Longer than a magazine piece but shorter than a book, Quarterly Essay shapes our public culture in significant ways.
Articles on George Pell
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The debut novels of two forceful, intelligent journalists are bold, brash stories of powerful women at the top of their game. One details a horrific sexual crime, the other ugliness in the art world.
News of George Pell’s death may generate a roller coaster of complex and variable emotions among abuse survivors.
Pell, often described as a conservative Catholic, was jailed for child sexual abuse in Australia in 2019 but maintained his innocence and was acquitted the following year.
There is a clear legal reason why publications including The Age and news.com.au have copped hefty penalties.
A new book by journalist Louise Milligan exposes the brutality of many witnesses’ encounters with the criminal trial process.. It is informed, too, by her own experience of cross-examination.
Pell said after his acquittal he would ‘be very surprised if there’s any bad findings’ in the redacted portions of the royal commission report. This is not the case.
Conviction rates for sexual offences remain low, despite legal reforms in recent years. One reason is the criminal standard of ‘reasonable doubt’ when supporting evidence may be difficult to produce.
The appeal may lead to a loss of public confidence in the jury system, but that’s how the justice process works.
This High Court appeal did not ask whether Pell committed the offences. It asked whether the two majority judges in the Victorian Court of Appeal, in dismissing Pell’s earlier appeal, made an error.
The High Court has referred Cardinal George Pell’s application for special leave to appeal his convictions to the full bench of the High Court.
By a majority of two to one, the Court of Appeal has dismissed Pell’s case, because it found guilty verdicts were open to the jury.
Investigative reporter Louise Milligan on Cardinal Pell and redactions in the Royal Commission’s report
The Conversation55.2 MB (download)
When the royal commission handed down its massive report in late 2017, several sections were redacted until after any legal proceedings against Cardinal Pell were concluded.
Pell trial reporters, a judge and a media lawyer on why the suppression order debate is far from over
The Conversation, CC BY79.9 MB (download)
On the day George Pell was sentenced, several experts with wide-ranging experiences of suppression orders discussed how they affect the public’s right to know and whether the laws should be reformed.
Parents must encourage open conversations with their children from a young age.
A hung jury does not necessarily undermine a verdict in a subsequent trial – it more likely means some of the jurors from the first trial agreed with the final verdict.
George Pell’s conviction has opened a rift in Australian society, with many people questioning the guilty verdict. Pell’s lawyer has said he will appeal. On what grounds could he do that?
The media frenzy surrounding George Pell’s conviction may force victims of child sexual abuse to relive their own trauma.
Australian Catholics are drifting from the church, and research shows sexual abuse scandals are a main reason why.
George Pell’s current committal hearing engages the principle of ‘open justice’ and some of its most important exceptions.
Top contributors
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Distinguished Professor, School of Law, Queensland University of Technology
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PhD Student, Faculty of Law, Monash University
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Associate Professor in History, La Trobe University
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Professor of Communication, Deakin University
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Chair of Clinical Psychology, The University of Melbourne
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Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra
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Senior Lecturer, Faculty of Theology and Philosophy, Australian Catholic University
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Emeritus Professor in Law and Criminal Justice, Adelaide University
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Professor of Journalism, Media and Communication, Queensland University of Technology
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Professor of Journalism and Social Media, Griffith Centre for Social and Cultural Research, Griffith University, Griffith University
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Professor of Criminology, UNSW
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Emerita Professor, Australian National University
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Emeritus Professor of Sociology, Monash University
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Lecturer in Ethics & Philosophy, University of Notre Dame Australia
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Senior Lecturer, School of Humanities and Social Science, University of Newcastle