graham Thomson told the child abuse royal commission he called Mr Knight to his office and was "confounded by his inability or unwillingness" to make a comment about the matters, after they came to his attention in 1980.

"He made no effort to offer an explanation, and certainly he did nothing to refute the allegations," he said.

Knight, who has been convicted of indecently dealing with boys in Queensland and Northern Territory, denies the students' allegations.

He also contradicted Mr Thomson's version of events, claiming the boys had "varied the story to suit the fact that they were upset because I had told the headmaster they had beer in the dormitory" and that he "corrected" the stories.

Mr Thomson said he had warned Mr Case about the allegations before the St Paul's head hired Knight in 1981.

"I believe that I said that his behaviour was unsupportable, unacceptable and not becoming to a resident master of Brisbane Boys' College.

"I did explain to Mr Case that he had been dismissed summarily and had been asked to leave the premises in 24 hours."

Mr Case's barrister, Jeffrey Hunter QC, put it to Mr Thomson that his client hired Knight as the BBC head's warning had not been quite as "cogent" as he thought and challenged whether he included the time limit.

"I consider the information I gave to Mr Case was significant enough to suggest that he should look at Mr Knight's application with due caution," Mr Thomson said.

Mr Thomson said there were no reports of "sexual misconduct" while Knight was at the school but boys told him they had lost trust in the teacher and his presence in the dormitory was an "embarrassment".

Knight had earlier told the commission Mr Case had asked him whether there would be any problems like the ones alleged to have occurred at BBC, to which he replied the "stories" were "made up" and he couldn't imagine similar occurrences at St Paul's.

Mr Hunter put it to Knight this conversation didn't happen.

"It did happen, and I believe that Mr Case gave me a chance, which I proved that I deserved," Knight said via video link.

Mr Case was yet to give evidence before the commission and was scheduled to appear later this week.

Knight was jailed for three years from 2005 on more than 20 counts of indecently dealing with a St Paul's student in 1984.

A South Australian government investigation had previously found Knight had touched the penises of three boys on two school camps in 1977 but police didn't have enough evidence to prosecute.

After teaching at St Paul's, Knight went on, via a positive reference from Mr Case, to  teach at a school in Darwin, where he was convicted in 1994 of 15 charges against five boys, including two of carnal knowledge.