TEXAS
Denton Record-Chronicle
07:18 AM CST on Monday, December 18, 2006
We are all of us sinners, and in desperate need of forgiveness. Forgiveness and redemption are cornerstones of the world’s great religious faiths, and are God’s gift to imperfect humankind. But silence and reflexive, uninformed absolution are not the same as true forgiveness, and they pose terrible dangers to the innocent among us.
Two Denton County ministers have been accused in civil lawsuits of sexually abusing young girls in their congregations. One suit has been settled out of court with a payment to the female plaintiff, now an adult. The other, also filed by an adult woman alleging abuse as a teenager, is pending, but court documents show that the accused minister has admitted fathering a child with his alleged victim. As this is being written, both ministers still occupy pulpits in their respective churches, both of them Baptist congregations, one of them associated with the Baptist General Convention of Texas.
The Baptist General Convention keeps a registry of clergy members involved in sexual misconduct, but it is pretty much a “don’t ask, don’t tell” proposition. If a congregation does not wish to report an incident of misconduct, it doesn’t have to. If another congregation doesn’t wish to inquire if a prospective pastor is on the list, there is no requirement that it do so, though the convention recommends it.
It should be remembered that if the women who filed these lawsuits had taken action at the time of the alleged offenses, they would have been investigated as criminal felonies — rape and sexual abuse of a child — with penalties of up to life in prison. But as we have learned from the Catholic Church scandals in recent years, such victims often remain silent as children; they are unable to handle the guilt and fear that accompanies such abuse.
PORTLAND (OR)
Reuters
PORTLAND, Oregon (Reuters) - The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Portland, Oregon, will pay about $75 million to settle at least 170 claims of sexual abuse by its priests as part of a revised bankruptcy reorganization plan, according to legal documents.
The new plan was filed on Monday with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Portland. It calls for 143 people who claimed they were abused to receive about $40.7 million.
About $13.75 million will be set aside for 26 people who may either settle or sue the archdiocese and $20 million will cover future sex abuse claims.
Insurance companies will pay $51.75 million and the remainder will come from archdiocese holdings and loans. No parish or school property will be used to pay the settlement.
CHICAGO (IL)
NBC 5
CHICAGO -- An NBC5 exclusive report Tuesday looked at a new controversy over the Rev. Daniel McCormack, a Chicago Catholic priest accused of abusing five boys at a West Side church and school.
Now, the principal of that school is accusing the Archdiocese of Chicago of trying to make her the scapegoat for the scandal.
NBC5's Kim Vatis said that the controversy is brewing as McCormick awaits trial.
"They're still blaming other people for what they did not do. And I'm angry about it and I'm just fed up," said Barbara Westrick, principal of Our Lady of the Westside School at St. Agatha Catholic Church.
In a letter to the principal's file dated Oct. 6, the archdiocese's superintendent of schools points to a "serious administrative error" for not reporting a conversation Westrick had with the mother of a victim who went to the principal after McCormick's first arrest. Westrik only notified her boss, McCormick, of the parent's comments.
CHICAGO (IL)
Chicago Sun-Times
December 19, 2006
BY LISA DONOVAN Staff Reporter
The Archdiocese of Chicago has reprimanded the principal of Our Lady of the Westside School for allowing her boss, the Rev. Daniel McCormack, to teach and coach at the elementary school even after sex abuse allegations came to light, NBC 5 reported Monday night.
An angry Barbara Westrick, still principal at the North Lawndale school, fired back on the 10 p.m. broadcast, saying the letter of reprimand is proof the archdiocese -- including Cardinal Francis George -- is using her as a scapegoat.
"For them to accuse me of not taking care of my kids, how dare they," she said, breaking down in tears. "They're the ones who put my kids at risk."
Westrick said she was never told about a recommendation to remove McCormack from ministry, made before his arrest this year, or about his alleged troubled past.
ST. LOUIS (MO)
My Fox
St. Louis, MO --
The survivors network of those abused by priests, or Snap, protests outside of a south St. Louis church.
Snap claims Reverend Carl King of the Watson Terrace Christian Church had inappropriate contact with a mentally challenged congregant.
The group handed out court documents to churchgoers, including a restraining order filed on behalf of the woman. Reverend King has not been charged with any crime, but Snap says he was stripped of his Presbyterian ordination for previous misconduct at an Illinois church.
David Clohessy, SnapAbuse Tracker Director said…”In many states its illegal for a minister to have a sexual involvement with a member of their congregation, he's done it twice, in one case with a mentally challenged woman by no stretch of the imagination could consent to a sexual involvement.”
COLUMBUS (OH)
Beacon Journal
Associated Press
COLUMBUS, Ohio - A priest convicted of killing a nun was taken from prison to a hospital earlier this month for a problem related to his kidneys, but his condition is not life-threatening, a state prisons spokeswoman said.
The Rev. Gerald Robinson was taken to the Ohio State University Medical Center Dec. 7 from the Hocking Correctional Facility in Nelsonville. Andrea Dean, a spokeswoman for the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction, declined to elaborate further on why he was hospitalized.
Information about when he was expected to be discharged was also unavailable.
In May, a Toledo jury found Robinson guilty of killing Sister Margaret Ann Pahl, who was choked and stabbed to death while she was preparing a hospital chapel for Easter weekend services in 1980. He was sentenced to a mandatory term of 15 years to life in prison.
PORTLAND (OR)
Yahoo!
By WILLIAM McCALL, Associated Press Writer
PORTLAND, Ore. - The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Portland has filed a bankruptcy reorganization plan that would pay about $75 million to settle nearly 170 claims of priest sex abuse.
Insurance companies have agreed to pay nearly $52 million under the proposal, with the rest of the money coming from various archdiocese assets — but not its parishes and schools.
The reorganization plan, filed just before midnight Monday in U.S. Bankruptcy Court, said that 143 claims had been settled for $40.7 million.
It would require the archdiocese to provide up to $13.75 million to pay a remaining 26 claims that have not yet been settled. It also would set up a $20 million fund to pay future claims.
CANADA
Whitehorse Star
By STEPHANIE WADDELL
“It is time to move on for Indian residential school survivors who want to bring closure to a very dark chapter in the ongoing relationship between Canada and its aboriginal people.”
Yukon Supreme Court Judge Ron Veale made the statement in his recently-released 25-page decision approving the nation-wide residential schools settlement package for the territory.
For the settlement to take effect, nine courts across the country must approve it. Nunavut and the Northwest Territories are the only remaining regions that have yet to decide. Other jurisdictions have granted their approval.
Earlier this year, over three days, a packed Yukon Supreme Court heard from lawyers and residential school survivors, all recommending the deal be accepted.
A total of 28 survivors addressed the court, sharing stories of their experiences in the school system which took first nation children out of their communities and away from their families. At the schools, they weren’t allowed to speak their languages nor practise their cultures, Veale noted in his decision.
The common package would see survivors from all approved residential schools between 1920 and 1997 receive $10,000 for the first year they were there and $3,000 for each year after.
PINEVILLE (MO)
News-Leader
The Associated Press
Pineville — The wife of a church official is the fourth person ordered to stand trial in a case of alleged sex abuse of young girls at two southwest Missouri church communes.
Laura Epling was bound over for trial Monday by Associate Judge Gregory Stremel, after a preliminary hearing in McDonald County Circuit Court during which a former member of the church testified about the alleged abuse, the court clerk's office said.
Epling faces one count of second-degree statutory sodomy for allegedly helping the Rev. Raymond Lambert molest a then-16-year-old girl at the Grand Valley Independent Baptist Church, a commune-like farm in rural McDonald County in far southwest Missouri. Epling previously pleaded not guilty.
CANADA
The Chronicle Herald
By BILL POWER Staff Reporter
Sunday mass at the Shubenacadie Indian residential school in the 1940s and ’50s was something of a treat for some English-speaking Catholic residents of neighbouring rural communities.
"The non-natives would come up Sunday mornings from the village to attend mass . . . to see the children singing their hearts out in the choir," former school resident Nora Bernard of the Millbrook First Nation said Monday.
"A non-native not familiar with the structure and the abuse would think everything was on the up and up," Ms. Bernard recalled in an interview.
Few local people knew that the children were regularly denied food and clothing and a proper education as well as acceptable health care, not to mention documented cases of sexual abuse, she said.
"The abuse was horrible," said Ms. Bernard, whose Shubenacadie Indian Residential School Association fought for compensation in this province.
FRESNO (CA)
Fresno Bee
By Pablo Lopez / The Fresno Bee 12/19/06 04:13:28
A jury will continue deliberations today in the Fresno County Superior Court civil trial of a Fresno priest accused of molesting an altar boy nearly 20 years ago.
So far, jurors have deliberated 27 1/2 hours over six days in the trial that pits Father Eric Swearingen, pastor of Holy Spirit Catholic Church in Woodward Park, against former altar boy Juan Rocha.
Rocha, now 31 and an Army sergeant first class, has accused Swearingen of molesting him at Our Lady of Guadalupe in Bakersfield and at St. Alphonsus parish in southwest Fresno when Rocha was between 12 and 15 years old.
During the trial, Swearingen testified that he never molested Rocha, but allowed the former altar boy to stay temporarily in the two rectories.
PENNSYLVANIA
The Express-Times
Tuesday, December 19, 206
By ANDREA EILENBERGER
The Express-Times
North Hunterdon/Voorhees Regional High School officials are dismayed by last week's arrest of a physical education teacher now charged with sexually assaulting a former student at a Somerset County school.
They hired Pamela Balogh last year after a thorough review process, according to a letter the district released Monday.
The statement is posted on the district's Web site and is intended to keep the community informed, North Hunterdon Principal Michael Hughes said.
