Adelaide Archbishop Philip Wilson will appeal his conviction for concealing child sex crimes after refusing to resign and despite calls for his resignation from Malcolm Turnbull, Bill Shorten and senior Catholic priest Frank Brennan. Wilson, 67, who stepped aside from his role after his conviction but has not yet resigned, had been facing a maximum penalty of two years in prison. That left full-time jail or home detention and given Wilson's age, mental and physical conditions, and that he had nothing on his criminal record Mr Stone found he could be adequately punished with a 12-month home detention order." Magistrate Robert Stone told Wilson the reason for his sentence was due to the “the criminality of the concealment” and recognizing the “harm done to the community.”

The magistrate noted during his decision that there was now “so much public outcry” regarding child abuse cover up in the Catholic Church and other religious groups. “We have made history here in Australia, (this is the) highest ranked church official to ever be brought to account for what we know is a world wide systematic abuse of children and the concealment of that abuse,” Gogarty said. Creigh praised the efforts of Little and other investigators, saying without them Wilson’s conviction “would not have been possible.”

He expressed hope it would lead to more probes into the Catholic Church, an “organization that has betrayed society on such a huge scale.”

In a statement, the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference said it hoped “today’s custodial sentence brings some sense of peace and healing to those abused by deceased priest James Fletcher.”

“The Church has made substantial changes to ensure that abuse and coverup are not part of Catholic life and that children are safe in our communities,” it added. In 2015 he was charged with concealing a serious indictable offence, under Section 316 of the New South Wales Crimes Act which states:

University of New South Wales Law Professor Annie Cossins described it as a very general offence often used against people who were affiliated with one another, such as gang members. Newcastle Magistrate Robert Stone handed down the sentence on Tuesday, saying Adelaide Archbishop Philip Wilson had shown "no remorse or contrition" for covering up for Father Jim Fletcher, who was convicted on nine counts of abuse of boys in 2004. The Catholic Church said it hoped the sentence brought some peace for the victims of Fletcher, who died in jail in 2006. There was also grief for other boys who were subsequently abused by Fletcher, including Mr Gogarty and Daniel Feenan, whose report to police in 2003 eventually led to Fletcher’s conviction, Bishop Wright said.
Roman Catholic Archbishop of Adelaide, Philip Wilson, is sentenced to 12 months in detention for covering up child sexual abuse in the 1970s. Pope Francis appoints Port Pirie Bishop Gregory O'Kelly as Apostolic Administrator, but with special near-full powers to govern the Archdiocese, though for now Wilson is still the Archbishop.