Australian court convicts Catholic archbishop for concealing child sex abuse cases


Melbourne, May 22 (Reuters): An Australian archbishop was found guilty on Tuesday of concealing child sex abuse by a priest, which Australian media said made him the most senior Catholic in the world to be convicted on such a charge.

Philip Wilson, the archbishop of Adelaide, is expected to be sentenced by the court in June. He faces a maximum penalty of two years in jail.

He was accused of covering up a serious indictable offence by another priest, James Fletcher, after being told about it in 1976 when he was an assistant parish priest in the state of New South Wales.

Lawyers for Wilson, 67, had argued that he did not know that Fletcher had abused a boy, Australian Broadcasting Corp (ABC) reported. Fletcher was found guilty in 2004 of nine counts of child sexual abuse and died in jail in 2006.

An emailed statement from the local court in Newcastle, New South Wales, said Magistrate Robert Stone ruled the "offence proven."

Stone said he did not accept that Wilson could not remember a conversation in 1976 in which the victim, who would have been 15 at the time, had described how he was abused by Fletcher a few years earlier, the broadcaster reported.

"I am obviously disappointed at the decision published today," Wilson said in an emailed statement to media.

He said he would consult with his lawyers to decide his next steps.

The Australian Catholic Bishops Conference said Wilson had maintained his innocence throughout the judicial process.

Last year, Australia completed a five-year government-appointed inquiry into child sex abuse in churches and other institutions, amid allegations worldwide that churches had protected paedophile priests by moving them from parish to parish.

The inquiry heard that 7 per cent of Catholic priests working in Australia between 1950 and 2010 had been accused of child sex crimes and that nearly 1,100 people had filed child sexual assault claims against the Anglican Church over 35 years.

 

  

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Comment on this article

  • Myna, Mysuru

    Tue, May 22 2018

    Its a good decision. Irrespective of ones status the law of the land should be impartial and supreme. Acts of Omission and Commission cannot be condoned. Abetting a crime is as good as committing a crime. Happy that the people have decided to cleanse the system of the malady of child sex abuse.

    DisAgree Agree [1] Reply Report Abuse

  • Santosh, Udupi / Bahrain

    Tue, May 22 2018

    Why are these archbishops deviating away from their main duty of preaching and bringing man closer to GOD. One is playing politics in Delhi and now this Australian is doing something else. Kashta Kala Marayere

    DisAgree [1] Agree [2] Reply Report Abuse

  • rao, puttur

    Tue, May 22 2018

    Archbishops are not perfect!

    DisAgree [1] Agree [2] Reply Report Abuse

  • Ruben Pinto, Mangalore/Australia

    Tue, May 22 2018

    This will happen again. Best solution is to have married clergy.

    DisAgree Agree Reply Report Abuse

  • Dr Mohan Prabhu, LL.D, QC, Mangalore (Kankanady)/Ottawa, Canada

    Wed, May 23 2018

    Ruben Pinto,
    It is not the best solution, because as you will note from the last paragraph of the report above, there were registered complaints against 1100 Anglican priests in the last 35 years in Aussieland, and Anglicans are allowed to marry.

    DisAgree Agree Reply Report Abuse

  • Declan, Mumbai

    Tue, May 22 2018

    As far as crime is concerned the status of the person should never be a consideration. In fact I would say they must be given even harsher punishment for misusing their status as religious leaders. No one whether rich and famous, powerful politician or religious leader is above the law. In this case the victim too must be rehabilitated and properly compensated by the state to the extent possible.

    DisAgree [4] Agree [6] Reply Report Abuse

  • subhodh, kallianpur

    Tue, May 22 2018

    Delhi Archbishop may write one more letter to Australia.

    DisAgree [7] Agree [13] Reply Report Abuse

  • Declan, Mumbai

    Tue, May 22 2018

    Better if Asaram or Ram Rahim or BJP MLA Kuldeep Singh Sengar writes. They got experience of how to defend in court/CBI although unsuccessfully.

    DisAgree [10] Agree [10] Reply Report Abuse

  • Dr Mohan Prabhu, LL.D, QC, Mangalore (Kankanady)/Ottawa, Canada

    Tue, May 22 2018

    Revenge justice? The one who committed the offence was convicted 14 years ago and died 4 or 5 years later. Offence was suitably punished. If the plea that what happened more than 40 years ago could not be remembered, justice is going too far to bring about conviction for collusion. The living have no chance of escape; no limitation period>
    By the court's logic, even parents of a raped child could be prosecuted decades after the offence was committed.

    DisAgree [2] Agree [1] Reply Report Abuse

  • Jossey Saldanha, Mumbai

    Tue, May 22 2018

    Modi rightfully awarded Death to all Child Rapists ...

    DisAgree [1] Agree [14] Reply Report Abuse

  • Jossey Saldanha, Mumbai

    Tue, May 22 2018

    We punished our Asaram Bapu too ...

    DisAgree [3] Agree [12] Reply Report Abuse

  • Rajesh, Udupi

    Tue, May 22 2018

    Yes only asaram bapu.. scores of rap8sts still roaming free.

    DisAgree [5] Agree [8] Reply Report Abuse

  • Rajesh, Udupi

    Tue, May 22 2018

    they get benefit of dobt..

    DisAgree [5] Agree [3] Reply Report Abuse

  • Flavian, Mangaluru/Kuwait

    Tue, May 22 2018

    In India, So many Fake holimen, Kapata Sanyas, and self-proclaimed God men rape women and most of such bad incidents go unnoticed unless media hypes and declares war like sitution to expose their evil acts.

    DisAgree [8] Agree [10] Reply Report Abuse

  • Shobakka, Mangalore

    Tue, May 22 2018

    What about moulisss? they are peace keepers in whole world? only holimen and self proclaimed godmen? what you want to hide?

    DisAgree Agree [5] Reply Report Abuse

  • Rajesh, Udupi

    Tue, May 22 2018

    same conviction must happen in india also.. even if someone starts protecting their convicts thru special prayers...

    DisAgree [11] Agree [8] Reply Report Abuse

  • Anand Kumar, Mangalore

    Tue, May 22 2018

    You pray that that happens. All guilty need to be punished without partiality.

    DisAgree [4] Agree [10] Reply Report Abuse

  • Rajesh, Udupi

    Tue, May 22 2018

    we pray volunteerly.

    DisAgree [3] Agree [6] Reply Report Abuse


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