"We want to guarantee the lines of communication are open," Hughes said.
Balogh, 39, of Bethlehem, is accused of sexually assaulting the girl over a 10-month period while she was her coach and teacher at Immaculata High School in Somerville, N.J.
TOLEDO (OH)
Renew America
Matt C. Abbott
December 18, 2006
By now, many people are at least marginally familiar with the Father Gerald Robinson case in Toledo, Ohio. Robinson was convicted on May 11, 2006 of murdering Sister Margaret Ann Pahl in a hospital chapel in 1980. He is serving a sentence of 15 years to life.
David Yonke, religion editor of The Toledo Blade, has written a book about the case; it's titled Sin, Shame and Secrets.
The following excerpt of Yonke's book (p. 176) contains an allegation that could be described as a bombshell:
On September 17 (2004), detectives Forrester and Ross again marched into the Catholic Center and went straight to the fourth-floor chancery, this time demanding access to the files in Father Billian's office.
They reviewed a number of files that were marked 'Privileged,' but found nothing related to the investigation of Father Robinson.
The detectives left the chancery empty-handed.
Officially, Sergeant Forrester said the privileged files involved cases of sexual abuse of children by priests. Off the record, a number of insiders, including a diocesan priest, said the files contained reports of abortions paid for by the diocese.
BOSTON (MA)
The Daily News Tribune
By Boston
Tuesday, December 19, 2006 - Updated: 01:16 AM EST
BOSTON - The Archdiocese of Boston reinstated a Waltham priest yesterday after an investigation found no evidence to support a single allegation that he sexually abused a minor about 20 years ago.
The Rev. Roger N. Jacques, former pastor of St. Joseph Parish in Waltham, was placed on administrative leave in October 2002 pending an archdiocese review of the complaint.
"The allegation was found to be unsubstantiated and the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith has confirmed this finding," according to a statement from the archdiocese.
The findings were immediately communicated to Jacques, who has been reinstated as a priest in good standing, archdiocese spokeswoman Kelly Lynch said. He remains unassigned.
LONG ISLAND (NY)
Newsday
BY JOHN MORENO GONZALES
Newsday Staff Writer
December 19, 2006
Suffolk prosecutors are investigating an allegation of sexual misconduct against a Roman Catholic priest in Mattituck, who has also been placed on administrative leave by the diocese, both the church and district attorney's office confirmed late yesterday.
The "credible allegation" against the Rev. Peter Allen of Our Lady of Good Counsel Church came from a single person and appears to involve one incident, Diocese of Rockville Centre spokesman Sean Dolan said yesterday, declining to provide further details.
Suffolk district attorney's office spokesman Robert Clifford confirmed that Allen was the subject of a sexual misconduct probe involving one alleged victim, but also declined to offer more information.
"In terms of criminal charges being levied, that has not happened," Clifford said. "The case is under investigation."
FRESNO (CA)
ABC 30
By Liz Harrison
12/18/06 - Action News has learned a majority of jurors in a sexual abuse trial of a Fresno priest believe he is guilty. However, because it's a civil trial, the priest and the Catholic Diocese of Fresno can still win the case.
Just half an hour into deliberations Monday morning the jury in the sexual abuse case told the judge their progress toward a verdict had stalled. The jury has been deliberating since Thursday, December 7 but had to start over last week when one of the jurors was dismissed.
It's a case of alleged sexual abuse that allegedly took place over 20 years ago. Juan Rocha was an altar boy, Father Eric Swearingen was his priest.
Rocha, who is currently a sergeant in the U.S. Army, claims Father Swearingen molested him while he stayed overnight at two different church rectories, one in Bakersfield and one in Fresno.
The jury is being asked to answer four different questions. All four must be answered for a verdict in Rocha's favor.
PINEVILLE (MO)
Neosho Daily News
By John Ford / Daily News Associate Editor
Published: Monday, December 18, 2006 4:07 PM CST
PINEVILLE - A preliminary hearing for one McDonald County church leader facing a child sexual abuse charge was postponed, while a judge ruled there was probable cause to continue proceedings against the wife of another leader.
Proceedings against Paul Epling, 53, were postponed as his accuser could not be in McDonald County Circuit Court this morning due to illness. Epling faces an unclassified felony charge of rape dating back to Nov. 7, 1978.
Dan Bagley, assistant McDonald County prosecutor, said the witness had been admitted to the emergency room over the weekend for a stomach virus, but did not require hospitalization.
Newton County Division II Associate Circuit Court Judge Greg Stremel set the preliminary hearing for 9 a.m. Jan. 29. Stremel is presiding in the case after McDonald County Associate Circuit Court Judge John LePage recused himself from hearing the case.
CANADA
Calgary Sun
Mon, December 18, 2006
By KEVIN MARTIN, CALGARY SUN
The Pentecostal church is being sued by a Calgary couple after one of its ministers allegedly had a torrid three-year affair with a member of his flock.
A husband and wife are seeking $200,000 in general damages and an unspecified punitive amount over her sexual relationship with the pastor.
Their statement of claim, a copy of which was obtained today by the Sun, says the pastor used his influence as spiritual leader to seduce the city woman.
“(She) at all times felt controlled and manipulated by (the pastor) for sexual favours,” the lawsuit states.
“The frequency of the sexual encounters at the beginning of the situation was very often,” it says.
“There was ... sexual intercourse or other sexual activities between the parties at least one to two times a week.
BOSTON (MA)
Boston Herald
By Associated Press
Monday, December 18, 2006 - Updated: 05:47 PM EST
BOSTON- The Archdiocese of Boston reinstated a Waltham priest Monday after investigation found no evidence to support a single allegation that he sexually abused a minor about 20 years ago.
The Rev. Roger N. Jacques, former pastor of St. Joseph Parish in Waltham, was placed on administrative leave in October 2002 pending an archdiocese review of the complaint.
“The allegation was found to be unsubstantiated and the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith has confirmed this finding,” according to a statement from the archdiocese.
Jacques was among 58 Boston-area priests who signed a letter questioning the credibility of Cardinal Bernard F. Law and asking him to resign after a string of priests were accused of sexually abusing minors.
LINCOLN (NE)
National
By TOM CARNEY
Nicole Sotelo, codirector of national Call to Action, said her organization intends to mount a letter-writing campaign to Lincoln, Neb., Bishop Fabian Bruskewitz, with copies to Bishop William Skylstad, bishop of Spokane, Wash., and president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops.
The Vatican has upheld the 1996 excommunication of Call to Action Nebraska by Bruskewitz.(See related story.)
Sotelo said the letters will protest Bruskewitz's refusal to comply with the bishops' conference policies on child abuse by clergy, she said. Asked about the timing of the campaign, just after an announcement that the Vatican has upheld the excommunication of the Lincoln chapter of Call to Action, she said it would counter Bruskewitz's "attempts to silence" the organization.
"Justice cannot be silenced," she said.
LINCOLN (NE)
National
By TOM CARNEY
The Vatican has upheld the 1996 excommunication of Call to Action Nebraska by Lincoln Bishop Fabian Bruskewitz.
Call to Action Nebraska president Rachel Pokora said her organization met Dec. 9, the day after the affirmation was announced. With help from the national group, she said, Call to Action Nebraska intends to appeal the decision to the Apostolic Signatura — the Vatican equivalent of the Supreme Court — and is seeking an English-speaking canon lawyer to be its advocate in Rome.
Bruskewitz's excommunication of the group, a local chapter of the national Call to Action church-reform movement, resulted in nationwide publicity a decade ago, with mentions on "NBC Nightly News," CBS' "60 Minutes," and comments by talk show host Rush Limbaugh. The action also prompted public comments from several prelates, including the late Cardinal Joseph Bernadin of Chicago, who said he would not take the kind of action Bruskewitz took.
PINEVILLE (MO)
KansasCity.com
Associated Press
PINEVILLE, Mo. - The wife of a church official is the fourth person ordered to stand trial in a case of alleged sex abuse of young girls at two southwest Missouri church communes.
Laura Epling was bound over for trial Monday by Associate Judge Gregory Stremel, after a preliminary hearing in McDonald County Circuit Court during which a former member of the church testified about the alleged abuse, the court clerk's office said.
Epling faces one count of second-degree statutory sodomy for allegedly helping the Rev. Raymond Lambert molest a then-16-year-old girl at the Grand Valley Independent Baptist Church, a commune-like farm in rural McDonald County in far southest Missouri. Epling previously pleaded not guilty.
CANADA
Anglican Journal
Solange De Santis
staff writer
Dec 18, 2006
An agreement that will compensate former Indian residential school students and limit legal liability for the churches that ran the institutions took a step closer to finalization on Dec. 15 when seven courts approved the arrangement.
Courts in British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario, Quebec and the Yukon released decisions. Two courts – Nunavut and the Northwest Territories – have yet to rule, but their decisions are expected early in the new year.
It is the first time so many courts have been involved in the approval of a class action. In his judgment, Ontario Superior Court Justice Warren Winkler wrote that the parties “have asked the courts to depart from the normal practice and approve, as a term of the settlement, the combining of all outstanding litigation relating to the residential schools in a single class action which will effectively be filed in each jurisdiction in Canada if approval of the settlement is granted.”
BOSTON (MA)
WHDH
BOSTON -- The Boston Archdiocese (pictured) has reinstated a priest, saying investigators found no evidence to support a complaint that he sexually abused a minor 20 years ago.
The Reverend Roger Jacques, former pastor of St. Joseph Parish in Waltham, was placed on administrative leave in October 2002.
Cardinal Sean O'Malley says the allegation was unsubstantiated.
The archdiocese says Jacques is now a priest "in good standing." It did not indicate where he would be assigned.
