John Ellis Surprised by Apology from Pell

ABC News
March 27, 2014

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-03-27/john-ellis-surprised-by-apology-from-pell/5350376?section=vic

[with audio]

MARK COLVIN: It's been an extraordinary week for the man at the centre of the legal case. Now it's over John Ellis says he was taken aback by the Cardinal's apology.

He spoke to Emily Bourke.

JOHN ELLIS: Well the last fortnight's just been totally draining and now that it's finished, I just feel exhausted is my primary feeling about it.

I think probably what I need to do is just sit back and reflect on some of that. It's very meaningful to have all of the actions that were taken over those years put under scrutiny and to get some answers for the reasons why things went the way that they did.

And I was a bit surprised at the Cardinal's apology at the end, and I'm just not sure how I feel about it. It's better that he's said he's sorry than that he didn't say that, but I just think I need to sit with that.

EMILY BOURKE: What do you think the future is for people like yourself who might be planning on bringing cases to court?

JOHN ELLIS: Well I hope that part of the future is that people don't need to bring their cases to court, that they would be able to have a gentle and more compassionate process that still delivers justice to all parties, but it's a very important part of that and this has been our experience over many years, that people need to have the right to bring actions in court if they can't be sorted out otherwise, and that the Church needs to be told very publicly that it's not above the law and that it's subject to the same principles that apply to any other corporation.

EMILY BOURKE: I see that Cardinal Pell has asked for clarification on some points of law which would enable the Church to be sued. What's your reading of that? You're a lawyer, how are you interpreting that?

JOHN ELLIS: Well, he seems to be, and this came through very clearly in the course of the hearing, that the Church in general, if I can put it that way, seems to be very stuck on the fact that they have this decision of the courts, that they don't want to readily let go of.

So, I think that might have been some sort of way of saying that, "If the law changes, it's got to be done from outside the Church."

EMILY BOURKE: How useful has it been to have your experience so publicly ventilated?

JOHN ELLIS: Look, I think that's probably an issue that I need to sit back and reflect on, but I've found the experience of giving evidence very supportive. I felt supported by the process that was going on, which was quite different to my experience 12 years ago when I was going through the court process.

It was a very lonely process, and I suppose the other thing is that I've had feedback from a lot of people that it's been helpful for them to see the Church being held to account for how I was treated and I think that gives people perhaps some courage that, you know, they can also stand up and that they can expect or hope for justice for themselves in the future.

MARK COLVIN: Abuse victim John Ellis was speaking to Emily Bourke.