ABUSE TRACKER

PHILADELPHIA (PA)
Bilgrimage

Gerald Slevin, Open Appeal To Philadelphia Inquirer Reporters II: The Philadelphia Archdiocese Priests Child Abuse Trial, the Pope, Secrecy, Santorum and the Upcoming Pennsylvania Primary

Jerry Slevin has now shared a supplement to his open letter to the Philadelphia Inquirer that I posted on his behalf two days ago. As the trial of Philadelphia Catholic archdiocesan officials continues, Jerry continues to monitor the litigation and news about it, and this is his latest response to what’s now unfolding in Philadelphia:

What follows is Jerry Slevin’s second open letter to the Philadelphia Inquirer:

——————————–

This supplements my April 1, 2012 Open Appeal I to you accessible here. Hopefully, this will be of some help to you as you assess the continuing developments in this hierarchical criminal case that is extremely significant for Catholics worldwide.

Yesterday on TV, convicted child sexual abuser, Fr. Avery, was hurried seemingly smiling past reporters into jail accompanied apparently by two well dressed lawyers. Avery’s apparent lack of any remorse for his horrible crime or any obligation to give evidence against others, as well as his sudden plea bargain, mild sentence, hurried imprisonment and general public unavailability, have all been very disturbing to watch, but it is only one example of what appears to be an unwarranted almost veil of secrecy on too many aspects of this important case. Many hundreds of Philly children were harmed by priest sexual predators with at least the tacit knowledge in many cases of bishops and cardinals; many thousands more were at risk of serious and permanent harm. Philly citizens are entitled to get the full story and we are depending on you to keep doing your best to get it.

For video footage from NBC’s Philadelphia affiliate of Fr. Avery’s smiling past reporters as he is whisked into jail, please see here.

To this day, the Philly Archdiocese still does not really require prompt reporting of all abuse claims to the police and apparently has only appointed persons that are accountable to Archbishop Chaput to monitor abuse claims. He is not accountable, it appears, to anyone and has not committed to a truly independent child protection audit procedure. He continues to operate, in the main, secretly as a typical medieval monarch. His cheerleading at a private priests’ party several months ago for Monsignor Lynn and some suspended priests under suspicion of misconduct with minors suggests he has failed to get the true child protection message and merely mouths, like the pope, pious platitudes about children.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

IRELAND
Grantham Journal (United Kingdom)

A priest defamed by RTE was not interviewed by the broadcasting watchdog during its investigation, it has emerged.

The Broadcasting Authority of Ireland (BAI) said it was only permitted to investigate the actions of the broadcaster and its Prime Time Investigates programme, which wrongly claimed Father Kevin Reynolds had fathered a child.

A spokeswoman said no interview was sought with Fr Reynolds or his legal team as it would have been outside the BAI’s remit. She added: “The BAI is not in the position to hear evidence from all sides, or decide if somebody was libelled.”

The “Mission To Prey” programme, aired on May 23 last year, falsely accused Fr Reynolds of raping a minor and fathering a child while working in Kenya 30 years ago. The missionary priest later won a substantial out-of-court settlement after he took a libel action against the national broadcaster.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

NEDERLAND
NZG

BOEKEL (Novum) – Onderzoek naar de castratie van een jongen in het Brabantse Boekel heeft geen extra informatie opgeleverd.

Dat laat minister van Veiligheid en Justitie Ivo Opstelten (VVD) dinsdag weten in een brief aan de Tweede Kamer.

In een artikel in NRC Handelsblad dat vorige maand verscheen stond dat een jongen in 1956 aangifte heeft gedaan van ontucht in het katholieke jongensinternaat in het Gelderse.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

NEDERLAND
Katholiek Nieuwsblad

De bisschoppenconferentie en de Konferentie Nederlandse Religieuzen (KNR) blijven nauwgezet de aanbevelingen van de Commissie Deetman uitwerken.

Dat blijkt uit een gezamenlijke brief aan minister Opstelten van Veiligheid en Justitie. De brief is een antwoord op vragen van de minister met het oog op de gesprekken in de Tweede Kamer over het rapport van de Commissie Deetman.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

NEDERLAND
NRC Handelsblad

door Annemarie Coevert

De Tweede Kamer koerst aan op vervolgonderzoek naar de geschiedenis van seksueel misbruik in Nederland. Dat bleek vanochtend uit een hoorzitting met de commissie-Deetman.

Aanleiding voor de hoorzitting vormde een artikel in NRC Handelsblad van enkele weken terug waarin de castratie werd onthuld van een slachtoffer van seksueel misbruik. De commissie-Deetman had daar in haar rapport geen melding van gemaakt, hoewel zich wel iemand bij de commissie had gemeld met gedetailleerde informatie hierover. Journalist en auteur van dit artikel Joep Dohmen is vanochtend gehoord over dit artikel.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

BELGIE
Vandaag

Het laatste arrest dat de Brusselse kamer van inbeschuldigingstelling (KI) heeft uitgesproken over de huiszoekingen op 24 juni 2010 in het aartsbisschoppelijk paleis en in de kantoren en de privéwoning van kardinaal Danneels, is nu ook verbroken. De verbreking geldt wel slechts voor een deel van het arrest. De zaak moet nu opnieuw voor de Brusselse KI komen, maar die zal wel uit andere raadsheren moeten bestaan.

De huiszoekingen van 24 juni 2010 kaderden in Operatie Kelk, het gerechtelijk onderzoek dat de Brusselse onderzoeksrechter Wim De Troy (foto) voerde naar seksueel misbruik van kinderen en een mogelijke doofpotoperatie daarrond binnen de katholieke Kerk. Drie verschillend samengestelde KI’s beslisten achtereenvolgens dat die huiszoekingen nietig waren, vervolgens dat ze perfect wettelijk waren en ten slotte dat ze toch nietig waren.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

NEDERLAND
RKnieuws

UTRECHT (RKnieuws.net) – De Bisschoppenconferentie en de Konferentie Nederlandse Religieuzen (KNR) hebben een gezamenlijke brief geschreven aan minister Opstelten, de Minister van Veiligheid en Justitie. De brief is ondertekend door kardinaal Eijk, voorzitter van de Bisschoppenconferentie, en broeder Van Dam, voorzitter van de Konferentie Nederlandse Religieuzen (KNR). De brief is een antwoord op een brief van de minister, waarin deze om nadere informatie vraagt met het oog op het gesprek in de Tweede Kamer over het rapport van de Onderzoekscommissie (‘Commissie Deetman’).

“Wij zijn en blijven vastbesloten om naast erkenning van het leed te zorgen voor genoegdoening, compensatie, hulp en nazorg. Dit komt tot uitdrukking in persoonlijke contacten met slachtoffers en vertegenwoordigende organisaties van slachtoffers en in allerlei voorzieningen die wij inzetten,” schrijven de voorzitters van de Bisschoppenconferentie en de KNR.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

NEDERLAND
Parool

Tot in de jaren ’60 van de afgelopen eeuw gold castratie in een aantal situaties als een aanvaardbare medische handeling, niet alleen bij zedendelinquenten, maar ook in de reguliere psychiatrie. Dat constateert minister Ivo Opstelten (Veiligheid) in een brief aan de Tweede Kamer. Ook buiten de justitiële context vond wel castratie plaats, aldus de bewindsman.

