AUSTRALIA
Broken Rites
By a Broken Rites researcher
Article updated 7 March 2012
Broken Rites Australia has researched a prominent Catholic priest, the Very Rev Doctor Neil Joseph Byrne, who pleaded guilty in court on 7 March 2012 on charges relating to child-exploitation.
Byrne was sentenced to a nine-month jail term, which was to be wholly suspended for two years.
As a lecturer in a seminary, the Very Rev Dr Byrne has been involved in the training of Australia’s Catholic priests.
Background
Father Byrne belongs to the Brisbane diocese, which covers the heavily-populated south-eastern corner of the Australian state of Queensland. For several years, Father Byrne was the Dean in charge of a number of priests and parishes in Brisbane’s west. This role gave him the title of “Very Reverend”. This, together with his Doctor of Philosophy degree, made him “the Very Rev. Dr. Neil Byrne”.
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