FRESNO (CA)
Fresno Bee
By Vanessa Colón / The Fresno Bee 12/18/06 05:18:26
Groups of parishioners have been praying around the clock for a court verdict that would exonerate a pastor of Holy Spirit Catholic Church in Fresno's Woodward Park.
Churchgoers began praying in shifts Dec. 10 in support of Father Eric Swearingen, who is accused in a Fresno County Superior Court civil trial of molesting an altar boy 20 years ago. Swearingen has denied the allegation.
On Sunday, following a Life Teen Mass tailored for youths, about a dozen teens gathered outside the church to show their faith in Swearingen. They held signs with drawn hearts reading, "We [love] you Father Eric."
"I think it's absolutely ridiculous. There's no way in a million years this could have ever happened," said 16-year-old Brianne Torres of Fresno.
BLANCO (TX)
American-Statesman
By Molly Bloom
AMERICAN-STATESMAN STAFF
Friday, December 15, 2006
James Wright Jr.'s parents sent their 15-year-old son to Christ of the Hills monastery in Blanco County because he was acting out. They thought the Russian Orthodox monks there would give him spiritual enlightenment and maturity.
Instead, three of the monks sexually abused him over a period of 11 months from 1998 to 1999, according to a suit Wright filed against three of the monks, the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia and the nonprofit Ecumenical Monks Inc., which owns the monastery's land.
The church, monastery founder Samuel Greene Jr. and monk William Hughes settled with Wright on Wednesday without admitting that they did anything wrong, said Mark Long, Wright's attorney.
Wright received about $500,000 in the settlement, said Lin Hughes, an attorney for the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia. Monk Walter Christley and Ecumenical Monks Inc. have not settled with Wright, Long said.
The church broke ties with the monastery in 1999 after an earlier criminal investigation into a 13-year-old boy's claim of abuse by two monks.
ST. LOUIS (MO)
Post-Dispatch
By Aisha Sultan
ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH
12/18/2006
A victims' activist group targeted a minister at Watson Terrace Christian Church on Sunday, distributing leaflets that alleged sexual misconduct in his previous positions.
The Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests distributed a thick dossier on the Rev. Carl King, including copies of court documents of a 2005 restraining order, parts of his divorce proceedings and records about his departure from the Presbytery of Southeastern Illinois.
Church members refused to let a reporter enter the building or talk to King regarding the allegations.
While the Watson Terrace church is a member of the Disciples of Christ denomination, King is not a recognized ordained minister of the denomination, according to the Rev. Penny Ross-Corona, an area minister for the Southeast Gateway Area of the Christian Church.
UTAH
The Spectrum
It's not too often that Southern Utah steps into the national spotlight. Sure, the St. George area is well known for being a retirement destination, and the Utah Shakespearean Festival has helped gain Cedar City notoriety.
Both of those are things to be proud of.
But our region hit the national stage again this week when the preliminary hearing for polygamist sect leader Warren Jeffs wrapped up with an order for Jeffs to stand trial beginning in April on charges of rape as an accomplice.
That's not so good.
It's important that Jeffs finally gets his day in court. The rumors have been floating around for years about sexual abuse of young girls and welfare fraud running rampant among at least some members of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. At least in this one case - in which a woman has accused Jeffs of forcing her to have sexual relations with her 19-year-old cousin when she was just 14 - Jeffs gets the opportunity to refute the charges and stand up for his faith.
IRELAND
Spiked
Michael Fitzpatrick
There is an old Irish joke, retold here by Richard Dawkins, about somebody in Northern Ireland who responded to a survey question about religious affiliation by declaring himself an atheist. ‘Would that be a Protestant atheist or a Catholic atheist?’ came the insistent reply. Faced with a similar inquiry, I would be obliged to declare myself a Catholic atheist. By this I mean that I am an atheist by conviction, but a Catholic by upbringing and tribal affiliation.
I know that some people raised as Catholics blame the Church of Rome for their difficulties in later life, nourishing a particularly degenerate literary genre. As a child taught by nuns and brothers, I endured a fair amount of pious claptrap and casual corporal punishment and some inappropriate sexual interest. But any detriment suffered was far outweighed by a sound education and by exposure to a rich cultural heritage – of art and music, scripture and ritual. For this I retain gratitude, affection and respect.
Though as an atheist I feel I should welcome Dawkins’ diatribe against religion, as a Catholic atheist, I find myself repelled by his crass polemic – and I am not alone (1). In his comments on Catholicism, Dawkins reveals a combination of old-fashioned Protestant anti-Popery with the fashionable contempt of the liberal intelligentsia for any kind of religious faith. Thus he refers to the ‘semi-permanent state of morbid guilt suffered by a Roman Catholic possessed of normal human frailty and less than normal intelligence’ (p167). Discussing the consequences of clerical sexual abuse in Ireland, he suggests that ‘horrible as sexual abuse no doubt was, the damage was arguably less than the long-term psychological damage inflicted by bringing the child up Catholic in the first place’ (p317). These are statements of such unmitigated prejudice – and indeed absurdity – that it is shocking to find them in a serious book by a reputable author.
AUSTRALIA
Sydney Morning Herald
Geesche Jacobsen
December 19, 2006
"IN OUR community we really treat each other as if we are really, really close friends," the 10-year-old girl explained to the police officer.
The girl was talking about her religious community, the Exclusive Brethren.
And she was explaining how she came to stay with a man who digitally raped and repeatedly indecently assaulted her sister.
The man, who cannot be named for legal reasons, was yesterday found guilty in the District Court of four counts of indecent assault and a charge of sexual intercourse with a child under 10.
Judge Helen Murrell told the Downing Centre jury he was convicted last year of sexual offences against the girl's sister. She refused to continue his bail, pending his sentencing in January.
WASHINGTON (DC)
The New York Sun
By Associated Press
December 18, 2006
WASHINGTON — The Archdiocese of Washington has agreed to pay $1.3 million to 16 men who said they were sexually abused by eight priests between 1962 and 1982.
Although the men began pursuing claims three years ago, no lawsuits were filed in part because the statutes of limitation had expired in the jurisdictions where the acts allegedly occurred, an attorney for the group, Peter Gillon, said.
"Our clients were in severe distress, emotionally, psychologically, financially, and spiritually, and felt that a settlement was appropriate at this time," Mr. Gillon said as the agreement was announced Friday.
The allegations raised by the men stemmed from events that occurred between 24 and 44 years ago, and two of the men receiving settlement money already had lost legal claims against the archdiocese. All eight priests involved in the allegations have been removed from ministry; seven were prosecuted, and one was acquitted.
CULPEPER (VA)
Richmond Times Dispatch
BY LIZ MITCHELL
MEDIA GENERAL NEWS SERVICE Dec 18, 2006
CULPEPER -- A Baptist minister signed a plea agreement last week that resulted in his conviction on one felony and six misdemeanor charges related to child abuse.
Charles Shifflett, pastor of First Baptist Church of Culpeper, had been scheduled for four trials beginning Jan. 17 on seven felony charges of physical and sexual abuse against children.
After months of negotiating, prosecution and defense lawyers came to an agreement that is signed by Shifflett, 55, and the victims. The case was added to Thursday's docket days earlier, when Shifflett decided to sign the plea.
Shifflett entered an Alford plea, which means he does not admit guilt but acknowledges that the prosecution has sufficient evidence for a conviction. If the cases had gone to trial, Shifflett could have faced as much as 35 years in prison.
TEXAS
Denton Record-Chronicle
01:46 AM CST on Sunday, December 17, 2006
By Donna Fielder / Staff Writer
A support group for victims of sexual abuse by clergy members is lobbying the General Baptist Convention of Texas to make public a list the convention keeps of Baptist ministers involved in sexual misconduct.
Members of Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests or Clergy (SNAP) handed out pamphlets at the November Baptist General Convention of Texas outlining the problem with the “secret list” and the reasons they believe the ministers’ names should be made public.
But Texas Baptist officials are adamant that the list be kept confidential.
Emily Row, coordinator of leader communication with the Baptist General Convention of Texas, said there are several reasons.
“This is not a list of people, but a file that includes incidents of clergy misconduct reported by the churches that cooperate within the convention,” Row said. “Baptists don’t have denominational structure like most denominations. Churches choose to participate or not, and we have no overarching hierarchical system.”
TEXAS
Denton Record-Chronicle
01:44 AM CST on Sunday, December 17, 2006
By Donna Fielder / Staff Writer
It is not unusual for victims who were sexually abused as children to wait until adulthood to make the abuse public, experienced counselors say. Feelings of confusion, betrayal and guilt often are so overwhelming that they are suppressed, and sometimes it takes years for a victim to be able to confront what happened, psychologists say.
Dr. Karen Cogan is a licensed psychologist with a private practice who also works at the University of North Texas Counseling and Testing Center.
“This has been one of my areas of expertise for many years now,” Cogan said. “Often it takes the victim many years to come to terms with what has happened and understand it enough to come forward and tell people. They may have tried and not been believed by other adults in their lives. Who wants to deal with that, having people think it didn’t happen or that they brought it on themselves?”
Telling the story is reliving it, Cogan said.
TEXAS
Denton Record-Chronicle
11:08 AM CST on Sunday, December 17, 2006
By Donna Fielder / Staff Writer
Two Denton-area Baptist ministers have apologized in the wake of lawsuits filed by women who allege the ministers molested them as teenagers.
Larry Reynolds, pastor of the Southmont Baptist Church in Denton, and Dale “Dickie” Amyx, pastor of the Bolivar Baptist Church near Sanger, were accused in separate lawsuits filed in June of molesting girls who sought their counseling when the girls were 14. Each also was accused of continuing to sexually exploit his position of trust with the girls for several years.
