The upcoming trials of Cardinal George Pell for alleged historical sexual offences may be conducted in secret, if a judge approves a super injunction order put forward by prosecutors.
Cardinal Pell's case is to return to the Victoria County Court in Melbourne on Wednesday, when dates for the trial are to be decided and Chief Justice, Peter Kidd, is due to rule on the blanket media ban.
The Vatican finance chief was ordered to stand trial last month after a committal hearing that ran for nearly a month. Cardinal Pell has pleaded not guilty to all charges and has denied any wrongdoing.
The application calls on the judge to prohibit any publications about the two separate trials until after the completion of the proceedings.
In the application, the director of public prosecutions wrote the order is necessary to prevent “a real and substantial risk of prejudice to the proper administration of justice” due to the intense publicity surrounding the case. This risk could not be prevented by other reasonably available means, the application says.
It also seeks a media blackout on the number of complainants, the number of charges and the nature of the charges.
Their exact details remain confidential, other than that they involve "multiple charges and multiple complainants" dating from the 1970s and 1990s.
Prosecutors want the order to apply to publications in all Australian states and territories, including any website or broadcast format accessible within Australia.
The 76-year-old Australian Cardinal has been on leave from his Vatican post as Prefect of the Secretariat for the Economy since charges against him were laid last June. He is unable to leave Australia under the conditions of his bail.
“I'm looking forward, finally, to having my day in court,” Cardinal Pell said in June 2017. “I’m innocent of these charges. They are false.”
The cardinal, who turns 77 next month, was Archbishop of Melbourne from 1996-2001, when he was appointed Archbishop of Sydney. Named a cardinal in 2003, he remained leader of Australia's oldest diocese in its biggest city until Pope Francis appointed him as head of the new secretariat in 2014.
PICTURE: Australia's most senior Catholic Cardinal George Pell departs the County Court of Victoria in Melbourne, Wednesday, May 2, 2018. (AAP Image/Daniel Pockett)
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