Former Bendigo Senior Secondary College drama teacher Kirsten Thomas jailed for raping student
A disgraced Bendigo drama teacher who “gave into sexual temptation” and raped a student has been jailed after inflicting the “pain of being abused by a trusted friend” on her victim.
The downfall of a Bendigo teacher who tried to fight allegations she raped a female student by claiming her victim is complete after she was jailed for her horrific offending.
Former Bendigo Senior Secondary College teacher Kirsten Thomas, 47, was sentenced to a minimum of 18 months imprisonment for raping a female student in her home after a school-related celebration at a venue on Hargreaves St in the 2000s.
She denied the student was ever in her home and maintains her innocence even after she was found guilty by unanimous jury verdict.
Following the verdict, Thomas’ legal team made a bid to keep her out of prison, arguing for a community based sentence.
The defence pointed to Thomas’ 20 years “heavily entrenched in the community” as a teacher – both at Bendigo Senior Secondary College and at her dance school – lamenting that Thomas had “lost everything she loved”.
Thomas was stood down from her position as a drama teacher in 2023 when she first came under investigation by sex crimes detectives, and sacked in 2024 when she was ultimately charged.
She was also forced to step away from her dance school, the Thomas School of Dance.
But the prosecution argued a community based order was “not appropriate” after she told the “blackest of lies” – calling her victim a liar on the witness stand during her trial.
Judge Michael McInerney accepted the defence submission that the offending was an “aberration” in her otherwise good character, but found that there were not “exceptional circumstances” in Thomas’ case that were needed to meet the threshold of a wholly suspended sentence – a community based sentence which has since been banned but was available at the time of the offending.
Judge McInerney said the victim gave a “powerful statement” describing the “pain of being abused by a trusted friend”.
“I was very taken by the thought given by the victim in her description of how much impact this offending had and continues to have on her life,” Judge McInerney said.
Judge McInerny said the “circumstances” of the rape were “unusual” and it was a “dangerous practice” for Thomas to have two female students at her house “especially in circumstances where Ms Thomas’ sexuality was such that she was a lesbian”.
Judge McInerney said the victim was in a “vulnerable position” after she passed out drunk in Thomas’ bed and “took the opportunity and gave into sexual temptation or excitement”.
However, the case was mitigated by the “brief duration” of the rape, and Thomas halting the sexual activity “voluntarily” – finding the rape fell towards the “lower end” of severity.
Judge McInerney said that rape sentences at the time of the offending were “certainly lower than they are now” which was factored into his decision, however, the young age of the victim, and the inherent seriousness of rape, meant that an immediate prison sentence was needed.
Thomas was sentenced to a total of three years imprisonment, with 18 months of that sentence to be suspended – meaning she will be released after serving just 18 months.
Addressing the victim, Judge McInerney said he hoped the outcome would help her to heal.
“These verdicts are a ritual recognition by society of the wrongs done to you,” Judge McInerney said.
“Frequently the damage will be profound and a long time will have passed before it can be addressed.
“The vindication of victims in this kind is particularly important if the criminal justice system.”
