Lismore Catholic Priest John Patrick Casey Accused of Child Sexual Abuse Granted Bail to Stay at Relative's 40-acre Property
By Mazoe Ford
A Catholic priest and part-time police chaplain from the New South Wales Northern Rivers region who faces child sexual abuse charges from the 1980s has been granted bail. John Patrick Casey will be effectively under house arrest at a relative's remote 40-acre property and can only leave the address if accompanied by one of three family members. The priest is not allowed to have any contact with children under the age of 16, must surrender his passport, has to report daily to police and must not contact anyone connected with the crown case. Casey's family offered up a $400,000 surety as part of his bail application to the New South Wales Supreme Court. The 67-year-old, who appeared via video link on Thursday from Cessnock Correctional Centre, is accused of five counts of sexual assault and act of indecency, and four counts of sexual assault with a person under 16 years of age. The three alleged victims claim the offences occurred in the 1980s in the Lismore Diocese, but they did not come forward to police until 2015. Two of the alleged victims are brothers. Police commenced an investigation into Casey in February 2015 and arrested him five months later. At the time he was working at the Mary Help of Christians Primary School in Sawtell but was immediately stood down. Casey has been in custody since his arrest on July 9, 2015, the same day he was supposed to have read a homily at a commemorative service for police senior constables Robert Spears and Peter Addison, who were gunned down at Crescent Head 20 years ago. In making Casey's bail application, barrister Philip Bolton SC told the court his client had been subjected to "real and actual threats" during his time in custody and this was having an impact on his mental health. He said Casey was being targeted because of the nature of the alleged offences because he is a priest and was a police chaplain. "There is some risk he will get to a point where he won't be able to focus efficiently on the issues at trial and where he'll get to a point where he won't be able to stand trial," Mr Bolton told the court. Because of a backlog of cases at Lismore Court, Mr Bolton said Casey's trial would not be held until at least the end of 2016 or possibly the start of 2017. "There are risks that he will go off the rails before then psychologically," Mr Bolton said. DPP solicitor Sophia Mascia argued all inmates have a hard time in prison and Casey should not be treated differently. "A fear of custody is common to all people in custody," Ms Mascia said. "The fact that he's a priest doesn't mean his fear is any more grounded than anybody else's." Ms Mascia said the crown strongly opposed bail. "They are serious offences and although they are historic, they are serious," she added. She also said there was potential for more complaints against the accused to be made. Casey has no criminal history. Justice Peter Hidden accepted Casey had been subjected to "degrading and threatening behaviour" in prison and said he was satisfied the risks of granting the priest bail could be managed. Casey will be released from Cessnock Correctional Centre and will face court in Lismore on November 3.
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