<div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>One of Australia's worst paedophiles, childcare worker Ashley Paul Griffith, has launched a bid to slash the life sentence he received for abusing dozens of young children.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Lawyers for the notorious predator today argued in the Queensland Court of Appeal that the 27‑year non‑parole period he was handed in 2024 was "manifestly excessive" as they sought leave to appeal.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Griffith is behind bars after a horrifying history of abuse stretching almost two decades was exposed.</span></div></div><div><div id="adspot-mobile-medium"></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><span>READ MORE:</span></strong><span> </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/national/so-called-isis-bride-arrested-and-charged-with-terrorism-offences/3f777b7e-ef3a-4c1a-bd85-996697d30d0c" rel="" target="" title="'ISIS bride' charged with terrorism offences"><strong><span>'ISIS bride' charged with terrorism offences</span></strong></a></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>He pleaded guilty to 307 child sex offences against 65 victims aged between one and nine.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>It included 28 counts of rape against girls, mainly aged three to five, at Queensland childcare centres between 2007 and 2022.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Griffith used his trusted role to prey on toddlers and preschoolers as they slept or by taking them into isolated corners of childcare centres, often while their parents believed they were safe in his care.</span></div></div><div><div class="OUTBRAIN" data-reactroot="" data-src="//www.9news.com.au/national/notorious-paedophile-ashley-paul-griffith-fights-life-sentence/81d12f2e-d903-4cf2-a1be-617d615e91ff" data-widget-id="AR_5"></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>In court, his legal team claimed the sentencing judge went too far, insisting the case could have been dealt with by a fixed term of 25 to 30 years with a much shorter non‑parole period.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Barrister Sarah Cartledge conceded Griffith's crimes were "truly awful" and that he had preyed upon "the most vulnerable" while in a position of trust.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>The appeal is tightly focused on the parole eligibility date, with the defence arguing that while a life sentence was open, the minimum term effectively imposed a harsher punishment than in similar cases of extreme child sex offending.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Cartledge said Griffith had co‑operated fully and openly since his arrest, giving around 18 hours of interviews.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"This was not a case where the court had to drag the truth from him at trial," she said.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"His extensive co‑operation and guilty plea saved an enormous amount of court time and spared child complainants from giving evidence.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"The co‑operation here went well beyond what this court usually sees … he didn't just admit the allegations put to him — he volunteered further instances of abuse and helped police piece together who some of the children were."</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><span>LIVE UPDATES:</span></strong><span> </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/national/federal-politics-live-updates-tax-reform-latest-news-headlines/065f4df1-d131-4f26-8497-a911a08b7ae5"><strong><span>Commonwealth launches $2 billion legal action</span></strong></a></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Justice John Bond, presiding on the appeal panel, suggested it was more accurate to view the sentence as a judicial determination that Griffith should serve no less than 27 years.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>He pressed counsel on the broader impact of his offending, suggesting the harm extended well beyond his victims.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"These crimes do not end with the children and their families," Justice Bond said.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"They corrode trust in childcare institutions, they wound the people who worked alongside this man, and they burden those who had to investigate and respond to his offending.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"The harm accumulated over nearly 20 years must factor into the sentence."</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Throughout two decades of preying on children, Griffith filmed all but one of his victims, building a vast cache of abuse he shared online.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>When detectives raided his Gold Coast home in 2022, they seized more than 4000 child abuse images and videos documenting much of his offending.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Prosecutors, led by Ruth O'Gorman KC for the Director of Public Prosecutions, urged the court to reject the appeal, saying the sentence barely reflected the scale and cruelty of the crimes.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"When you weigh the gravity of this offending, the number of victims and the deliberate way it was carried out over nearly 20 years, it cannot seriously be said that this sentence is excessive," O'Gorman submitted.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"It is a strong sentence, but it is a justified one."</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>She said psychiatric evidence showed Griffith would pose a danger of reoffending if released too soon.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Griffith is also wanted in NSW, where he is the subject of an arrest warrant over alleged child sexual offences during his time working there between 2014 and 2018.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>The case prompted a wide‑ranging review of Queensland's childcare system, which found repeated red flags and warning signs were raised but ignored.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>The appeal court has reserved its decision.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><em><strong><span>Support is available by calling 1800 RESPECT (1800 737 732), National Sexual Abuse and Redress Support Service 1800 211 028, Lifeline 13 11 14 and Kids Helpline 1800 55 1800 (for people aged 5 to 25</span></strong></em><span>.</span></div></div>