Judge slates nuns for denying abuse... that was proven by court
A JUDGE has criticised nuns for denying historical abuse in their convent-run school just days after it emerged a man was convicted of horrific crimes at the institution.
Brian Dailey was found guilty of a catalogue of physical and sexual child abuse throughout the 70s and 80s at a court hearing on June 29.
Among the charges found proven against the now 70-yearold were two outlining horrific, invasive abuse of children at Edinburgh’s Ladymary Residential School run by the Good Shepherd Sisters.
During the seven-day trial, the court heard harrowing evidence from one of the victims telling how Dailey would ‘punish’ him with the abuse ‘when there were no witnesses around’.
But speaking at the Scottish Child Abuse Inquiry (CAI) in Edinburgh on Tuesday, representative for the nuns David Anderson said it was the sisters’ position not to ‘give any retrospective acknowledgement of abuse’.
The astonishing claim led to a stern rebuke from inquiry chair, High Court judge Lady Smith, who asked whether this remained so ‘despite the conviction of somebody who was working at the Ladymary School on 29th June this year in relation to child abuse offences committed in 1974?’.
Mr Anderson responded to the question by saying: ‘That is the position, my Lady.’
He went on to reveal that he had received no instructions from the Good Shepherd Sisters regarding the matter and that he was not personally aware of the conviction.
Mr Anderson was speaking in closing submissions of the first phase of the hearings, summing up the evidence provided by his clients in previous weeks.
Sisters Anne Josephine Carr and Rosemary Kean of the Catholic order appeared to give evidence at the inquiry on June 15.
Just under a week before the trial of Dailey began, Sister Kean told the inquiry: ‘We have no awareness, we have no knowledge of abuse having taken place at any time and we certainly have no records. ‘We have no knowledge.’ And after an adjournment during lunchtime on Tuesday, their representative, Mr Anderson, asked to speak once more before the inquiry. He claimed that the sisters had never been made aware of the major case, despite the fact that Dailey was an employee of the order and working there at the same time as Sister Kean.
He said: ‘Neither of them had been contacted in relation to the prosecution or otherwise made aware of it. They are not aware of any other member of the congregation having been made so aware.’
once more Lady Smith took him to task, saying: ‘I would have thought that they would indeed want to know these details. Particularly since the complainer in the two charges, in response to which there were unanimous guilty verdicts, was at the Ladymary School at the same time as Sister Rosemary Kean was there.’
Mr Anderson indicated that the response from the order may need to be ‘updated’ in light of the conviction.
He added: ‘May I seek to assure your Ladyship this is a matter of the highest priority and further representations will be forthcoming as soon as possible.’
Dailey is being held in custody, with his case adjourned prior to sentencing later this month.
With the first phase of hearings concluded the Scottish Child Abuse Inquiry will resume with public evidence on october 31.