De brief komt aan de vooravond van een nieuwe hoorzitting woensdag over misbruik in de Rooms-Katholieke Kerk, die inmiddels ook in verband is gebracht met castratie.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

ROME
Vatican Insider

The Public Prosecutor of Rome: “De Pedis’ tomb will not be opened”

Giacomo Galeazzi
Vatican City

A three-decade-long wall of silence is crumbling. The investigators will not open the tomb of the boss of Magliana, Renatino De Pedis, at Sant’Appollinare but they are convinced that “the Vatican knows the truth about Emanuela Orlandi.” It sounds like a scene out of Italian TV drama Romanzo criminale (a series about organized crime in Rome in the 80s), but it actually happened. For the first time, magistrates are explicitly pointing the finger at the Holy See. According to the Assistant Public Prosecutor, Giancarlo Capaldo and Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Simon Maisto, someone in the Curia is allegedly in possession of “elements of truth that are circumstantial evidence.” The Cardinals (Re, Martinez Somalo, Silvestrini) who, under the pontificate of Karol Wojtyla, occupied key positions at the time of the disappearance of the papal emissary’s daughter, could be heard in court. An unexpected speeding-up of events.

One of the most complicated and celebrated “cold cases” in the world has suddenly turned into a tear in the fabric of half-admissions, false trails or improbable tracks. This flash in the dark has become a nightmare for the family and an international intrigue with claims of ghostly acronyms, interlaced with the attempt on John Paul II’s life and the suspicions regarding the head of the IOR, Paul Marcinkus. According to Pietro Orlandi, the brother of the girl who vanished 29 years ago, this is a pivotal moment. “The declaration by the prosecutors that the truth is known in the Vatican is very heavy, but it’s overshadowed the strange decision not to open De Pedis’ grave,” Peter Orlandi says. “If two years ago, the prosecutor ordered DNA samples of us family members to be collected, it meant that there is a valid reason to inspect Sant’Appollinare; it’s unclear why now that act is no longer useful to the investigation.” Probably “the prosecutors know the names of these Vatican figures, I hope that they listen to them to find out what they know.”

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

IRELAND
Galway Bay FM

April 4, 2012

The solicitor of Ahascragh priest Father Kevin Reynolds’ has dismissed a move to scrap the Prime Time Investigates series as ‘probably cosmetic’.

It was part of a range of measures announced by RTE yesterday, in the wake of an inquiry from the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland into the ‘Mission to Prey’ programme.

In the programme Fr Reynolds was falsely accused of raping a minor while working as a missionary priest in Kenya, and fathering a child by her.

RTE’s head of News and Current Affairs Ed Mulhall has retired, while the Editor of Current Affairs Ken O’Shea has resigned from his post and is being tranferred to a new position in Television.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

IRELAND
Breaking News

04/04/2012
A solicitor for defamed priest Fr Kevin Reynolds has dismissed a move by RTÉ to scrap the ‘Prime Time Investigates’ series as “probably cosmetic”.

The decision was part of a range of measures announced by the state broadcaster yesterday in the wake of the ‘Mission to Prey’ programme.

The managing director of RTÉ’s news and current affairs division, Ed Mulhall tendered his resignation “in the best interests of the organisation”.

Former editor of current affairs Ken O’Shea also resigned but is not leaving the station.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

IRELAND
The Irish Times

PAUL CULLEN and RONAN McGREEVY

FURTHER PERSONNEL changes within RTÉ news and current affairs are expected within weeks as the fallout from the Fr Kevin Reynolds libel affair continues.

The retirement yesterday of head of news and current affairs Ed Mulhall and the resignation of current affairs editor Ken O’Shea marks an “interim but significant stage” of personnel reorganisation within the State broadcaster, a senior source indicated last night.

A report to be published shortly by the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland (BAI) is expected to find that the Prime Time Investigates: Mission to Prey programme, which libelled Fr Reynolds last year, was unfair and breached his privacy. The authority can impose a penalty of up to €250,000.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

IRELAND
The Irish Times

PAUL CULLEN

EVEN BY THE sorry standards of recent history, the past fortnight has marked another low for the media. In London, public figures troop in each day to the Leveson inquiry into media practices, delivering shocking stories of indefensible intrusion by newspaper journalists. Last week, in the High Court in Dublin, two newspapers admitted that they had no evidence for reports they had carried about the death of the schoolboy Robert Holohan at the hands of Wayne O’Donoghue.

However, it is the case of Fr Kevin Reynolds, whom RTÉ wrongly accused of raping a woman and fathering her child while he was a missionary in Africa 30 years ago, that could mean a profound change in the way journalism is practised in Ireland.

The case relates to a Prime Time Investigates programme, featuring Fr Reynolds, that went ahead despite his offer to take a paternity test to disprove the allegations against him. The programme has prompted two independent investigations, and four senior journalists have stepped down or been temporarily transferred. As a result of the errors made in it, four programmes planned for broadcast next month have been held back and the future of the investigative strand must now be in doubt.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

IRELAND
The Irish Times

RONAN McGREEVY

GUIDELINES: RTÉ STAFF involved in major investigative programmes will have to make a detailed submission to a new editorial board before transmission.

The board will evaluate programmes similar to the Prime Time Investigates: Mission to Prey programme at least seven days in advance of being broadcast.

The five members of the board are Michael Good, the managing editor of RTÉ News; Jim Jennings, the head of RTÉ Radio 1; Steve Carson, the director of programmes at RTÉ Television; Eleanor Bleahene from RTÉ’s solicitor’s office and Peter Feeney, the head of broadcast compliance.

They will be asked to assess the quality of the report, the reliability of the evidence assembled and whether or not the programme is in the public interest.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

IRELAND
RTE

Introduction
Over many years RTÉ has earned and retained the trust of its audiences through great programming and an adherence to very high editorial standards. Nowhere has this been more so than in Television Current Affairs, where time and again current affairs programming has made sense of the events shaping our daily lives and shone a light on some of the darkest aspects of Irish life.

The very serious editorial failures made in two important current affairs programmes in the past number of months, and their consequences, have rightly caused RTÉ to review and reflect on all of its editorial policy, practices and values. That process will continue for some time. These errors and failures of action have presented many challenges to many people in recent months, not least to those who were directly affected by them. But they have also caused concern and anger both within RTÉ and among our audience, the general public, whose trust in our organisation has been damaged.

I indicated a number of months ago that RTÉ must always be open and honest when we get things wrong. We will make mistakes. Programme-makers must be and will be supported in making challenging programming but the standards we set for ourselves as the national broadcaster must be very high as I know they are in so much of what we currently do.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

IRELAND
RTE

Section 1. Introduction and Context
These Guidelines are being introduced in an interim form pending the completion of the new BAI Code on Fairness, Objectivity & Impartiality in News and Current Affairs. Note that the BAI also has plans to introduce a Code on Privacy in a revision of its Code of Programme Standards due in 2013.

These guidelines are subject to regular review. Please ensure that it is always the most recent edition that is consulted. This edition was last reviewed on 2 April 2012.

These Guidelines apply primarily though not exclusively to News, Current Affairs and Factual Programming. Guidelines in regard to other programming such as Entertainment, Drama and Children’s are due to be completed during the course of the year. In the meantime the 2008 Edition of the RTÉ Programme Standards and Guidelines applies to those genres of production.

RTÉ wishes to acknowledge with gratitude the assistance it received from fellow public service broadcasters, BBC and ABC, in drafting these guidelines.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

IRELAND
The Irish Times

RONAN MCGREEVY and PAUL CULLEN

The solicitor for Fr Kevin Reynolds has described as “extraordinary” the fact that neither he nor his client were involved in the report into the Prime Time Investigates programme Mission to Prey.

The Broadcasting Authority of Ireland (BAI) commissioned former BBC Northern Ireland controller Anna Carragher to carry out an investigation on its behalf into the programme, which falsely accused Fr Reynolds of raping a minor while working as a missionary priest in Kenya and having a child by her.

