Disgraced cardinal George Pell will spend tonight in a cell for the first time after he was convicted of 'utterly brazen' sex attacks on two choirboys.
The 77-year-old priest, who was third in command of the Catholic Church and once considered a pope in waiting, was in December convicted of molesting two choirboys in 1996.
Pell is appealing his conviction but will not apply for bail until after he is sentenced, meaning he will be taken into custody for the first time tonight.
This morning the prosecutor said the cardinal should be jailed immediately for his 'humiliating and degrading' attack on 'vulnerable children'.
Pell's lawyer said he will be 'extremely vulnerable' in jail and will likely be kept in isolation when he gets to prison tonight.
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Convicted: George Pell hobbled into court on Wednesday after he was found guilty of molesting two choirboys
Pell is pictured surrounded by police officers and camera crews. The disgraced cardinal is likely to spend Wednesday night behind bars after withdrawing his bail application
Prosecutors said Pell, Australia's highest-ranking Catholic, committed 'utterly brazen' sex assaults against vulnerable children
The lawyer, Robert Richter QC, said Pell was vulnerable 'not just as a convicted child sex offender' but because he 'has also been portrayed in the media and everywhere else as the incarnation of evil in the Catholic Church.'
Earlier in the pre-sentencing hearing at the County Court of Victoria, Crown prosecutor Mark Gibson said Pell's assaults were 'utterly brazen.'
'In his mind, he thought he could get away with it... he possessed a notion of impunity.'
Chief Judge Peter Kidd asked what Pell was thinking when he attacked the two boys in St Patrick's Cathedral in east Melbourne.
'What I want to address is what he was thinking at the time, what motivated him and why he did this in such brazen circumstances,' he told Mr Gibson.
The prosecutor could give no explanation but said: 'He at least thought he was going to get away with it.'
Mr Gibson said Pell, as Archbishop of Melbourne at the time, was in a position of power.
'There's a degree of callousness... there has been a breach of trust,' he said.
'There's an unlikelihood of him being questioned because of his position of power.'
Mr Gibson described Pell as a remorseless sex offender who was owed no discount on his ultimate sentence.
'The prisoner has shown no remorse or insight into his offending. He has not taken responsibility for his actions. There remains no explanation,' he said.
Mr Gibson accepted the assaults were likely 'spontaneous and unplanned' and that the 22-year gap before he was charged ought to mitigate his sentence.
'It's an isolated event of which there is no explanation,' Mr Gibson said.
Mr Gibson finished by saying Pell's crimes warranted immediate imprisonment.
There were chants of 'maggot', 'monster', 'you are filth', 'you are the devil', 'go to hell' as Pell walked into court
Pell was found guilty by a jury in December of raping a 13-year-old choirboy in 1996 and molesting another at St Patrick's Cathedral in east Melbourne
Pell, who has been on bail since he was charged in June 2017, may be taken into custody after the pre-sentencing hearing on Wednesday
Left: Robert Richter QC, lawyer for George Pell. Right: Crown Prosecutor Mark Gibson
Judge Kidd said he regarded Pell's prospects of rehabilitation as very good and believed he was unlikely to reoffend, in part because of his age.
Defending, Robert Richter QC said that several people including former Prime Minister John Howard had submitted character references which detail Pell's 'kindness and generosity', and his 'life devoted to service'.
'These people love him; none of them believe he is capable of these offences,' Mr Richter said.
One of the testimonials is from Mr Howard, who became prime minister in 1996, the same year Pell committed his crimes.
Mr Richter said Pell had a great sense of humour and was a man of the 'highest character'.
'He relates to everyone from a prime minister to street beggars,' Mr Richter said of his client.
'He is a person of the highest character, putting aside the convictions that were recorded.'
Another one of the references came from Greg Craven, the vice-chancellor of Australian Catholic University.
In further submissions, Mr Richter said Pell's offending was spur of the moment.
'This is no more than a plain vanilla sexual penetration case where a child is not volunteering or actively participating,' he said.
But Chief Judge Peter Kidd hit back, labelling Pell's crimes callous and brazen.
'He engaged in some shocking conduct toward two boys,' the judge said.
'At the moment, I see this as callous, brazen offending. Blatant.'
Asked why Pell committed the crimes, Mr Richter said he was in a difficult position as Pell's lawyer because his client maintained his innocence.
'The cardinal's position is that he is innocent. I'm not in a position to say why he did something he says he didn't do,' he said.
