Ex-priest from Moree/Armidale NSW faces court again

Broken Rites
February 22, 2014

http://brokenrites.org.au/drupal/node/223

A former Catholic priest (aged 60), who is charged with sexual offences against children in towns (including Moree and Armidale) in northern New South Wales, appeared in Armidale Local Court again on 19 February 2014 for an administrative procedure. The magistrate expressed frustration at the delays in the case and urged the prosecution to finalise the preparations for a hearing.

This was the eleventh time that the ex-priest's case has come up for a mention in the Armidale Local Court. The ex-priest, who cannot be named for legal reasons, first appeared before this court on 18 October, 2012. On each of these occasions, the case has been adjourned to a future date because preparations for a committal hearing have not been completed.

The case will come up for mention again on 19 March 2014 when, it is hoped, the Director of Public Prosecutions will indicate how the case will proceed.

The ex-priest is charged with a total of 137 sexual offences against boys and girls.

Sixty-four of the charges relate to offences allegedly committed against two girls and an altar boy in Moree and Armidale in the early 1980s.

Sixty-one offences relate to the alleged sexual abuse of three sisters and six boys during the 1970s and 1980s while 13 offences relate to the alleged assaults against a Moree altar boy, who was aged between 12 to 14, between 1981 and 1984 in Moree.

These charges relate only to those alleged victims who have spoken to a special team of detectives (named Strike Force Glenroe) in the NSW Police. The investigation is continuing and detectives are prepared to hear from any more persons who have information about this matter.

The court has decided to continue (until further notice) a non-publication order regarding the ex-priest's name and residential details. This non-publication order can be reviewed at an approprite stage in the prosecution process.

The man also faces one charge relating to the storage of a firearm, bringing the total number of charges to 138.

Two dozen Catholic parishes in north-western New South Wales are administered by the Armidale diocese, which is one of the eleven Catholic dioceses into which the state of New South Wales is divided. The Armidale diocese covers an extensive region around the New England Highway. The Armidale diocese includes towns such as Tamworth (in the south of the diocese) and Moree and Narrabri (in the west). This diocese extends as far north as the Queensland border.

The town of Armidale is merely where the bishop and the cathedral are situated (and it is also the town where the arrested ex-priest was living, as a private citizen, after he ceased working in parishes some years ago).

The ex-priest first appeared before a magistrate in Armidale Local Court on 18 October 2012, when he was charged with 23 alleged offences relating to three girls. The charges included indecent assault, acts of indecency and sexual intercourse without consent, allegedly committed between 1979 and 1988. The girls were aged between 5 and 18 years old at the time of the alleged incidents.

At the 18 October 2012 hearing, Magistrate Mark Richardson rejected the man's bail application and ordered him to remain in custody until the case would come up for mention again later in 2012.

On 7 November 2012, in Armidale Local Court, the defendant appeared via audio visual link from the Metropolitan Remand and Reception Centre in Silverwater.

He offered his Armidale house, valued at $230,000, as a surety, as well as $10,000 cash. His brother and sister would contribute $5000 each in order for bail to be granted.

Magistrate Richardson granted bail with strict conditions after determining that the accused would spend too much time in custody while waiting for a trial, as the preparations for a trial would take a long time to complete.

As part of his bail conditions, the man was prohibited from visiting the town of Armidale except for medical reasons or court appearances and must report to a police station three times a week.

He was banned from school grounds and associating with people aged 16 and under. He is not allowed to approach his accusers or other prosecution witnesses, including through a third party.

The ex-priest appeared in Armidale Local Court again on 23 January 2013, when he was charged with 35 offences, which were allegedly committed against six boys, aged 11 and 12, between 1981 and 1984. The charges included: nine counts of sexual assault; 25 counts of indecent assault; and one count of common assault.

The six alleged victims were all altar boys at the Moree parish at the time of the alleged offences.

The man was granted conditional bail pending his next court appearance on these charges.

At the October 2012 hearing, Magistrate Mark Richardson ordered that the man's name not be published, so as to protect the anonymity of the alleged female victims.

For legal reasons, courts frequently make this kind of non-publication order, especially at the earliest hearing in the prosecution process. Such an order can be reviewed later when the prosecution process is further advanced.

At the January 2013 file-hearing, Crown prosecutor Peter Woods applied for the name-suppression order to be lifted, in view of the laying of the charges relating to the altar boys. He said that the limited media coverage had directly led to new alleged victims coming forward.

"Victims are encouraged and supported and that is in the public interest," he said. "Many of the new victims are now in their 40s and living all across Australia."

