Abuse Priests File Appeal Question Credibility of the Victims, Times of Malta, August 13, 2011

Abuse Priests File Appeal - Question Credibility of the Victims

Times of Malta
August 13, 2011

http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20110813/local/abuse-priests-file-appeal-question-credibility-of-the-victims.379983

Archbishop Paul Cremona yesterday met some of the victims of clerical sex abuse and their lawyer Patrick Valentino (second from right). Photo: Photocity . .

Two priests found guilty of sexually abusing boys in their care have filed their appeals, casting doubt on the credibility of the 11 victims.

The two appeals, one for each priest, one of whom has since been defrocked, were filed by defence lawyer Giannella Caruana Curran yesterday, the last day of the eight-working-day time limit and on the same day eight of the victims met Archbishop Paul Cremona at his residence in Attard.

Fr Francesco , also known as Godwin Scerri ,75, and (defrocked) Carmelo Pulis, 66, were sentenced to five years and six years in prison respectively after being found guilty of defiling the boys, then teenagers , about 20 years ago at two homes belonging to the Missionary Society of St Paul.

Fr Scerri was acquitted of rape due to an error in the charge, which said the crime happened in Marfa when it had actually occurred at St Joseph Home in Sta Venera.

In the appeals, Dr Caruana Curran said there was evidence that simply did not add up besides a number of legal issues expected to be raised when the appeal is heard.

An issue the defence team is likely to bring up is that never in 30 years of priesthood had anybody made sexual abuse allegations against Mr Pulis except those men who had a connection with Lawrence Grech, who fronted the victim's campaign. Even the last victim, whose case goes back to 2003, when he was still a 15-year-old boy, had worked for Mr Grech, Dr Caruana Curran pointed out. She said she drew up a timeline connecting the other victims to Mr Grech.

The defence is also expected to reignite an argument made during the court proceedings, held behind closed doors, that, despite Mr Grech alleging abuse by Mr Pulis, he still kept contact with him after leaving the home and even did voluntary work in the same place where he claimed he had suffered so terribly. The same priest who abused Mr Grech also officiated at his wedding and was allowed to hold his daughter when Mr Grech was claiming he could not even hug her because of what he suffered, the lawyer added.

Mr Grech is on record saying publicly that Mr Pulis had officiated at his wedding when he was still a priest. He also admitted that it saddened him that he had to press charges against the man he still called the only "father" he ever had.

The defence also noted that two years before the sexual abuse claims surfaced, Mr Grech threw a party for his alleged abuser and even proclaimed him to be the "best priest ever".

The credibility issue, Dr Caruana Curran added, was also tied to how some of the victims testified in court by apparently changing versions a number of times.

The issue of the victims' credibility was raised during the court case. Magistrate Saviour Demicoli noted in the judgement that after evaluating the evidence and observing the victims' behaviour in court while giving testimony he could conclude that their evidence was "credible".