Catholic Melbourne Archbishop Peter Comensoli believes convicted pedophile Cardinal George Pell when he protests his innocence, and wonders if the sole living victim got the name of his abuser wrong.
A day after Victoria's Court of Appeal upheld Pell's conviction for the rape of a 13-year-old choirboy and sexual assault of another at Melbourne's St Patrick's Cathedral in 1996, Archbishop Comensoli said while he respected the courts, he also believed his friend and will continue to visit him in prison.
AAP
"I believe in what he said to me, on many occasions, that he's innocent and I continue to be really quite shocked with all of how things are developed," Archbishop Comensoli told 3AW on Thursday.
But he also went on to say he also believed the victim who came forward to police was abused within the church - but questioned whether it was Pell who abused him.
"I believe both [men]," Archbishop Comensoli said.
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"I genuinely think that I can take on my knowledge of the man in terms of George Pell and accept what he has said to me, I can also take on what I've heard of [the victim] and what he said in terms of abuse."
AAP
The fallen Cardinal, who was once among the most powerful figures in the Vatican, now has 28 days to apply for appeal to the High Court. That application needs to be granted before it can be heard.
Two judges would consider the application either on written submissions alone, or during a hearing when submissions are limited to 20 minutes for each side.
The court has to consider factors including whether them hearing an appeal is a matter of public importance, whether the decision relates to a matter of law, or if it's in the interests of the administration of justice.
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