Royal commission into child sexual abuse...

By Ewan Gilbert
ABC News
June 18, 2014

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-06-18/marist-brothers-provincial-denies-shipping-paedophile-overseas/5533226

Royal commission into child sexual abuse: Former Marist Brothers provincial denies shipping paedophile overseas to avoid police investigation

Damning evidence suggesting the Catholic Church was complicit in allowing a serial paedophile to flee the country and avoid arrest has been shown to the royal commission in Canberra.

Brother Gregory Sutton was extradited from the United States in 1996 to face 67 counts of child sexual abuse.

But today the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse heard Brother Sutton was "urgently" sent to Canada six years earlier for "therapy".

Under cross-examination, the head of the Catholic Marist Brothers at the time, Brother Alexis Turton, was repeatedly forced to deny that the decision was made to thwart a police investigation and avoid sinking the church into scandal.

"I will ask you again, did you understand in or about 13 August 1989 that there was a police investigation into Brother Gregory Sutton?" counsel assisting Simeon Beckett asked.

"I don't recall that, no," Brother Turton replied.

But Brother Turton was shown a number of documents and reports suggesting that he was aware of trouble with Brother Sutton before the decision was made to send him overseas.

The evidence included a report from Brother Sutton's psychologist dated August 31, 1989.

"[Brother Sutton] told me that [Brother Turton] had decided he should come two weeks ago," it read.

"This was due to the fact that investigations were occurring on himself for school activities five years ago regarding his child abuse."

Another report a week later read, "Greg [Brother Sutton] was referred because of sexual abuse of children, five boys and three girls ages 10-13 from 1975-1986."

But Brother Turton, despite making the referral, denied he knew of any of those cases, apart from one allegation stemming from his time at a school in Lismore, New South Wales.

Mr Beckett: "You as provincial of the Marist Brothers sent Brother Gregory Sutton out of Australia because there was a police investigation into his sexual conduct?"

Brother Turton: "That's not correct."

Mr Beckett: "You wanted him to be out of Australia so that the Marist Brothers could avoid a scandal?"

Brother Turton: "That's not correct."

The inquiry is continuing.