The New Zealand Police have after
a ten-month investigation concluded that Cardinal John Dew, retired
Archbishop of Wellington, is not implicated in a case concerning an
allegation of historical sexual abuse.
Dew had faced accusations
of serious criminal sexual misconduct that allegedly occurred at St
Joseph's Orphanage in Upper Hutt while serving as an assistant priest
there.
The alleged abuse is claimed to have taken place in November 1977, at a time when the accuser was placed in an orphanage operated by the Sisters of Mercy, remaining there for 10 days.
Cardinal Dew said he first heard of the allegation May 6 last year, a day after he retired as Archbishop of Wellington.
"I
am writing to you regarding recent media coverage of an allegation
against Cardinal John Dew about events alleged to have taken place in
the 1970s.
The New
Zealand Police investigated the allegation. They have stated that they
have concluded their investigation and no charges will be laid,"
Archbishop Paul Martin of Wellington wrote March 7 in a letter to the
people of all the country's parishes, schools and Catholic agencies.
Church inquiries to proceed
Cardinal
Dew stepped down from his role as Archbishop of Wellington in May last
year upon reaching the age of 75, which is the standard retirement age
for Catholic bishops.
Following
the Church's protocols, Cardinal Dew withdrew from all public church
activities once the allegation was made known to the Church. Throughout
this process, Cardinal John has maintained his innocence, Archbishop
Martin said.
"Inquiries by the Church are not run concurrently to
those being undertaken by the Police. Now that the police investigation
has concluded, Cardinal John continues to stand aside while Church
inquiries proceed," Archbishop Martin said.
Cardinal Dew had
tried various legal avenues to block the Newshub media company from
publishing allegations of sexual abuse against him.
He
attempted to secure an injunction to halt the story, initially
approaching the High Court and then the Supreme Court without success.
Dew
in a statement expressed gratitude towards numerous witnesses who
provided affidavits confirming the alleged incident could not and did
not occur.
In a statement, Dew mentioned he is unfamiliar with the accusers and has never encountered them.
Dew
represented the Catholic Church during the Royal Commission
investigating abuse in State Care and Faith-based Institutions,
acknowledging that "we caused you pain, hurt and trauma and this
continues to impact you". "Any kind of abuse is unacceptable and
indefensible. We are deeply sorry," the cardinal had said.
He
pointed out that he would not have been able to testify and issue a
public apology on behalf of the New Zealand Catholic Church if the
allegations against him were true.
"The word 'integrity' has always meant a great deal to me"
"The
word 'integrity' has always meant a great deal to me, and those words
have guided my life" Cardinal Dew told CathNews New Zealand.
On
being interviewed by the policed him about the allegation, Dew said: "I
stated immediately, and state again now, that there have never been any
instances of improper or abusive behavior in my 48 years of priesthood."
Dew
is also the focus of a separate investigation by the Church. This
investigation follows the "Vos estis lux mundi" process, a
Vatican-initiated procedure that assigns a critical role to the
Metropolitan Archbishop in managing a Church investigation when there
are sexual abuse allegations against a bishop, priest, or deacon.
After the investigation is completed, its findings are forwarded to the Holy See.
Archbishop
Martin, as the current Metropolitan Archbishop of New Zealand, has
taken over the responsibility of overseeing the "Vos estis"
investigation into his predecessor.
Dew has been suspended from his ministry duties during the ongoing Church investigation.
Dew
was ordained to the priesthood in 1976. He served as an assistant
priest at St Joseph's Parish in Upper Hutt from 1976 to 1979, the period
during which the alleged abuse took place.
In 1995, he was ordained as Auxiliary Bishop of Wellington Archdiocese.
John Paul II appointed him as coadjutor Archbishop of Wellington in 2004, and he headed the archdiocese a year later.
Pope Francis made him a cardinal in 2015. Dew also held the position of president of the New Zealand Catholic Bishop's Conference.