Disgraced Priest Will Not Return to Parish

By Anna Williams
Stuff
November 11, 2014

http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/crime/10735019/Disgraced-priest-will-not-return-to-parish

Aidan Kay, right, leaves the courthouse after being sentenced, escorted by Blenheim lawyer Rob Harrison.

A former Blenheim priest who fondled a young man's buttocks committed a serious offence and will never be a parish priest again, says the acting leader of his Catholic order.

Passionist order acting leader Kevin Hennessy said there was no way Alastair Aidan Kay would escape the consequences of his actions. The order saw the offending as serious despite Judge Bruce Davidson saying it was a low level indecent assault, made worse by a substantial breach of trust.

"It's not at the lower end of the scale. For us, it's a serious matter," he said.

Hennessy talked to Kay after he was sentenced, and said the former St Mary's parish priest understood he would have to face up to what he did. "It's a breach of trust. Father Aidan realises that and he realises that there are consequences to his actions," he said.

"Even though he had become very popular in that part of New Zealand, he has broken the trust and he has to face up to that."

Kay, 71, was discharged without conviction at the Blenheim District Court on Monday on a charge of indecently assaulting a male over 16.

Kay is originally from the South Island but has been a member of the Passionist order, which is based in Australia, for more than 50 years. He lived in Australia and Papua New Guinea, before joining St Mary's parish in January last year.

Hennessy, who is acting leader of the order while provincial Father Tom McDonagh is overseas, told the Express yesterday from Australia that Kay would never be a parish priest again.

It was up to McDonagh to decide when Kay would leave Blenheim and return to the order in Australia.

The order would follow the protocols of Towards Healing, a Catholic Church counselling and support service for survivors of institutional, clerical and religious abuse.

That process would begin when McDonagh returned.

Their main focus was the pastoral care for the young man involved, Hennessy said.

Police did not oppose a discharge without conviction.

A police spokeswoman said yesterday that police agreed with the judge that the consequences of conviction outweighed the level of offending.

Kay was ordered to pay $1500 in emotional harm reparation to the victim, with a payment of $1000 to be made immediately, and the balance paid by December 12.