Victorian County Court chief judge Peter Kidd’s car stolen

Peter Kidd, who assumed national prominence when he presided over George Pell’s sexual assault trial, has become a victim of street crime after thieves stole his taxpayer-funded car.

Thieves stole Chief Judge Peter Kidd’s taxpayer-funded car. Picture: Josie Hayden

One of Victoria’s most senior judges has become a victim of street crime after thieves stole his taxpayer-funded car that was left unlocked in a suburban street with the key inside.

The Australian can reveal County Court Chief Judge Peter Kidd’s wheels were knocked off in what is believed to be a random crime of opportunity.

Mr Kidd KC was forced to call police after the theft of the vehicle late last year and it is believed the car has not been returned to the judge, leading to a new vehicle being provided.

“A court vehicle allocated to a judicial officer was stolen from a residential street in September 2023 and this was immediately reported to Victoria Police,” a court spokesman said.

Sources have told The Australian the car was unlocked with the key left inside. When The Australian put this scenario to the court, a spokesman declined to comment.

“It was basically a street theft, parked on a street in a residential area,” one source said.

It is believed the vehicle has not been returned to the judge ­because either police have failed to locate it or it was not in a condition to be returned.

“Vehicles are provided for under an entitlement certificate under the Judicial Entitlements Act 2015. The judicial officer is ­entitled to a replacement vehicle,” a court spokesman said.

More than 16,000 cars were stolen in Victoria in the past year, with youth offenders accounting for a number of them. There have been a spate of vehicles stolen after aggravated burglaries where offenders break into homes and steal car keys.

Asked if anyone had been charged over the car theft, the court referred The Australian to Victoria Police. Police declined to comment.

As Chief Judge of the County Court, Mr Kidd is one of the most powerful judicial figures in the state, running an arm of the justice system that has 80 judges and judges associates.

Mr Kidd assumed national prominence when he presided over the sexual assault trial of the late Catholic cardinal George Pell. He sentenced Pell to six years’ jail after a jury convicted him of offending against two choir boys in the mid-1990s. The High Court of Australia later quashed the conviction and Pell was freed from prison.

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