Pell was un-Christian to victim: report

7 News
February 11, 2015

https://au.news.yahoo.com/qld/a/26266662/pell-was-un-christian-to-victim-report/

Cardinal Pell failed to treat a claim of child sexual abuse in a Christian way, a report has found.

Cardinal George Pell failed to act in a Christian way when he agreed to vigorously deny a man's claims of sexual abuse as a child in order to discourage other victims from taking legal action, a report has found.

John Ellis was sexually abused by Father Aidan Duggan in the Sydney parish of Bass Hill in the 1970s.

Mr Ellis failed in his attempt to sue the Archdiocese of Sydney's trust when a court ruled it could not be held liable.

This ruling cemented the precedent known as the Ellis defence, which has been a roadblock to litigation for other abuse victims.

Mr Ellis's case was examined at the recent Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse, which released its findings on Wednesday on the way the Catholic Church dealt with a number of victims.

The commission found the Archdiocese of Sydney was wrong in concluding Father Duggan did not abuse Mr Ellis, and that Cardinal Pell accepted legal advice to vigorously defend the claim so as to deter other victims from suing the church.

The commission found Cardinal Pell was correct when he gave evidence that he and the archdiocese had not acted in a Christian manner during the litigation.

Cardinal Pell gave Mr Ellis an apology at the end of his evidence, but would not make eye contact with him as he did so.

The commission also found the archdiocese "fundamentally failed Mr Ellis" by not giving him appropriate compassionate support during the compensation process.

The report says Mr Ellis's case highlights a number of issues to be examined as part of the commission's work on redress, including the role an institution should play in assessing complaints of conduct by those associated with the institution, transparency and review processes, reparation and the role of pastoral care.