(AUSTRALIA)
Australian Broadcasting Corporation - ABC [Sydney, Australia]
October 8, 2026
By Australian Broadcasting Corporation
Advocates are calling for the Catholic Church to defrock the former bishop of Broome.
Christopher Saunders was sentenced to more than six years in prison yesterday for sexually abusing young men while serving in his position.
Co-director of Bishop Accountability in Boston, Anne Barrett Doyle, said Pope Leo had a chance to send a strong message in response.
“Let’s hope he punishes Christopher Saunders to the fullest extent of church law which would be removing him from the priesthood,” she said.
“He does not deserve that title of priest, let alone bishop.”