Most Senior Catholic Official Faces Trial over Historic Sexual Abuse Allegations

Metro
March 29, 2018

http://metro.co.uk/2018/03/29/most-senior-catholic-official-faces-trial-over-historic-sexual-abuse-allegations-7425663/

George Pell, 76, the third most senior official in the Vatican has been charge with sexual abuse (Picture: AFP/Getty Images)

The hearing of a whether a Cardinal charged with historic sex offences should stand trial has concluded in Melbourne. George Pell, 76, Pope Francis’ former finance minister and the third most senior official in the Vatican, was charged on June 29 2017 with sexually abusing multiple people in his Australian home state of Victoria.

He is the most senior Vatican cleric ever charged in the Catholic Church sex abuse crisis. Magistrate Belinda Wallington told Melbourne Magistrate’s Court she would make her decision after lawyers make their final submissions on April 17 on whether prosecutors had a strong enough case against Pell for him to stand trial. Pell does not have to enter a plea until the decision is made, but has always denied the claims.

He denies all charges (Picture: AFP/Getty)

The details of the allegations against the cardinal have yet to be released to the public, though police have described the charges as ‘historical’ sexual assault offenses – meaning the crimes allegedly occurred decades ago and involve ‘multiple complainants’. Complainants gave their evidence via a video link in a closed court, meaning their testimonies cannot be reported.

The decision of whether to make him stand trial will take place on April 17 (Picture: Reuters)

Defense lawyer Robert Richter accused detectives from Sano Taskforce, which investigated historical sex abuse, of ‘zeroing in’ on his client, at the expense of evidence that might be favorable to the defendant, a claim that Sergeant Reed said he disagreed with. The police investigation of Pell began in 2013 before any complainant had come forward to police, whom Richter accused Wednesday of running ‘a get Pell operation.’

Pell’s lawyers told the court in February the first complainant approached police in 2015, 40 years after the alleged crimes, in response to media reports about Australia’s Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse. Australia’s longest-running royal commission – which is the country’s highest form of inquiry – had been investigating since 2012 how the Catholic Church and other institutions responded to sexual abuse of children in Australia over 90 years. The inquiry issued its final report in December.