Hidden Justice

One of the most important and damaging stories in the last 25 years has been the sexual abuse of children by Catholic priests that went on for decades and was covered up by superiors. A coverup that allowed the crimes to continue for years. Thousands of  vulnerable children from alter boys to high school girls have been violated and their lives ruined. The church has spent millions in legal settlements with the victims. Even after church officials finally admitted the enormity of the crimes, they still can’t stop offending victims. Pope Francis recently admitted grave errors in defending a bishop in Chile who is accused of covering up one of the country’s most notorious pedopile priests. No top official in the church has ever been held accountable or charged with a crime until now.

Austrialian Cardinal George Pell has been charged in his home country with sexual abuse of children dating back decades. Pell is currently the chief financial officer in the Vatican, the third highest ranking official in the church behind the pope. There are two seperate trials scheduled to deal with crimes in different decades. But the public may not get to see any of it. Prosecutors in Victoria have asked the judge for a “super injunction” which essentially asks the judge for secret trials. It’s considered an extreme move to supposedly keep the juries in both trials from becoming biased or effected by publicity. It calls for a complete news blackout. The news media wouldn’t even be able to report when and where the trials were taking place. Even the judge’s name couldn’t be published.

There is nothing more important to an open, democratic society than a transparent justice system. I had the opportunity to work with a team of people that started the cable television network Court TV back in the early 1990s. We took cameras into courtrooms all over the country, where states allowed them, to broadcast trails live, and on tape. We covered the rape trial of William Kennedy Smith, the murder trial of the Menendez brothers, and the trial of OJ Simpson. But we covered hundreds of civil trials and even parole hearings that showed people how the justice system works. This allowed people to understand their most basic right in a free country.

Cameras are allowed in courtrooms in some states. They are allowed in the US Congress and in every state legislature. In the hundreds of trials we covered, we never had a complaint about the camera being an intrusion, or lawyers playing to the camera. They were small and operated remotely. The United States Supreme Court, which makes decisions that effect all our lives refuses to allow cameras into its chamber. Only in the last few years has the court allowed audio recordings. This is one of the reasons most people can’t even name the justices, know their background, and how the stand on issues. They are appointed for life. We should be able to see them working for us.

Australia’s justice system obviously has different rules that we do. But as a society that believes in truth and open government, we should be ever vigilant when any government doesn’t want us to see what we have every right to see. The Pell case is of worldwide importance. The damage done to people’s lives and beliefs by one of the biggest, strongest organizations in history can never be undone. Pell should be considered innocent until proven guilty. But, we should be able to bear witness to the process. Justice should be blind, meaning impartial and objective, not hidden.