An ex-principal of the elite school where Lilie James was murdered has defended describing her killer as a “role model” and “an absolute delight”.
Dr. John Collier, former principal of St Andrews Cathedral school in Sydney’s CBD, where Ms James was beaten to death on October 25, made comments in a school newsletter, the Shore Weekly Record, last week.
Dr. Collier is now the principal of the Shore School for boys in North Sydney.
In the column entitled ‘Looking Into the Face of Savagery’, addressed to ‘students, parents and caregivers’, Dr. Collier described the murderer of Mrs James, Paul Thijssen, as a ‘fine student, a prefect, a role model’, and claimed he was ‘not a monster’.
Dr Collier’s comments sparked a barrage of criticism, with many accusing him of being ‘tone deaf’, while others simply called his intervention ‘a disgrace’.
Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek joined the discussion, calling the comments “appalling.”
Water polo coach Lilie James (pictured) was brutally beaten to death by her ex-boyfriend and colleague in the bathroom of St Andrew’s Cathedral School in Sydney on October 25.
Her killer Paul Thijssen (photo) was described by the former director of the school as a ‘fine student, a prefect, a role model’
Now the embattled director has attempted to put his thoughts into context, claiming he was not trying to excuse Thijssen’s actions.
“The point that seems to be lost, because it’s nuanced, was that if a man had such an impeccable record in the past, that’s actually more chilling. Instead of excusing it, I issued a warning,” Dr. Collier told the newspaper Sydney Morning Herald.
“I wasn’t writing a paper on domestic violence. I was just saying, what can a school do to help prevent such tragedies? We must be alert to the possibilities so that we can delve into the development of positive masculinity and people with real character.’
But his explanation did not resonate with Ms Plibersek, who said she “couldn’t think of a worse message” for young boys.
“The unimaginable grief of Lilie James’ family could only have been made worse by these disgusting comments,” Ms Plibersek told the newspaper.
Dr. John Collier (pictured), former principal of St Andrews Cathedral school in Sydney’s CBD where Ms James was beaten to death, has sought to contextualise controversial comments he made after her death
But his explanation did not resonate with former Minister for Women and Member for Sydney Tanya Plibersek (pictured), who said she “couldn’t think of a worse message” for young boys.
“Most men don’t act like that, and most men never would. But it sickens me to think that anyone would respond to the murder of a young woman with a ‘but he seemed like a decent guy’ attitude.”
“This violence-excusing behavior must stop before another woman’s life is taken.”
Dr. Collier, who was principal at St Andrews between 2010 and 2022, said he knew Thijssen and that he “wasn’t a monster”.
He said he had committed “a monstrous act that completely contradicted what everyone who knew him had observed during the remainder of this short life.”
He said the former hockey coach committed an act that was “deeply out of character.”
“This makes the situation chilling because he looked like the best of us on every indicator,” Dr. Collier said.
The Shore School previously told Ny Breaking Australia in a statement that Dr. Collier were not intended to “create any additional suffering for those affected by this tragedy.”
“The views expressed in this weekly article are deeply personal and reflect the thoughts of a school principal who knew the alleged perpetrator and who, like many others, struggles to make sense of the seemingly senseless,” the spokesperson said.
Thijssen allegedly lured Ms James to the gym on the pretext that she had returned sports equipment to him, then attacked her with a hammer in the gym’s bathroom just after 7pm last Wednesday.
Police and school staff made the horrific discovery of her body after Thijssen confessed to his crime during a Triple-O call.
His body was found at the foot of cliffs in the Diamond Bay Reserve in Sydney’s east on Friday morning.