RTÉ was forced to apologise and pay a substantial out-of-court settlement to Fr Reynolds who is the parish priest of Ahascragh, Co Galway.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

PHILADELPHIA (PA)
The Morning Call

7:34 a.m. EDT, April 4, 2012
PHILADELPHIA (AP) — A priest on trial in a landmark child sex abuse case is expected to face his accuser in a Philadelphia courtroom.

The Rev. James Brennan is charged with raping a 14-year-old boy in 1996. That accuser is expected to take the stand on Wednesday.

Brennan is on trial with Monsignor William Lynn, who is the first Roman Catholic official in the U.S. charged with endangering children for allegedly keeping predator priests in parish work. Both have pleaded not guilty.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

PHILADELPHIA (PA)
PowNed (Nederland)

Het is zwaarder dan je denkt om in een week tijd drie jongetjes te misbruiken. Dit heeft een Amerikaanse priester gezegd, zo blijkt uit interne documenten van de katholieke kerk.

De priester zou grapjes hebben gemaakt over het seksueel misbruik, zo bleek vandaag in de rechtbank. De ‘baas’ van de niet bij naam genoemde misbruikpriester, de 61-jarige monseigneur William Lynn, staat daar terecht omdat hij de misbruikzaken in de doofpot zou hebben gestopt. Hij zou niet hebben voorkomen dat notoire misbruikpriesters met kinderen in aanraking kwamen.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

BELGIE
Knack

Het laatste arrest dat de Brusselse kamer van inbeschuldigingstelling (KI) heeft uitgesproken over de huiszoekingen op 24 juni 2010 in Operatie Kelk, dreigt ook verbroken te worden.

Op 29 november 2011 besliste de KI dat de huiszoekingen in het aartsbisschoppelijk paleis en bij kardinaal Danneels, in Mechelen, nietig waren en dat de stukken die daar in beslag genomen werden, uit het dossier moesten verwijderd worden. Volgens het parket-generaal bij Cassatie was die beslissing onvoldoende gemotiveerd.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

PHILADELPHIA (PA)
Pope Crimes & Vatican Evils…

Paris Arrow

Monsignor William Lynn is the first Roman Catholic church official in the U.S. A. to be charged for his handling of priest-abuse complaints and he is now on trial for child endangerment and conspiracy, this is a compilation of articles about his current trial in Philadelphia. Read our related articles, Cardinal Ratzinger was part of the “plague of pedophilia” for 27 years when he covered-up JP2 Army a.k.a B16 Army-Benedict XVI Pedophile Priests Army http://popecrimes.blogspot.ca/2011/11/cardinal-ratzinger-was-part-of-plague.html and insane KC STAR CAMPAIGN HITS by Catholic League fanatic Bill Donohue propagating… Bishop Finn make Devil’s Bowels smell like roses in KC, Missouri http://popecrimes.blogspot.ca/2011/11/bishop-finn-makes-devils-bowels-smell.html

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

UNITED STATES
Patrick J. Wall

Here is my crash course in the Irish Christian Brothers sex abuse and cover-up scandal and bankruptcy:

In order to understand the current Irish Christian Brothers debacle, we need only look north.

As I have repeated (and as my Church history professors seared into my cortex in countless seminary courses): The Past is Prologue to the Future.

In light of that, let’s take a short trip back in time:

In 1975, detectives Robert Hillier and Paul Pitcher of the Newfoundland Constabulary were investigating complaints from the Irish Christian Brothers orphanage at Mount Cashel. Hillier and Pitcher were not naive detectives, but even they could not imagine the extent of the beatings and sexual abuse, the Brothers collusion, and the blatant obstruction of justice and corruption surrounding the child sexual abuse by the Irish Christian Brothers who worked at Mount Cashel. It would take an additional two decades for the moral bankruptcy to explode. You can read the results of their work here, in the 1991 Hughes Report, Part I and Part II.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

MILWAUKEE (WI)
SNAP Wisconsin

Action Alert: Important Bankruptcy Court Hearing Thursday April 5th, 10:00 a.m.

WHERE: Milwaukee Federal Courthouse, 517 E. Wisconsin Avenue
In Federal Bankruptcy Court on Thursday April 5th, Judge Susan V. Kelley will hear arguments concerning a crucially important motion filed by victim/survivors (and supported by the Creditors Committee) which seeks to unseal and make public the depositions of Archbishop Weakland and Bishop Richard Sklba concerning the decades long cover up of child sex crimes that both men directed. Lawyers for the archdiocese, at the instruction of Archbishop Listecki, will argue against both the release of Weakland and Sklba’s video testimony, and internal church records which support the case of victim/survivors against these church officials.

Listecki held a Mass of Atonement last week to “atone” for the clergy sexual abuse crisis. Following the service he went before the television cameras and falsely informed the public that by unsealing the depositions and court documents the identities of victims would be revealed. This statement made by the Archbishop is false. The motion to release the depositions and documents states very clearly: “The motion seeks to have all information regarding survivors’ identities redacted and all information regarding alleged abusers who have not yet been publically identified redacted as well.”

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

NEDERLAND
Tweede Kamer der Staten-Generaal

Agendapunten:

1. Rondetafelgesprekken over seksueel misbruik binnen de Rooms-Katholieke Kerk

Volgens onderstaand schema:.

10.00 tot 11.00 uur: Commissie-Deetman
11.00 tot 12.00 uur: de heer Dohmen

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

ROME
The Telegraph (United Kingdom)

The Vatican has been accused of hiding the truth about one of Italy’s most intractable mysteries – the disappearance of a teenage girl nearly 30 years ago.

By Nick Squires, Rome

Prosecutors in Rome say that “someone in the Vatican” knows the fate of Emanuela Orlandi, the 15-year-old daughter of a Vatican employee who vanished in June 1983.

Her kidnap in Rome by unidentified men has been the subject of scrutiny for three decades, with allegations that it was connected to blackmail and banking scandals involving the Holy See.

One theory is that the girl’s father, a Vatican employee, had stumbled on documents that connected the Vatican’s bank with organised crime in Rome and that she was seized in an attempt to silence him. The alleged mastermind of the kidnapping was Enrico “Renatino” De Pedis, the leader of the Magliana gang, Rome’s most ruthless criminal band.

He was shot dead by rival gangsters in a street in central Rome in 1990 and his body interred in a crypt in the Basilica of Sant’ Apollinare.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

NEDERLAND
NOS

Voorzitter Wim Deetman ontkent ten stelligste dat zijn onderzoekscommissie informatie over eventuele castraties binnen de Rooms-Katholieke Kerk bewust onder de pet gehouden heeft. U hoort politiek verslaggever Michiel Breedveld.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

NEDERLAND
de Gelderlander

DEN HAAG/ HARREVELD – Wim Deetman kan de suggestie in de media niet verkroppen dat hij met zijn onderzoekscommissie naar het seksueel misbruik in de kerk, zaken uit zijn rapport zou hebben gehouden. Dat bleek woensdag bij een hoorzitting erover in de Tweede Kamer.

„Het is nergens op gebaseerd en ik daag iedereen uit om anders te bewijzen”, zei Deetman. „Wat vermeld moest worden is vermeld, zonder aanzien des persoons.”

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

PHILADELPHIA (PA)
Catholics4Change

April 4, 2012 by Susan Matthews

Several thousand people visit this site each week. We are asking each of you to join us at the steps of the Cathedral this Good Friday from 11 a.m. to noon. Are you sickened, outraged, betrayed? Do you want your Church renewed? Show it by showing up. The victims deserve a very visible sign of support. Our children, who were left unprotected by leadership, deserve it. Easter is a sign of renewal, what better time to pray for it as a community. Please spread the word via facebook, twitter and email. Click here for the flyer: GoodFriday . One pastor has posted it in his parish. Maybe yours will.

