ABUSE TRACKER

The state’s largest religious denomination has yet to respond to a court decision permitting creditors to file a lawsuit for an estimated $500 million in local properties and possessions the church has sheltered in trusts.

A U.S. Bankruptcy Court will allow clergy abuse claimants to sue for an estimated half-billion dollars in parish assets to fund settlements under the Vermont Roman Catholic Diocese’s current financial reorganization case.

In a written order, Burlington-based Judge Heather Cooper said creditors can pursue not only the highest-level bank and building holdings of the state’s largest religious denomination, but also the trust-sheltered local property and possessions of nearly 70 parishes — from St. Edward the Confessor in northernmost Derby Line, population 687, to St. Joachim in southernmost Readsboro, population 702.

The order doesn’t promise any parish assets, but simply permits abuse claimants to file a lawsuit — what the bankruptcy court labels an “adversary proceeding”…

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The United States has asked the Philippine government to extradite a Filipino church leader, who was once an influential adviser to former President Rodrigo Duterte, to face trial on charges including child sex trafficking and fraud that landed him on the FBI’s most wanted list, two Philippine officials said Thursday.

The Department of Foreign Affairs in Manila said it has received the U.S. government request for Apollo Carreon Quiboloy’s extradition and endorsed it to the Department of Justice. That confirmed earlier separate statements to The Associated Press by two high-ranking Philippine officials, who said the U.S. request was transmitted in July.

The request needs the approval of two Philippine courts, which have been trying the detained former televangelist for human trafficking and child abuse charges, according to the two officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of a lack of authority to publicly discuss the issues.

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The U.S. has requested the extradition of a Philippine celebrity pastor accused of sex trafficking ​and sexually abusing his followers, Philippine officials said ‌on Thursday.

Apollo Quiboloy, the self-styled “Appointed Son of God” who founded the Kingdom of Jesus Christ (KOJC) church, is on the “most ​wanted” list of the FBI in the U.S., ​where he was charged with running a sex-trafficking ⁠operation that threatened young victims with “eternal damnation” and ​physical abuse.

Quiboloy has denied any wrongdoing.

Philippine ambassador to Washington ​Jose Manuel Romualdez and Manila’s foreign ministry said that a formal request for the extradition of Quiboloy has been transmitted to ​the Department of Justice.

Quiboloy’s lawyer said they could ​not yet comment on the request since they had not received ‌a ⁠formal notice.

Extradition is not immediate, as the Philippine justice ministry must first assess the U.S. request before filing a petition with a Philippine court,…

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Two weeks after the Vatican said its canonical criminal trial of Father Marko Rupnik was ongoing, OSV News has learned that 22 previously undisclosed letters from women who belonged to the Slovenian Loyola Community and described alleged abuse by the famed mosaic artist are part of the records of alleged abuse.

The letters, written in 2000 at the request of the community’s superior, Sister Ivanka Hosta, and addressed directly to Father Rupnik, are held in the archives of the Loyola Community, which are now in the custody of the Archdiocese of Ljubljana, Slovenia, according to people familiar with the case. In the letters, 22 women described alleged spiritual, psychological and sexual abuse by Father Rupnik while he was their spiritual director.

On Dec. 15, 2023, the Archdiocese of Ljubljana announced that the Vatican had ordered the Sisters of the Community of Loyola to be dissolved within one year, following a…

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Arizona justices unanimously ruled on Thursday (July 30) that trial courts couldn’t interfere in church leaders’ decision to report sexual abuse cases disclosed in confession, according to their own interpretation of religious doctrine.

The Arizona State Supreme Court ruled that church leaders do not need to report cases of sexual abuse, disclosed during confessions, to authorities, in a lawsuit brought against a man who confessed to Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints bishops to sexually abusing his daughter. 

Arizona justices unanimously ruled on Thursday (July 30) that trial courts couldn’t interfere in church leaders’ decision to report sexual abuse cases disclosed in confession, according to their own interpretation of religious doctrine.

“We hold that the First Amendment generally prohibits fact finders from inquiring into a clergy member’s application of his particular religious doctrine — absent fraud or collusion for secular purposes — in determining whether reporting should be withheld…

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In short:

The jury has been discharged in the trial of Neville Joseph Creen, who was accused of abusing a boy under 14 years old in the late 1970s and early ’80s.

He pleaded not guilty to repeated sexual conduct with a child and indecent treatment of a child.

What’s next?

The matter will return to court next week.

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A jury has failed to reach a unanimous verdict in the trial of a former Catholic priest accused of sexually abusing a boy almost 50 years ago.

Warning: This article contains details of alleged child sexual abuse some readers might find distressing.

Neville Joseph Creen was a priest in Mount Isa during the 1970s and early ’80s when he was accused of having a sexual relationship with a boy who was between 10 and 11 years old.

The 86-year-old faced trial in the Townsville District Court this week after pleading…

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The ex-educator will serve her jail sentence at the Edmonton Institution for Women and has been registered as a sex offender

Former education assistant Brooke Richer has been sentenced to 34 months in prison for sexually exploiting a student at a Grande Prairie Catholic school.

The ex-educator will serve her jail sentence at the Edmonton Institution for Women and has been registered as a sex offender.

