April 08, 2020

Andrew Campbell 

Cardinal George Pell was convicted in December 2018 after the second of two trials held in secret led to a six-year prison sentence that started on March 13, 2019. The Cardinal's case had been one of the most high-profile criminal trials in Australian history. After the jury's verdict was upheld by an appeals court in 2019, the cleric’s lawyers appealed his case to the High Court of Australia.

One alleged victim, remained anonymous due to Australian laws and known as Witness J, testified when Pell was Archbishop had abused him and a fellow choirboy, both 13 years old at the time, after one Sunday mass at St. Patrick's Cathedral in Melbourne. The second man didn't tell anyone about the sex abuse and took his own life in 2014.

No one witnessed the alleged sex abuse and there was no physical evidence, just the alleged victim's testimony against Cardinal George Pell. Under most circumstances in child sex abuse cases, it is always difficult for survivors to testify in a criminal court and sometimes discourage victims to stand forward.

Even after High Court’s verdict on March 7, Cardinal George Pell remains a controversial topic and a divisive character in the Catholic Church.

Photo:Webshot.