Different women made the allegations, and the lawsuits are not connected.
Reynolds said he could not comment for this story, and Amyx gave a one-sentence response when reached by telephone Thursday.
“I talked to my lawyer and he said to refer all questions to him,” Amyx said.
Each man is accused in the civil lawsuits of crimes that would have been first-degree felonies with possible life sentences had the girls told authorities at the time. Neither girl told anyone about the incidents until the statute of limitations had passed for criminal prosecution. In cases involving juveniles, victims can report a crime until 10 years after their 18th birthday. Both women are now older than 28.
TEXAS
WFAA
09:34 AM CST on Sunday, December 17, 2006
By DONNA FIELDER / Denton Record-Chronicle
Two Denton County Baptist ministers have been sued by women who accuse the pastors of sexual abuse when the women were teenagers.
Larry Reynolds, pastor of Southmont Baptist Church in Denton, and Dale "Dickie" Amyx, pastor of Bolivar Baptist Church near Sanger, were accused in separate lawsuits filed in June.
Different women made the allegations, and the lawsuits are not related. The suit against Dr. Reynolds has been settled; the one against Mr. Amyx is ongoing.
Dr. Reynolds said he could not comment.
"While I would very much like to be able to tell you my side of the story concerning the allegations that were made against me, I am not allowed to do so," Dr. Reynolds wrote in an e-mail to the Denton Record-Chronicle.
Mr. Amyx, 61, referred all questions to his lawyer, James Harrison, who said it would not be appropriate to comment during pending litigation.
MASSACHUSETTS
Boston Herald
By O’Ryan Johnson
Sunday, December 17, 2006 - Updated: 01:01 AM EST
Governor-elect Deval Patrick yesterday named former Essex District Attorney Kevin Burke and former state Rep. Suzanne Bump to his cabinet.
Burke was named head of the Executive Office of Public Saftey, while Bump was selected as director of the Department of Workforce Development.
Burke, 60, a Beverly resident, served as Essex County’s top prosecutor from 1979 to 2002. Among many high-profile cases, Burke prosecuted defrocked Haverhill priest Ronald Paquin for child sex crimes. Paquin later pleaded guilty. Burke now works for Burke and Mawn, LLC, a public safety consulting firm.
American Chronicle
Chris Stevenson
December 16, 2006
How Churches, Police, Grand Juries, and Judges can work together.
The mistake they (Jehovah’s Witnesses) made was when they began to handle child abuse as an ordinary infraction in the congregation rather than [calling the police] - Barbara Anderson, a former top Watchtower publications researcher and writer
Early last September a Hunterdon County (NJ) Grand Jury did their job. They indicted a former Pastor of what the Express-Times called “a close-knit congregation of about 630 families.” The sub-human’s name is “the Reverend.” John Banko. He is already in the middle of a 15-year sentence for plugging an Alter boy in ’93. According to the Express: “About a year before the new accusations claim, he sexually assaulted a 2nd child,” whom attended his church. This charge is for the sexual assault of an 11-year-old who was a member of the lopsided named St. Edward the Confessor Roman Catholic Church. How about renaming it St. Edward the Molester Roman Catholic Church? Oh never mind. Some faiths urge their followers to be silent, so they can handle this internally. Here are 3 simple rules to go by if your church is confronted with such a problem:
1-Don’t let anyone tell you that this is only a “Church matter,” a “congregational matter,” a “Clergy,” “Elder,” or doctrinal matter: Your Church heads are as qualified to handle criminal offenses as your cable-guy is qualified to run a nuclear power plant. I hate to sound crude, but it is what it is. Simply contact your local law enforcement agency; police dept. Sheriff’s dept. FBI etc. This is not rocket science. Yes God is merciful, but God isn’t stupid, he does not want scum representing him. Police Forensic Experts can determine the validity of any accusation. If confirmed as true, he is to be promptly removed from his position (that’s right, leave him hanging) and left to the judgment of the only organization he now belongs to, the state or federal judicial system, and the tattooed muscle-bound Aryan Nations brotherhood in San Quentin, Attica, or hopefully Ft. Leavenworth, who await him with open arms.
MISSOURI
NPR
by Doualy Xaykaothao
Weekend Edition Saturday, December 16, 2006
This week, NPR aired several reports about cases of alleged child sexual abuse involving a couple of church leaders in Southwest Missouri. The accusers are church members, most of whom are related to the accused by blood or marriage. All of the accused deny all the charges against them. In this reporter's notebook, NPR's Doualy Xaykaothao shares how challenging it was to gather the story.
I first saw this story in the summer. It seemed to be unusual because of the familial ties between most of the accused church leaders and the accusers. It was also interesting because their place of worship was on a 100-acre-farm in the Ozarks -- a beautiful part of this country that I knew little about. NPR producer Art Silverman and I traveled to Missouri to report on the alleged child sexual abuse cases.
At an October preliminary hearing in Newton County, a judge swore in an accuser before she testified against one church leader: 63-year-old Pastor George Johnston. He denies all the charges against him. The hearing took place in a small court-room on a rainy day. Apart from the courtroom staff and the lawyers, there were only a handful of observers in the public seating area.
SANTA ANA (CA)
CBS 2
(AP) SANTA ANA, Calif. A judge ruled this week that a Roman Catholic high school at the center of a sexual abuse lawsuit must release information about alleged sexual misconduct between teachers and students over a ten-year period ending in 1997.
Lawyers for a former student say documents about any incidents involving a former assistant basketball coach at Mater Dei High School could show that school administrators covered up sexual abuse.
The judge also ruled that the former dean of Mater Dei High School must answer questions from lawyers of a woman who says a former school coach molested her.
The ruling is part of a lawsuit by a former Mater Dei student who alleges she was abused by coach Jeffrey Andrade for two years starting in 1995.
Posted by the Asbury Park Press on 12/17/06
BY CHAD HEMENWAY
SOMERVILLE (NJ)
Ashbury Park Press
GANNETT NEW JERSEY
SOMERVILLE — A former Immaculata High School physical education teacher and coach, once described by an assistant as the "Vince Lombardi" of girls basketball at the school, was arrested and charged Thursday with sexually assaulting a female student, Somerset County Prosecutor Wayne J. Forrest said.
Pamela Balogh, 39, of Bethlehem, Pa., was arrested and charged with first-degree aggravated sexual assault, second-degree sexual assault, third-degree aggravated criminal sexual contact, fourth-degree criminal sexual contact and third-degree endangering the welfare of a child.
The female victim reported the sexual assaults, which usually occurred in Balogh's office at Immaculata High School, began in December 2004 and continued through September 2005, Forrest said.
FORT COLLINS (CO)
CBS 4
(AP) FORT COLLINS, Colo. A 43-year-old former Roman Catholic priest has pleaded not guilty to sexually molesting a Fort Collins teen.
Timothy Evans entered the plea in Larimer District Court Friday. He is accused of molesting the teen between 1998 and 1999 while he was assigned to Saint Elizabeth Seton Church.
He also is accused of providing the teen alcohol. His trial is set to begin March 19.
WASHINGTON (DC)
The New York Times
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published: December 17, 2006
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Washington has agreed to pay $1.3 million to 16 men who said they were sexually abused by eight priests from 1962 to 1982.
Although the men began pursuing the claims three years ago, in many instances the statutes of limitation had expired in the jurisdictions where they said the abuse had occurred, said Peter M. Gillon, a lawyer for the group. In addition, two of the men had already lost legal claims against the archdiocese.
“Our clients were in severe distress, emotionally, psychologically, financially and spiritually, and felt that a settlement was appropriate at this time,” Mr. Gillon said as the agreement was announced Friday.
All eight priests accused by the men have been removed from ministry; seven were prosecuted and one was acquitted.
UNITED KINGDOM
Guardian
Antony Barnett, investigations editor
Sunday December 17, 2006
The Observer
The Catholic church faces fresh allegations of turning a blind eye to paedophilia after an Observer investigation revealed that one of its priests was allowed to continue working despite warnings he posed a danger to children.
The priest, Father David Crowley, went on to rape a 10-year-old altar boy, whom he continued to abuse until 1995. Now the victim has spoken publicly for the first time about his ordeal in order to expose the 'scandalous' way he says the church has behaved. He has accused the Rt Rev David Konstant, former Bishop of Leeds, of failing to stop Crowley despite having evidence that the priest was a sex risk to children. In 1997 Crowley was jailed for nine years after pleading guilty to abusing boys for more than a decade.
Konstant was Bishop of Leeds for 19 years, chairman of the Catholic Education Service and headed the church's international affairs committee under Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O'Connor, the Archbishop of Westminster.
Documents show that in 1987 while Konstant was Bishop of Leeds, he was told of an incident where Crowley had 'facilitated' sexual activities between young boys in Huddersfield after allowing them to drink alcohol. A letter seen by The Observer shows that on 12 March that year, Konstant wrote to Crowley telling him that 'the grave scandal' means 'it will not be possible for you to work again as a priest in this diocese'.
ARIZONA
East Valley Tribune
By Gary Grado, Tribune
December 16, 2006
A former Chandler priest was sentenced Friday for having sex with a teenage parishioner 23 years ago, but the man received credit for almost a year of pretrial incarceration and will likely walk out of prison within a few days.
Judge Warren Granville sentenced the Rev. Joseph Briceno, former associate pastor at St. Mary’s Catholic Church, to almost 23 months in prison and three years probation — the maximum penalty available under the plea deal reached in October.
“The trust that was afforded you ... by the community is different than it is for parents and teachers, and you breached that trust,” Granville said. “You admitted to breaching that trust.”
