BishopAccountability.org
	Priest Sexual Abuse Runs Deep in New Mexico KOAT April 17, 2008 http://www.koat.com/news/15917947/detail.html ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. -- Several times during his trip to America Pope Benedict XVI has reached out to the victims of pedophile priests, bringing attention to a church scandal with deep ties to New Mexico. In the 1940s, the Servants of the Paracletes were founded in northern New Mexico and opened a center near Jemez Springs. At first, the center helped priests with alcohol or emotional problems but later the Paracletes treated pedophile priests. Those priests came from all over the nation to New Mexico. The story of the Paracletes surfaced in the early 1990s, as the church battled other allegations surrounding the then archbishop of Santa Fe, Robert Sanchez. Sanchez, the nation's first Hispanic archbishop, admitted to covering up allegations of abuse by priests dating back to the 1980s. He also admitted to having affairs with women. Current archbishop Michael Sheehan replaced Sanchez in 1993. Almost immediately, Sheehan removed 20 priests from the ministry, and settled more than 100 cases with sexual abuse victims. At the time, Sheehan said the settlements nearly bankrupt the organization. By 2004, a national audit on sexual abuse claims against the Catholic church was released, revealing a clearer picture of what happened in New Mexico. In response to the audit, Sheehan wrote a column in the Archdiocese's monthly newsletter. In that article, he said credible allegations were made against 44 priests and two deacons. Twenty-three of those men were based in the Archdiocese of Santa Fe, 14 were from other dioceses, and seven were from various religious orders. Sheehan wrote that the archdiocese spent $25.3 million on settlements with minors molested by priests, $4.7 million on attorney fees and $1.1 million on counseling, for 193 victims.
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