Commonwealth Attorney-General Christian Porter has promised 94-year-old Hamilton woman Audrey Nash that he will personally send her a copy of a report into the sexual abuse committed by Marist Brothers in the 1970s.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Known as Case Study 43, the document was withheld from release following the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse.
Among other matters, the case study examines the response of the Marist Brothers to allegations of child sexual abuse made against Marist Brothers including Francis Cable (Brother Romuald) and Thomas Butler (Brother Patrick).
It also looks at the impacts of child sexual abuse on survivors, families, and the community.
The Royal Commission requested that the document only be released after all associated legal proceedings associated with it were finalised.
That occurred on Wednesday when the former principal of Hamilton Marist Brothers William Wade (Brother Christopher) was sentenced to four months jail for failing to disclose to police what he knew about the sexual abuse of his colleagues.
READ MORE:
Ms Nash, whose 13-year-old Andrew took his life in 1974 after being abused by Brother Romuald, wrote to Mr Porter several months ago requesting that the document to be released before she died.
"He wrote me a very nice email and said it would be coming out after Brother Christopher's trial and he would send me a copy by courier," Ms Nash said.
"We are hoping it will be whole story of the (Marist) brothers and their paedophilia, but I think we know it all now anyway."
"There were 15 brothers there when Andrew died and seven of them were paedophiles. The ones that didn't go to jail died before they could get them in."
The Commonwealth can only release the document after NSW Attorney General Mark Speakman confirms the legal matters have been finalised.
Wade pleaded guilty earlier this year to failing to provide information to police in 2014 during child abuse investigations into Darcy O'Sullivan, known as Brother Dominic, and Francis Cable, known as Brother Romuald, when they were at the school.
In a judgement that angered sexual abuse victims, Wade will serve his four month jail sentence as a community corrections order.
Acting Judge Michael Adams said despite Wade's grave moral failure to act on the numerous complaints when he had the chance, he could only be sentenced for failing to disclose his knowledge of what he knew when interviewed by police.
"It is obvious that, had the offender done his duty by the students for whom he was responsible at the time they made their complaints, the further sexual abuse of them and other victims may well have been prevented," Justice Adams said.
"His inaction and silence thus contributed to terrible consequences. However, it must be emphasised that he cannot now be punished for what he omitted to do at that time."
READ MORE:
While you're with us, did you know the Newcastle Herald offers breaking news alerts, daily email newsletters and more? Keep up to date with all the local news - sign up here
IN THE NEWS:
- Newcastle Knights CEO Phil Gardner on Tinkler, Nathan Brown, Ponga and how Wests bagged the Knights club for $1
- Teenager killed in single-vehicle crash on Mount View Road near Cessnock
- Listen to the Voice of Real Australia podcast: Dungog turns the wheel of fortune with mountain biking revolution
- Santos' Narrabri coal seam gas approval brings Hunter pipeline closer
- Emerging motorcycle star jailed over MDMAEmerging motorcycle star jailed over MDMA syndicate that stretched from Newcastle to Tamworth in regional NSW
- Marist Brother William Wade sentenced to a four month community corrections order for concealment of sexual crimes