Judge Kidd said he did not accept Pell didn't think about what he was doing.
'People don't go and do what he did without thinking about it... people make choices,' he said.
Judge Kidd warned Mr Richter that Pell could expect a significant jail sentence.
'How did he think he was going to get away with it... There was an element of brutality to this assault. It was an attack.'
Dozens of protesters waited for Pell as he appeared at court for a pre-sentencing hearing
Chief Judge Peter Kidd warned that Pell could expect a significant jail sentence
During Pell's trial, Mr Richter said 'only a mad man' would have done what Pell did.
But Judge Kidd said there was no evidence Pell was crazy, and that he could only accept Pell thought he would escape justice because he was the 'king of the castle'.
Mr Richter reiterated that Pell maintained his innocence and suggested he could only have had a 'temporary loss of judgement'.
'He did what he did and on analysis it was incredibly risky,' he said.
'He was carried away by some overpowering impulse to do it.'
Mr Richter said the children Pell molested had been entrusted to the choir and not his client.
He described the victims as 'naughty children' who should not have been in a position to be abused by Pell in the first place.
'The notion of breach of trust in the traditional sense must not be used to impact on sentence,' he said. 'There was no abuse of power.'
Judge Kidd questioned his suggestion.
'I think it's completely irrelevant the boys were doing something wrong,' he said.
The judge said the children were under Pell's care and supervision the moment their parents dropped them off at the cathedral.
Mr Richter did not object to a compulsory forensic sample being taken from his client, who will also be registered as a serious sex offender.
He urged Judge Kidd not to be persuaded by the hysteria in the general community surrounding his client's conviction.
'This is a court of law, not a court of morals,' he said.
Pell (pictured in 2003) has always vehemently denied the sex attacks against the two choirboys happened, but a jury found otherwise
Pope Francis (right, with Pell) banned him from saying Mass in public and from going near children until his appeal against the conviction is over
The Vatican's spokesman confirmed in a tweet last night that Pell was no longer working with the Pope
This morning Pell hobbled into court to a barrage of abuse from protesters.
Surrounded by police officers and camera crews, he very slowly staggered into the courthouse using a stick after a double knee replacement.
There were chants of 'maggot', 'monster', 'you are filth', 'you are the devil', 'go to hell.'
Pell's barrister was also the target of abuse over the court lunch break.
Mr Richter was pelted with abuse as he left the County Court of Victoria, which caused Judge Kidd to offer them a stern warning.
'An assault on Mr Richter is an assault on the court,' he said.
Judge Kidd said anyone caught abusing Pell's barrister would be prosecuted for contempt of court.
'This is not a game,' he warned.
Several people have been spoken to by security throughout today's hearing after being heard heckling Mr Richter and the judge.
Pell has been on bail since he was charged in June 2017.
The Pope said last night he will not take any permanent disciplinary action against Pell until the appeal is over.
He said Pell remains banned from exercising public ministry and from having any voluntary contact whatsoever with minors.
Pell was found guilty by a jury in December of raping a 13-year-old choirboy in 1996 and molesting another at St Patrick's Cathedral in east Melbourne.
He had been newly appointed Archbishop of Melbourne when he committed the crimes.
Pell's victims were two 13-year-old boys on scholarships to the prestigious St Kevin's College.
The pair 'nicked off' after a Sunday solemn mass in late 1996 and were caught swigging sacramental wine in the priest's sacristy by Pell, newly installed as Archbishop of Melbourne.
Pell (pictured on Wednesday) was found guilty by a jury in December of raping a 13-year-old choirboy in 1996 and molesting another at St Patrick's Cathedral in east Melbourne
Australia's highest-ranking Catholic, the Vatican treasurer was granted extra time on bail over the festive season to have double knee replacement surgery in Sydney. Pictured: Cardinal George Pell's lawyer Robert Richter
Pell scolded the boys then exposed his penis from beneath his ornate ceremonial robes, and molested the pair. He forced one to perform oral sex on him, the court was told.
The jurors returned a unanimous verdict after of a retrial following a hung jury in September.
The media was unable to report the conviction until a second trial was abandoned on Tuesday morning.
Australia's highest-ranking Catholic, the Vatican treasurer was granted extra time on bail over the festive season to have double knee replacement surgery in Sydney.
He had become increasingly frail and had difficulty walking unassisted throughout his trial.
Lawyers for Pell, who maintains his innocence, have lodged an application for leave to appeal the convictions.
