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| Wilfred Baker, Terry Pidoto, Michael Glennon and Paul Pavlou |
THE Catholic archdiocese of Melbourne is defrocking every priest convicted of sexual offences against children.
Fourteen Melbourne priests have been convicted in
criminal courts of offences against children.
Three are dead.
Of the
others, four have already been defrocked and applications against
another five are before the Vatican.
Two more cases are being prepared
for submission later this year.
Another priest, not convicted in court, has already been
defrocked after being judged guilty of abuse by the church's
independent commissioner.
The archdiocese has moved quickly in the past year.
In
April 2010 a spokesman said that despite the more than 300 allegations
of abuse substantiated by the independent commissioner, only one priest
had been defrocked.
The church has been criticised for not acting to remove
paedophile priests, but Melbourne's Vicar-General, Bishop Les Tomlinson,
said it was only recently that changes to canon law allowed defrocking
without their consent and without a trial.
He said defrocking might be important in helping victims
find closure, but any priest found to have offended against a child
already had their faculties to act as priest removed.
Helen Last of advocacy group In Good Faith said the
church's actions opened the way for consultation about changes needed to
the Melbourne system for dealing with complaints.
''There are a lot more priests who should be laicised
[returned to lay status] through complaints to the independent
commissioner's office as well,'' she said.
Bishop Tomlinson said the church could not identify the
priests concerned, but last month he confirmed that former Healesville
priest Paul Pavlou - convicted of an indecent act with a 14-year-old boy
and of possessing child pornography - had been defrocked.
Barry Whelan, a serial abuser, but not of children, was also removed this year, but at his own request, reportedly to marry.
The priest removed before 2010 was rapist and serial
abuser Michael Glennon, jailed in 1978, 1991 and 2003 for a multitude of
offences.
The Broken Rites website identifies several Melbourne priests convicted in criminal courts.
They include:
■ Wilfred Baker, jailed for four years in 1999 on 16 counts of indecent assault and one of gross indecency against eight boys.
■ David Daniel, jailed for six years in 2000 on 16 counts
of indecent assault and one count of sexual penetration of a
16-year-old.
■ John Haines, jailed for four years and three months in
2008 on six counts of indecent assault and possessing child pornography.
■ Terence Merivale, jailed for six months in 2000 for indecently assaulting three young girls.
■ Terry Pidoto, jailed for seven years and three months in 2007 for rape and other offences
against four boys.
■ Victor Rubeo, given a 12-month good behaviour bond in 1996 for indecent assaults against two boys.
Bishop Tomlinson said applications take six months to a
year to be completed at the Vatican, and are similar to a prosecution
brief in a criminal trial.