‘Don’t be afraid’: Lynch survivor’s message to victims as he sues Brisbane Grammar School

For more than 40 years David Grimshaw kept secret the trauma he suffered behind the gates of Brisbane Grammar School. Until now.

For more than 40 years David Grimshaw kept secret the trauma he suffered behind the gates of Brisbane Grammar School.

The 55-year-old is among scores of survivors who suffered in silence for decades after abuse at the hands of Kevin Lynch – a notorious paedophile counsellor.

Mr Grimshaw, 55, is now suing Brisbane Grammar School for $1,144,600 claiming a breach of duty in 1979.

He was 13 when he said the school referred him to Lynch for counselling after experiencing anxiety, insecurity and depression.

In his statement of claim filed with the Supreme Court of Queensland this month, Mr Grimshaw divulged that Lynch regularly asked him for details about masturbation, attempted to hypnotise him, and on more than one occasion pulled down the boy’s pants and adjusted his genitals.

The Rockhampton man said he felt stupid and humiliated when he realised he had been “duped” by Lynch who was more concerned with his own sexual gratification than helping his student.

“The abuse I experienced has had a massive impact on my ability to function to my best ability and I feel like I‘ve had a lifetime of failures,” Mr Grimshaw told The Courier-Mail.

“Ever since my encounters with Lynch, I‘ve struggled with mental health and depression to the point of being unfit for work now.”

David Grimshaw at 13

His statement of claim said a subsequent adjustment disorder further limited his employment opportunities which were already restricted by his moderate level of autism.

Mr Grimshaw went on to obtain degrees in environmental science from Griffith University and spent nine years in the Royal Australian Navy.

But he said he had otherwise been unable to hold down continuous employment due to his inability to tolerate perceived unjust behaviour and therefore work in a team.

Mr Grimshaw claimed the school was liable for Lynch’s conduct because it occurred during the sessions in the course of his authorised role within the school.

“Further, and in the alternative, the defendant is liable for the conduct of Lynch because it failed to take any or any reasonable steps to ensure the safety of the plaintiff in the course of the sessions,” the claim stated.

He said the school could have arranged for Lynch to have psychological testing before hiring him, ensured that Lynch was supervised or checked upon, raised questions as to his practises or questioned students on their experiences.

His claim covered past and future economic loss, treatment and general damages.

“The compensation I’m seeking won’t change the trajectory that my life took after school. And it won’t erase the memories,” Mr Grimshaw said.

“Although no amount of money can ever truly compensate me for the psychological scars, it does help allow me the space to heal and find some sort of closure.”

David Grimshaw has broken his silence on the abuse he suffered at the hands of Kevin Lynch.

Mr Grimshaw said his secret had weighed heavily on him and he feared that he would be labelled the victim of a paedophile.

He also didn’t want to expose his nieces to his trauma while they were growing up.

“When I was a teenager and experiencing this abuse, there probably was a little bit of an inclination that something wasn’t quite right, but I didn’t have enough worldly experience to question it,” he said.

“I just trusted that the adult was there to supposedly work for my benefit and was doing the right thing by me.

“My message to others is that if you have some sort of feeling that someone’s behaviour isn’t right or ‘not normal’, don’t be afraid to ask questions.

“Just because it’s an adult in a role of authority doesn’t mean you can’t speak up and seek advice from someone else that you trust.”

Mr Grimshaw is one of more than 130 former students preyed upon by Lynch, who killed himself in 1997 after being charged with child sex offences.

The Courier-Mail last month revealed another former Brisbane Grammar School student was mounting a landmark $30 million personal injury claim that threatened to bankrupt the elite college.

Former global finance whiz David Welsh, 51, was also a victim of Kevin Lynch in the 1980s and is seeking record compensation after chronic psychiatric conditions forced him to leave his $1 million-a-year job as vice-president of Goldman Sachs in London 20 years ago.

Brisbane Grammar School headmaster Anthony Micallef said the school continued to work with parties at all stages, even after civil proceedings had been lodged, to resolve matters through mediation or agreement.

“The decision to file court proceedings is one taken by the individual and their legal representative alone and, as a result, the School is required by the Court rules to lodge a defence and this will occur in due course,” Mr Micallef said.

“The School does not comment on the detail of matters that are subject to litigation or any other legal proceeding.”

Mr Grimshaw’s lawyer Travis Schultz said a central issue in the case was whether Grammar was aware, prior to 1979, of Lynch’s conduct.

“Mr Grimshaw alleges that from 1976 until 1988 there was a culture at the school in which boys who made allegations of sexual abuse were not believed or that the allegations made by boys were not acted upon,” Mr Schultz said.

“We would be very interested to hear from former students of the school who might have reported to anyone in authority at the school, the conduct of Kevin Lynch where it happened prior to 1980.”