Justice Kristan McLeod, Court of King’s Bench, delivered the facts of the case while highlighting those impacting her decision during a July 31 hearing.

Richer started work at a Grande Prairie and District Catholic School District as an educational assistant on September 7, 2023. The unnamed Grande Prairie student was not assigned to her. But, her work did cross over and she had helped him.

Twenty-one days after she started the job, the then 23-year-old Richer invited the 16-year-old student to her home for…

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The bishop of Maine says the Catholic diocese has arrived at “financial resolutions” with a number of clergy sexual-abuse victims.“

Even though pending cases that were decades old no longer had legal standing based on the ruling, the diocese recognizes that the harm caused by sexual abuse is not erased with time and still desired to respond with compassion,” Bishop James Ruggieri said in a statement.

Ruggieri said the payments are *intended to acknowledge, in a tangible way, consistent with our resources and obligations, the seriousness of what has been reported and the lasting impact of abuse.”

Paul Kendrick of Freeport, a spokesman for clergy sexual-abuse victims, called the bishop’s announcement “a public relations ploy designed to protect the identities of priest abusers, keep secret evidence of the church’s failure to protect children and low ball financial compensation for the lifelong harms and injuries inflicted upon victims.”

The Portland-based diocese…

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Bishop Morrissey of the Diocese of Geraldton testified in the sex abuse trial of Bishop Christopher Saunders.

An Australian bishop has appeared in court as a witness for the prosecution in the trial of the former head of the neighboring diocese on charges of sexual abuse.

Bishop Michael Morrissey of the Diocese of Geraldton appeared in court to give evidence in the trial of Bishop Christopher Saunders, the former leader of the Diocese of Broome on Monday, August 4, in Perth, Western Australia.

Bishop Saunders led the Broome diocese from 1996 until 2021, when he stepped down citing “ill health” amid allegations of grooming and sexual abuse of young Aboriginal men. He has since been charges with 19 counts of sexual abuse, as well as pleading guilty to multiple firearms charges last year.

On Monday, Bishop Morrissey was called as a witness by prosecutors and answered questions on “Integrity in…

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A Colorado Springs teacher is named in a civil lawsuit filed in Wisconsin in late June, claiming she failed to report a teacher who was later convicted of sexually assaulting students.

Susan Booth is a teacher at Eagleview Middle School in Academy District 20, according to the school’s website. Prior to her employment in Colorado Springs, she was a teacher and principal at St. Matthias School, a catholic school in Wisconsin.

Booth has not been charged or convicted of a crime.

The civil lawsuit is not filed against Booth personally, instead, the Archdiocese of Wisconsin and St. Matthias School are the defendants, but Booth is named in the contents of the lawsuit, it claims she failed to report sexual abuse at the school in 2013.

According to the complaint, while Booth was the school’s principal, the Parish Director and parents notified her about a teacher conducting tutoring sessions in a…

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The Polk County Sheriff’s Office Special Victims Unit arrested and charged 42-year-old Timothy Chaneyfield, the pastor at St. James United American Free Will Baptist Church in Winter Haven, after receiving a NCMEC (National Center for Missing and Endangered Children) cyber tip regarding inappropriate contact he was having with a child.

The investigation began on July 28, 2026 upon receipt of the tip. During an interview, the 14-year-old victim disclosed that he and Chaneyfield met on a dating mobile app, and then continued to chat via Instagram, which is where the NCMEC tip was generated. Chaneyfield picked up the victim on three consecutive days at the entrance to the victim’s subdivision, then drove the victim to his house in Winter Haven, where he had sex with the victim each day. During a phone call with the victim, Chaneyfield told the child that he wanted to continue having sex with him. He…

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AN ABUSE vic­tim says that he doubts he will live to see min­is­ters enact recom­mend­a­tions of a nation­wide inquiry.

Glaswe­gian Rafael Viola, 67, moved to Eng­land in 1969 and was sub­jec­ted to “unspeak­able” abuse at Cath­olic schools in the West Mid­lands.

He provided a wit­ness state­ment to the Inde­pend­ent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse by Pro­fessor Alexis Jay, pub­lished in 2022.

Now, he has said Prime Min­is­ter Andy Burnham needs to enact all of its recom­mend­a­tions, such as a redress scheme for sur­viv­ors.

Mr Viola said: “That inquiry cost £200mil­lion. Noth­ing came out of the inquiry, noth­ing at all.

“Twenty recom­mend­a­tions were put for­ward to the gov­ern­ment. This gov­ern­ment has shelved these recom­mend­a­tions.”

He told Mr Burnham: “Sur­viv­ors’ lives, they mat­ter. This is your chance now to show the Brit­ish pub­lic what kind of man you are.”

Mr Viola said there is “no help” for vic­tims and he suf­fers “trau­mat­isa­tion…

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The Roman Catholic Diocese of Portland has reached financial settlements with a number of people who previously sued the church, alleging they were sexually abused by Catholic priests, even though their claims were barred by Maine’s old statute of limitations.

The civil lawsuits alleged sexual abuse by Catholic priests between 1954 and 1988.

Maine no longer has a statute of limitations for civil child sexual abuse claims.

