AUSTRALIA
ABC News
The Catholic Church has confirmed that Bishop Max Davis has been charged by West Australian police with a child sex offence dating back to 1969.
Bishop Davis is believed to be the first bishop to be charged with a child sex offence in Australia and is understood to be the most senior Australian Church official to face such charges.
The alleged incident took place taken place when Bishop Davis was teaching at St Benedict’s College in New Norcia, north-east of Perth.
The Church said Bishop Davis was not an ordained priest when the incident is alleged to have occurred, and that he “emphatically denies” the charge.
“An allegation has been made to the police that in 1969 Bishop Max Davis abused a student at St. Benedict’s College in New Nocria,” a statement from the Catholic Military Ordinariate of Australia.
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