BishopAccountability.org
	Sex Charges against SA Chaplain Dropped Sydney Morning Herald August 28, 2007 http://www.smh.com.au/news/National/Sex-charges-against-SA-chaplain-dropped/2007/08/28/1188067103612.html Child sex charges against a former Anglican chaplain of an exclusive Adelaide boys school have been dropped, more than two years after his extradition from Thailand. Reverend John Mountford, 52, said the decision by the Crown to enter a Nolle Prosequi on Tuesday had taken him by surprise, but maintained the allegations against him were fabricated. He had been charged with five counts of indecent assault, two counts of unlawful sexual intercourse and one count of procuring an act of gross indecency, but walked from the South Australian District Court a free man. The charges related to the alleged abuse of a 14-year-old boy between 1991 and 1992, when Mr Mountford was a chaplain at Adelaide's St Peter's College. He pleaded not guilty to all the allegations last year. "The last three years have taken an enormous toll on me and my family," Mr Mountford said in a statement. "I have spent my life savings defending maliciously fabricated allegations. "I have now been deprived of an opportunity to clear my name." Mr Mountford, a British citizen, said he intended to return to the UK to live with his family and be with his father who was seriously ill. "Although I have steadfastly maintained that the case should never proceed, the eleventh hour abandonment of the case has taken me somewhat by surprise," he said. "I haven't had time to think about my future, my immediate concern is the health of my father." Mr Mountford said for reasons unclear to him, the director of public prosecutions (DPP) had not explained why the charges had been dropped. But in a statement DPP Stephen Pallaras said the decision not to take the case to trial followed recent consultation with the complainant. Mr Pallaras said following those discussions, which included issues related to the man's health, he had decided it was no longer in the public interest to proceed with the prosecution. "The complainant and the police were fully consulted prior to this decision being made and they understand and support the reasons for the decision," Mr Pallaras said. Mr Mountford said he remained bitter about the lack of closure and also raised the prospect of taking legal action against the "person responsible for this fiasco" if he was not held accountable for his actions. "If the South Australian authorities do nothing about it, I will ask my solicitors for advice about remedies available to me," he said The allegations against Mr Mountford were detailed in an independent report in 2004 into the handling of sex abuse claims in the Anglican Church. The report forced the resignation of then Adelaide Anglican Archbishop Ian George because it revealed Dr George met with Mr Mountford on the day he fled to Thailand in 1992. Mr Mountford was extradited to Australia in March 2005 after spending six months in Bangkok's Klong Prem prison fighting his return.
Any original material on these pages is copyright © BishopAccountability.org 2004. Reproduce freely with attribution.