BishopAccountability.org

Retired bishop could still face Vatican probe, trial

By Haidee V Eugenio
Pacific Daily News
February 14, 2017

http://www.guampdn.com/story/news/2017/02/14/retired-bishop-could-still-face-vatican-probe-trial/97882102/

Tomas A. Camacho

Former Guam priest Tomas A. Camacho, who now is a retired bishop on Saipan, still can be investigated by the Vatican and face a canonical trial over allegations he sexually abused an altar boy in the 1970s, a lawyer with expertise on Catholic Church law said.

“Yes, he can still be investigated and punished, even if he is retired,” said Minnesota-based canon lawyer Jennifer Haselberger, who established Canonical Consultation and Services LLC in 2013.

Haselberger said “a retired bishop remains a priest and can still exercise ministry — say Mass, baptize, confirm.”

“If someone is defrocked, it means he loses the ability to act as a priest/bishop and do those things,” added Haselberger, who previously served as chancellor for canonical affairs at the Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis, but resigned in April 2013 in protest of the archdiocese's handling of accusations of clergy sexual abuse.

Vatican policy dictates that only the Vatican can investigate bishops and archbishops who are accused of sexual abuse.

“As long as the accusations involve minors (under 16) there could be a trial. It would be the same type of process,” Haselberger added.

Camacho was bishop of the Diocese of Chalan Kanoa on Saipan from 1984 until his retirement in April 2010, at the age of 76. He has since served as bishop emeritus.

Camacho, a former priest on Guam, is the 17th Guam clergy member — past and present — to be accused of sexually abusing children decades ago.

On Monday, former altar boy Melvin Duenas, a 55-year-old Yona resident, filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court of Guam, alleging that Camacho repeatedly raped and sexually abused him when he was 10 to 13 years old, between 1971 and 1974.

Duenas said in his complaint that former Guam priest Louis Brouillard also sexually abused him. Brouillard publicly admitted in 2016​ that he sexually abused more than 20 altar boys when he was on Guam, his home from the late 1940s to 1981.

Saipan bishop statement

Bishop Ryan P. Jimenez, the current bishop of the Diocese of Chalan Kanoa, issued a statement on Tuesday afternoon, saying, "It is with deep sadness and great bearing to learn of the sexual abuse allegations in a civil claim against then-priest and now Bishop Emeritus Tomas A. Camacho by Guam resident Melvin Duenas."

"I request for your prayers for everyone affected by this news — those who have sought and continue to seek redress from abuses, the accused and their journey to realize due process, the families on each side that are struck with a heavy weight of pain that comes with each sharing, and everyone within our midst who are affected one way or another," Jimenez wrote.

Jimenez, who was ordained as the new bishop on Saipan in August 2016, said they have communicated with the Archdiocese of Agana where Camacho served as priest at the time alleged in the lawsuit. The Archdiocese of Agana is named defendant in all 17 clergy sex abuse lawsuits filed in the U.S. District Court of Guam to date.

"Our prayers go out to Mr. Duenas and his family. We also ask for prayers for Bishop Tomas and his family. Since this is a matter in litigation, the Diocese of Chalan Kanoa can offer no further comment on this matter. We give our full cooperation with civil authorities," Jimenez said, adding that the church shall act consistent with its faith, with justice and mercy.

Jimenez, only the second bishop of the Catholic church in the Northern Marianas, said the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops' charter for the protection of children and young people sets the norms for the diocese. Three years ago, the diocese started a series of training and workshops on child protection for all church workers and volunteers and will continue those training. He said the diocese is working hard to maintain a safe church environment, especially through education and transparency.

On Friday, Feb. 17, there will be a holy hour from 5 to 6 p.m. in all of the parishes under the Diocese of Chalan Kanoa on Saipan, Jimenez said, inviting everyone to reach a location of their choosing to pray together.

Guam archdiocese 

The Archdiocese of Agana also issued a statement on Tuesday night, acknowledging the clergy sexual abuse allegation filed in recent weeks.

"We extend our prayers to Mr. Duenas and his family and to all who have come forward in recent weeks including Felix Manglona, Ramon De Plata and Edward Chan. We ask the entire church to pray for victims of sexual abuse by clergy," the archdiocese wrote.

It added that under Archbishop Michael Jude Byrnes, the archdiocese has stepped up its vigilance against sexual abuse, including adopting the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops' charter for the protection of children and young people, conducting training of adults entrusted with the care of children, and establishing curriculum on sexual abuse prevention at Catholic elementary school level at least initially.

Camacho is the second bishop in the Marianas accused of sexually abusing a minor.

Guam’s archbishop, Anthony S. Apuron, is undergoing canonical trial over multiple allegations of sexual abuse of altar boys in Agat in the 1970s.

Vatican investigators are expected to be on Guam in the days ahead as part of Apuron’s canonical trial, Coadjutor Archbishop Michael Jude Byrnes has said.

“If there would be another trial, other investigators would be appointed. It is unlikely to be the same,” Haselberger said Tuesday, when asked whether the visiting Vatican investigators for the Apuron canonical trial could also look into the allegations against Camacho.

The latest clergy sex abuse lawsuit, just like the 16 others previously filed, demands a jury trial and a minimum $5 million in damages, plus attorney’s fees and costs. All the lawsuits were filed by the clients of Attorney David Lujan, of the law firm Lujan and Wolff.

The lawsuit also names as defendant the Archdiocese of Agana, which the complaint says is an entity under the Holy See at the Vatican in Rome, and up to 50 other unnamed individuals who may have abetted, aided, concealed or covered up the clergy abuse cases.

Contact: heugenio@guampdn.com




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