Do I Have to Testify in Court? Explaining Witness Competence and Compellability
Being called to ‘give evidence’ – also known as as testify – in a criminal trial can be a daunting experience; something you may not want to do for any of several reasons – you may be worried about saying...
Protesting Pell’s Legacy of Enabling Child Sex Offences
As George Pell’s body lays in state at St Mary’s Cathedral in Sydney in preparation today’s mass, there are tens of thousands of ribbons being tied to fences surrounding the church. The ribbons are intended as a reminder of those...
Go to Hell Pell: CARR’s April on Protesting the Cardinal’s Funeral
Since Cardinal George Pell died of a cardiac arrest on 10 January, campaigners against institutional child sexual exploitation and abuse within the church have been tying coloured ribbons to the fence outside of Sydney’s St Mary’s Cathedral in support of youths who...
Pell’s Passing Marks Justice Unserved and Exposes the Power of a Corrupt Church
The 10 January death of George Pell left many with a bad taste in their mouths. A former archbishop of both the Melbourne and Sydney archdioceses, Pell represented to many, the corrupting effect of power and the ability it gives...
Albanese’s Backdoor Diplomacy Could Spell Assange’s Death Knell
Following UK home secretary Priti Patel providing her government’s approval to the extradition of Julian Assange to the US on 17 June, the authorities at London’s Belmarsh prison stripped the Australian journalist naked and stuck him in isolation to prevent any...
Dispelling COVID Myths in the Age of Disinformation
The mass of conflicting information circulating online during the pandemic - or “plandemic”, if you prefer - has not only been exhausting for all, but it’s also contributed to a deep division forming in Australian society, which mirrors a similar...
Why Pell Walked: The High Court’s Findings
The full-bench of the High Court of Australia unanimously entered verdicts of acquittal in favour of appellant George Pell on 7 April 2020, in relation to child sexual offences in respect of which a jury unanimously found him guilty in...
Should Pope Francis Have Made Comments After Pell’s Acquittal?
‘Empty streets and eerie silence greet George Pell’s final verdict,’ read the headline from the Guardian’s coverage of George Pell’s High Court acquittal this week. And how telling those words are. If we weren’t all preoccupied with the immediate and...
George Pell Not Guilty, High Court Finds
Cardinal George Pell will walk free today after the High Court of Australia granted special leave for him to appeal against his convictions in the Court of Appeal of the Supreme Court of Victoria for child sexual offences, allowed his...
George Pell’s High Court Appeal: Last Throw of the Dice
The High Court of Australia will hear George Pell’s application for ‘special leave’ (permission) to appeal, which if granted will provide him with the last throw of the dice to have his convictions for historical child sexual offences overturned. High...