However, the claims in these cases had expired before that law changed, and in January 2025, the Maine Supreme Judicial Court ruled that older claims could not be revived retroactively.

Despite that ruling, the Diocese of Portland announced that Bishop James Ruggieri decided to enter into settlement agreements with some survivors.

In a statement, Ruggieri wrote, “this is intended to acknowledge, in a tangible way, consistent with our resources and obligations, the seriousness of what has been reported and the lasting impact of abuse.”

It is…

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A former Southern Baptist pastor has been sentenced to six years in prison after pleading no contest in a child sex abuse case in Florida. Monty Chitty briefly fled to Texas after his initial arrest in 2024 before being recaptured. 

Editor’s note: This article contains information about sexual abuse and assault that some readers may find disturbing and/or triggering.

Chitty, 64, was pastor of First Baptist Church of Marathon, Florida, when he committed his crimes against a teen girl. In March 2024, he was arrested at the church, which was also his place of residence, after calling the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office “to get ahead” of allegations he thought might be brought against him. 

Prior to Chitty’s call, deputies received a call from an anonymous caller who overheard a 15-year-old girl say that she had been raped.

Deputies interviewed the girl, who said that Chitty had given her an alcoholic beverage…

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The Buffalo Diocese’s review board substantiated misconduct allegations against Rev. O’Keefe, recommended clerical removal for Nowak, and cleared Rev. Gatto

The Buffalo Diocese is releasing the results from its Independent Review Board (IRB) investigations into several members of the clergy.

According to the Diocese, the board looked into allegations against Reverends Joseph Gatto and Patrick O’Keefe and the federal case against Reverend Jeffrey Nowak.

The Diocese says the IRB did not start its own separate inquiry into Father Nowak, but relied on the investigation from the Department of Justice and the FBI. Nowak, who has been on leave since 2019, was arrested last month on allegations that he possessed and distributed child sexual abuse material. In response to his indictment, the IRB recommended that Nowak be removed from clerical state in an expedited manner. As of July 15, Bishop Fisher had instructed the Diocese’s Judicial Vicar to…

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In a deal that ends a criminal investigation, a prestigious New York City medical institution agreed to boost its sexual abuse prevention program after one of its star doctors was convicted of abusing patients during a decade-long span and was sentenced to life behind bars, authorities said Monday.

Weill Cornell Medicine, whose faculty treats patients at several New York-area hospitals, reached a voluntary compliance agreement with the federal government that calls for it to spend $30 million to create the Institute for Safe Patient Care and Patient Empowerment.

Weill Cornell Medicine had previously agreed to pay victims over $1 billion to settle civil claims.

The deal comes after Darius Paduch, 59, was sentenced in 2024 to life in prison for sexually abusing patients from at least 2009 to 2019, including boys as young as 13. His victims, authorities said, suffered from certain genetic conditions, along with sexual and erectile dysfunction.

The…

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Editor’s Note: This article discusses sexual assault in healthcare. 

Weill Cornell Medicine agreed to pay over $1 billion to settle civil claims of patients who were sexually abused by former assistant professor and urologist Dr. Darius Paduch, and established a $10 million yearly fund for three years to support sexual misconduct prevention, according to a U.S. Department of Justice release. 

The settlement comes after a federal investigation into Weill Cornell Medicine exposed institutional failures in how patient complaints against Paduch were handled, including a lack of centralized processes or standards for documenting or investigating complaints.

The release also states that former urology chair Dr. Peter Schlegel received several reports of Paduch’s inappropriate behavior and failed to escalate the allegations or conduct proper investigations into the claims. 

Paduch was sentenced to life in prison in November 2024 for his yearslong sexual abuse of more than 50 patients, including six minors, from at…

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A Spanish missionary priest has been appointed apostolic administrator of the Archdiocese of Rabat while its archbishop, Cardinal Cristóbal López Romero, faces abuse allegations, the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate announced.

Msgr. Mario León Dorado, a Spanish priest who serves as apostolic prefect of Western Sahara, was named to temporarily lead the archdiocese while the Catholic Church investigates accusations that Cardinal López, who has led Rabat since 2018., has been “inappropriate” toward adult women.

The appointment was announced Aug. 2 by the Oblates in a statement on its Facebook page. However, the Vatican had not issued a formal announcement on the appointment.

‘Let us accompany him with our prayers’

“We are pleased to announce that the Holy See has appointed Msgr. Mario León Dorado, OMI, as Apostolic Administrator of the Archdiocese of Rabat, Morocco,” the statement read. “Entrusted with this responsibility by the Holy Father, he will serve…

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The Bishop of Geraldton has told a court the allegations against former Broome bishop Christopher Saunders are inconsistent with the standards expected of Catholic clergy, as he continues to fight accusations he abused young Aboriginal men while working for the church.

Michael Henry Morrissey, who is a serving bishop covering a region south of Leeman up to Port Hedland, was called to provide evidence in the ongoing trial of the former Broome Bishop, who has been accused of indecently assaulting three young Aboriginal men between 2008 and 2017.

In extraordinary testimony requiring him to speak openly about the conduct expected from those serving in the Catholic Church, Morrissey said he and Saunders had been students together in an Adelaide seminary at the same time before they entered the priesthood.

