Top Vatican cleric Cardinal George Pell convicted of child sex-crimes
Australia's senior-most Catholic cleric Cardinal George Pell has been found guilty of five counts of child sexual-assault and is set to be jailed. The 77-year-old cardinal, who was Vatican's treasurer and close to the Pope, was found guilty of orally raping one choirboy and molesting another in Melbourne's St Patrick's Cathedral 22 years ago. The five-week trial ran in Victoria County Court. Here's more.
The cardinal was Archbishop of Melbourne when he abused the two 13-year-olds and was managing the church's response to widespread child abuse by priests through the Melbourne Response, which he designed, media reported. Pell was found guilty in a retrial in December last year, with the verdict sending shockwaves through the Vatican and around the world. A jury in an earlier trial was discharged.
The jury was discharged in September, when it was unable to reach a verdict. Pell's legal team will appeal against the conviction. County Court chief judge Peter Kidd has revoked the suppression order that prevented media from reporting results of the trial and retrial. Among two of Pell's victims, one died in 2014, while the other said the ongoing legal process "wasn't over yet".