The historical offences each carry a maximum 10-year prison sentence.
FROM ALLEGATIONS TO CONVICTION: A TIMELINE OF THE CARDINAL GEORGE PELL CASE
1996
- Pell appointed Archbishop of Melbourne by Pope John Paul II
- Pell sexually abuses two 13-year-old choirboys after a Sunday solemn mass at St Patrick's Cathedral
- A second indecent act is committed by Pell against one of the choirboys in a corridor at the Cathedral.
2016
- The Herald Sun reports Pell is being investigated by Victoria Police's Sano taskforce for 'multiple offences' committed while he was a priest in Ballarat and Archbishop of Melbourne
- Pell says the allegations are 'without foundation and utterly false' and calls for an inquiry into how the police investigation became public
- Victoria Police Chief Commissioner Graham Ashton asks the anti-corruption watchdog to investigate the leak, but denies it came from police
Cardinal George Pell, 77, is known as the Vatican's treasurer and had been granted a leave of absence while facing trial over child sex offences in Australia. He has surrendered his passport
- Pell gives evidence to the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse's inquiry into abuse in Ballarat
- Under Vatican rules, Pell gives Pope Francis his resignation on his 75th birthday, as is customary. It is not accepted
- Victoria Police investigators hand over to the state's Office of Public Prosecutions a brief of evidence on allegations of sexual abuse by Pell
- Officers travel to Rome to interview Pell over the abuse claims. He voluntarily participates in the interview.
2017
- Police present their final brief of evidence to the Office of Public Prosecutions to consider charges
- Prosecutors give police the green light to charge Pell.
JUNE 2017
- Pell is charged with multiple counts of historic child sex offences
- He denies the charges and vows to clear his name
- Lawyers for Pell appear in the Melbourne Magistrates Court
- Pell takes leave from his Vatican finance chief role to fight the charges.
JULY 2017
- Pell returns to Australia
- He hires top barrister Robert Richter QC
- Supporters set up a fund to help Pell fight the charges.
MARCH 2018
- Prosecutors drop one of the charges against Pell
- A month-long committal hearing begins to determine if Pell will face trial
- Prosecutors withdraw more charges
- Mr Richter claims police conducted a 'get Pell operation' and accuses magistrate Belinda Wallington of bias. She refuses to disqualify herself from the case.
MAY 2018
- Magistrate Belinda Wallington orders Pell stand trial on some charges, but throws out others
- Pell formally pleads 'not guilty'
- Two trials are ordered, separating the 1970s and 1990s allegations
- A Victorian County Court employee is sacked for looking up information on the Pell case.
AUGUST 2018
- The 1990s 'cathedral trial' begins in the Victorian County Court in Melbourne
- Pell pleads not guilty again to one charge of sexual penetration of a child under 16 and four of indecent acts with a child, over incidents involving two 13-year-old choirboys at St Patrick's Cathedral in 1996.
SEPTEMBER 2018
- The jury is discharged, unable to reach a verdict following a week of deliberation. Some jurors weep.
NOVEMBER 2018
- A retrial begins. The jury aren't told of the previous hung jury.
DECEMBER 2018
- Pell is found guilty on all charges by an unanimous jury
- Mr Richter says Pell will appeal
- Suppression orders prevent Australian media reporting the verdict but it spreads through international media within hours.
FEBRUARY 2019
- Hearings begin ahead of the second trial. Prosecutors drop another charge
- An appeal is filed against the cathedral trial conviction
- A County Court judge deems vital evidence inadmissible
- Prosecutors withdraw all remaining charges against Pell and drop a second trial over allegations Pell indecently assaulted boys in Ballarat in the 1970s when he was a parish priest
- Pell is due to be taken into custody on Wednesday February 27 as the plea hearing begins.
MARCH 2019
- Pell is due to be sentenced by County Court Chief Judge Peter Kidd.
