Former Vic bishop says he acted on abuse

AUSTRALIA
9 News

A former Catholic bishop found by an inquiry to have moved abusing priests from parish to parish says he took action against the priests by sending them to counselling.

Father Ronald Mulkearns, who has also been accused of destroying documents, says he did not appear at the Victorian child abuse inquiry because he does not remember what happened, the Herald Sun reports.

The newspaper tracked Fr Mulkearns down in a coastal Victorian town and says he still conducts mass and lives an active lifestyle.

“To say I took no action is wrong,” the 83-year-old told the paper.

“I sent them for counselling. I can’t help it if they blame me for what happened.

“I didn’t go (to the inquiry) because I would’ve been no good – I don’t remember.”

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.