What: Prayer service for the victims of clergy sex abuse and the faithful of the Catholic Church of Philadelphia who have been betrayed by the hierarchy. There will be speakers. April is child abuse awareness month, so we ask attendees to wear the official awareness color – blue. Signs are welcome.

Where: At the steps of the Cathedral Basilica of SS Peter and Paul, 1723 Race Street (on the Benjamin Franklin Pkwy)

When: 11 a.m. to noon this Friday, April 6 – Good Friday. (Prayer Service held inside the Cathedral from noon until 3 p.m.)

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

UNITED STATES
National Survivor Advocates Coalition

Editorial

NSAC calls its readers attention today to an important event inIrelandthat could have far reaching implications.

This is a first of its kind call and an undertaking that has become reality in no small measure through the diligence and courage of an Irish survivor, Mark Vincent Healy.

The Irish province of a religious order known as the Spiritans, formerly known as the Holy Ghost Fathers, has requested a “public audit” of its handling of child sexual abuse to be conducted by the Irish National Board for Safeguarding of Children in the Catholic Church in Ireland (NBSCCI). The NBSCCI is the organization that has investigated the Irish Dioceses of Ardagh, Clonmacnois,Derry, Dromore, Kilmore, Raphoe and Tuam.

While this audit is being requested by theIrishProvinceof the Spiritans, we call our readers attention to the presence of the Spiritans (Holy Ghost Fathers) in 53 countries including theUnited States. The Spiritans have personnel on five (5) continents.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

NEDERLAND
Trouw

Slachtoffers van het misbruik in de rooms-katholieke kerk geloven niet dat Wim Deetman willens en wetens informatie heeft achtergehouden die voor de kerk belastend is. Deetman zou, meldde NRC Handelsblad onlangs, de castratie van een jongen hebben verzwegen in het eindrapport van zijn commissie die het misbruik in de kerk onderzocht.

Slachtoffergroepen hebben geen enkele aanwijzing dat Deetman informatie verdonkeremaande. “Castratie, hoe erg ook, gebeurde binnen de gezondheidszorg, niet in de kerk. Er heeft zich tot nu toe bij ons niemand gemeld met deze ervaring”, zegt Guido Klabbers van slachtofferkoepel Klokk. Klokk (Koepel Landelijk Overleg Kerkelijk Kindermisbruik) bestaat uit groepen lotgenoten met ervaringen van misbruik in katholieke internaten.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

ESPANA
El Correo

«Me dijo que mi quitaba a la niña por adúltera». María Luisa Torres, la mujer que acusa a la monja María Gómez Valbuena de haberle sustraído a una hija que tuvo en 1982 en la clínica Santa Cristina de Madrid, ratificó ayer ante el juez que la religiosa le dijo que se quedaba sin el bebé debido a que el padre no era su marido.

Torres y su hija Pilar se reencontraron hace ocho meses en un programa de televisión gracias a las gestiones del padre adoptivo. Su relación biológica fue confirmada después por pruebas de ADN. Ambas comparecieron ayer ante el titular del juzgado de instrucción número 47 de la capital de España. En Euskadi, la Fiscalía ha imputado de momento a dos ginecólogos y una matrona.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

ESPANA
el Periodico

ANTONIO M. YAGÜE
MADRID

Pilar Alcalde, que fue sustraída a su madre en marzo de 1982 y con la que se ha reencontrado 29 años después, aseguró ayer a las puertas de los juzgados de instrucción de Madrid que si la monja María Gómez Valbuena, de 80 años, «no lo paga aquí», sabe que lo pagará «arriba». Se trata de la primera religiosa denunciada por la fiscalía en el caso de los niños robados en hospitales de toda España entre 1940 y 1990. A juicio de la víctima, su castigo debería ser «acabar en la cárcel, porque ha hecho daño a muchas familias que están sin identidad».

Pilar acudió con su madre, María Luisa Torres, a ratificar la denuncia. La madre recordó lo que le dijo la monja tras dar a luz en la maternidad Santa Cristina de Madrid: «Primero que estaba muerta, luego que la había dado en adopción a una familia francesa y después, con todo el descaro del mundo y crueldad, ‘te la voy a quitar y, además, vas a ir a la cárcel porque eres una adúltera’».

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

SPAIN
Toronto Star

Wendy Gillis
Staff Reporter

For nearly 30 years she kept the baby blanket and pacifier, hoping one day to return them to the daughter she claims was snatched from her at birth.

Now, Luisa Torres has not only reconnected with her lost child — the mother-daughter reunion has prompted the first indictment in the “stolen babies” scandal that has rocked Spain in recent months.

Torres and her daughter, 29-year-old Maria Pilar, appeared in a Madrid court Tuesday, testifying that Sister Maria Gomez Valbuena, a nun now in her 80s, orchestrated the theft of Pilar, then sold her to another family.

“Now the judge knows everything,” Torres told reporters outside the Madrid court after her two-hour testimony. “I hope for justice.”

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

AUSTRALIA/UNITED STATES
The Australian Jewish News

CONVICTED child sex offender David Kramer could be back in Australia as soon as next month, with police understood to be preparing to charge and subsequently extradite the former Yeshivah College teacher from the United States.

Kramer was spirited away by Yeshivah after accusations of child molestation surfaced in 1993. In 2008, Kramer was sentenced to seven years jail in St Louis, Missouri, after sexually abusing a 12-year-old boy. He became eligible for parole late last year.

A spokesperson for police media said that “no charges have been laid” but that the “investigation is ongoing”, adding “we can’t comment any –further”.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

TEXAS
The Associated Press

By PAUL J. WEBER, Associated Press

SAN ANTONIO (AP) — In the four years since Texas authorities swarmed the polygamist ranch of sect leader Warren Jeffs, state prosecutors have spent more than $4.5 million racking up swift convictions against him and 10 loyal followers on child sex and bigamy charges, according to records obtained by The Associated Press.

Combined with other state agency costs surrounding the April 3, 2008 raid, documents show the price tag is approaching $20 million for what began as a chaotic roundup of nearly 400 children and grew into one of the largest criminal cases in recent Texas history.

The saga is now all but over. Last week, state prosecutors convicted the last of 11 men arrested at the Yearning for Zion Ranch. All received prison time, including a life sentence for Jeffs.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

FORT KENT (ME)
Bangor Daily News

By Dawn Gagnon, BDN Staff

FORT KENT, Maine — A Roman Catholic priest assigned to St. John Vianney Parish is taking a voluntary leave of absence from public ministry, effective Tuesday, while the attorney general’s office conducts an investigation of allegations against him.

The Rev. James L. Nadeau, 51, has been serving the parish for seven years, Sue Bernard, spokeswoman for the Roman Catholic Diocese of Portland, and Brenda Kielty, spokeswoman for the Maine attorney general’s office, said Tuesday evening in a news release.

They did not indicate why Nadeau was under investigation. Bernard declined to provide further details and Kielty could not be reached for comment Tuesday night.

Located in the St. John Valley in northernmost Maine, St. John Vianney Parish comprises St. Louis Catholic Church in Fort Kent, St. Mary Catholic Church in Eagle Lake, St. Charles Catholic Church in St. Francis and St. Joseph Catholic Church in Soldier Pond.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

PORTLAND (ME)
WMTW

PORTLAND, Maine –
A Catholic priest has taken a voluntary leave of absence while the Maine Attorney General’s Office investigates allegations against him, the Roman Catholic Diocese of Portland said on Tuesday.

