Cardinal George Pell Sex Abuse Conviction Unsealed in Australia – The New York Times

One child accused the cardinal of touching his genitals on multiple occasions from 1978 to 1979, as they played in the local swimming pool.

Another said he had also been abused at the pool, between 1977 and 1979. He said the cardinal had touched his testicles as he was throwing him into the water.

A third complainant, whose allegations were not made part of a formal charge, said that in 1975 or 1976, he was playing in the water with Cardinal Pell at Lake Boga, about 200 miles from Melbourne.

At one point, he said, he slipped from the cardinal’s shoulders and was hit in the face with his erect penis. The cardinal smiled, the boy said.

“Don’t worry, it’s only natural,” he said, the boy recounted.

The verdict in the first trial was made subject to a suppression order that barred publication in Australia of any news related to the case.

[Read the article about the conviction that was blocked from online publication until now.]

Prosecutors preparing for the second trial had hoped to prove that his history of abuse proved that Cardinal Pell had a tendency toward molesting children.

Under Australian law, a judge may admit such only evidence if its evidentiary value outweighs the risk of prejudice to the defendant.