“It’s more than a job, it’s an entire way of life,” he said.

Morrissey spoke about the vow of celibacy they…

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Cardinal Cristóbal López Romero has stepped back from public ministry while the Church investigates allegations of sexual abuse and inappropriate conduct involving adult women, which he denies.

Pope Leo XIV has appointed Monsignor Mario León Dorado, OMI, as apostolic administrator of the Archdiocese of Rabat, Morocco, after Cardinal Cristóbal López Romero temporarily stepped back from the public exercise of his ministry amid an investigation into allegations of sexual abuse and inappropriate conduct, which he denies.

The Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate announced the appointment in a statement published on the order’s official Facebook page. The appointment was also confirmed to ACI Prensa, the Spanish-language sister service of EWTN News, although it has not yet been officially announced by the Vatican.

“We are pleased to announce that the Holy See has appointed Msgr. Mario León Dorado, OMI, apostolic administrator of the Archdiocese of Rabat, Morocco,” the Oblates said.

The statement said…

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Survivors have spent over a decade telling anyone at the State House who would listen that Massachusetts needs a law to protect children from abuse by people in their life in positions of power, and they say a provision in the fiscal 2027 state budget finally gets their pleas across the finish line.

When Gov. Maura Healey signed the spending bill on July 9, she signed into law both a policy she said addresses “abuse of power” by adults like teachers and coaches entrusted with the care of young people, and another that eliminates the statute of limitations in rape cases where new DNA evidence identifies the offender.

“I was failed — failed by Massachusetts, failed by the adults who were supposed to protect me. For a long time, the law failed kids like me too,” survivor Melissa Fares said at a press conference Friday. “This law doesn’t give me…

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About a decade ago when N. turned 16, an educator in her Western Massachusetts school started a sexual relationship with her, she said.

N., who requested anonymity to protect her privacy, was shocked when police later told her there was nothing they could do because she was 16 at the time.

That will no longer be the case in Massachusetts after more than a decade of advocacy to change the law.

This month, Gov. Maura Healey signed a law that makes it illegal for adult mandated reporters — a category that includes teachers, police officers, coaches and social workers — to have sexual contact with anyone under 18.

The age of consent is 16 in the state, and previously without an explicit carve out, a “loophole” made it lawful for those adults to have sexual relationships with 16- and 17-year-olds.

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For Immediate Release: August 3, 2026\

On July 30th, the Arizona Supreme Court ruled that individual religious communities get to decide when their clergy must report child sexual abuse (CSA). Tim Lennon, an Arizona advocate with the Abuse Survivors Coalition (ASC), called this decision “reckless, irresponsible, and harmful” and added that children in the state will be at more risk because of this ruling.

In a decision arising out of an infamous case from the Church of Latter Day Saints, the Court sided with religious leaders and proclaimed that the state’s clergy-penitent privilege shielded communities from having to report CSA if the entity believed that the information was obtained through the institution’s own definition of confession or confidential communication. The unanimous Court further declared that any intervention by the courts would violate the First Amendment.

The ASC countered with the assertion that no…

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Law firm representing victims of urologist Darius Paduch posts video on doc

A top Manhattan hospital has agreed to pay over $1 billion to hundreds of patients sexually abused by a disgraced pedophile urologist — admitting it failed to stop the sicko doctor, federal officials said this week.

The settlement announced by the US Department of Justice Monday formally closes a criminal civil rights probe into Weill Cornell Medicine following Darius Paduch’s federal conviction and life sentence for preying on over 50 male patients — including many minors — from at least 2009-2019.

“As the public has seen time and again, when medical institutions fail to implement and enforce robust safeguards to protect patients from sexual abuse, victims suffer unspeakable harms, and the public trust in the doctor-patient relationship is undermined,” Manhattan US Attorney Jay Clayton said in a statement.

The hospital admitted that complaints about Paduch had existed for years —…

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Superseding indictment by grand jury reveals new details in forced labor investigation

New details were released this week through an updated indictment from a Michigan grand jury in a forced labor conspiracy that allegedly collected millions through church-run call centers across multiple states while subjecting victims to abuse and exploitation.

David Taylor, 53, and Michelle Brannon, 56, were arrested in August 2025 in North Carolina and Florida in what federal officials called a nationwide takedown of their alleged forced labor organization.

According to the United States Attorney’s Office of the Eastern District of Michigan, Taylor, who refers to himself as “Apostle,” and Brannon, his executive director, are the leaders of Kingdom of God Global Church (KOGGC), formerly Joshua Media Ministries International.

Kathleen Klein, 53, also known as “Prophetess,” was also arrested and later charged for her alleged role as a leader of the KOGGC.

The…

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[PHOTO: Emma Medalla Santillan, director of the Salvatorian Pastoral Care for Children in Cebu, facilitates a child rights and safeguarding formation session for young participants. (Courtesy of Salvatorian Pastoral Care for Children Cebu)]

After completing a child rights formation program in her parish, a 13-year-old girl was approached by a classmate carrying a secret. The classmate confided that she was being sexually abused at home.

Instead of remaining silent, the teenager accompanied her friend to their school principal and later helped alert local authorities. For child protection advocates, this incident shows how education can empower children not only to recognize abuse but also to seek help.

