A court case in a Bavarian town in Germany against the late Pope Benedict XVI will continue in spite of his death. The former Pope was accused of covering up sexual abuse committed by a priest during his time as archbishop of Munich and Freising.
In the final years of his life, the recently deceased Pope Benedict XVI had been set to stand trial in a Bavarian court for a case dating back to his time as archbishop of Munich and Freising from 1977 to 1982.
Known back then by his real name Joseph Ratzinger, the former Pope has been accused, along with his successor Cardinal Friedrich Wetter, of failing to report a sexual abuse claim to police, instead choosing to transfer the disgraced priest to other regions.
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Andrea Titz, a spokesperson for the regional court in question, revealed that the normal procedure of interrupting court proceeding if one of the parties dies did not apply to the former Pope, as he was going "to be represented by a proxy."
However, a motion can be filed requesting an interruption until the heirs of the deceased are appointed, with Titz unable to reveal whether such a request will be made.
