Former Marist College Students Sue Catholic Church over Historical Sexual Abuse Allegations
By Lucy MacDonald
Four former students of a Catholic secondary school in Tasmania's north-west are suing the church over historical sexual abuse allegations involving a former international cricket umpire convicted for sex offences two decades ago. The women all attended the Marist Regional College in Burnie in the early 1980s, where Stephen "Steve" Grant Randell was employed as a teacher. Randell was sentenced to four years in prison in 1999 on 15 charges of indecent assault against nine girls between 1981-1982. He served less than three years, being released on parole in May 2002. Three of the four women who have launched legal action against the church were not part of the '99 criminal proceedings. Olivia* was and to her, this case means "peace". "Peace in knowing I can finally tell that 11-year-old little girl that she did nothing wrong," she said. "I don't think of the abuse consciously on a daily basis, but it is with me subconsciously every day, in my thoughts and actions. "I have always said I want the world to know that my abuser and the people who covered it up are horrible people. This case is giving me the chance for the public to also acknowledge this." She believes her decision "to sue the church directly" will force them to confront their past. "[It] will make them realise that they cannot cover up the long-term effects abuse has on the survivors, their families and close friends," she said. "This civil case gives me a chance to have complete control in telling them of the pain they have inflicted on me for many years." And she hopes her case will encourage others to come forward. "If from me sharing my story others can see that I am just an ordinary person, who has survived unimaginable things, then maybe they too will believe they have the courage to come forward," she said. More cases, involving other staff Randell is one of five former staff members associated with the college to have been convicted of historical sex offences. Senior associate at the Canberra-based law firm Porters Lawyers, Thomas Wallace-Pannell, is representing the four women. But he said there are about 15 cases involving numerous staff members at the school currently before the Supreme Court of Tasmania — and he expects more survivors will come forward. "It's one of the bigger [historical sexual abuse cases] that we've come across. There's no doubt that there's a significant amount of abuse over significant years by numerous perpetrators. "At the moment, we're only really scratching the surface. "That's why I think it's very important that as many people come forward as possible, so as to cast light on exactly what was going on and the extent of what was occurring at the school in those particular years." He said while it was hard to put an exact number on how many people may launch legal action, the firm continues to receive enquiries. Church 'should have known' of Randell's 'predatory sexual disposition' The documents lodged in the Supreme Court in Tasmania earlier this year, relating to the four women, allege that the sexual assaults occurred between 1980 and 1983, while the women were in years 6 or 7. The allegations range from the undoing of bras to digital rape. One woman's Statement of Claim alleges that: "On a number of occasions in 1982, either before or after PE classes, Randell walked into the girls' change rooms while girls (including the Plaintiff) were in a state of undress." And: "Randell would routinely change his clothes in the classroom while students (including the Plaintiff) were present." All four women say that as a result of the sexual assaults by Randell, they have developed anxiety and depression and chronic dysthymia and other disorders, including post-traumatic stress disorder. They are claiming the Catholic Church was negligent in that it: Failed to institute and maintain a system where students were encouraged to report abuse [including sexual abuse] and misconduct by teachers at the school Failed to remove Randell from contact with school students Allowed Randell to perform teaching and pastoral activities at the school when the Defendant knew or should have known of his predatory sexual disposition The women are seeking damages for pain and suffering, interference with enjoyment of life, past and future economic and superannuation loss and out-of-pocket expenses for past medical treatment, future medical treatment and future psychological assistance. Redress scheme 'failing survivors' The option to take civil action regarding historical sexual abuse allegations is new. Previously, the statute of limitations prevented survivors from taking their abusers to court if the abuse occurred more than six years ago. The abolition of limitation periods was a recommendation to come out of the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse, as was the redress scheme. But Mr Wallace-Pannell said "the redress scheme was not doing what it was set up to do". "It appears that there are significant delays at the moment resulting in claims progressing through the redress scheme taking just as long as what it would take to proceed with a civil claim through the courts," he said. He said his firm also had "an issue with the cap [of $150,000] on the amount of money that would be available to victims who make a claim to the redress scheme". "Obviously, it's much lower than what they would be entitled to in awarded damages should they proceed through a claim to the court," he said. Olivia also said the redress scheme wasn't "good enough". "It does not support the victim and have their best interests as their number one priority. Unlike a civil case. The redress scheme is like a government cover-up," she said. Regardless of the outcome of her case, she says she has won the toughest battle. "I have already won in my eyes, you see I am a survivor. I could easily have gone down the rabbit hole, the abuse already took some much from me. But with the love of close ones, I wouldn't let those evil people take away more of my life," she said. In a statement, the Archdiocese of Hobart said the "claims of historical sexual abuse against the Church are taken extremely seriously … and it urges the reporting of abuse to police". "The claims by former students of Marist Regional College against the Catholic Church in Tasmania are headed for mediation on 2-3 February 2021," the statement said. The Archdiocese of Hobart said it had "signed up to the National Redress Scheme in December 2018". *Olivia's name was changed for legal reasons
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