“These children become our eyes and ears in the communities,” said Sr. Ruth S. Baguinon, executive director of Salvatorian Pastoral Care for Children (SPCC) and member of the Sisters of the Divine Savior.

Since its founding in 2001, the program has reached more than…

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Editor’s note: This article and headline have been updated to clarify where the priest was serving.

WICHITA, Kan. (KSNW) — A Kansas priest was arrested Wednesday on suspicion of child sex crimes, raising concerns about past victims and the justice system.

Ryan McCandless, 44, a priest with the Diocese of Salina, was taken into custody in Wichita on Wednesday night. He was wanted on a warrant for three counts of aggravated indecent liberties with a child.

According to the Kansas Bureau of Investigation, McCandless is accused of sexually abusing a 6-year-old child in Belleville between July and September 2025.

At the time, McCandless was serving at St. Edward in Belleville, St. George in Munden and St. Isidore in Cuba.

The arrest comes just one year after a former minister at Wichita’s Eastminster Presbyterian Church was alleged to have abused 23 minors in the late 1990s and early 2000s. McCandless’ arrest is…

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Case of woman who fell victim to horrific sexual abuse by her close relative went unreported for many years over advice from a priest

[PHOTO: Mark Laurence Zammit interviewing the abuse victim.]

A case of horrific sexual abuse on children went unreported for many years because a priest urged the victims to forgive the abuser instead of reporting him, according to one of the victims.

A year-long Times of Malta investigation has revealed that the abuse, which was rife in the 1980s, was only reported to the police in the early 2000s, more than 10 years after Dominican friar George Frendo, who later became archbishop of a diocese in Albania, learned about the abuse.

Both the woman and retired bishop George Frendo sat down for an interview about the case. Video: Antoine Farrugia Lauri

The investigation is being published in the latest episode of Times Talk, during which one of the victims recalls…

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SANGAMON COUNTY, Ill. (WCIA) — A lawsuit filed in Sangamon County last week alleges the Catholic Archdiocese of Springfield enabled and concealed the sexual abuse of an altar boy by a former priest in Taylorville in the 1990s.

The lawsuit was filed by Gould Grieco & Hensley PLLC on July 22, 2026. It alleges that Father John O’Connell — who served at St. Mary’s Catholic School and Parish in Taylorville — sexually abused a young boy between 1991 and 1994. O’Connell died in 2002 at the age of 68.

During the timeframe of the alleged abuse, the young boy — referred to as John Doe — served as an altar boy and attended school.

According to the lawsuit, the alleged abuse happened during altar boy training and preparation for Mass….

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• Five former altar boys are suing the Roman Catholic Bishop of Providence for alleged abuse by a priest.
• The lawsuit claims the Rev. Armand Ventre repeatedly molested the boys at a lakeside cabin.
• The suit accuses the diocese of negligence for hiring Ventre despite a known history of abuse allegations.

Five former altar boys who grew up in the “hardscrabble” Prospect Heights public housing development in Pawtucket have joined together in suing the Roman Catholic bishop of Providence over abuse they say they suffered for years from a priest with a known history of such incidents.

The former altar boys, who are identified as John Does 1 through 5, allege they were molested repeatedly by the Rev. Armand Ventre on weekends spent at a cabin on Lake Washington in Glocester. They met Ventre during their service at the Church of St. Teresa of…

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KANSAS CITY, Kan. (KCTV) – The Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas is investigating what it calls a credible allegation of sexual abuse of a minor involving a priest who served in numerous local parishes and died more than 30 years ago.

The investigation into the Rev. Denis Pickert stems from a recent allegation published this week in The Leaven, the archdiocese’s newspaper. Pickert was 69 when he died in 1994.

Pickert served in KCK at St. Joseph Parish (now All Saints Parish); The Cathedral of St. Peter; and Christ the King Parish.

Archbishop Shawn McKnight deemed the newly reported allegation credible based on several factors, church officials said. However, the archdiocese emphasized that the ongoing investigation is not a determination of guilt and is seeking information from anyone with knowledge.

“In cases where the accused is deceased, the effects of trauma can remain with victims and survivors for many years,” a…

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The settlement involves all-boys schools Vancouver College and St. Thomas More Collegiate in Burnaby, with Justice Simon Coval finding it was ‘fair, reasonable and in the best interests of the class members as a whole.’

The B.C. Supreme Court has approved a $30-million settlement of a class-action lawsuit over historical claims of physical, psychological and sexual abuse at two private Metro Vancouver Catholic schools.

In a ruling released Thursday, the court approved the settlement involving all-boys schools Vancouver College and St. Thomas More Collegiate in Burnaby, with Justice Simon Coval finding it was “fair, reasonable and in the best interests of the class members as a whole.”

The class action was launched in 2021 and approved in 2023, brought by former students who alleged members of the Christian Brothers of Ireland, a Catholic religious worldwide order, abused them. It involved students who attended Vancouver College between…

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Suit named Vancouver College, St. Thomas More Collegiate and Roman Catholic Archbishop of Vancouver

The B.C. Supreme Court has approved a $30-million settlement of a class-action lawsuit filed over historical claims of physical, psychological and sexual abuse at two schools in Metro Vancouver run by the Catholic Church.

