Former Catholic Bishop of Broome, Christopher Saunders, has been found guilty of 13 sex offences by a jury, while being acquitted of six other charges.
The jury found the former senior Catholic cleric guilty of multiple offences committed between 2008 and 2019, including one count of sexual penetration without consent, as well as charges of unlawful and indecent assault.
Saunders was acquitted of two charges of unlawfully dealing with a child over 16 under his authority and four additional indecent assault charges.
Saunders was ordained Bishop of Broome in 1996 but stepped down in 2020 after allegations of sexual abuse became public. He resigned from the Catholic Church in 2021.
The court heard evidence that Saunders hosted alcohol-fuelled gatherings at church-owned properties. Prosecutor Adam Ebell told the court that Saunders had exploited power imbalances between himself and the complainants.
The prosecution alleged that interactions over a period of more than a decade involved kissing, naked wrestling, inappropriate touching and penetrative sex.
Throughout the trial, Saunders maintained his innocence. His legal team argued that the three complainants had extensive criminal histories and histories of drug and alcohol abuse that affected the reliability of their memories.
Saunders was acquitted of a further seven charges during the trial after the judge ruled there was insufficient evidence for those matters to be considered by the jury.
Saunders, who is now 76 years old, is scheduled to return to court for sentencing at a later date.
Correction: An earlier version of this article incorrectly identified Christopher Saunders as a former Archbishop, when his correct rank was a Bishop. OUTinPerth apologises for the error.
