(AUSTRALIA)
Australian Broadcasting Corporation - ABC [Sydney, Australia]
February 29, 2024
By Erin Parke and Rosanne Maloney
- In short: Details of sexual abuse allegations against former Bishop of Broome Christopher Saunders have been revealed for the first time after the lifting of a suppression order.
- The 26 charges against him include two counts of sexual penetration without consent, three counts of indecent dealings with a child and 14 counts of unlawful and indecent assault.
- What’s next? Bishop Saunders remains on bail, and is due to face court again in June.
Details of charges against former Bishop of Broome Christopher Saunders can be revealed for the first time, after the retired cleric failed in his bid to prevent their publication.
Bishop Saunders was arrested at his home in Broome on February 21 and charged with 19 sexual offences.
At his first court appearance the following day, his lawyer Seamus Rafferty indicated 74-year-old would plead not guilty to all charges.
He also requested a suppression order restricting coverage of proceedings, telling the court that media coverage of the case had jeopardised his client’s right to a fair trial.
Mr Rafferty also accused WA Police of leaking plans for Bishop Saunders’ arrest to reporters from Channel 7, resulting in the process being filmed and broadcast in a way that he said breached his client’s legal right to privacy.
The suppression order was opposed by reporters from ABC News and Seven West Media.
Magistrate Deen Potter granted the suppression order on a temporary basis.
On Friday, at a special hearing in the Broome Magistrates Court, Magistrate Potter ruled the suppression order be lifted.
“The interests of justice do not require a suppression order,” he told the court.
“Going forward, in my view, there are sufficient safeguards in place [that will] ensure the interests of open justice and a fair trial.”
Further details revealed
The ruling allows details of the 26 criminal charges to be reported in full for the first time.
Bishop Saunders is facing two counts of sexual penetration without consent, three counts of indecent dealings with a child and 14 counts of unlawful and indecent assault.
The ABC can reveal the sexual assault charges relate to one complainant, with the alleged offending commencing in 2008 when the complainant was aged 16 or 17 years of age.
The court heard the alleged offences occurred at several different locations across the Kimberley over a period of five years.
Bishop Saunders has also been charged with holding a firearm without a licence and inadequate storage of a firearm.
Magistrate Potter said the charges related to firearms – including a shotgun – and hundreds of rounds of ammunition.
There were tense moments during the first court hearing on February 22, with both supporters and critics gathering outside Broome’s small courthouse.
Bishop Saunders remained calm and expressionless during the proceedings, watching intently at the television screens as both Magistrate Potter and his lawyer Seamus Rafferty addressed the court via video-link.
After the suppression order discussed and the charges read out, discussion turned to whether the accused would be released on bail.
Magistrate Potter agreed to bail on the condition a $10,000 bond be paid.
He put in place restrictions on Bishop Saunders’ movements, requiring him to reside at his church-owned residence in Broome and prohibiting contact with children and several specified witnesses.
Bishop Saunders is due back in court on June 17.
Church promises cooperation
Christopher Saunders remains one of the highest-profile figures in the vast Kimberley region.
He was ordained a priest in Broome in 1976, and Bishop of the diocese in 1996.
During that time he’s done numerous stints in the region’s remote Aboriginal community including Beagle Bay, Kalumburu and Balgo.
The Catholic Church remains hugely influential, especially among Aboriginal elders raised in Catholic missions in the 20th century.
The criminal case comes four years after the sexual assault allegations — which Bishop Saunders has always denied — first became public.
During that time there have been multiple police and internal church investigations.
In a statement released last week in his capacity as president of the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference, Perth Archbishop Timothy Costelloe said the Church was continuing to co-operate with police.
“It is right and proper, and indeed necessary, that all allegations be thoroughly investigated,” he said.
“The church will continue to cooperate fully with police and take every necessary step to avoid any actions which may compromise the integrity and autonomy of the police investigation.”
Bishop of Geraldton Michael Morrissey, who’s been overseeing the Broome Diocese for the last two years, added a statement.
“The protection of children and vulnerable adults is the Church’s highest priority,” he said.
“The Catholic Diocese of Broome urges any person with evidence of criminal conduct to report the matter to their local police.”
‘People need to be heard’
Bishop Saunders is well-connected nationally, having served as Chair of the Australian Social Justice Council for many years.
Among those watching the case closely are the priests and lay missionaries who worked alongside Bishop Saunders.
Matthew Digges resigned the priesthood several years ago, after working under Bishop Saunders for more than two decades.
Speaking to the ABC from his home in New South Wales, Mr Digges said he was relieved the allegations were being tested in court.
“The key thing that needs to happen is for people to be heard, and then the court to make a judgement,” Mr Digges said.
“Then healing [will] be able to occur within the church in the Kimberley, and those people who are connected with the Kimberley.”
He said the Bishop had been a figure of public significance throughout the Kimberley community.
“He mixed very well with people on stations, people in Aboriginal communities,” Mr Digges said.
“He’s a man, when he walks into the room, people notice.”