Church Process Detrimental: Former Sex Cop

By Daniel Fogarty
WA Today
June 27, 2013

http://www.watoday.com.au/breaking-news-national/church-process-detrimental-former-sex-cop-20130625-2ov7p.html

The Catholic Church's processes for clergy abuse victims were detrimental to police investigations and failed to protect communities from offenders, the former head of Victoria's Sex Crimes squad says.

The church processes actively and systematically dissuaded victims from reporting crimes to police and failed to make offenders accountable, Glenn Davies, a former Victoria Police detective inspector, said.

The Archdiocese of Melbourne was "inherently protectionist, elitist" and was dismissive of suggestions for change, Mr Davies said in a submission to a Victorian parliamentary inquiry into clergy sexual abuse.

His submission was one of 11 made public on Tuesday, a month after the conclusion of public hearings at the inquiry.

Mr Davies said while encouraging victims to go to police was part of the Catholic Church's policy it was done in an "ad-hoc manner".

He said it was his submission that the church become a mandatory reporter of child abuse, including abuse they are told about in the confessional.

The church rejected claims it dissuaded victims from reporting abuse in a right of reply from the Archbishop of Melbourne Denis Hart to police claims made in the inquiry, which was made public on Tuesday.

"The Melbourne Response does not dissuade victims of sexual crime from reporting to the police," Archbishop Hart said.

Victims are told of their rights to report abuse to police and are encouraged to do so, he said.

Archbishop Hart also rejected suggestions that the archdiocese's processes are detrimental to police investigations and that suspects have been alerted.

The church has previously proposed a protocol which would allow it to report the names of offenders to police, Archbishop Hart said.

Mr Davies resigned from Victoria Police in 2012 after pleading guilty to disclosing information about an investigation relating to two journalists.

He was placed on an adjourned undertaking without conviction.