But the ex-priest's defence lawyer argued that any media coverage would prejudice a fair trial. He also raised concerns for the safety of his client.

At the January 2013 hearing, Magistrate Karen Stafford ruled that the name-suppression order would remain until further notice.

On 20 February 2013, the case came up again for mention in the same court. This time, the court separated the boys' case from the girls' case. The court scheduled the boys' case for mention on a future date and the girls' case for mention on a different date.

At a hearing in the same court on 8 May 2013, the ex-priest was charged with an additional 64 offences, allegedly committed against three more victims. The new charges related to alleged assaults against one boy and two girls, aged from nine to 19, between 1982 and 1985 in Moree, Narrabri, Inverell and Armidale.

The fresh charges included 11 counts of sexual intercourse without consent, 52 counts of indecent assault and one count of committing an act of indecency. The new offences brought the total number of charges against the man to 124, relating to seven boys and five girls.

While a non-publication order on the man's name would remain in effect for the earlier charges, Prosecutor Peter Woods requested that publication of the defendant's name should be allowed for the May 2013 charges. He said that publication of the man's name would prompt any other alleged victims (or people with information) to contact the detectives.

This application was opposed by the man's lawyer.

Magistrate Karen Stafford said she would issue an interim non-publication order on the fresh charges but would review the order in a future hearing.

On 17 July 2013, the ex-priest again appeared in the same court, where 13 charges were filed relating to alleged assaults against a boy, aged 12 to 14, between 1981 and 1984 in Moree. The charges include nine counts of sexual intercourse without consent and four counts of indecent assault.

In court on 4 September 2013, Magistrate Karen Stafford reviewed the non-publication order  and decided to uphold it on the grounds that lifting the gag “would be an objectively magnified risk” to the priest's personal safety.

The defence had argued that a non-publication order was necessary to prevent prejudice to justice, protect the safety of people in the court, prevent causing undue distress or embarrassment and was otherwise necessary in public interest.  The DPP opposed both non-publication order applications.

Magistrate Stafford also extended the non-publication order to all Australian states and territories.

Meanwhile crown prosecutor Peter Woods said the crown and defence were in the process of preparing a summary document, now more than 60 pages in length but there were “still areas where there is some disagreement”.

Of the ex-priest's charges, 74 relate to the alleged sexual abuse of three girls and six altar boys during the 1970s and 1980s and 64 relate to the alleged abuse of a further two girls and one altar boy in Moree and Armidale in the early 1980s.

A further charge relates to the incorrect storage of a firearm. This makes a total of 139 offences.

The man’s bail conditions prevent him from visiting Armidale except for legal or medical reasons.

He is also forbidden to approach Crown witnesses, his accusers or people aged under 16.

When the case resumed on 6 November 2013, Crown prosecutor Peter Woods told the court that the defence and the Crown were agreed on a number of facts relating to certain charges.

The court was told that prosecutors and the defence have reached "substantial agreement" in relation to many of the facts regarding the case and the defence team is expected to submit a written plea-offer.

The matter came up for mention again at Armidale Local Court on 19 February 2014. The court was told the matter was still before the Director of Public Prosecutions for consideration and an adjournment was again sought.

But Magistrate Karen Stafford said she had understood from crown prosecutor Peter Woods that there would have been more progress towards a date of committal for trial and sentencing.

“When this was last in court in December [2013], Mr Woods told me the director would look at in January [2014],” she said. “It’s now almost March [2014].”

Magistrate Stafford expressed her frustration at delays occurring in the case, especially the fact that a plea (either "guilty" or "not guilty") is yet to be entered. The magistrate encouraged both the Director of Public Prosecutions and counsel for the accused to finalise their submissions.

The matter was adjourned to Armidale Local Court for mention on 19 March 2014. Magistrate Stafford said the court needed to be notified on March 19 about the DPP’s decision for the hearing.

The priest's bail is continued.

A special team of detectives (named Strike Force Glenroe) was established in July 2012 to investigate claims of sexual abuse by this former priest. This strike force comprises detectives from the New South Wales Sex Crimes Squad and the New England and Barwon Local Area Commands. The strike force will continue its investigations into this ex-priest while the court process goes on.

NSW State Crime Command's Sex Crimes Squad is comprised of experienced detectives dedicated to investigating crimes of a sexual nature, regardless of the passage of time. Any person who has been a victim of sexual abuse, no matter how long ago the incident occurred, is encouraged to contact police. One way of doing this is by telephoning Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.