hence a greater access of little  bums to root

Catholic Church allegedly hid crimes of paedophile priests

A senior serving police officer, Detective Chief Inspector Peter Fox, claims the Catholic church covered up crimes of paedophile priests, silenced investigations and destroyed crucial evidence to avoid prosecutions in the Newcastle-Hunter area of New South Wales.

Transcript
TONY JONES, PRESENTER: Tonight a senior serving police officer alleges the Catholic Church covers up crimes of paedophile priests, silences investigations and destroys crucial evidence to avoid prosecutions.

Detective chief inspector Peter Fox has spent more than 30 years as an investigator and has been at the centre of major police operations in the Newcastle-Hunter area of New South Wales.

He's written a letter to the Premier, Barry O'Farrell, calling for a Royal Commission.

Mirroring police evidence given to the Victorian inquiry, he says in his letter, "Many police are frustrated by this sinister behaviour which will continue until someone stops it."

Well coming up in our interview tonight, Peter Fox will reveal much more of what he describes as a network protecting paedophile priests.

First, this report by Suzanne Smith.

SUZANNE SMITH, REPORTER: Detective chief inspector Peter Fox spoke at a rally of victims and their families in Newcastle last September.

PETER FOX, NSW POLICE (Sept. 2012): I've been on the police force for 34 years. I'm not a kid that just joined yesterday. I've been involved in investigating the clergy for about 20 of those. There are very good reasons, let me tell you, that we need a Royal Commission.

SUZANNE SMITH: To understand the enormity of the abuse in this one small area of NSW, you need only to look at the statistics for the Newcastle-Maitland Diocese:

Newcastle-Maitland has 400 known victims of child sexual abuse by clergy.

11 clergy have been charged and convicted since 1995.

Six catholic teachers have been convicted.

Three priests on trial at the moment.

For the first time ever a priest was charged this year with concealing the crimes of another.

12 priests involved in substantial compensation claims.

And, it had the highest known compensation payout to a victim, the amount of $3 million.

And today, two police strike forces are investigating whether Church officials were involved in covering up crimes.

Not all the clergy are fully cooperating with police.

But the Premier, Barry O'Farrell, has repeatedly said the police have the investigation under control.

BARRY O'FARRELL, NSW PREMIER: I'm not interested in a made-for-TV moment announcing a Royal Commission. I'm interested in getting people to pay the penalty of the abuse of children, the taking from young people their future.

SUZANNE SMITH: But Peter Fox believes police prosecutions on their own cannot deal with the Church structures and systems for reporting abuse.

PETER FOX (Sept. 2012): I don't accept Mr O'Farrell's comment that the police force has it all under control.

SUZANNE SMITH: Peter Fox was responsible for the conviction of the paedophile priest Father Jim Fletcher.

In 2003, the NSW Ombudsman launched an investigation after a victim's mother complained about why Father Fletcher had not been stood down by the Church and removed from contact with children during the police investigation.

The NSW Ombudsman's office produced a report in 2004 that was highly critical of the Catholic Church's reporting systems. The Catholic Church received a copy of that report, but the victim's mother did not. Peter Fox is calling on the Ombudsman's office to release that report to the public in the interests of transparency.

A spokeswoman for the Ombudsman says the report cannot be released due to privacy provisions in the Act.

Peter Fox also encountered alleged serious issues of cover-up in his investigation of Father Denis McAlinden. The priest had arrived in Australia from Ireland in 1949 and for four decades he was transferred from parish to parish and even outside Australia to New Zealand, Papua New Guinea and the United Kingdom.

This NSW Department of Public Prosecutions is now looking at whether McAlinden's crimes were covered up by three senior members of the clergy, including the general secretary of the Australian Catholics Bishops Conference, Brian Lucas, the Archbishop of Adelaide, Philip Wilson and former Bishop of Newcastle, Michael Malone.

Detective chief inspector Peter Fox was in the middle of investigating this matter in 2010 when he was directed to hand over all his evidence to other officers, including a statement from a critical witness:

PETER FOX (Sept. 2012): I sat down with that woman I think for about seven three, four hour sessions and typed up a statement. And let me tell you, it's explosive. And the material I put together and finally when I did contact the Police Department, I was directed to hand that statement over to other people, cease my investigations on that matter and to hand over other documents.

SUZANNE SMITH: Lateline asked NSW Premier O'Farrell for a specific response to Peter Fox's letter to him. His spokesman released this statement:

SPOKESMAN FOR NSW PREMIER BARRY O'FARRELL (male voiceover): "... Police investigations are ongoing and he won't interfere with that ... the best result is successful prosecutions and no-one should keep these offences secret ...".

SUZANNE SMITH: Suzanne Smith, Lateline.

How come these pricks are above the law ??

I read a study only a few months back, and it stated that in many cases the pedo's are so predispositioned to their illness from an early age in late teens etc (its not something that creeps up on them) that they actually seek employment that will give them access to children, however they do it more sub consciously than consciously.

They why professions like the preisthood, teachers and youth workers have the highest percentage of abusers from OUTSIDE THE FAMILY.

Sadly the family is still the highest percentage of abusers.

So if your Uncle is a catholic priest, you fukked.

Sadly the family is still the highest percentage of abusers.

So if your Uncle is a catholic priest, you fukked.

you seem to be defending them. How come ?

Where was I defending them?

I was merely sharing information I have read about the psychology of the offender.

I didnt say that at all you liar.

I was merely pointing out that Pedos seek employment that puts them in contact with children, and this explains the high offending rate.

Why would I defend anyone that does that you sick fukk.