Cardinal Pell

[Black Orchid]

Pell's appeal goes before the High Court tomorrow.

[Black Orchid]

Cardinal Pell freed from prison after High Court quashes child sex abuse convictions in a unanimous decision!

Cardinal George Pell says a "serious injustice" has been remedied as he is freed from prison after the country's highest court quashed his child sexual abuse convictions.

The unanimous decision has been handed down less than a month after the High Court of Australia heard two days of intense legal arguments from the Cardinal's lawyers and Victorian prosecutors.

Shortly before 12:30pm, Cardinal Pell was freed from Barwon Prison, leaving in a convoy of cars headed by a white Mercedes.

It is not known where he will be taken or where he intends to stay.

The full bench's ruling was handed down by Chief Justice Susan Kiefel in an almost empty High Court registry in Brisbane, due to physical-distancing measures introduced in response to the coronavirus pandemic.

The public gallery, which can seat up to 16 people, only contained three journalists to hear Chief Justice Kiefel deliver the ruling at 10:00am.

Today the High Court handed down its decision, granting Cardinal Pell's application for special leave and unanimously acquitting him.

In its summary, the High Court stated the Victorian Court of Appeal judges "failed to engage with the question of whether there remained a reasonable possibility that the offending had not taken place".

The court found that other witnesses' evidence was "inconsistent with the complainant's account" and described how George Pell, then the archbishop of Melbourne, would greet parishioners on the cathedral steps, for up to 15 minutes after mass.

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-04-07/ ... s/12048726

[Redneck]

Having watched that Victorian appeal live on TV, I was very impressed with Weinberg (the disenting judge) so it is interesting that the High Court found 7 to zip the same as Weinberg.

I thought from recollection Weinberg seemed to ask more delving questions during that appeal and seemed more switched on.

“Weinberg is regarded as one of the great authorities on criminal law in this country. He’s spoken of as a man who ought by right to have sat on the High Court. His questioning during the appeal (by Pell) in June was particularly lucid.”

https://thesydneyinstitute.com.au/blog/ ... g-dissent/

[Black Orchid]

I was impressed with Weinberg as well. I didn't like Anne Ferguson at all and Chris Maxwell seemed wishy washy.

Personally, I think this is a good and just outcome. There is no doubt the Catholic church has a lot to account for but punishing one man on dodgy evidence is not the way to gain retribution. I consider Pell was used as a scapegoat and that's not the way things should be done.

[Redneck]

Not sure if this is true but I heard mentioned on radio today.

There is some suggestion that maybe the trial judge didnt direct the jury correctly to make sure they considered any reasonable doubt raised by the other witnesses testimonies

[Black Orchid]

There was plenty of reasonable doubt in the initial trials so nothing would surprise me.

Surely Pell's Counsel should have picked that up though? Having said that, his initial QC was really not that good in my opinion.

[Black Orchid]

Definitely a scapegoat. Listening to the whingers on the news apparently hundreds of victims are outraged and are going to start a class action. Against Pell? Give me a break.

Take on the perpetrators for sure but don't use one man to vent your anger.

405 days in jail and the statistics were very much against this outcome.

[Bobby]

Can Pell now sue for damages including the $1 million
legal bills and false imprisonment for 405 days?

[billy the kid]

Was this the same High Court that said that we shouldn't/couldn't/cant deport indigenous Australians...

[Bobby]

Pell would have enjoyed his freedom last night:

I bet those nuns put on a nice roast dinner tonight for Pell
and he washed it down with a few glasses of red wine.

Also - he survived in a jail for over a year where
the prisoners bash up kiddy fiddlers -
he did well.