AUCKLAND (NEW ZEALAND)
NZ Herald [Auckland, New Zealand]
April 23, 2023
By Lane Nichols
A much-loved chaplain at one of Auckland’s most prestigious schools has been reinstated after a court case alleging he had sexually abused a student in Australia 20 years ago was abandoned by the plaintiff.
It has brought to end a highly distressing period for Father John Goodwin, who is known for his engaging character and who always maintained his innocence.
The accuser was an Australian gang associate serving more than 10 years in jail for trafficking million of dollars in drugs, including amphetamines, MDMA and cocaine.
He was still behind bars when his lawyer Angela Sdrinis filed a civil suit in the Tasmanian Supreme Court in 2021.
A statement of claim alleged Goodwin had repeatedly abused the then student while working as a priest at Tasmania’s esteemed Hutchins School, and telling the boy God would punish him if he told anyone about the abuse.
The plaintiff, now in his 30s, launched legal action against the Christ College Trust and the Anglican Diocese of Tasmania as first and second defendants for negligence and breach of duty.
Goodwin was not named as a defendant. The case has now been abandoned.
Goodwin – who took up a position with King’s School in Remuera in 2008 – was stood down when the allegations emerged in March 2021 and relocated from his family’s accommodation on the school grounds.
King’s School headmaster Tony Sissons alerted the school community to the developments in a newsletter at the time, but stressed that Goodwin emphatically denied the allegations.
The matter was heading to trial in Australia. The plaintiff – who claimed to have suffered PTSD, substance abuse and suicidal ideation as a result of being abused – sought compensation for medical and treatment costs, as well as lost earning, plus exemplary and aggravated damages.
However, the Herald can reveal that the plaintiff’s lawyers abandoned the case in July.
Sdrinis refused to provide information about why the case had been withdrawn.
Hutchins School headmaster Rob McEwan told the Herald the case had been discontinued.
He did not know why the plaintiff abandoned the case.
No criminal charges had ever been laid and there had been no financial settlement.
Asked whether the plaintiff’s criminal background had any bearing on his credibility, McEwan said: “It may have if it got to court.”
Asked if the plaintiff or his lawyers had sought any financial payment from the school, McEwan said: “You’d need to ask them. I’m not answering.”
McEwan said being accused of child sex abuse was “the most confronting allegation that could be made against a person, and if that allegation was … I won’t say any more.
“But great harm is caused and in this particular case, the matter was discontinued.
“I can only imagine the distress an allegation of this type would make to a person working in a school context.”
Sissons confirmed the case was no longer active, but he would not provide any further statement and said Goodwin did not wish to comment.
Anglican Bishop of Auckland Ross Bay confirmed Goodwin had returned to work after the case was abandoned, but declined to comment further.
After the allegations first emerged in 2021, supporters of Goodwin contacted the Herald, saying he was innocent until proven guilty and labelling priests “sitting ducks” for allegations of sexual misconduct.
One parent said Goodwin had “an impeccable record and a huge amount of support from the King’s School community who know him to be a very good man”.
“He has a family too, all of whom are suffering in light of these allegations.
“We do not believe Father John to be capable of such heinous crime.”
Another parent said Goodwin was enormously popular and loved. He was known for coming up with off-beat ways to engage pupils during his sermons and always made a “huge effort” to make them interesting.
“He was very much liked.”