Ex-trinity College Teacher to Fight Charge of Failing to Report Alleged School Sex Assault

By Rebecca Turner and David Weber
Australian Broadcasting
May 29, 2019

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-05-29/trinity-college-teacher-in-court-failing-to-report-sex-abuse/11159634

PHOTO: A young boy was allegedly sexually assaulted while on an overseas rugby trip in 2017. (ABC News: Hugh Sando)

A former teacher at a prestigious Perth Catholic boys' school plans to fight a charge of failing to report the alleged sexual assault of a boy by his fellow students on an overseas trip.

Ian Francis Hailes and his former colleague at Trinity College, Anthony Paul Webb, were each charged under mandatory reporting laws which were introduced in Western Australia in 2008.

Their charges relate to the alleged sexual assault of a young man by his fellow students while they were on an overseas rugby trip in 2017.

The alleged victim's mother told the ABC that it took five months for the incident to be reported to the school principal.

But she said the school took another six days to tell her that her son had been sexually assaulted.

Mr Hailes did not attend the Perth Magistrates Court on Wednesday but his lawyer, Michael Tudori, said he wanted to change his endorsed plea of guilty, entered several weeks ago, to not guilty.

Outside court, Mr Tudori said Mr Hailes had changed his plea due to new information from the prosecution.

"As a result of that, he clearly has a defence now," he said.

Mr Webb has not entered a plea to the charge of failing to report suspected child sexual abuse and is scheduled to appear before the Perth Magistrates Court next month.

No other charges have been laid as a result of the alleged incident.

PHOTO: Mandatory reporting laws were introduced in Western Australia in 2008. (ABC News: Hugh Sando)

Mandatory reporting is a legal obligation to report suspected cases of child sexual abuse which applies, for example, to doctors, nurses, educators, midwives and school boarding supervisors.

They must have reasonable grounds of suspicion, for example if the child has told them they have been sexually abused or they witnessed a child being sexually abused.

The WA Government recently announced it plans to make ministers of religion mandatory reporters of suspected child sexual abuse, which would require priests to break the confessional seal.

The maximum penalty for failing to report is a $6,000 fine.