The former head of the Catholic Church's military diocese has been wrongly accused of being a child sex abuser while two other clergymen may have been responsible, a Perth court has heard.
Bishop Max Leroy Davis is charged with six counts of being grossly indecent with five boys under the age of 15 between December 1968 and October 1972 at St Benedict's College in New Norcia, northeast of Perth.
Davis, 70, was the dorm master and in charge of discipline and corporal punishment at the boarding school at the time, the West Australian District Court heard on Monday.
In his opening address, prosecutor Mark Nicol said the boys were touched sexually under the guise of medical examinations in their bed or infirmary, or while seeking clarification on sex education.
After touching one boy, Davis allegedly told him he would "grow up to be a powerful man".
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The court heard the boys were shocked and uncomfortable, but did not discuss what happened with anyone at the time.
Defence counsel Seamus Rafferty accepted the complainants were sexually abused, but said his client emphatically denied being the culprit and had always found such conduct utterly abhorrent.
Mr Rafferty said there were at least two other members of the clergy, both of whom were now dead, who could have been responsible.
One was Father Justin, who was replaced immediately at the school after Davis alerted Catholic authorities that some older students were concerned about his behaviour.
The other was Brother Benedict, who was known to have taken photographs of students' genitals.
Mr Rafferty asked the jury to assess the credibility of all witnesses.
"A truthful witness can often be a mistaken witness," he said.
Davis, who was the Catholic head of the Defence Force for 12 years before being charged, was ordained as a priest in October 1971.
Mr Rafferty said while Davis was at the school he was never referred to as "brother", which was how the complainants described him, but was instead called "Mr Davis" or "Sir".
He said Davis also never wore a habit because he was not a member of the Benedictine order.
While other Catholic priests had been found to have behaved in a "disgraceful, evil, despicable manner" with children, it did not mean Davis was also guilty, Mr Rafferty said.
The trial continues.
