Category: Sex Offences

By Zeb Holmes and Ugur Nedim A recent report by the Australian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) suggested that workplace sexual harassment is on the rise across the nation. But while the global #metoo movement has encouraged complainants to come forward and report sexual misconduct, journalist Ronan Farrow has criticised Australian defamation laws for discouraging reporting ...

By Sonia Hickey and Ugur Nedim In an exceptionally rare but welcomed move, Pope Francis (pictured) has defrocked a Chilean priest convicted of sexually assaulting children. It’s the toughest penalty available to the Pope – with the exception of ex-communication, and a sign the Church may finally be taking a stronger stance against clergymen who ...

New research by the Human Rights Commission suggests that sexual harassment is on the rise in Australian workplaces. The study, the fourth of its kind since 2012, found that one in three people reported being sexually harassed in the workplace, up from 21 per cent in 2012. It also found that 71 percent reported being ...

By Sonia Hickey and Ugur Nedim Sections of the community are calling for the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) to appeal the sentence of a school duty mistress who has walked free after being convicted of sexual offences involving several teenage boys in her care. The offences The 25-year old former school duty mistress at ...

There are calls for change in the Australian family law system after an approved ‘expert’ was referred for investigation over allegations he prepared “grossly inaccurate” reports to be presented in evidence to support claims of child abuse and family violence. A group of parents has accused the expert of “grossly inaccurate and incomplete” recording of ...

By Sonia Hickey and Ugur Nedim Australia’s Catholic leaders have steadfastly refused to break the seal of confession, regardless of the consequences. Existing laws Section 127 of the New South Wales Evidence Act enables clergy “to refuse to disclose a religious confession made to him or her, unless the confession was made for a criminal ...

Australian actor John Jarrett is best known for his starring role in the film Wolf Creek, in which he plays a serial killer who kidnaps and tortures three backpackers in the outback. The 66-year old was publicly accused in November last year of sexually assaulting a female housemate in 1975, while living with his wife ...

The NSW state government commissioned a review of the laws relating to consent in sexual assault cases in May 2018, following the acquittal of a man accused of sexually assaulting an 18-year old woman in an alleyway behind his father’s Kings Cross nightclub in 2013. The proposal has been met with opposition by the President ...

High-profile cases such as the trial of Hey Dad! star Robert Hughes, the investigation of Hollywood movie mogul Harvey Weinstein and comedian Bill Cosby, and the prosecution of Australian entertainer Rolf Harris, along with the rise of the #metoo movement, and recent Royal Commission into child sexual abuse, have all shone a spotlight of sexual ...

The most senior Catholic in the world to be convicted of concealing a serious indictable offence has resigned amid intense public pressure. 67-year old Adelaide Archbishop Phillip Wilson stepped-down from his position yesterday, more than two months after being found guilty of covering-up the abuse of two altar boys by a fellow priest. The story ...