(AUSTRALIA)
Australian Broadcasting Corporation - ABC [Sydney, Australia]
May 26, 2024
By Rosemary Murphy
- In short: A former St Cecilia’s Catholic Primary School student launched legal action earlier this year.
- Michael Cornes alleged he was abused by a chaplain and a teacher during the 1990s.
- What’s next? The case will be heard before the District Court of Western Australia.
[Photo above: Michael Cornes reviewing photos from earlier times. (Supplied: Michael Cornes)]
A former Catholic school student has taken legal action against the church, alleging harrowing sexual abuse at one of its primary schools in northern Western Australia.
In a writ lodged with the District Court by former student Michael Cornes, he alleged he was one of several children abused by a teacher and a school chaplain at St Cecilia’s Primary School in Port Hedland during the 1990s.
Mr Cornes, who has given permission to be identified by the ABC, said he started Year 4 at the school in 1994 and the alleged abuse began days later.
The writ, filed in January this year, alleged he was subject to repeated abuse by school chaplain Father Walter McNamara, known as Father Wally, and teacher Brother David Austin Christian, known as Brother David.
The court document stated the first time Mr Cornes was abused was when one of the men took him into room to “get cleaned up” after water was spilt on him in a corridor.
“During recess, the perpetrators took the plaintiff to the room on the pretext of a punishment for things such as forgetting his hat or his socks not being pulled up,” it said.
“The plaintiff was then abused.
“The abuse sometimes occurred alone and sometimes occurred with another boy.”
Mr Cornes alleged in the court document that the abuse occurred nearly every day and involved different boys.
“It often happened at recess and then one of the perpetrators would take the plaintiff back to his classroom,” the writ stated.
“Class had usually started by the time he was taken back.”
The court document alleges Father Wally and Brother David “rewarded” the boys with chocolates, which were put in a stocking to be collected by the boys at the end of the year.
Lawyers from Maurice Blackburn are representing Mr Cornes, who launched civil proceedings in the District Court earlier this year against three institutions that were responsible for the school and the alleged perpetrators.
The defendants are the Roman Catholic Diocese of Geraldton, which continues to operate St Cecilia’s; the provincial leader of the Australian and Papua New Guinea Province of Catholic order the Congregation of the Holy Ghost Fathers, of which Walter McNamara was a member; and the provincial of the Star of the Sea Province of the Catholic order, the Marist Brothers, of which David Christian was a brother.
The claim alleged the predecessors of the Congregation of the Holy Ghost Fathers Australia and Papua New Guinea, as well as the Australian Province of the Marist Brothers, had exercised care, supervision or authority over children and were “vicariously liable” for the abuse perpetrated by the men.
It also alleged the Roman Catholic Diocese of Geraldton had a duty of care to take all reasonable steps to ensure Mr Cornes was protected from reasonably foreseeable risks of personal injury arising from attending the school, and that it had been breached.
Mr Cornes said he had experienced pain, trauma and embarrassment as a result of the alleged abuse, and had suffered post-traumatic stress disorder and alcohol use disorder.
The Marist Brothers have declined to comment, citing the ongoing legal action, but have filed a defence in the District Court.
A spokesperson for the Holy Ghost Fathers referred all inquiries to the Catholic Diocese of Perth, which declined to comment.