NEW LONDON (CT)
The Day
By Karen Florin, Day Staff Writer
Published on 12/16/2006 in Region » Region News
As his wife, daughter and two former parishioners watched in disbelief, former Norwich Assembly of God pastor Charles L. Johnson Jr. gave his Bible and other personal belongings to his attorney.
Found guilty Friday morning of sexually assaulting a young girl, Johnson then departed meekly with judicial marshals.
The six members of the jury had entered the room with grim expressions, and one, who works with young children, sobbed as Court Clerk Martha Morrarty polled each juror to confirm the guilty verdicts for first-degree sexual assault and risk of injury to a minor.
Judge Stuart M. Schimelman raised Johnson's bond from $150,000 to $500,000 and set sentencing for Jan. 26.
MISSOURI
NPR
by Doualy Xaykaothao
All Things Considered, December 15, 2006
For decades, the windswept hillside known as Grand Valley Farm -- in the extreme southwestern corner of Missouri -- was home to a small, tight-knit religious community.
But recently, the farm has gained unwanted attention amid allegations of child sexual abuse. Most of the accusers and the accused are related by blood or marriage. All were members of the small family church.
All of the accused have pleaded not guilty. Of the several cases, only one trial date has been set for early next year. Whatever the outcome of the legal process, life has changed dramatically for members of the community.
GRAYSON (KY)
Kentucky.com
Associated Press
GRAYSON, Ky. - A former youth minister from northeastern Kentucky pleaded guilty to charges of first-degree sexual abuse in connection with the alleged rapes of two underage girls in 2003 and 2005.
Eric B. Porter, 31, was a youth pastor at Gregoryville Christian Church when the crimes occurred, and the victims, ages 16 and 15 at the time, were church members. Porter entered the plea Thursday.
When he was arrested nearly a year ago, Porter was initially charged with two counts of first-degree rape, three counts of first-degree sodomy and one burglary charge. The sex crimes were Class A felonies, which carry a sentence of 20 years to life in prison.
"That's the offer he pleaded to," Carter County Commonwealth's Attorney David Flatt told The Independent of Ashland. "He hasn't been sentenced yet so, obviously, the judge could come back and decide not to accept it."
TEXAS
Times Record News
By Jessica Langdon/Times Record News
December 16, 2006
Delfina Martinez has attended Our Lady of Guadalupe Catholic Church for 75 years. It's the church where her husband, Agapito - "Pete" - was baptized in 1927.
She expects sadness to touch this weekend's Masses, and she also hopes the services will shed some light on the situation that stunned her when she heard it Thursday night. Bishop Kevin Vann with the Diocese of Fort Worth removed Father Gilbert Albert Pansza - Father Gil - from active ministry after church leaders discovered an admission in his file concerning an incident of sexual abuse in the 1970s.
"I was very, very shocked. Very shocked," Martinez said. "I thought, 'Why didn't we know about this before?' "
Pansza, 55, was ordained as a priest in May 2000. He came to Our Lady of Guadalupe in July, after serving as pastor from August 2002 to June 2006 for churches in Bridgeport, Decatur and Jacksboro.
NEW LONDON (CT)
Norwich Bulletin
By GREG SMITH
Norwich Bulletin
NEW LONDON --A guilty verdict in the sexual molestation trial of Charles Johnson Jr. was met with tears and disbelief Friday by friends and supporters of the longtime pastor at the Norwich Assembly of God.
A six-member jury found Johnson guilty of first-degree sexual assault and risk of injury to a minor, which means Johnson, 53, will serve at least two years in prison.
Held on $500,000 bond, Johnson will be sentenced Jan. 26 in New London Superior Court, where he faces a maximum sentence of 30 years in prison.
Some vowed continued support despite the verdict.
"It's such an injustice. It's wrong, terribly wrong," said family friend and church member Bonnie Nicholson through tears. "This man is not capable of such a thing."
Johnson of Norwich was convicted on charges he inappropriately touched a young girl whose family was involved in the church and had twice lived with the Johnsons in Norwich.
OHIO
Cleveland Plain Dealer
David Briggs
They are still here among us, the victims of sexual abuse whose courage will not let us turn away.
In kitchens and living rooms in Avon Lake and Brook Park, in Cleveland Heights and Parma and Lakewood, they revealed what for so long so many of us did not want to hear: the young girl who was raped by a clergyman and then accused by her disbelieving father of being a whore; the teenage boys seduced by religious leaders with simple acts such as movie outings and swimming trips; the silent suffering of scores of boys and girls, now men and women, who were too ashamed even to tell spouses or family members of the violations that have haunted them since childhood.
Consider how many times these wounded people tried to speak up and were mercilessly turned away by church officials, fellow congregation members and even relatives who refused to acknowledge that a pastor in their church could commit such acts.
And yet they continued to take leaps of faith, bringing the issue to light by sharing their painful odysseys with reporters including me and my Plain Dealer colleague James McCarty and, before us, Karen Henderson.
Throughout the country and in Northeast Ohio, the courage of the victims and their families in coming forward has produced great strides toward healing survivors and protecting children. Several denominations have put into place policies for reporting abuse to both civil and religious authorities.
Often, when The Plain Dealer published the name of a religious leader accused of abusive behavior, Jim and I would hear from abuse survivors who were thankful to learn they were not alone. Some would tell how the victim's bravery gave them the courage to share their burdens with spouses and friends.
NEW JERSEY
Courier News
By CELANIE POLANICK
Staff Writer
North Hunterdon-Voorhees High School officials have suspended a physical education teacher who has been charged with sexually assaulting a student at her previous job.
Before she came to North Hunterdon-Voorhees High School, Pamela Balogh, 39, of Bethlehem, Pa., worked at Immaculata High School in Somerville as a physical education teacher and coach.
Balogh was arrested Thursday and charged with first-degree aggravated sexual assault, second-degree sexual assault, third-degree aggravated criminal sexual contact, fourth-degree criminal sexual contact and third-degree endangering the welfare of a child, Somerset County Prosecutor Wayne J. Forrest said. He declined to comment on other details of the investigation.
WASHINGTON (DC)
Washington Post
By Alan Cooperman
Washington Post Staff Writer
Saturday, December 16, 2006; Page
The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Washington said yesterday it has reached a $1.3 million settlement with 16 men who were sexually abused by priests between 1962 and 1982.
Both the total dollar figure and the amount per victim -- an average of about $81,000 before legal fees -- are small compared with the sums negotiated by some other Catholic dioceses, particularly in California, where two recent settlements totaled $160 million and topped $1 million per victim.
But the victims in the Washington archdiocese were in a weaker legal position, because all of their potential claims were beyond the statute of limitations for civil lawsuits. In California, the legislature has allowed victims of child sexual abuse to sue for damages no matter how long ago the abuse occurred.
"We feel the amount received by each victim was fair, given the legal defenses raised by the archdiocese," said the victims' attorney, Peter M. Gillon of the firm of Greenberg, Traurig. "These men are all truly suffering psychologically, financially and spiritually, and therefore we all agreed it was best to reach a settlement at this time, even if the amounts were not large." ...
Terry McKiernan, who tracks sex abuse cases and statistics for bishopaccountability.org, a Boston-based group, said he is skeptical of claims that Washington, or any other diocese, has a much cleaner record than the church as a whole.
"I think the variation is not so much in performance as in availability of data" on individual dioceses, he said. In places such as Boston, Cleveland, Philadelphia and Manchester, N.H., where grand juries have investigated the church's handling of sex abuse cases, the percentage of abusers appears to be higher, he said.
CALIFORNIA
Los Angeles Times
By Jennifer Delson, Times Staff Writer
December 16, 2006
Reaffirming a previous court decision contested by Mater Dei High School, an Orange County Superior Court judge ruled this week that the school must release information about allegations of sexual misconduct between teachers and students during a 10-year period ending in 1997.
The ruling Thursday was part of a 2005 lawsuit filed by a former student who alleged that former Mater Dei assistant basketball coach Jeff Andrade sexually abused her for a year, beginning when she was 15.
Andrade admitted he had sexual intercourse with the girl, according to court documents.
Orange County Superior Court Judge Jonathan H. Cannon ruled that the Santa Ana school had to provide the documents about any alleged incident during the period Andrade worked at the school. The student's lawyers had argued that allegations could show a pattern of high school administrators covering up sexual abuse.
WILMINGTON (DE)
The News Journal
By BETH MILLER, The News Journal
Posted Saturday, December 16, 2006
WILMINGTON -- Delaware's civil statute of limitations for child sexual abuse was in the crosshairs again Friday as two men who say they were sexually abused by priests at Catholic schools called for lawmakers to change the law.
The men, Eric Eden and Navy Cmdr. Kenneth Whitwell, and their attorney, Thomas S. Neuberger, held a news conference Friday morning to press lawmakers to give victims of abuse more than two years to sue.
On those points, the Catholic Diocese of Wilmington agrees and also believes the statute should change, diocese attorney Tony Flynn said.
State Sen. Karen A. Peterson, D-Stanton, and Rep. Greg Lavelle, R-Sharpley, who sponsored legislation to change the law this year, said Friday they plan to do so again after the General Assembly reconvenes in January. The final version of the bill, granting victims 25 years after their 18th birthday, ran into a limitation of its own in Dover -- the end of the legislative session.
CHICAGO (IL)
Renew America
Matt C. Abbott
December 15, 2006
From a Dec. 14, 2006 story in the Chicago Sun-Times:
Two brothers who were sued for defamation last month by a Roman Catholic priest who they say sexually abused them more than 20 years ago responded Wednesday by suing Cardinal Francis George.
The brothers — known in court records as John Doe 1 and John Doe 2 — claim the Rev. Robert Stepek abused them in the 1980s at St. Symphorosa parish on Chicago's South Side when they were about 9 and 16 years old.
