Updated
Contempt of court proceedings against broadcaster Ray Hadley and the editor of the Herald Sun newspaper have been withdrawn in relation to the conviction of Cardinal George Pell.
Key points:
- Charges against Ray Hadley and Damon Johnston have been withdrawn
- More than 30 other journalists and media organisations still face contempt of court charges
- The charges relate to stories published and broadcast about George Pell's trial, in which he was not named
The names of the editor of the Herald Sun newspaper, Damon Johnston, and Hadley, a 2GB radio broadcaster, have been struck out from updated documents filed in the Victorian Supreme Court on Monday by Victoria's Office of Public Prosecution (OPP).
More than 30 journalists and news organisations are still facing contempt proceedings after allegedly breaching suppression orders related to the guilty verdict against Cardinal Pell over historic sexual offences.
Pell was found guilty of sexually abusing two choirboys at St Patrick's Cathedral in Melbourne in 1996, when he was archbishop of Melbourne.
He was convicted in December, but details of the trial were only able to be made public in February, when a suppression order was lifted.
The suppression order was put in place to protect a second trial which was later abandoned.
Pell was later sentenced to six years in prison.
When the jury delivered its verdict, it was reported on international news websites, where the court had no jurisdiction.
But a number of local agencies were accused of flouting the suppression order by running stories about the verdict — without naming Cardinal Pell.
The Herald Sun front page read: "CENSORED: The world is reading a very important story that is relevant to Victorians. The Herald Sun is prevented from publishing details of this significant news. But trust us, it's a story you deserve to read."
The Age newspaper reported "a very high-profile figure was convicted on Tuesday of a serious crime, but we are unable to report their identity due to a suppression order".
When the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) first filed the proceedings, it contended many of the 36 named parties "had a tendency to interfere with the due administration of justice in the prosecution of Pell".
In the updated statement of claim, Johnston and Hadley were not listed as defendants.
The documents show the publisher of the Herald Sun, the Herald and Weekly Times, is still facing possible sanctions over its online coverage.
Macquarie Media, which owns 2GB, is also still being pursued by the DPP.
Other publications owned by News Corp Australia ran similar articles and are similarly accused, including the Daily Telegraph, the Courier Mail, the Weekly Times and the Bendigo Advertiser.
Suppression orders not opposed
The revised statement of claim provides some more detail about the case the DPP seeks to make about the alleged breach of the suppression order made by Chief Judge Peter Kidd on June 25, 2018.
The document noted that two of the organisations named in the case, Nationwide News (which publishes the Daily Telegraph) and the Nine Network, had lawyers at those proceedings but did not oppose the suppression orders.
The DPP alleged the Herald Sun's online site breached the orders in several ways when it published an article entitled "Nation's Biggest Story; the story we can't report" on December 13, pointing readers to coverage overseas including The Washington Post.
The document also outlined how the article had "a serious tendency to prejudice the fair trial of the charges pending against Pell" in the second case.
The Age and its editor Alex Lavelle have been accused of breaching the order in the newspaper and an online article entitled "Why media can't report on a high-profile case" and also referencing overseas coverage, pointing out that "Google searches for the person's name surged yesterday".
The Age is also accused of prejudicing the second trial by referring to a another trial.
The document also mentioned The Age editorial which said "rampant use of suppression orders has become absurd" in Victoria.
The Sydney Morning Herald and the Australian Financial Review — part of Nine Publishing — are accused of similar breaches.
Similar allegations are also levelled at 2GB, Business Insider, Channel Nine and the Online news site Mamamia.
Johnston and Hadley have been approached for comment.
Topics: law-crime-and-justice, courts-and-trials, media, journalism, vic, melbourne-3000
First posted