November 27, 2015
AUSTRALIA
Sydney Morning Herald
Beau Donelly
Reporter
Former archbishop Frank Little kept “secret files” detailing complaints about priests’ sexual conduct with adults, the royal commission has heard.
Bishop Peter Connors testified that Little, who was archbishop of Melbourne from 1974 to 1996, once directed him to visit a woman who had fallen pregnant to a priest.
Little had already moved the priest to a different parish but wanted his deputy to convince the mother to give up her baby.
“He eventually said to me, ‘I’ve got to move him to another state and will you go and meet the woman and get her to get the baby adopted.’ And I said, ‘She will not do that’.”
Appearing before the child abuse royal commission on Friday, Bishop Connors, former vicar-general, said he failed to investigate allegations against paedophile priest Peter Searson because he “foolishly trusted” him.
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