By a 2-to-1 vote, an Australian appellate court this week dismissed George Cardinal Pell's appeal of his conviction on five counts of "historic" child sexual abuse. For Pell's supporters, the decision can hardly be surprising. Given the way things had gone, a just outcome would have come as a shock.
Prosecutors accused Pell of surprising two choirboys who were guzzling communion wine in the sacristy of the Melbourne cathedral immediately after Mass one Sunday in 1996. The cardinal was charged with forcing the boys to fellate him while he was still vested in archbishop's robes.
The allegations were utterly implausible — for several reasons well-established by the defense at trial.
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