Megan Gorrey, Sydney Morning Herald
A former Marist College Canberra teacher and convicted child molester who sexually abused two boys at the school in the 1980s has avoided more time behind bars.
The Marist Brothers of the Schools, commonly known as simply the Marist Brothers, is an international community of Catholic Religious Institute of Brothers.
Gregory Joseph Sutton, 65, pleaded guilty to two charges of indecent assault and was handed a suspended jail sentence of two years and two months in the ACT (Australian Capital Territory) Supreme Court on Tuesday morning.
Former Marist brother Gregory Joseph Sutton arrives at the ACT Supreme Court for sentencing on Tuesday. Photo: Karleen Minney
Justice John Burns said Sutton's offences involved "a gross breach of trust".
"The actions had a long-term effect on his victims and also on their families."
The court heard Sutton had already spent more than a decade in a NSW prison for 67 sex offences committed against children.
Prosecutors said those offences included 23 involving sexual intercourse, 46 indecent assaults, seven acts of indecency and one gross act of indecency.
Sutton had been arrested and extradited from the United States in 1995 to face the charges. At that time, he admitted abuse against numerous victims, including boys in the ACT.
But he did not face justice for the two Canberra offences until the territory in 2013 removed a limitation which required some child victims to report crimes within 12 months of their occurrence.
Sutton was one of four men police charged with fresh offences in 2016 as part of an investigation into historical child sexual abuse in territory schools.
Some of the assaults were alleged to have been committed against a male student in Sutton's classroom in 1980.
A police statement of facts, tendered in court at Sutton's committal in August, said the teacher had model trains set up in his office, which attracted students.
On one occasion, Sutton allegedly placed a chair in front of his classroom door before he approached the boy and touched his genitals.
Sutton then said: "You'd better not tell anyone what happened ... This is our secret."
He touched the boy inappropriately on two more occasions in the classroom in the days that followed. The third time the boy allegedly said to him: "No, this is – it's just not right," before pulling away and telling Sutton, "No".
A child has to explain right from wrong to a Marist Brother. What does that tell you?
Justice Burns said in his remarks he was satisfied Sutton had come to understand what had motivated his offending and said it was unlikely he would reoffend in a similar manner.
The judge noted Sutton had served an "onerous" prison term that had largely been spent "in strict isolation".
He also took into account the significant delay in the offences coming to court, though noted that was not the fault of the prosecution or victims.
He took it into account in terms of the defendant, but not in terms of the victims. Sutton could have confessed to these crimes in 1995 when he admitted the others, but he chose not to, now the judge has rewarded him for that decision.
"I have no doubt the victim would have pleaded guilty to these offences in 1995, had that been possible at the time."
But why was it not possible? Because of the statute of limitations? He still could have confessed and given the victims some small sense of closure even if he couldn't be sentenced for it.
But he said no sentence other than a term of imprisonment would be appropriate.
And then he put him on probation! Is that imprisonment in the judges books? Not mine!
Sutton will serve a good behaviour order for more than two years.
Past abuse by Sutton and John William Chute at schools associated with the Catholic Marist Brothers organisation, including Marist College Canberra, was closely examined during the ACT hearings of the child sex abuse royal commission.
The royal commission found the organisation moved Sutton and Chute to different schools when it received complaints they were inappropriately touching children.
The commission found Marist Brothers' actions enabled Sutton and Chute to continue to access children throughout the 1980s and early 1990s.
So, were the Bishops, etc., who moved these perverts around enabling them to source new meat ever charged with complicity? Most of them are probably dead now, but will face, or have faced, a higher court.
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