AUSTRALIA
The Tablet (UK)
May 23, 2018
‘If at any point it becomes necessary or appropriate for me to take more formal steps, including by resigning as Archbishop, then I will do so’
Archbishop Philip Wilson of Adelaide has announced he is to stand down – and may resign later after almost 17 years as leader of South Australia’s Catholics – a day after he was convicted in a New South Wales court of concealing child sexual abuse.
The day after Magistrate Robert Stone found him guilty of covering up the sexual abuse of altar boys by the late Fr James Fletcher in the 1970s, Archbishop Wilson said he would stand down on Friday (25 May), having considered the magistrate’s reasons for his decision.
“I am still considering those reasons together with my legal advisors,” the 67-year-old prelate said in a statement issued today (23 May). “While I do so, it is appropriate that, in the light of some of his Honour’s findings, I stand aside from my duties as Archbishop.
Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.