“Who is Cardinal George Pell and what is he accused of?”, The Guardian
Melissa Darvey in Melbourne, London, 1 May 2018
The Australian is the most senior member of the Catholic church to face trial for alleged historical sexual assault.
Who is Cardinal George Pell and why is he important?
Pell is essentially the treasurer of the Vatican and the Holy See in Rome, a high-ranking position that puts him third in charge after the pope. Prior to his appointment to the Vatican in 2014, he held senior positions within the Catholic church in Australia, including the archbishop of Sydney and the archbishop of Melbourne. He is Australia’s most senior Catholic, and he was once believed to be in the running to replace Pope Francis when he dies. Pell is now also the highest-ranking Catholic official in the world to be facing trial over historical sexual offence allegations.
What has happened to him?
In June, Pell was charged with historical sexual assault offences by Australian police in the state of Victoria. Pell’s legal representatives in Australia were served with the charges which related to multiple complainants and offences alleged to have occurred in Victoria. From the moment the charges were delivered, Pell has strenuously denied all of the allegations.
Pell took leave from the Vatican to return to Australia and face a committal hearing which began in March and ran for about four weeks in the Melbourne magistrates court before Magistrate Belinda Wallington. During a committal hearing the magistrate needs to determine if there is enough evidence to order the defendant to stand trial on any of the charges.
On Tuesday, Wallington handed down her decision, stating that Pell would face trial on half of the charges. She threw out the most serious due to credibility issues over witnesses. Other charges were withdrawn by the prosecution during the committal hearing. Pell has pleaded not guilty to all of the charges he will stand trial for. That plea has now been formally recorded by the court.
What can we say about the charges?
Not much. Further details about the nature and number of charges cannot be reported for legal reasons. This has made reporting on the committal hearing very difficult. However, it has also helped to protect complainants who gave evidence from being identified. The first days of the committal hearing, which began on 5 March, were closed to the media and the public while complainants gave evidence – a standard procedure for cases involving sexual offence allegations.
What is the wider context of this story?
Countries around the world have been holding inquiries into institutional child sexual abuse. In 2012, Australia’s then-prime minister, Julia Gillard, ordered a formal inquiry into historical child sexual abuse within Australian institutions with the Catholic church and its associated organisations coming under particular scrutiny.
Pell was one of hundreds of people summoned to give evidence during public hearings held throughout Australia. He gave evidence to the commission in person and via videolink and was questioned about the structure of the archdiocese of Melbourne, and how the institution dealt with abuse allegations.
There had been no suggestion in these commission hearings that Pell himself was a perpetrator. The commission asked questions about whether he knew of any abuse and what he did to address it. This is because in 1996, while Pell was archbishop of Melbourne, he was approached by senior politicians, judges and officials who raised concerns about historical child sexual abuse at the hands of clergy and church personnel. More complainants were coming forward with their stories and historical charges were being laid. As a result, Pell established a scheme within the Catholic archdiocese of Melbourne to investigate child sexual abuse claims. This initiative was known as the Melbourne Response, and those in charge of it, including Pell, have been criticised by complainants for an inconsistent and inadequate response to claims.
Pell also faced questioning by the royal commission about how the Archdiocese of Melbourne responded to and investigated allegations of child sexual abuse within its institutions.
What does it mean for the pope and the Catholic church?
Pell, who took leave from his role as the Vatican’s secretary for the economy last year, is the most senior member of the Roman Catholic church to face historical sexual abuse charges. His role makes him the third most senior member of the Vatican hierarchy, who was chosen by Pope Francis personally to turn around the Vatican’s finances.
A statement from the Vatican said that Pell would remain on leave: “Last year, the Holy Father granted Cardinal Pell a leave of absence so he could defend himself from the accusations. The leave of absence is still in place.”
Pope Francis is yet to comment on the most recent developments, but has previously said he would allow justice to take its course.
What happens next?
The trial is likely to be very long. Under Pell’s bail conditions he cannot leave the country. The trial will first be heard on 2 May at 9am for a first directions hearing, which is purely to go over administrative matters. Given his ranking, media from around the world will be in attendance.