Priest Ridsdale's crimes against children

AUSTRALIA'S WORST PEDOPHILE PRIEST GERALD FRANCIS RIDSDALE'S UNPRECEDENTED OFFENDING

* Former Catholic priest, aged 83, has been in jail since August 1994

* Scale of offending unprecedented in Victoria

* Convicted of 161 offences against 65 children

* Overall effective sentence 33 years with 28 year non-parole period

* Earliest he will be eligible for parole is April 2022

* Convicted for offences committed between 1961 (year he was ordained) and 1988; but began offending while in seminary in 1950s

* Laicised in 1993 after first convictions

* Believed to have abused up to 1000 children, victims' group Broken Rites says

1993 MAGISTRATES COURT CASE

* Convicted of sexually abusing eight children from 1972-1979

* Pleaded guilty to 27 offences

* Sentenced to two years and three months, suspended after three months

1994 COUNTY COURT CASE

* Convicted of sexually abusing 20 boys and one girl from 1961-1982

* Pleaded guilty to 46 offences

* Included abusing a boy and girl after presiding over their father's funeral and indecently assaulting an altar boy during confession

* Jailed for 18 years, with 15-year minimum

* 1995 appeal against sentence dismissed

2006 COUNTY COURT CASE

* Convicted of sexually abusing 10 boys from 1970-1987

* Pleaded guilty to 35 offences

* Included sexual abuse in the confessional, in the sacristy, in the presbytery, in his car - following Mass, first holy communion, confirmation, weddings and funerals

* Sentenced to 13 years' jail, with seven-year minimum

2014 COUNTY COURT CASE

* Convicted of sexually abusing 11 boys and three girls from 1961-1980

* Pleaded guilty to 30 offences

* Victims included a girl aged four when offending began, three children in one family

* Sentenced to eight years' jail, with five-year minimum

2017 COUNTY COURT CASE

* Convicted of sexually abusing 11 boys and one girl from 1962-1988

* Pleaded guilty to 23 offences

* Includes indecently assaulting a girl on a church altar and raping a nine-year-old boy and a 10-year-old boy

* Sentenced to 11 years. New non-parole period of eight years (backdated to 2014)

ABUSE CLAIMS TO THE CATHOLIC CHURCH

* 78 people made claims about Ridsdale to church

* It covered abuse from 1961 to 1988

* Compensation totalling $2.42m (including treatment, legal and other costs) paid to 32 victims who pursued civil claims; average almost $76,000

* Total of $1.2m paid to 28 victims through redress process; average $43,000

* Based on claims received by Ballarat diocese from January 1980-February 2015.