Well, he sure chaperoned him into court, appearing to be giving him support. That was certainly alluded to at the time by the general public, and referenced by the Royal Commission as well. He was asked why he did so.
Letting the victims know on whose side he was on, viz the evil doer. If I were a parent of one of Ridsdale's victims I'd sure find it hard to understand Pell and behaviour such as that.