The court approved the settlement against Vancouver College and St. Thomas More Collegiate and the Roman Catholic Archbishop of Vancouver.

The lawsuit alleged members of the Christian Brothers of Ireland in Canada were transferred to the schools from the Mount Cashel orphanage in St. John’s, N.L., which became “notorious” for abuse suffered by children there in the 1950s to the 1970s.

• No apology included in proposed $30M settlement for Christian Brothers abuse case

The court ruling approving the settlement says four of the people transferred to Vancouver were eventually criminally convicted when the crimes at Mount Cashel were…

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Alleged sexual abuse victims of Archdiocese of Quebec closer to historic $31.5M settlement

Lawsuit covers people who say they were sexually abused by staff dating back to 1940

A Quebec Superior Court judge will decide whether a historic $31.5-million settlement in a class-action lawsuit against the Archdiocese of Quebec is approved.

The deal could end years of legal action for claimants alleging they were sexually assaulted by members of the Archdiocese since 1940.

At the Quebec courthouse on Thursday, Justice Danye Daigle heard emotional testimony from a dozen victims whose identities are under a publication ban. They shared how the alleged events had shaped their lives.

Gaétan Bégin, who has said he was sexually abused in the 1950s, is one of the plaintiffs representing 200 people who joined the class action.

Outside the courtroom, Bégin told CBC, it was a historic day.

“I’m 86 now, but the young boy who…

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Pope Leo’s changes see the first non-bishops replacing non-canonist members at the Apostolic Signatura

Pope Leo XIV appointed seven new members to the Supreme Tribunal of the Apostolic Signatura, the Church’s highest canonical court of appeal, on July 25, including the first three non-bishops ever appointed as members of the tribunal.

The appointments by Leo also marked the conclusion of the five-year terms for Cardinals Joseph Tobin, C.Ss.R., of Newark and Gerhard Ludwig Müller, prefect emeritus of the then-Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith — the only two non-canonist members of the tribunal.

The appointments and departures appear to close a practice by Pope Francis to appoint non-canon lawyers to the Signatura, while instead bringing in the first full members who are legal experts but not bishops.

Archbishop Salvatore Joseph Cordileone of San Francisco; Bishop Krzysztof Nitkiewicz of Sandomierz; Bishop Juan Ignacio Arrieta, secretary emeritus of the Dicastery for…

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Husted also backed a 2004 tort reform law capping noneconomic damages for sexual abuse survivors at $250,000, costing victims millions, records show.

In 2006, when he was leading the Ohio House of Representatives, Jon Husted gutted a bill intended to help survivors of sexual abuse by Catholic priests.

Husted, who is now running for his first full term to the U.S. Senate, has come under fire recently for accepting donations from a Jeffrey Epstein associate and having a county campaign chair who served jail time for alleged misconduct with a minor. Each of these stories has fueled a narrative that Husted is tolerant and even protective of sexual abusers.

The Ohio Senate passed SB 17, known as the clergy abuse bill, in March 2006. The legislation was led by Democratic state Sen. Teresa Fedor as a response to the Catholic clergy abuse scandal. It sought to…

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The Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas is investigating what it calls a credible allegation of sexual abuse of a minor involving a priest who served in numerous Kansas parishes and died more than 30 years ago.

The investigation involving the Rev. Denis Pickert stems from a recent allegation, according to an announcement posted in The Leaven, the archdiocese’s newspaper, this week. Pickert died in 1994 at age 69.

“Based on several factors, Archbishop Shawn McKnight deems the newly reported allegation to have credibility, but in order to facilitate a complete and fair investigation, the Archdiocese seeks information from those who might have knowledge about this situation,” the announcement said.

“A thorough investigation of these allegations is ongoing and should not be understood as a determination of guilt. Archbishop McKnight would like to encourage anyone who may have been harmed by Fr. Pickert to come forward.”

…

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Bishop Rodríguez, along with advocates who support abuse victims, asserts the Church never condones abuse and is always on the side of victims

Pope Benedict XVI understood it. He knew that sexual abuse in the Catholic Church is not just an individual act of sin. It is a threat to faith itself.

It was from that serious foundation that Bishop Manuel de Jesús Rodríguez spoke July 24, 2026, in the Family Life Center of the Cathedral of St. Ignatius Loyola at “Let’s Talk About Listening to Victims.” Copies of the bishop’s newly released book, “Sexual Abuse Victims: A Juridical Analysis of Due Process in Canon Law,” were available for purchase, with proceeds going toward diocesan safe environment programs. 

Other speakers included Father Kevin McQuone, associate dean for propaedeutic and discipleship formation at St. Vincent de Paul Regional Seminary in Boynton Beach; Elizabeth Harris, retired NYPD detective in the Manhattan special…

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Suspect Groomed Children Across TikTok and Other Social Media Apps

A Catawba, Virginia man, who pled guilty in December 2025 to attempting to sexually exploit a 15-year-old child, was sentenced to 20 years in federal prison.

Jacob Ryan Barnett, 35, was arrested in August 2025 and pled guilty in December to one count of attempted sexual exploitation of a 15-year-old child. 