Rev. James L. Nadeau, 51, has served St. John Vianney Parish in Fort Kent for seven years. The leave of absence took effect on Tuesday and another priest will be assigned to serve the parish as soon as possible, said Sue Bernard, communications director for the diocese.

Bernard did not say what the allegations were.

“The diocese is cooperating fully with the Attorney General’s office and at their request, I cannot discuss the allegations or anything about the investigation,” Bishop Richard Malone said. “I am hopeful that this process will go smoothly in order to lead to an expeditious and just conclusion.”

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

MAINE
The Portland Press Herald

From staff reports

A Catholic priest who served in parishes in Biddeford and Portland has agreed to take a leave of absence from the ministry while the Maine Attorney General’s Office investigates allegations against him.

The Rev. James Nadeau, 51, the pastor for St. John Vianney Parish in Fort Kent, left his post Tuesday.

Nadeau, who has served for the last seven years in Fort Kent, served previously at St. Andre in Biddeford and at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Portland. He was ordained as a priest in 1988.

“In order for the investigation to proceed unimpeded, Father Nadeau has taken a voluntary leave of absence,” Bishop Richard Malone said in a press release issued Tuesday night. “The diocese is cooperating fully with the Attorney General’s Office and at their request, I cannot discuss the allegations or anything about the investigation. I am hopeful that this process will go smoothly in order to lead to an expeditious and just conclusion.”

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

MAINE
The Republic

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
First Posted: April 04, 2012

FORT KENT, Maine — The Roman Catholic Diocese of Portland says a priest who serves a Fort Kent parish has taken a leave of absence pending the results of an investigation launched by the Maine attorney general’s office.

Neither the diocese nor the attorney general would say why the Rev. James Nadeau is under investigation. He has been at St. John Vianney Parish in northern Maine for the past seven years and previously served at parishes in Biddeford and Portland. He was ordained in 1988.

Bishop Richard Malone said in a statement Tuesday that the 51-year-old Nadeau has taken a leave “in order for the investigation to proceed unimpeded.” The diocese is cooperating.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

UNITED KINGDOM
The Sun

By ANTHONY FRANCE

MORE than 400 children are sexually abused every week in Britain — one every 20 MINUTES, a shock investigation has revealed.

The NSPCC called for urgent action as figures showed nine out of ten paedophiles go unpunished.

A child abuse expert last night said Britain has a massive paedophile problem — which should be treated like an outbreak of DISEASE.

Jon Brown urged the Government to act as shocking figures obtained by the NSPCC showed perverts are lurking the length and breadth of the country.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

UNITED STATES
PRWeb

Jacksonville Beach, Florida (PRWEB) April 04, 2012

April is National Child Abuse Prevention month and Don Dymer, president and chief executive officer of SingleSource background screening corporation wants to share some helpful advice on how to listen if a child or youth has the courage to open up about the abuse. What happens in those first few seconds of dialogue can make a difference between stopping the abuse, or a child retreating further into darkness.

“People abuse children from all walks of life,” explains Don Dymer, chief executive officer and president of SingleSource background screening company. The Centers for Disease Control reports that more than 500,000 children in the United States are sexually molested each year. But molesters are rarely caught and since most children will never report the abuse, there is little linking these molesters to the horrible abuse and little or no chance they will be convicted and stopped.

What do I do if a child tells me that he/she has been sexually abused?

Dymer continues, “The foundation, From Darkness to Light tells us that studies show that children rarely report abuse when it is occurring and almost 80% will in fact deny the abuse. As adults we need to be alert to signs that something might be wrong.

Dymer continues, “If a child does come to you here is critical advice from the Child Molestation Research & Prevention Institute on what you should do if a child is brave enough to share their pain with you. Take the time to really listen to the child when they want to talk. Believe what you are hearing no matter how unfathomable it sounds. (remember 90% of abuse is done by someone the child knows, trusts and loves.) Assure the child that they are doing the right thing by telling and you will get help. Never blame or punish the child or show anger. Control your emotions. Your reaction to the abuse might be viewed as directed toward the child, assure the child that you are not angry at them. Do Not Take Notes while the child is talking to you. Listen intently and afterwards quickly document the disclosure. If you are an employee or volunteer and hear of the abuse, immediately report the incident to your supervisor, but remember that this doesn’t remove your obligation to report the incident to the proper authorities. If you represent the organization at which the abuse occurred, you must report the child’s disclosure to law enforcement or child protective agency as specified by the laws in your particular state.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

LYNNWOOD (WA)
Herald

By Diana Hefley, Herald Writer

LYNNWOOD — Snohomish County prosecutors say it was against the law for a Lynnwood man to have sex with a 17-year-old girl because he was the teen’s youth church leader at the time.

James Lim, 26, is accused of abusing a “supervisory position” in order to engage in sexual intercourse with the teen. In general, the legal age for consensual sex in Washington is 16. Prosecutors, however, allege that Lim was forbidden from having sex with the teen because of his job with the church.

Lim was charged this week with first-degree sexual misconduct with a minor and second-degree possession of child pornography. He is expected to be arraigned on the charges later this month in Snohomish County Superior Court.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

WISCONSIN
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

By Peter Isely and James Connell

In a long-awaited court motion to be heard on Thursday in federal bankruptcy court in Milwaukee, 570 victims/survivors of childhood rape and sexual assault by Catholic clergy and other church personnel will petition Judge Susan V. Kelley to release the sealed testimony of the two former Milwaukee bishops most responsible for decades of concealing and transferring known offender priests, Archbishop Rembert Weakland and Bishop Richard Sklba.

The motion, supported by the Creditors Committee appointed by Kelley, also will ask to unseal all evidence in the 570 claims, once appropriate redactions have been made. Milwaukee Archbishop Jerome Listecki has instructed his lawyers to oppose the motion. The archdiocese consistently wants to withhold this information.

For Catholics, confessing sin is good for the soul. Listecki acknowledged as much in a special clergy abuse Mass of Atonement last week. But confession in the Catholic Church requires penance, which is an action of justice that attempts to repair the harm. In other words, we cannot move from confession to healing without doing penance, and that includes doing justice and being truthful.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

MEDFORD (MA)
Wicked Local Medford

By Nicholas Iovino/niovino@wickedlocal.com
Medford Transcript

Medford —

The Episcopal Diocese of Massachusetts stripped a retired Medford pastor of his priesthood after investigating allegations that he sexually abused women during his time as rector.

Robert M. Durkee, now 85 years old, served as pastor of Grace Episcopal Church on High Street from 1964 to 1989.

In January, the Episcopal Diocese of Massachusetts received a complaint against the former rector, alleging that he engaged in sexual misconduct with a woman in 1980.

“It’s my understanding that two additional, possible victims came forward just within the last day or two,” said Tracy Sukraw, director of communications for the Diocese.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

TOLEDO (OH)
WTOL

[with video]

Posted by Erin Kelly

TOLEDO, OH (WTOL) – SNAP President Barbara Blaine visited Toledo on Tuesday, and called for more public disclosure from the Toledo Catholic Diocese regarding the whereabouts and status of priests who have been accused of sexual abuse.

The support group for victims who have been sexually abused by priests held a rally outside of the Diocese headquarters.

The organization is also calling on officials to warn people in a Perrysburg parish about a former priest. They say he was accused of sexual abuse, and is no longer a priest, but wants to join a Perrysburg parish.

“I think it’s really important that the safety of children come first. And I think that priests and church officials should do everything they can to protect children. And if they know of a sexual predator in their midst, they have a duty to warn parents.” Blaine said about the group’s request.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

PHILADELPHIA (PA)
Philadelphia Priest Abuse Trial Blog

Ralph Cipriano

The man wrote the archdiocese in 1996, claiming that as an adolescent, he had been sexually abused by Father Stanley M. Gana. The man wanted the archdiocese to pay for his therapy, which he said, were a direct result of the abuse he had suffered from Father Gana.