In November — acting on the recommendation of a review board that concluded there was reasonable cause to suspect the abuse occurred — George removed Stepek as pastor of St. Albert the Great parish in Burbank.
Following church protocol, George then referred Stepek's case to the Vatican for guidance about further action the archdiocese should take.
But Stepek denied having abused anyone, claiming the brothers had a "vendetta" against him, and he filed a defamation lawsuit against the two last month seeking more than $1 million in damages....
The following is the text of the defamation complaint filed on behalf of Father Robert Stepek:
ARIZONA
The Arizona Repub lic
Jahna Berry
The Arizona Republic
Dec. 16, 2006 12:00 AM
A former Chandler associate pastor who pleaded guilty in October to two felony counts of sexual conduct with a minor likely will serve only weeks behind bars under the laws that were in effect at the time of his crimes.
On Friday, a judge sentenced Joseph Briceño to nearly two years in prison and three years probation. Briceño, 60, also must register as a sex offender.
However, since Briceño's crimes were committed in the 1980s, he will have to serve only a fraction of that sentence, about 90 days, his attorney, Karla Momberger said. advertisement
Since he has been incarcerated for about a year, that more than satisfies the sentence, she said.
Briceño was tried this year on charges of abusing then-teenager Joaquin Bustamante, who attended St. Mary's Catholic Church.
ARIZONA
Arizona Daily Star
By The Associated Press
Tucson, Arizona | Published: 12.16.2006
PHOENIX — A former Catholic priest was sentenced to prison Friday for sexually abusing a teen more than 20 years ago.
Joseph Briceno, who pleaded guilty in October on two felony counts of sexual conduct with a minor, received the maximum sentence possible under a plea agreement with prosecutors. Besides serving 1.875 years in prison, he will be on probation for three years and also must register as a sex offender, said Barnett Lotstein, special assistant county attorney.
The county attorney previously dismissed four other counts of sexual conduct with a minor, one count of attempted sexual contact and one count of sexual abuse.
The incidents happened in 1982 and 1983 while Briceno was a priest at St. Mary's Catholic Church in Chandler.
ARIZONA
Tucson Citizen
The Arizona Republic
A former Roman Catholic parish priest in Chandler who pleaded guilty to two felony counts of sexual conduct with a minor will likely serve only about three months behind bars under laws that were in effect at the time of his crimes.
On Friday, a judge sentenced Joseph Briceño to nearly two years in prison and three years' probation. Briceño, 60, must also register as a sex offender.
But because Briceño's crimes were committed in the 1980s, he will have to serve only a fraction of that sentence, about 90 days, his attorney, Karla Momberger, said.
Because Briceño has been incarcerated for more than a year, that more than satisfies the sentence, she said.
ROME
Los Angeles Times
By Tracy Wilkinson, Times Staff Writer
December 16, 2006
ROME — The pope's official pastor Friday called for a worldwide day of fasting and penance to seek forgiveness for the sexual abuse by some priests of "the smallest members" of the Roman Catholic Church.
Speaking to Pope Benedict XVI and his top associates in a pre-Christmas sermon, Father Raniero Cantalamessa said that the church had paid a high price for "abominations" committed by abusive priests but that deeper atonement was necessary, including a public expression of sorrow and solidarity with victims.
"The time has come to do the most important thing: cry before God," Cantalamessa said.
As preacher of the papal household, his formal title, Cantalamessa is the only cleric who pronounces sermons to the pope. In his meditation Friday, he touched on a topic that, while receiving enormous attention in the United States, is only occasionally addressed in public in Rome.
LOS ANGELES (CA)
Los Angeles Times
From a Times Staff Writer
December 16, 2006
A deal has been finalized for the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Los Angeles to pay 45 victims of clergy sexual abuse $60 million.
Plaintiffs' attorney Raymond P. Boucher announced that the settlement of the victims' legal claims is official, and said they received payment Thursday and Friday. Cardinal Roger M. Mahony, who heads the archdiocese, announced the agreement Dec. 1.
"Forty-five people now have a chance to move forward," said Boucher, who is the lead counsel representing victims. "Thank God for that."
The deal includes cases that occurred when the archdiocese was not insured or was self-insured. Boucher noted that more than 500 cases remain to be resolved and urged the insurance companies expected by the archdiocese to cover much of the remaining liability to complete negotiations quickly.
MIAMI (FL)
Miami Herald
BY JAY WEAVER
jweaver@MiamiHerald.com
Ernest Durante kept a low profile as a guidance counselor at St. Thomas Aquinas High School -- until allegations about his priestly past resurfaced this fall.
A Philadelphia woman who once knew Durante contacted the Fort Lauderdale school to report that he was an ex-priest who had been identified in a 2005 grand jury report on Catholic clergymen accused of sexually abusing children.
Durante was not charged with any crime, but the report said he ''sometimes watched'' as a fellow priest sexually abused a 14-year-old male student in 1967 at a Catholic high school in Philadelphia.
The Philadelphia grand jury report said Durante and the colleague, the Rev. John Schmeer, took the boy to homes they shared in the Philadelphia area and the New Jersey Shore, where they gave him Playboy magazines and introduced him to a teenage girl.
FORT WORTH (TX)
The Dallas Morning News
12/16/2006
Associated Press
While Gilbert Pansza was still studying to become a clergyman, he admitted sexually abusing a child in the 1970s to Catholic Bishop Joseph Delaney.
Two years after Pansza's 1998 admission, Delaney ordained him into the priesthood.
Despite a 2002 agreement by bishops nationwide to keep known abusers from serving in the ministry, Pansza continued working. He was eventually promoted to pastor and went on to work at parishes in Fort Worth, Bridgeport, Decatur, Jacksboro and Wichita Falls.
A 2004 order required the Fort Worth Catholic Diocese to hand over records on priests accused of sexual abuse. But nothing about Pansza was surrendered.
The decisions were made by a previous diocesan administration, said John Crumley, an attorney for the diocese. He didn't learn about Pansza's admission until a few days ago, when Delaney's successor found out, Crumley said.
FORT WORTH (TX)
The Dallas Morning News
12:00 AM CST on Saturday, December 16, 2006
By BROOKS EGERTON / The Dallas Morning News
In 1998, Gilbert Pansza admitted to Fort Worth Catholic Bishop Joseph Delaney that he had sexually abused a child decades earlier.
Two years later, Bishop Delaney ordained him to the priesthood anyway. In 2002, the nation's bishops agreed that no known abuser could serve in ministry. Father Pansza went on working despite this "zero tolerance" policy and soon was promoted to a pastor's job.
In 2004, a judge ordered the Fort Worth Catholic Diocese to surrender all its records on priests accused of sexual abuse. It turned over nothing about Father Pansza.
An attorney for the diocese, John Crumley, said Friday that he couldn't explain any of it.
The diocese's spokesman, Jeff Hensley, continued his recent practice of not responding to inquiries from The Dallas Morning News.
VATICAN CITY
Boston.com
By Philip Pullella, Reuters | December 16, 2006
VATICAN CITY -- Pope Benedict's personal preacher yesterday urged the pope to call a worldwide day of fasting and penitence to ask forgiveness for the clergy sexual abuse scandals.
The Rev. Raniero Cantalamessa, whose official title is "preacher of the papal household," made the suggestion during a pre-Christmas sermon at a Vatican chapel. Benedict was not present.
Cantalamessa said the church had "wept and sighed" recently over "abominations committed by her very ministers and pastors." He said the time had come for the church to "weep before God," to publicly express remorse, and to show solidarity with the victims.
The clergy abuse scandal has affected Catholic dioceses across the United States.
Many priests have been prosecuted and millions has been paid to victims. Scandals have also hit churches in Ireland, among other countries.
VATICAN CITY
Mercury News
By Victor L. Simpson
Associated Press
VATICAN CITY - Pope Benedict XVI's personal priest asked the pontiff Friday to declare a day of fasting and penance to express the Roman Catholic Church's solidarity with the victims of clerical sex abuse.
In a strongly worded lecture, the Rev. Raniero Cantalamessa denounced the ``abominations'' committed inside the church ``by its own ministers and pastors'' and declared that the church has ``paid a high price for this.''
``The moment has come, after the emergency, to do the most important thing of all: to cry before God,'' said Cantalamessa, in a pre-Christmas talk delivered in a Vatican chapel. The pope was in the audience. ...
An advocacy group for victims of sexual abuse by clergy said the church should do more than call for penance and fasting.
``Decisive action protects kids, not nice gestures,'' Barbara Blaine, national president of the Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests, said in a statement. ``We'd much rather the pope discipline complicit bishops instead, because that's what is just, appropriate and effective.''
Blaine alleged that hundreds of bishops have covered up thousands of sex crimes.
Mary Pat Fox, president of Voice of the Faithful, a lay U.S. Catholic reform group created in response to the molestation scandal, said the comments were a hopeful sign that Vatican leaders were beginning to understand the depth of the crisis. However, Fox said church officials should go further by punishing bishops who sheltered guilty clergy.
LOS ANGELES (CA)
Lompoc Record
LOS ANGELES - Attorneys representing 45 people who sued the nation's largest Roman Catholic archdiocese, accusing clergy members of sex abuse, signed off Friday on a $60 million settlement, according to the lead plaintiffs' lawyer.
The Archdiocese of Los Angeles said this month that it would pay $60 million to settle 45 cases that dated from prior to the mid-1950s and after 1987 _ periods when the archdiocese had little or no sexual abuse insurance.
Attorneys for the plaintiffs said the archdiocese had gone public with the agreement before all the accusers and their attorneys had reviewed and signed the documents. That process was finished Friday, Ray Boucher, the lead plaintiffs' attorney, said in a statement.
