"I'm a battler," Bishop Christopher Saunders once told the ABC on live radio.
asserted
Saunders → tell → radio
"I'm somebody who has a strong sense of justice, and I feel compelled to correct what is wrong.
asserted
what → have → justice
They are haunting words from the charismatic Catholic cleric, who has been jailed for six and a half years for the sexual assault of young men.
asserted
who → jail → men
The court sentence has been met with relief by parishioners and church accountability campaigners.
asserted
sentence → meet → parishioners
Why did it take church authorities several years to act on abuse allegations?
asserted
it → take → allegations
Why did they urge people to pray for him while he was investigated?
asserted
he → urge → him
And why has the 76-year-old still not been defrocked?
asserted
old → defrock → ?
"It is absolutely chilling to hear what's occurred," safety campaigner Anne Barrett Doyle says.
asserted
Doyle → hear → ?
The practising Catholic has been monitoring the case from faraway Boston, where she helps run an online database of bishops accused of abuse and misconduct.
asserted
she → practise → abuse
"The church has once again failed the victims because for them, the great crime seems to be causing scandal, not raping vulnerable people.
asserted
crime → fail → people
"How many more chances are they going to get?"
asserted
they → go → chances
The flying bishop
Saunders arrived in the remote Diocese of Broome in 1975 as a deacon and was ordained the following year.
asserted
Saunders → fly → deacon
He would stay for five decades, flying a small plane around the remote Aboriginal mission communities to officiate the baptisms, weddings and funerals of generations of families.
asserted
He → stay → families
With his love of a drink and a smoke, Saunders appeared a perfect fit for the outback diocese, as comfortable wining and dining with the wealthy business-owners of Broome as he was tramping around bush communities with elderly Aboriginal parishioners.
asserted
he → appear → parishioners
Community leaders say it is hard to overstate the influence he had across the vast region, where the "mission days" of the stolen generations cultivated a staunch, lifelong loyalty to the church.
asserted
days → say → church
"He was a bishop, so he's a high-ranking officer in the Catholic Church, so everyone looked up to him," Karajarri man Gordon Marshall says.
"He definitely used his standing to force people into doing things that they really didn't want to do."
asserted
they → rank → that
Over the years, Saunders was given affectionate nicknames, including "Brother B" and "The Flying Bishop".
asserted
Saunders → give → B
But in some circles he was referred to as "The BOAB".
asserted
he → refer → BOAB
It worked on two levels — as a reference to the famous bulging Kimberley tree, but also as an acronym: "bastard of a bishop".
asserted
It → work → bishop
Dark side revealed
In 2019, the facade began to crack as rumours of drunken naked parties with young Aboriginal men began to swirl around Broome.
asserted
rumours → reveal → Broome
Subsequent police investigations and a damning internal report culminated in a three-week trial in the Perth District Court, ending with Saunders being found guilty of one count of sexual penetration and 12 counts of indecent assault.
asserted
Saunders → culminate → assault
In response to the sentence, Australian Catholic Bishops Conference chair Archbishop Timothy Costelloe issued an apology.
asserted
Costelloe → issue → apology
"Those who came forward to tell their story did so with great courage," he said in a statement.
asserted
he → come → statement
"We are sorry for the pain and suffering that was inflicted on you.
asserted
that → inflict → you
"We are sorry that your trust was so directly and profoundly betrayed by a leader of the church.
asserted
trust → betray → church
But those familiar with the case say it is far from resolved.
asserted
it → say → case
Bishop goes rogue
asserted
Bishop → go → rogue
The ABC has assembled a detailed timeline of police statements and internal emails that reveal the Catholic Church knew about abuse allegations for years before Saunders voluntarily stood aside.
asserted
Saunders → assemble → years
In 2018, multiple written reports were made to WA Police and Catholic safeguarding agencies.
asserted
reports → write → Police
But it appears no steps were taken to physically remove Saunders from young people.
asserted
steps → appear → people
In December 2018, an email from a Catholic Professional Standards staffer to a colleague showed Saunders's status was under discussion.
asserted
status → show → discussion
"Are these incidents recent or still ongoing for risk assessment purposes, as if this is the case I need to speak with the police to determine if further control measures should be taken," the email said.
asserted
email → need → police
"I will then consult with the appropriate church authority.
asserted
I → consult → authority
I need to be careful not to affect any ongoing police investigative operation that is ongoing."
At the time, Saunders was not aware of the police investigation, so it was in accordance with church policy that the agency did not want to tip him off.
asserted
agency → need → him
But a year later, when the allegations were splashed across national television, the church still did not restrict Saunders's movements or access to children and young people.
asserted
church → splash → children
He remained living in a church house in Broome, openly flouting a church directive to leave the diocese while investigations were underway.
asserted
investigations → live → diocese
Documents show whistleblowers were pleading with increasing urgency for Saunders to be removed.
asserted
Saunders → show → urgency
"From the time that the Catholic authorities were made aware of multiple, plausible allegations … Saunders has retained ready access to the potential victims while investigations continue," one priest wrote to the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference in May 2022.
uncertain
priest → make → May
"In the event that Saunders' guilt is confirmed, I believe that it will be very difficult to justify the way this saga has been handled.
asserted
saga → confirm → way
I'm not sure what the Vatican was thinking."
asserted
Vatican → think → what
…and 32 more, not listed.
The Aporia