There was a problem, however, Monsignor William J. Lynn explained in writing to the victim. The archdiocese had a policy where it would only pay the bills of alleged victims if the priest accused of abuse had confessed. Father Gana, Lynn explained, was still denying the allegations. So the archdiocese, according to its own policy, was not required to pay for the man’s therapy.

However, Lynn wrote, out of the archdiocese’s “charitable concern” for the victim’s “emotional, physical and spiritual well-being,” the archdiocese had decided to make an exception in this case, and pay the victim’s therapy bills. The letter was signed, “Sincerely yours in the Lord, William J. Lynn.”

Sadly, as far as the archdiocese was concerned, however, this wasn’t a charity case, as was revealed Tuesday in the ongoing sex abuse trial. Father Gana had made a full confession, according to formerly confidential documents that the prosecutor entered into evidence. The documents showed that Monsignor Lynn knew about the priest’s confession, but decided not to share this knowledge with the victim.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

PHILADELPHIA (PA)
The New York Times

By JON HURDLE

Published: April 3, 2012

PHILADELPHIA — A victim of alleged sexual abuse by a Roman Catholic priest told a court on Tuesday that church officials took more than 10 years to resolve his complaint that he had been molested at a summer camp.

Walter J. Daly, 64, told jurors at the landmark trial of a senior church official and another priest that he wrote to the Archdiocese of Philadelphia in October 1992 complaining that he had been abused by the Rev. John Cannon, a priest who ran the camp in Lancaster County, Pa., where Mr. Daly went as an elementary and high school student.

In response, Mr. Daly was invited to a meeting in November 1992 with three church officials, including Msgr. William J. Lynn, the former secretary for clergy at the archdiocese and the first senior church official in the United States to be tried on charges that he endangered children by placing priests in positions where they were able to molest them.

The officials listened to Mr. Daly’s description of having been abused an estimated 25 times over successive summers at the camp but did not appear to resolve his complaints and did not seem very sympathetic, he told the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

MONTANA
Billings Gazette

By SUSAN OLP solp@billingsgazette.com

The Diocese of Great Falls-Billings should not use an off-duty police officer to investigate claims of sexual abuse by priests, a victims advocacy group said Tuesday.

Two members of the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, or SNAP, visited Billings to make a case against the practice. The pair spoke Tuesday morning in front of St. Patrick Co-Cathedral.

Judy Jones, SNAP Midwest associate director, and Steven Spaner, SNAP Australia coordinator, both from the St. Louis area, talked about the issue that came up in a civil suit recently filed against the diocese.

The civil suit, filed Feb. 8 in Great Falls, includes 10 plaintiffs. The only named plaintiff, Timothy Becker, alleged that the Rev. Ted Szudera abused him in 1978 and 1979 while Szudera was a priest in Livingston.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

NORTH DAKOTA
Grand Forks Herald

By: Stephen J. Lee, Grand Forks Herald

According to news sources in the Philippines, an appeals court in Manila on Tuesday approved the extradition of Fernando Sayasaya, a former priest in the Catholic Diocese of Fargo, to stand trial in a Fargo court on decade-old felony sex charges involving two minor boys.

The Manila court ruled that the affidavit of West Fargo Police Detective Greg Warren detailing charges from two brothers against Sayasaya was credible and constituted probable cause, according to news reports.

Fernando Sayasaya, who was defrocked several years ago at the urging of Bishop Samuel Aquila of Fargo, was ordained in the diocese in 1995 by Bishop James Sullivan. He served at St. Mary’s Cathedral in downtown Fargo and at Blessed Sacrament in West Fargo.

Sayasaya was removed of his parish duties in 1998, after two brothers accused him of sexually assaulting them in 1997.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

PHILIPPINES
Sun.Star

Wednesday, April 4, 2012

A FILIPINO priest who was indicted for having sexual contact with teenage boys over a decade ago may soon be sent back to the United States to face charges.

Reverend Father Fernando Sayasaya lost his battle at the Court of Appeals (CA) after its first division refused to reverse the decision of the Manila City Regional Trial Court last December 2010 granting the request of the Department of Justice for him to be extradited.

The DOJ filed the petition on behalf of the US government.

“Suppression of crimes is the concern not only of the state where it is committed but also of any other state to which the criminal may have escaped,” the decision penned by Associate Justice Amy Lazaro-Javier stated.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

TOLEDO (OH)
Toledo Blade

BY DAVID YONKE
BLADE RELIGION EDITOR

Barbara Blaine of SNAP led a small protest outside the Toledo Catholic Diocese offices on Tuesday asking Bishop Leonard Blair to be more diligent in keeping the public informed about priests who abuse minors.

The diocese’s online “case status” on priest abusers is dated December, 2010, and Ms. Blaine said the list should be updated once a year “at a minimum.”

The founder and president of the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, Ms. Blaine stood on the sidewalk in front of the diocese’s downtown Spielbusch Avenue offices flanked by SNAP supporters Tom and Mary Jean McCarty, who held signs with childhood photos of abuse victims and SNAP’s web address, snapnetwork.org.

An attorney and Toledo native now living in Chicago, Ms. Blaine also called on the diocese to warn members of Blessed John XXIII Parish in Perrysburg that Denny Gray, a defrocked Toledo priest, reportedly is joining the parish. Gray was sued by at least 11 boys claiming he sexually abused them before he left the priesthood in 1987. The diocese sent a letter to one of Gray’s victims stating that the ex-priest “has admitted to us he is guilty of child abuse.”

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

INDIA
Christian Today

By: KK John

Wednesday, 4 April 2012, 13:23 (IST)

Another nun from the Catholic Church in Kerala is taking the audacity to open up on the sexual abuse faced by nuns in convents.

Sr Mary Chandy left the order 12 years ago when a priest had forced himself on her. The Presentation Convent nun is now penning her ordeals in an autobiography that will be soon released.

In an interview to a local daily, the 76-year-old nun said her autobiography ‘Swasthy’ will create a “whirlwind” of sorts as it exposes the ordeals she experienced in her 56 years of life as a nun.

“I was once the target of rape and when I protested a clergyman’s attempt and took up the issue with the church, it was I and not he, who was put under tremendous mental pressure,” she said in the interview.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

WISCONSIN
Green Bay Press-Gazette

Written by
Jim Collar
Gannett Wisconsin Media

APPLETON — A judge on Tuesday denied a request from the Catholic Diocese of Green Bay that a jury from outside Outagamie County hear a civil lawsuit brought by two childhood sexual assault victims.

A jury trial is scheduled next month in Outagamie County Court in the lawsuit filed by brothers Troy and Todd Merryfield stemming from their childhood sexual abuse at the hands of former priest John Feeney.

The Merryfields, formerly of Freedom, were sexually assaulted by Feeney in the late 1970s.

They say the diocese was fraudulent in failing to inform Freedom’s St. Nicholas Catholic Church of Feeney’s past, which included church-ordered sexual abuse counseling.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

AUSTRALIA
702 ABC Sydney

By Tim Palmer

Updated April 04, 2012

New questions are being asked about the link between the NSW Attorney-General and a retired Catholic priest who allegedly abused a number of female children during his time in the church.

Father Finian Egan’s more than 50 years as a priest took him to at least half a dozen churches in and around Sydney.

But the priest’s service in the Catholic church came to an end when a number of women came forward to accuse him of abusing them when they were children.