MALTA
MaltaMedia News
Dec 16, 2006, 12:43 CET
Pope Benedict XVI's personal priest, Rev. Raniero Cantalamessa, asked the pontiff on Friday to declare a day of fasting and penance to express the Roman Catholic Church's solidarity with the victims of clerical sexual abuse, reported Associated Press.
The plea follows Malta being in the limelight after United States Republican Congressman Mark Foley’s claims that he was molested by a clergyman. Gozitan Fr. Anthony Mercieca, had later come forward saying that he had an "intimate relationship" with Mark Foley in the 1960s.
Rev. Raniero Cantalamessa denounced the "abominations" committed inside the church "by its own ministers and pastors". He added that the church has "paid a high price for this," according to Associated Press. The Vatican said it had no immediate comment on the speech. Although Pope Benedict XVI’s reaction was not immediately known, the pontiff recently said the church must urgently rebuild confidence and trust damaged by clerical sex abuse.
FORT COLLINS (CO)
The Coloradoan
By LAURA BAILEY
LauraBailey@coloradoan.com
A former Fort Collins priest accused of sexually molesting a minor pleaded innocent in Larimer District Court on Friday.
Timothy Joseph Evans, 43, pleaded innocent to charges stemming from incidents alleged to have occurred with a teenager during his tenure at St. Elizabeth Ann Seton, 5450 S. Lemay Ave., where he served from 1998 to 2002.
Evans is accused of having sexual contact with a boy in the parish who was between the age of 15 and 18 on separate incidents between September 1998 and 1999. He is accused of supplying the youth with alcohol on at least one occasion.
Charges against Evans include two counts of sexual assault on a child by a person in a position of trust, one count of sexual assault on a child - pattern abuse and one count of contributing to the delinquency of a minor.
Judge Jolene Blair set Evans' Larimer County trial to begin March 19.
LOS ANGELES (CA)
San Francisco Chronicle
Friday, December 15, 2006
(12-15) 17:34 PST Los Angeles (AP) --
Attorneys representing 45 people who sued the nation's largest Roman Catholic archdiocese, accusing clergy members of sex abuse, signed off Friday on a $60 million settlement, according to the lead plaintiffs' lawyer.
The Archdiocese of Los Angeles said this month that it would pay $60 million to settle 45 cases that dated from prior to the mid-1950s and after 1987 — periods when the archdiocese had little or no sexual abuse insurance.
Attorneys for the plaintiffs said the archdiocese had gone public with the agreement before all the accusers and their attorneys had reviewed and signed the documents. That process was finished Friday, Ray Boucher, the lead plaintiffs' attorney, said in a statement.
Tod Tamberg, an archdiocese spokesman, welcomed the news. "We had an agreement two weeks ago," he said. "The archdiocese is glad to hear that the ink is dry."
gospelcom
St. Peter Damian was a man with a mission.
The church reformer was appalled by the sexual immorality of his fellow clergy and their superiors, who often refused to warn the faithful and allowed the guilty to go unpunished. He condemned all sexual immorality, but especially the priests who abused boys after hearing their confessions.
Damian poured his concerns into a volume called the Book of Gomorrah, which ended with an appeal to Pope Leo IX for reform.
The year was 1051. The pope praised Damian, but declined to take decisive action. A later pope tried to suppress the book.
"Anyone who thinks the problems the church has today are new just doesn't know history," said psychotherapist A.W. Richard Sipe, a former Benedictine monk who has served as an expert witness in more than 200 cases of clergy sexual abuse. "There has always been a temptation to try to protect the image of the church, which usually means covering up scandals involving priests and bishops."
VATICAN CITY
Reuters
By Philip Pullella
VATICAN CITY (Reuters) - The only man allowed to preach to Pope Benedict on Friday told the Pontiff he should call a worldwide day of fasting and penitence to ask forgiveness for the Roman Catholic Church's priestly sexual abuse scandals.
Father Raniero Cantalamessa, whose official title is "preacher of the papal household", made the suggestion during a pre-Christmas sermon to the Pope and Vatican officials.
Cantalamessa said the Church had "wept and sighed" recently over "abominations committed by her very ministers and pastors".
The top news, photos, and videos of 2006. Full Coverage
A U.S. sexual abuse scandal which erupted in Boston in 2002 spread to almost every Catholic diocese in the country. Many priests were prosecuted and payments of millions of dollars were made to scores of victims.
NEW YORK
Kings Courier
By Thomas Tracy 12/14/2006
Police arrested Midwood Rabbi Joel Kolko (above) on sex abuse charges last week.
A Midwood rabbi who had already been accused of being a pedophile was arrested last week for allegedly sexually assaulting a nine-year-old student, officials said.
Joel Kolko, 60, of the 1200 block of East 22nd Street, was charged with four counts of sex abuse and endangering the welfare of a minor on December 7.
The rabbi’s arrest has Kolko’s past alleged victims believing that no one can run away from their past.
NEW LONDON (CT)
Norwich Bulletin
Former Norwich pastor Charles Johnson Jr. this morning was found guilty of first-degree sexual assault and risk of injury to a minor by a six-member jury.
Johnson faces a maximum of 30 years in prison, according to assistant state's attorney Theresa Anne Ferryman. Held on $500,000 bond, Johnson is to be sentenced Jan. 26 in New London Superior Court.
Johnson, 53, of Norwich was accused of inappropriately touching the girl at his home when she was 9 or 10. At the time, he was pastor at Norwich Assembly of God.
With no physical evidence, prosecution relied heavily on testimony from the alleged victim, members of her family and investigators.
FORT COLLINS (CO)
The Coloradoan
By LAURA BAILEY
LauraBailey@coloradoan.com
A Fort Collins priest accused of sexually molesting a minor pleaded not guilty in Larimer County Court today.
Timothy Joseph Evans, 43, pleaded not guilty to four charges stemming from incidents alleged to have happened with a teenager during Evans' tenure at St. Elizabeth Ann Seton, 5450 S. Lemay Ave., where he served from 1998 to 2002.
The counts include two counts of sexual assault on a child by a person in a position of trust, one count of sexual assault on a child – pattern abuse and one count of contributing to the delinquency of a minor.
Judge Jolene Blair set Evans’ Larimer County trial to begin March 19.
WILMINGTON (DE)
The News Journal
By BETH MILLER, The News Journal
Posted Friday, December 15, 2006 at 12:29 pm
WILMINGTON — Two men whose lawsuits against religious-order Catholic priests are pending in state and federal courts called for Delaware lawmakers to resume efforts to change the state’s civil statute of limitations for child sexual abuse – and give those previously blocked by it their day in court.
Eric Eden, a former student at Salesianum School, and Navy Commander Kenneth Whitwell, who had attended Archmere Academy, who say they were abused by priests when they were students, called for the changes during a press conference at the office of their attorney, Thomas S. Neuberger.
Several lawmakers introduced a bill earlier this year to change the civil statute, which limits the amount of time a person can sue for damages. At present, Delaware law allows suits to be filed for two years after the injury.
NEW LONDON (CT)
The Day
By Karen Florin
Published on 12/15/2006 in Region » Region News
A New London Superior Court jury found former Norwich Assembly of God Pastor Charles Johnson guilty this morning of sexually assaulting a young girl five years ago.
One juror, a female day-care provider, wept as the jury was polled by the court clerk.
Johnson was taken into custody after Judge Stuart M. Schimelman raised is bond from $150,000 to $500,000.
IRELAND
Irish Independent
NOTORIOUS paedophile ex-priest Oliver O'Grady walked into a Dublin shop to buy coloured paper "like a child would have".
The convicted sex offender, who is believed to have abused 23 young people including a nine-month-old infant, admitted he was the shamed former cleric in a "very open, almost brazen" manner when asked by the Phibsborough shopkeeper.
The shopkeeper, called Aidan, told RTE's 'Liveline' programme yesterday that he refused to serve the 60-year-old Limerick-born paedophile and found him to be a "bit strange".
"I had seen his face a few weeks ago when he was splashed over the papers," Aidan said. "He came in yesterday. He was acting kind of peculiar. He was inquiring about buying a particular type of paper a kid might have, a coloured paper. He used that phrase, which I thought strange because he's an old man.
KANSAS CITY (MO)
The Kansas City Star
By TONY RIZZO
The Kansas City Star
A lawsuit filed Thursday accuses a former Kansas City area priest of molesting a 12-year-old boy during a 1978 trip to Texas.
The suit, filed in Jackson County Circuit Court, also alleges that the Catholic Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph knowingly ignored and concealed the priest’s misconduct.
The former priest, John R. Tulipana, resigned in 1994 after The Kansas City Star reported that the diocese had paid $150,000 in 1989 to a man who alleged that he was molested by Tulipana in 1980 and 1981.
Bishop Raymond J. Boland, who headed the diocese in 1994, said at the time that his predecessor had received two complaints involving Tulipana. Like the one reported by The Star, the other was handled by a financial settlement.
In both cases, plaintiff’s attorneys required the diocese to sign confidentiality agreements to protect the identities of the alleged victims, officials for the diocese said Thursday. Tulipana underwent psychological evaluations and was cleared to return to the ministry after those complaints.
PENNSYLVANIA
The Express-Times
Friday, December 15, 2006
From staff and wire reports
NESQUEHONING | A former Lehigh Valley priest who had been accused of offering to pay for sex died Wednesday morning after a car wreck in Carbon County.
Nesquehoning Borough police said Monsignor Stephen Forish was traveling north on Route 93 across Broad Mountain when he lost control of his Buick LeSabre at 9:31 a.m., according to the Standard-Speaker newspaper in Hazleton, Pa.
