AUSTRALIA
The Age
June 6, 2015
John Silvester
Crime reporter, The Age
Collusion, cover-ups and conspiracies are usually the domain of Hollywood writers, the naive and the slightly nutty. Except, that is, when they are true.
In recent times senior police have condemned leaders of the Catholic Church for failure to co-operate with investigations into sexual assaults by clergy members.
About two years ago Victoria’s then deputy commissioner (and now new Chief Commissioner) Graham Ashton told a state parliamentary inquiry, “The processes of the Catholic Church are designed to put the reputation of the church first and the victims second”.
But the terrible truth is that for decades police were part of the problem, with key officers actively working for the church and against fellow officers investigating rogue priests.
They were known as the Catholic mafia – men who covered up crimes, tipped off the church and allowed sex offenders to continue molesting children – all in the name of protecting their religious institution.
Some were local sub officers that stood over younger police. One became a commander and had state-wide influence and yet another was a key member of the CIB and monitored major investigations.
And if there is a God they must have all gone to hell in the express lane.
Some issues were relatively minor. A recently retired officer remembers, “During the early 1970s Catholic priests were bullet-proof. I recall even in the early 1980s one of my constables booked a priest for speeding and was forced to withdraw the ticket after being lectured about the correct procedures by the (extremely Catholic) senior sergeant.”
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