On 12 April 2008 I wrote to Archdeacon Deryck Howell, who was Chair of the Professional Standards Committee (PSC) of the Anglican Church, Sydney diocese. This was after Phillip Gerber, Director Sydney PSU, had referred the case of the complaint by Lee Nicholls on behalf of her adult daughter Emma Nicholls to the PSC in what I, and others, saw as a blatant attempt to provide him, Mr. Gerber, with a way out for his remarkable incompetence and unprofessionalism in his handling of the complaint, and a justification for even accepting the complaint in the first place. This letter is reproduced in this article.
On 27 April 2008 Dr. Dobbs wrote to Archdeacon Deryck Howell requesting some documents he was reliably informed had been given to the investigator, and some information. This letter is also reproduced in this article.
On 30 May 2008 I wrote a second letter to the PSC, which is also reproduced here.
The Archdeacon and the PSC ignored the warnings they were given that they did not have a safe process and ignored Dr. Dobbs’ letter and failed to provide the material requested. Instead, they responded with a cover-up of their own, paving the way for more abuse of the Dobbs family until the case collapsed when it was listed for hearing in the Sydney diocese Disciplinary Tribunal.
Please read these in conjunction with my article “Trial by Committee” about the defects in the PSC’s process and its’ findings and recommendations in the Dobbs’ case.
Open Letter to Disciplinary Tribunal Nov 2008 revised Jan 2018