Piers Akerman: Parallels between George Pell and Lindy injustice
Australians know courts are not always right in the light of the injustice done to Lindy Chamberlain, wrongfully convicted of her baby’s death. It would be a travesty of the worst kind should George Pell die in custody before his case is thoroughly reviewed by the highest court in the land, Piers Akerman writes.
Opinion
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- Split decision on Pell is worst possible outcome for supporters
- Challenge of George Pell’s verdict for Catholic parents
The Victorian Appeals Court’s 2-1 decision to reject Cardinal George Pell’s appeal raises serious questions about justice.
As is obvious from the split on the bench, the justices were not of one mind but, having read the 120-page joint opinion of the Chief Justice Anne Ferguson, the President of the Court of Appeal Justice Chris Maxwell, and the 203-page dissenting opinion of Justice Mark Weinberg, it is difficult to believe the High Court would not hear an appeal against the decision.
It should, and it should do so urgently because of the 78-year-old cardinal’s well-known ongoing and deteriorating health issues. It would be a travesty of the worst kind should George Pell die in custody before his case is thoroughly reviewed by the highest court in the land.
This is not to diminish in any way the awful nature of the crimes of which he has been convicted nor lessen the empathy for all victims of sexual abuse but solely to restore faith in the Australian justice system, and in particular the Victorian courts, which, by the very nature of the split decision, are now justifiably under the spotlight.
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Australians know full well that courts are not always right in the light of the extraordinary injustice done to Lindy Chamberlain, wrongfully convicted in the Northern Territory. In their opinion, Justice Ferguson and Justice Maxwell constantly play down a series of inconsistencies in the evidence of the alleged victim, known as A. They even say that the inconsistencies and contradictions in his testimony, in some bizarre twist of reasoning, actually give his account greater authenticity.
The dissenting judge, Justice Weinberg, is widely acknowledged as the foremost authority on criminal law on any bench in the nation. His lengthy opinion is precise about the evidence presented during the Pell trials. He details the flaws in the evidence that cannot or rather should not be overlooked.
It must also be noted that it’s not uncommon for the High Court to overturn decisions from the Victorian Appeals Court.
As Professor Mirko Bagaric, the Director of the Evidence-based Sentencing and Criminal Justice Project at Swinburne University told me yesterday, four decisions handed down by the Victorian Appeals court were heard by the High Court last year and three were overturned.
Not only that, the High Court took the highly unusual step of criticising the Victorian Court of Appeal when overturning its decision in The Queen v Falzon saying the Victorian court’s decision was patently contrary to established legal authority and that the Victorian court effectively “refused to follow those earlier decisions while purporting to observe them”.
A High Court spokesman was approached for comment but did not get back to me.
I urge readers to explore the approach taken by Justice Ferguson and Maxwell and their language and compare it with the analysis taken by Justice Weinberg.
Cardinal Pell’s team has 28 days to file an appeal, which it is to be hoped, the High Court agrees to hear speedily.
Those progressives who cheered the Victorian Appeal Court’s decision should examine the basis of their jubilation for it may not be long-lived.
VALE TIM FISCHER
It would be fitting if the federal government honoured Tim Fischer by posthumously awarding General Sir John Monash with the rank of Field Marshal, a cause Mr Fischer championed, and by ensuring that his state funeral is marked with a steam train’s whistle.
Numerous tributes have remarked on the former National Party leader’s decency because this trait has all but disappeared from political life.
When I first met him, he and I were wearing towels having just showered in the old NSW state parliament. I was the state roundsman for The Daily Mirror. Near-naked perhaps but with Tim (later to be known as Two-minute Tim for his ferocious schedule) what you saw was what you got. An open and honest man with a deep and compassionate heart.
Not unnaturally, we kept in loose contact over the past nearly 50 years and my admiration for the Vietnam veteran never diminished because he gave no cause for it to decline.
In an age of political cowardice where faith takes second place to political ambition Mr Fischer never resiled from his beliefs and always sought to help those who needed his support.
He was open about his autism, his love and care for his sons, one of whom who is also autistic, and his wife, Judy.