According to court documents, on May 18, 2025, Barnett used TikTok to message the Minor Victim (M.V.) and they began chatting. Barnett posed as a 17-year-old using another person’s images. As their chat progressed, Barnett sent increasingly graphic sexual messages to M.V. Ultimately, Barnett said he wanted to “use” M.V. and asked for something that he could masturbate to. In response, M.V. sent Barnett sexually explicit video of herself.

Sentencing evidence showed that Barnett used TikTok, Discord, Snapchat, and other social media apps to solicit minor girls for sexual…

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A 75-year-old Albany pastor has been charged by a grand jury for sexually assaulting a young child over the course of several months in 2000.

Albany County District Attorney Lee C. Kindlon announced Friday that Bienvenido Lopez, pastor of Iglesia Fuente Inagotable, a Spanish-speaking Pentecostal church on Herkimer Street, is charged with multiple counts of rape in the 1st degree. Lopez was arraigned on a three-count indictment in front of the Honorable Roger McDonough Friday, charging him with Course of Sexual Conduct Against a Child in the First Degree, Course of Sexual Conduct Against a Child in the Second Degree and Endangering the Welfare of a Minor.

The indictment alleges that between May of 2000 and December of 2000, while at an apartment located above his church at 153 Central Ave. and another residence at 602 Third St. near Bleecker Stadium, the defendant engaged in two or…

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Advocates warn the broad ruling lets predators use a ‘confessional loophole’ to escape justice

This story deals with sexual abuse and assault of minors. If you or someone you know has been a victim of this crime call 800-656-HOPE for 24/7 help and support.

The Arizona Supreme Court sided with religious leaders this week who argued the state’s clergy-penitent privilege law shielded them from reporting child sexual abuse to authorities.

And in declaring that any intervention by the courts would violate the First Amendment, the justices made clear they don’t think any changes to Arizona law aimed at forcing clergy to report abuse would be constitutional.  

“We hold that the First Amendment generally prohibits factfinders from inquiring into a clergy member’s application of his particular religious doctrine… in determining whether reporting should be withheld if ‘reasonable and necessary,’” Vice Chief Justice John R. Lopez IV wrote in…

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The Arizona Supreme Court ruled unanimously that clergy are not required to report a congregation member’s abuse of a minor if they learn of it through confession or another confidential religious communication, and if withholding it aligns with their faith’s doctrine.

The case originated in Cochise County, stemming from a 2020 lawsuit against The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and two of its bishops, John Herrod and Robert “Kim” Mauzy.

Court records show Paul Adams confessed to abusing his children during a 2011 confession with Herrod, again in a second confession with Herrod and his wife, Leizza, and a third time during a church disciplinary proceeding with Mauzy. Mauzy excommunicated Adams in 2013.

Paul and Leizza Adams were indicted in 2017 on charges related to the abuse. Leizza pleaded guilty and was sentenced to two and a half years in prison. Paul confessed to law enforcement but died…

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The Arizona Supreme Court ruled Thursday that it is up to the church, not a judge or jury, to decide what counts as a confidential communication, shielding clergy from the state’s mandatory child abuse reporting requirements.

The unanimous court opinion was announced Thursday, following a case of a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints admitting to child abuse during a confession with a bishop, a second time during a confession with the bishop and his wife, and a third time during a disciplinary council.

The justices ruled that courts cannot second-guess how the church interprets its doctrine when describing what constitutes confession and confidential communications.

Arizona law already protects clergy members from reporting child abuse learned through a confession or confidential communication. But if a clergy member learns about abuses outside of those incidents, they must tell law enforcement or other government authorities.

What started this?…

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Arizona’s justices ruled the church wasn’t legally obligated to report a member’s confession of child abuse.

Churches are not obligated to report suspicions of child abuse if they’re found out through religious confessions or confidential communications, the Arizona Supreme Court has ruled. 

In a unanimous ruling released Thursday, the high court sided with the defendants in a lawsuit brought against The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Arizona.

Bishops of the church, as well as other defendants, were accused in a 2020 civil lawsuit of failing to report child abuse that had been disclosed to them by a church member. That member later died by suicide in jail after he was arrested by law enforcement.

The Cochise County Superior Court dismissed the lawsuit in 2023 against the church, concluding the church officials were not legally obligated to report the abuse allegations since they were disclosed during a confession…

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Snared by obsession

Not everyone has experienced the terrifying grip of an obsessed lover who won’t let them go. But imagine going through that as a 14-year-old, and that your parish priest was the one with the obsession. That’s what Mark Crawford endured from 1977 to 1983 in suburban New Jersey and what he tried to escape and recover from for decades afterward.

Picture a devoted middle class family with nine children, whose parents both volunteered extensively in their parish: Mark’s father as a bingo caller and chaperone at CYO (Catholic Youth Organization) events and his mother taking care of the liturgical linens and altar flower arrangements. Their modest house was Grand Central Station, with kids from all over the neighborhood constantly flowing in and out. 

