Summary of the Belgian Court Decision

By Lieve Halsberghe
This Summary Is Provided by Lieve Halsberghe
October 2, 2013

http://www.bishop-accountability.org/AbuseTrackerArchive/2013/10/#089364

- The court has decided that the Holy See cannot be sued because as a state it has immunity

- The complaint of the group of victims, represented by Roel Verschueren, is not accepted. Each individual should make their own individual complaint.

- They have studied the complaint of Roel, but found that he did not give enough evidence as to what happened to him, by whom, who was informed, etc.

- By some rare legal technique, the court has also said that Roel did not give enough evidence regarding the alleged cover-up and negligence by the RCC although there are many documents and a public confession of the bishops.

- There still is possibility for an appeal which is likely to happen.

- This is not seen as a defeat by the survivors, but is a first step of many in the long process of trying to hold the bishops accountable.

- The criminal case against the church called "Operation Chalice" - the investigation that started after the raid of the archdiocese - is still ongoing. Should anyone be found guilty of guilty negligence (and with the amount of evidence it would be highly suspicious if that did not happen), then a civil suit of the victims will have more chances for success. However, at the rate the investigation is going the judge who started the investigation, Wim De Troy, has been replaced by Judge Callewaert and there is question whether he wants to take the case further. The police inspector who headed the investigation has changed jobs.