An officer at the wreck just south of the Packer Township line said Forish might have lost control after being stricken by a medical condition. Police said the car veered into the southbound lane "and then off the road into several trees," according to the Standard-Speaker.
PENNSYLVANIA
The Morning Call
By Kathleen Parrish and Daniel Patrick Sheehan Of The Morning Call
The troubled life of Stephen Forish, an Allentown Catholic Diocese priest twice accused of soliciting sex on the street, ended Wednesday morning in a one-car crash on a rain-slicked road in Carbon County.
Forish, 61, who had left active ministry and was living in his hometown of McAdoo, Schuylkill County, was northbound on Route 93 about 9:30 a.m. when his car veered across the other lane and hit several trees, Nesquehoning police officer Jeff Ohl said.
''Whether it was driver error or medical, we don't know,'' Ohl said. ''He did have a history of being diabetic. He could have gone into shock or had a heart attack.''
Carbon County Coroner Bruce Nalesnik pronounced Forish dead at the scene of multiple injuries. The results of toxicology tests are pending.
UNITED KINGDOM
The Irish Times
A former priest and a paedophile rights campaigner will be sentenced today in London after a massive child pornography collection was found in a secret vault.
Irishman Thomas O'Carroll (61) a one-time teacher-turned-journalist, of Leam Street, Leamington Spa, Warwickshire, pleaded guilty to two charges of distributing child porn images between January 1994 and July, 2005.
The library of magazines, videos and slides took years to amass and contained nearly 50,000 illicit images.
He is a founder member of the now defunct Paedophile Information Exchange, as well as its successor, the International Paedophile Child Emancipation Group, both of which he used to campaign for the legalisation of sex between adults and children.
His co-defendant, millionaire Michael Studdert (67), a ex-churchman, admitted 20 charges of making indecent images of children between January 2001 and the beginning of this year, one of distributing them and one of possession.
ALBANY (NY)
Albany Times Union
By MARC PARRY, Staff writer
Last updated: 4:29 p.m., Thursday, December 14, 2006
ALBANY -- A City Court judge on Thursday sentenced disgraced cantor Philip Friedman to six years probation for molesting an 11-year-old girl.
The former cantor at Albany's Temple Israel must also register as a sex offender under the sentence imposed by Judge William Carter.
``I wish to apologize to the members of Temple Israel, to Rabbi Paul Silton, and, most of all, to my students,'' Friedman said in court, according to his lawyer.
BLANCO (TX)
Houston Chronicle
Associated Press
BLANCO, Texas — The insurance company for the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia has settled a claim by a man who says he was abused as a teenager by monks at a monastery here.
The settlement agreement, which included a monetary payment, was finalized on Wednesday, church attorney Lin Hughes said today. She declined to disclose how much James Wright Jr. received.
Wright sued the church, which is no longer associated with the Christ of the Hills monastery, along with San Antonio-businessman-turned-monk Samuel Greene Jr. for abuse. Two other monks and a nonprofit founded by Greene also were named in the lawsuit.
Wright said he was sexually abused about a decade ago at the Christ of the Hills monastery after being sent there as a teenager for "acting out."
TEXAS
MOSNEWS
The insurance company for the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia has settled a claim by a man who says he was abused as a teenager by monks at a monastery in the United States, The Associated Press reports.
The settlement agreement, which included a monetary payment, was finalized on Wednesday, church attorney Lin Hughes said Thursday. She declined to disclose how much James Wright Jr. received. Wright sued the church, which is no longer associated with the Christ of the Hills monastery, along with San Antonio-businessman-turned-monk Samuel Greene Jr. for abuse. Two other monks and a nonprofit founded by Greene were also named in the lawsuit.
Wright said he was sexually abused about a decade ago at the Christ of the Hills monastery after being sent there as a teenager for “acting out.”
Calls by The Associated Press to attorneys for Wright and Greene on Thursday evening were not immediately returned.
CULPEPER (VA)
Star Exponent
Liz Mitchell
Staff Writer
Friday, December 15, 2006
It was a yearlong fight for validation, protection and justice.
And now it’s over.
The victims in the Charles Shifflett case, bonded by their life changing experiences kept secret for 15 years or more, feel a bittersweet sense of relief.
In Circuit Court Thursday, Liz Bailey, Woody Leake and Robert Hammonds quietly sat in the courtroom watching their former preacher plead guilty to child abuse charges.
While Shifflett will carry the designation of a convicted felon for the rest of his life, the victims wish a harsher sentence had been imposed.
But ensuring a conviction with a compromise was better than risking a jury trial and a possible not guilty verdict, they said.
VATICAN CITY
The Ledger
By VICTOR L. SIMPSON
Associated Press Writer
VATICAN CITY
Pope Benedict XVI's personal preacher asked the pontiff Friday to declare a day of fasting and penance to publicly declare repentance and express solidarity with the victims of clerical sex abuse.
In a strongly worded lecture, he denounced the "abominations" committed inside the Roman Catholic Church "by its own ministers and pastors" and declared that the church "paid a high price for this."
"The moment has come, after the emergency, to do the most important thing of all: to cry before God," the Rev. Raniero Cantalamessa said in the first of a series of pre-Christmas lectures in the presence of the pope in a Vatican chapel.
Cantalamessa suggested that the church "indicate a day of fasting and penance, at local and national level, where the problem was particularly strong, to publicly express repentance before God and solidarity with the victims."
GOOSE CREEK (SC)
ABC News 4
Thursday December 14, 2006 10:48pm Reporter: Courtney Ward Posted By: Courtney Ward
Goose Creek, SC - Tyrone Moore, the North Charleston pastor accused of molesting several minors, was back in court Thursday afternoon - facing several charges of criminal sexual conduct and lewd act on a minor.
At first members of Full Word Ministries were saying they didn't believe the charges against their pastor and that they stood being him 100%. Now, a source close to the investigation says several of the church's pastors and ministers have resigned.
If you blinked, you missed it. Tyrone Moore's bond hearing lasted just minutes. Charged with one count of criminal sexual conduct and three counts of lewd act on a minor under 16 - for three alleged victims - the judge set Moore's bond at an $800,000 surety bond.
CULPEPER (VA)
Star Exponent
Liz Mitchell
Staff Writer
Friday, December 15, 2006
Charles Shifflett admitted in court Thursday that it was better to take a deal and plead guilty than face a trial.
The 55-year-old pastor of First Baptist Church of Culpeper was scheduled for a series of four trials, beginning Jan. 17, on seven felony charges of physical and sexual abuse against children.
Dressed in a blue jacket, gray pants, a white shirt and red tie, Shifflett stood before Judge J. Howe Brown Jr. in Culpeper Circuit Court and pleaded guilty to one felony and six misdemeanors related to child abuse.
In previous proceedings, his case has attracted a large crowd. But this time, it ended quietly with only a few attending.
The highly publicized case was added to the docket only days before, when Shifflett decided to sign the plea.
NEW LONDON (CT)
Norwich Bulletin
By GREG SMITH
Norwich Bulletin
NEW LONDON -- Former Norwich pastor Charles Johnson Jr. awaits a jury's decision on claims he sexual molested a young girl.
A six-member jury failed to reach a verdict Thursday and will continue deliberations today in New London Superior Court.
Johnson, 53, of Norwich is accused of inappropriately touching the girl at his home when she was 9 or 10. At the time, he was pastor at Norwich Assembly of God.
"The state is asking you to make a decision based solely on the credibility of one person -- a child," said defense attorney Peter Bartinik Jr. Thursday in closing arguments.
With no physical evidence, prosecution is relying heavily on testimony from the alleged victim, members of her family and investigators.
By TOM CARNEY
National
Nicole Sotelo, codirector of national Call to Action, said her organization intends to mount a letter-writing campaign to Lincoln, Neb., Bishop Fabian Bruskewitz, with copies to Bishop William Skylstad, bishop of Spokane, Wash., and president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops.
The Vatican has upheld the 1996 excommunication of Call to Action Nebraska by Bruskewitz.(See related story.)
Sotelo said the letters will protest Bruskewitz's refusal to comply with the bishops' conference policies on child abuse by clergy, she said. Asked about the timing of the campaign, just after an announcement that the Vatican has upheld the excommunication of the Lincoln chapter of Call to Action, she said it would counter Bruskewitz's "attempts to silence" the organization.
GOOSE CREEK (SC)
The Post and Courier
Friday, December 15, 2006
BY NOAH HAGLUND
GOOSE CREEK - Congregants from Full Word Ministries embraced outside a courtroom Thursday after their senior pastor appeared in bond court on more charges of sexually assaulting teenage and pre-teen boys.
About a dozen members of the nondenominational church watched as Municipal Judge Shirley Johnson set Tyrone Moore's bail at $800,000 on the four new charges. Some family members of alleged victims also attended, wearing blue ribbons for child-abuse awareness.
Shackled and wearing an orange jail jumpsuit, Moore said little during the hearing. His attorney, Eduardo Curry, acknowledged that some members have left the North Charleston church recently.
"As always, you have members who come and go, you have differences of opinion," Curry said. "It's like every other family when your leader is absent."
OAKLAND (CA)
Contra Costa Times
By Rebecca Rosen Lum
STAFF WRITER
A national officer for the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops will take over as chancellor for the 87-parish Oakland Diocese, which covers Alameda and Contra Costa counties.
The move will mean a return to the Bay Area for Sister Glen Anne McPhee, secretary of education for the national organization, who grew up in Berkeley and attended St. Mary Magdalene Parish there.
She starts work Jan. 2. As chancellor, she will oversee schooling and communications for the Diocese. ...
She will oversee Catholic schools, the Catholic Youth Organization, communications, public relations, evangelization and catechetics, or teaching, and t