Into this warm and loving environment came the new priest, Father Kenneth Martin, who met Mrs. Crawford setting up for Mass. A train enthusiast,…

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Click here for video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d6GOS2iW31s

A new state law allowing survivors of childhood sexual abuse to sue institutions that allowed the abuse has led to dozens of lawsuits filed against the Roman Catholic Diocese of Providence. Amanda Milkovits from The Boston Globe joins Kayla Fish in studio to discuss her findings into this investigation.

Stay in the know with WPRI 12 News. Local news, weather, sports, and award winning investigative journalism coverage you can count on on this YouTube channel, TV, mobile app, our social channels and WPRI.com.

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Five former altar boys, represented by Grant & Eisenhofer and partner state counsel, yesterday filed a Complaint against the Diocese of Providence (DOP) and the Church of Saint Teresa of the Child Jesus, Pawtucket, to hold them accountable for the childhood sexual abuse allegedly inflicted by the late Fr. Armand Ventre, the notorious serial predator-priest whose despicable and destructive acts were documented in the state Attorney General’s investigation into decades-long, systemic Catholic clergy child sexual abuse. The filing in state Superior Court follows the first federal action brought by the legal team under the new state law allowing survivors – who to protect their privacy are entitled to anonymity – to hold accountable their abusers, and enablers, regardless of when the abuse occurred. They presently represent more than 70 survivors-plaintiffs seeking justice in State and Federal courts.

In the new state Superior Court filing (J. Does…

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A law firm hired by Interlochen, the arts school and camp, to look into alumni complaints of sexual abuse fielded dozens of disturbing accounts, primarily from decades ago.

Dozens of former students of the Interlochen Center for the Arts in Michigan, where Jeffrey Epstein is said to have encountered some of his earliest victims, told a law firm hired by the school that they had been sexually abused by teachers, staff members, trustees and others affiliated with the institution in episodes ranging from the 1950s to the 2010s.

In a report released on Tuesday, after almost two years of interviews, the law firm presented firsthand accounts of Interlochen alumni, who said they had been subjected to misconduct ranging from grooming and flirting to intercourse. The report said that some 70 of the former students described physical abuse and identified the perpetrators as 47 adults affiliated with the center.

The report, which…

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The first few dollars felt like a lifeline.

Sitting in his home in Kumbo, the epicenter of violence in Cameroon’s troubled English-speaking north west region, John (not his real name) clicked through an online platform to which he’d been introduced.

The tasks were simple: filling out advertisement forms and completing digital engagements. Every time he clicked ‘submit’, a small payment followed, blinding him to the trap being set.

“Receiving that money made me believe that they were genuine people and that the opportunity was real,” John told Crux Now. “It built my confidence in them because I saw what looked like real proof that they wanted to support me,” he said.

“At that time, I was hoping for a better future. I wanted an opportunity to support myself, improve myself, and become more independent,” John said.

He never thought that what looked like help was actually a way of gaining his…

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Local and federal authorities arrested an Oxford man on multiple child exploitation charges following a multi-agency cyber investigation, police announced.

Aubrey Jamaal Butler, 46, faces eight counts of electronic solicitation of a child and one count of production of obscene matter of a minor, according to Oxford Police Chief Daniel Phipps.

Butler is the senior pastor of Pleasant Hill Baptist Church in Sylacauga.

Investigators booked the suspect into the Calhoun County Jail, where he remains held on a $108,000 bond.

The investigation launched after law enforcement received cyber tips routed through the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children. Detectives with the Oxford Police Department’s criminal investigation division then teamed up with several local, state and federal entities to track down the lead.

Assisting in the investigation were the District Attorney’s Office for the 7th Judicial Circuit of Alabama, the FBI, the United States Secret Service, the United States Marshals…

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A Virginia Baptist pastor and church conference speaker was removed from several ministry roles this week as he faces more than a dozen criminal charges. Prosecutors allege that Kenny Baldwin, the lead pastor at Crossroads Baptist Church in Baileys Crossroads, Va., sent sexually explicit messages to a minor. The 47-year-old pastor was charged with 13 offenses, Pennsylvania State Police said last Thursday.

Baldwin is presumed innocent until proven guilty in court. He did not return calls to a local TV station that reported on the charges.

On Sunday, Crossroads Baptist Church stated that Baldwin was relieved of all ministry responsibilities. The independent Baptist church is located about a half hour outside of Washington, D.C. Baldwin served as its senior pastor since 2011, according to an archived staff webpage.

Additionally, Veritas Baptist College officials revoked Baldwin’s role on the board of directors at the online Bible college based in Lawrenceburg, Ind. While Baldwin had no formal…

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A fifth person has been arrested in the investigation related to a sex offender volunteering at a Pawleys Island church and private school.

Wednesday, Georgetown County Sheriff Carter Weaver announced his office had arrested the church operations director, Michael Anthony Fields, and charged him with unlawfully placing a child at risk or causing a child harm; Fields serves as director of operations and missions at Pawleys Island Community Church. Officials said Fields was responsible for security across the church campus and for the safety of students at Pawleys Island Christian Academy, known as PICA.

Fields was booked into the Georgetown County Detention Center, and his bond was set to $25,000 on Thursday.

Deputies said it is in the third week of its investigation into church leadership and how convicted sex offender Warren Perry was allowed to volunteer on the campus in proximity to children for years.

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