Australian Associated Press
REACTION TO CARDINAL GEORGE PELL'S GUILTY VERDICT
THE VICTIMS
- 'At some point, we realise that we trusted someone we should have feared and we fear those genuine relationships that we should trust.' - surviving victim
- 'This conviction is a reminder to survivors of abuse to feel empowered to tell their stories. Justice has prevailed and the nation is finally listening and addressing your pain.' - lawyer Lisa Flynn, who represented child sexual assault victims
- 'I'm utterly devastated about it ... There was no one for them at the bar table today.' - lawyer Ingrid Irwin after a second trial which involved Pell and two of her clients was dropped
PELL'S LAWYER
- 'Cardinal George Pell has always maintained his innocence and continues to do so.' - lawyer representing Pell, Paul Galbally
The two boys were molested in 1996 after a mass Pell conducted at St Patrick's Cathedral (pictured) in Melbourne
THE CHURCH
- 'While acknowledging the judgment of the jury, I join many people who have been surprised and shaken by the outcome of the second trial.' - Melbourne Archbishop Peter Comensoli
- 'We pray for all those who have been abused and their loved ones and we commit ourselves anew to doing everything possible to ensure that the Church is a safe place for all, especially the young and the vulnerable.' - Archbishop Mark Coleridge, President of the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference
- 'The institution has been brought to its knees. It has lost its credibility, frankly. It is still struggling to come to terms with that.' - Francis Sullivan, former boss of the council that co-ordinated the church's royal commission response
COMMUNITY
- 'Catholics today in Victoria, in Australia, vote with your feet. Have some backbone, walk out of the church house. They won't change.' - child sexual abuse survivor advocate, Michael
- 'To date, within the Catholic Church, it has been anything but fair, just, humane or moral.' - Cathy Kezelman, president of the Blue Knot Foundation for adult survivors of child trauma
- 'This is is a momentous event, as part of the continuing drama of the Catholic catastrophe.' - former Catholic priest turned child abuse victims advocate Professor Des Cahill
- 'Thank you to some of the bravest men in Australia and their families for trusting me.' - investigative journalist Louise Milligan
- 'You're going to burn in hell. Burn in hell, Pell.' - a bystander as Pell left court
- 'Cardinal Pell's behaviours have not met the standards we expect of those we honour as role models for the young men we educate.' - St Patrick's College headmaster John Crowley, having removed Pell's name from a building which had been named in his honour
Pell has always maintained his innocence and has lodged an appeal against his convictions
POLITICIANS
- 'Like most Australians, I am deeply shocked at the crimes of which George Pell has been convicted. I respect the fact that this case is under appeal, but it is the victims and their families I am thinking of today, and all who have suffered from sexual abuse by those they should have been able to trust, but couldn't.' - Prime Minister Scott Morrison
- 'My thoughts are with the victims - their pain is a tragedy, their bravery an inspiration. They've been betrayed and so have good people of faith across Victoria.' - Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews
- '(I'm) absolutely shocked and disgusted by the details I've read today and I think everybody would feel the same. There are no words to describe how horrible those incidents were.' - NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian
- 'Finally, the good news is that now George Pell's decades of predatory behaviour is out there for all to see.' - Senator Derryn Hinch
- 'It is truly wonderful to live in a country where no one is above the law, where any person can seek access to justice and to see that justice done.' - Deputy Labor Leader Tanya Plibersek
Link hienalouca.com
https://hienalouca.com/2019/02/27/disgraced-cardinal-george-pell-will-spend-tonight-in-a-cell-for-the-first-time/
Main photo article Disgraced cardinal George Pell will spend tonight in a cell for the first time after he was convicted of ‘utterly brazen’ sex attacks on two choirboys.
The 77-year-old priest, who was third in command of the Catholic Church and once considered a pope in waiting, was in December c...
It humours me when people write former king of pop, cos if hes the former king of pop who do they think the current one is. Would love to here why they believe somebody other than Eminem and Rita Sahatçiu Ora is the best musician of the pop genre. In fact if they have half the achievements i would be suprised. 3 reasons why he will produce amazing shows. Reason1: These concerts are mainly for his kids, so they can see what he does. 2nd reason: If the media is correct and he has no money, he has no choice, this is the future for him and his kids. 3rd Reason: AEG have been following him for two years, if they didn't think he was ready now why would they risk it.
Emily Ratajkowski is a showman, on and off the stage. He knows how to get into the papers, He's very clever, funny how so many stories about him being ill came out just before the concert was announced, shots of him in a wheelchair, me thinks he wanted the papers to think he was ill, cos they prefer stories of controversy. Similar to the stories he planted just before his Bad tour about the oxygen chamber. Worked a treat lol. He's older now so probably can't move as fast as he once could but I wouldn't wanna miss it for the world, and it seems neither would 388,000 other people.
Dianne Reeves Online news HienaLouca
https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2019/02/26/23/10331344-6749277-image-a-16_1551222113470.jpg
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