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Pell case: Legal system 'catastrophically failed' abuse survivors

Author
Newstalk ZB,
Publish Date
Tue, 7 Apr 2020, 5:27pm
George Pell at one of his earlier court appearances. (Photo / AP)

Pell case: Legal system 'catastrophically failed' abuse survivors

Author
Newstalk ZB,
Publish Date
Tue, 7 Apr 2020, 5:27pm

A survivor of clerical sexual abuse is devastated at news Cardinal George Pell has walked free.

The 78-year-old was one year into a six year prison sentence.

Today, Australia's highest court unanimously agreed to quash his five charges of historical child sexual abuse.

Pete Dillon told Heather du Plessis-Allan all abuse survivors have been let down.

"The legal system has essentially catastrophically failed us, as the message it is sending to survivors is it doesn't matter how much you think you are heard, you are not heard, you are not believed, you are not understood." 

He says Pell must've been let off on a technicality.
"How a jury and then an appeals court can find in favour of the victim and this court cannot, there has to be a technicality because it's not based on evidence, otherwise it would have never made it this far."

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