Within weeks of 7.30 airing a series of stories on Father Egan, at least five people had gone to police and a widespread investigation was underway.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

KANSAS CITY (MO)
National Catholic Reporter

Apr. 03, 2012
By Joshua J. McElwee

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The first criminal case against a Catholic bishop in the decades-long clergy sex abuse scandal is expected to take a pivotal turn this week, as a county judge decides whether Bishop Robert Finn, head of the Kansas City-St. Joseph diocese, can be tried on charges of failing to report suspected child abuse.

Central to the decision will be the question of whether Finn can be considered a “mandated reporter” in the case.

Prosecutors say Finn, who has publicly apologized for his handling of a diocesan priest prosecutors say the bishop knew had created child pornography, was criminally liable in not reporting the priest to police.

In motions filed by his lawyers in February, Finn denied guilt of the charges and claimed that because others in the diocese were primarily tasked with reporting abuse, he was absolved of primary responsibility in the case and should not be considered a mandated reporter.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

LOUISIANA
American Press

Last Modified: Tuesday, April 03, 2012

By Ashley Withers / American Press

Former priest Mark A. Broussard on Monday was charged with an additional 100 counts of sexual battery and 40 counts of aggravated rape after another victim came forward, authorities said.

Kim Myers, spokeswoman for the Calcasieu Parish Sheriff’s Office, said the crimes occurred at Our Lady Queen of Heaven in Lake Charles — that’s where the victim attended school and church — when the victim was 11-16 years old.

Our Lady Queen of Heaven was the first parish Broussard was assigned to after being ordained in May 1986.

The victim, now 36, is one of four young boys documented in Broussard’s personnel file from his time with the Diocese of Lake Charles. These accounts of sexual contact with young parishioners were known and recorded by the diocese, but never reported to authorities.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

IRELAND
The Guardian (United Kingdom)

Henry McDonald, Ireland correspondent
guardian.co.uk, Tuesday 3 April 2012

Several key figures in Irish state broadcaster RTÉ have retired or resigned ahead of what is expected to be a damning report into the libelling of a priest the station falsely accused of rape and fathering a child in Africa.

The retirements and resignations will be followed by a further major complaint of alleged editorial bias against defeated Irish presidential candidate Seán Gallagher. A second report is due which will examine Gallagher’s claims that biased coverage on the Frontline debate show cost him his lead in the opinion polls in the final week of last autumn’s election.

The false allegations against Fr Kevin Reynolds cost RTÉ €1m in libel damages after the investigative Prime Time Investigates programme Mission to Prey ignored internal legal advice that the priest was ready to take a DNA test to prove the claims against him were wrong.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

UNITED STATES
The New York Times

By JANE E. BRODY, Columnist

Every year millions of children from all walks of life become victims of, or witnesses to, abusive or violent events that can result in long-lasting symptoms of distress. The events can range from sexual and physical abuse to involvement in a natural disaster, fire or serious motor vehicle accident.

In many cases, the trauma is unknown to parents and caregivers or never dealt with effectively. The consequences can be devastating for the children and families involved and for society at large. These children are at much greater risk of developing behavioral problems, failing at school, abusing drugs or alcohol and becoming violent themselves.

Without treatment, post-traumatic stress reactions can persist into adulthood, causing eating disorders, personality and mood disorders, relationship difficulties, persistent anxiety, unexplained physical problems, and violent or abusive behaviors.

According to report being released Tuesday by Safe Horizon, a victim assistance group that operates child advocacy centers in New York City, and the Childhood Violent Trauma Center at Yale University, children who are abused or neglected are 59 percent more likely than those who were not victimized to be arrested as juveniles, 28 percent more likely to be arrested as adults, and 30 percent more likely to commit a violent crime. They also face much higher rates of teenage pregnancy and are likelier to abuse or neglect their own children.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

NEW YORK
Catholic News Agency

Thornwood, N.Y., Apr 3, 2012 / 11:25 am (CNA).- The Legionaries of Christ have announced plans to sell their Thornwood property in Westchester County, New York, citing financial strain and fallout from revelations about the late Father Marcial Maciel.

“The scandal involving our founder has been a great shock to us all, shaking our trust and raising doubts in many hearts. We are working hard to regain the trust of our friends – and of one another,” explained Father Luis Garza, L.C., director of the order’s North American territory, in an April 2 letter.

In his message to the Legion and its affiliate Regnum Christi, Fr. Garza announced the sale of the property that had been used for priestly formation since 1996. He noted that the global recession of the past several years had “also affected many of our benefactors.”

“As a consequence of our difficulties, we have also experienced a decrease in vocations to the Legion and to the consecrated life,” he acknowledged.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

PHILIPPINES
The Philippine Star

By Edu Punay (The Philippine Star) Updated April 04, 2012

MANILA, Philippines – The Court of Appeals (CA) has approved the extradition of former priest Fernando Sayasaya to the United States to stand trial for sexual molestation.

The CA affirmed the ruling of the Manila City regional trial court ordering the extradition of Sayasaya, who is wanted in the US for allegedly sexually molesting two minors on several occasions from 1995 to 1998.

In a 23-page decision, the first division of the appellate court dismissed Sayasaya’s petition questioning the extradition order.

The CA, through Associate Justice Amy Lazaro-Javier, stressed the Philippine government has an obligation to ensure that crimes would not go unpunished.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

NEW JERSEY
Daily Record

Written by
Abbott Koloff
Staff Writer

Local church officials say they have made another monetary settlement over sex abuse allegations against former Dover pastor Ronald Tully.

Ken Mullaney, an attorney for the Paterson Roman Catholic Diocese, acknowledged that a settlement was made about a month ago but said any other information would have to come from the victim making the allegations and his attorney.

Boston attorney Mitchell Garabedian said on Tuesday that the diocese paid $265,000 to his client to settle the matter and offered to pay an additional amount for counseling. He said his client was 16 years old and a student at Pope Pius XII High School in Passaic, where Tully worked, in 1976 when the alleged abuse took place.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

NORTHERN IRELAND
Tyrone Times

Published on Tuesday 3 April 2012

PARENTS who were present when sexually explicit imagery appeared on screen during a presentation given by the Parish Priest of Pomeroy, have demanded an explanation and apology following the incident.

According to a “unanimous” statement issued on behalf of parents of Primary Four children from St Mary’s PS in the village – who had gathered last Monday night to attend an information event given by Fr Martin McVeigh in preparation for First Communion – a number of questions remain unanswered as to what action has been taken by the Archdiocese of Armagh in light of what took place.

Both the Council for Catholic Maintained Schools (CCMS) and Cardinal Sean Brady’s office have confirmed that the incident is under investigation.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

IRELAND
Galway Bay FM

April 3, 2012

Ed Mulhall has retired as head of RTE’s news and current affairs.

The announcement follows the completition of an investigation by the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland into a Prime Time Investigates programme, A Mission to Prey.

The programme wrongly accused Ahascragh priest Fr Kevin Reynolds of statutory rape and also falsely alleged he had fathered a child.

He has since been awarded substantial damages by RTE in the high court, and the broadcaster did not contest the claims made by Fr Reynolds in the proceedings.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

PHILADELPHIA (PA)
Philadelphia Inquirer

By John P. Martin
INQUIRER STAFF WRITER

The Archdiocese of Philadelphia let a pastor who admitted abusing adolescent boys at a Northeast Philadelphia parish return to limited ministry in 1997 because doctors said his problem had been substance abuse, not pedophilia, jurors were told today.

After his return from treatment, the Rev. Stanley Gana was assigned as the chaplain for a monastery of Carmelite nuns,

Msgr. William J. Lynn, the administrator who recommended his assignment and had interviewed two of his victims, told Gana he could also occasionally assist at parishes – as long as he kept “a low-profile” in the diocese.

“I said it would be fine if Gana helps out, if it was not a Northeast parish or a parish with a school,” Lynn wrote in a confidential memo.

Philadelphia prosecutors introduced the records today as they sought to prove that Lynn, the archdiocese’s former secretary for clergy, endangered children by enabling or failing to remove priests suspected of abusing children.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

NORTHERN IRELAND
Religion Dispatches

Post by Katie Toth

Things got awkward at St. Mary’s School in Pomeroy, Ireland last week, when a Catholic priest accidentally aired gay pornography during his presentation to parents about the First Communion.

According to a parents’ statement, Father Martin McVeigh was setting up a PowerPoint display and put a USB stick into the computer. When pornographic images appeared on screen, he abandoned the presentation, probably more than a little embarrassed.

Parents and the diocese have advanced on McVeigh with vigor. According to a spokesperson, the principal of St. Mary’s “immediately referred this matter to the diocesan authorities in accordance with the diocesan safeguarding procedures”; the Cardinal and the diocesan child protection office have launched a formal investigation after Church authorities consulted with the police.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

PHILADELPHIA (PA)
San Luis Obispo Tribune

By JOANN LOVIGLIO | Associated Press

A series of confidential memos outlining multiple allegations of sexual abuse against a now-defrocked priest were read to jurors Tuesday in the landmark clergy abuse trial under way in Philadelphia.

The memos describe how the archdiocese handled the allegations against the Rev. Stanley Gana lodged in the 1990s. Prosecutors are trying to show that the archdiocese didn’t do enough to protect children from Gana after the accusations arose.

Monsignor William Lynn, 61, supervised more than 800 priests as the secretary for clergy in Philadelphia from 1992 to 2004. He’s the first U.S. church official charged over his handling of abuse complaints against priests.

Prosecutors charge that he kept dangerous priests in parish work around children to protect the church’s reputation and avoid scandal. He faces up to 28 years in prison if convicted of conspiracy and child endangerment.

A detective read confidential memos and other documents to jurors about Gana that dated back to 1992. The documents include reports made to the church, and conversations with Lynn and others, by several young men who said they were molested by Gana for years as adolescents.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

MONTANA
Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests

Posted by Judy Jones on April 03, 2012

We are members of a Chicago-based international support group called SNAP. Our mission is to heal the wounded and protect the vulnerable.

We’re here today, outside the Great Falls/Billings Catholic Diocese headquarters, for four reasons:

Instead, we want him to promptly report all reports and suspicions of possible child sex crimes immediately to police. If law enforcement officials can’t or won’t pursue charges (often due to the statute of limitations), then we want Warfel to hired retired law enforcement to look into the accusations.

Hiring off duty copes as investigators is apparently legal in Montana (though apparently illegal in some states). We believe that it likely compromises or compromises or undermines the integrity or independence of – or reduces public confidence in – law enforcement.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

TOLEDO (OH)
Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests

Posted by Barbara Blaine on April 03, 2012

We are members of a Chicago-based international support group called SNAP. Our mission is to heal the wounded and protect the vulnerable.

We’re here today, outside the Toledo Catholic Diocese headquarters, for three reasons:

1–To urge Toledo’s bishop to tell parishioners and the public – now and on a regular basis – the whereabouts and status of predator priests in the diocese,

2– To urge a Toledo nun – just elected to a national church post- to push for more disclosure of child molesting clerics who belong to religious orders,

3– And to urge all Toledo Catholic officials to warn citizens and Catholics that a now defrocked pedophile priest, Dennis P. Gray, is reportedly joining a Perrysburg parish.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

NORTH DAKOTA
Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests

Posted by David Clohessy on April 03, 2012

We are glad that that Fr. Fernando Sayasaya – a former Fargo priest – will be returned to the United States to face a trial for his crimes. It is rare that victims of a predator priest have the chance to see the justice system work in their favor. We are hopeful that this trial will give them some peace and will protect children from this child molesting cleric.

This case is another example in a string of incidents in which church officials have let a foreign priest return to his country after finding out about abuse allegations against him (the other most recent case is of Fr. Jeyapaul, in Minnesota). This is a disturbing practice and needs to end. As with all priests, whether they are US citizens or otherwise, church officials should immediately turn over all evidence of abuse to the police and let them investigate. The situation with Fr. Sayasaya is a somber reminder of how much further the church hierarchy needs to go to live up to their promise of being open and honest about child sex crimes.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

PHILADELPHIA (PA)
ABC News

PHILADELPHIA April 3, 2012 (AP)

A series of confidential memos from the 1990s are being read to jurors in the landmark priest-abuse trial under way in Philadelphia.

The memos being read Tuesday describe how the archdiocese handled allegations of sexual abuse against the Rev. Stanley Gana lodged in the 1990s. Prosecutors are trying to show that the archdiocese didn’t do enough after the accusations arose.

Monsignor William Lynn’s child endangerment and conspiracy trial could last several months.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

NORTHERN IRELAND
New York Daily News

Roman Catholic Church investigating how porn slideshow ended up at First Communion class

By Nina Mandell / NEW YORK DAILY NEWS

Tuesday, April 3, 2012

The Catholic Church launched an investigation after an Irish priest inadvertently played a slide show of gay porn to a group of parents who had come for a meeting about their children’s First Communion.

Father Martin McVeigh was setting up a PowerPoint presentation last week when the sexual images popped up on the computer, The Ulster Herald reported.

“There were plenty of shocked faces,” one person at the meeting told the newspaper. “There’s a lot of parents very angry about it.”

Parents said in a statement that McVeigh quickly removed the offending memory card from the computer and bolted from the room.

“He was visibly shaken and flustered,” the statement said, according to The Associated Press. “He gave no explanation or apology to the group and bolted out of the room. The coordinator and the teachers then continued with the presentation.”

McVeigh returned to the meeting 20 minutes later and told parents that children get lots of money for their Holy Communion and should consider giving some of it to the church.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

IRELAND
The Journal

TWO RTÉ EXECUTIVES have left their positions as a result of inquiries into the Prime Time Investigates programme ‘A Mission to Prey’. The Prime Time Investigates series is also to be permanently shelved, RTÉ has announced.

Ed Mulhall, the Managing Director of RTÉ’s News and Current Affairs division, retired from the broadcaster from March 2012, according to a statement just issued by RTÉ.

Ken O’Shea, Editor of Current Affairs, has resigned that post. He is now “transferring to an assignment in Television, reporting to the Commissioning Editor for RTÉ Two”.

RTÉ also announced today that it has convened an External Investigation Board “into all personnel matters arising in respect of the programme ‘A Mission to Prey’.” This board is currently investigating and is to deliver a report to RTÉ’s Group Head of HR. RTÉ said it won’t comment on the work of the board until it has reached a conclusion.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

IRELAND
Breaking News

03/04/2012

The Managing Director of RTÉ’s News and Current affairs division, Ed Mulhall, has retired from the organisation with effect from March 2012.

Ken O’Shea has confirmed that he has resigned from his post as Editor of Current Affairs.

He is transferring to an assignment in television, reporting to the Commissioning Editor for RTÉ Two.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

IRELAND
Irish Independent

Tuesday April 03 2012

RTE’S Prime Time Investigates has been axed while a new current affairs unit will be established at the TV station following a report from the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland into a defamatory programme on Fr Kevin Reynolds.

The head of news Ed Mulhall has retired from the organisation while editor of current affairs Ken O’Shea has resigned from his post and will transfer to another assignment in television.

The move comes just a day after the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland compliance committee issued a report into the programme.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

IRELAND
Leinster Express

RTE’s award-winning current affairs series Prime Time Investigates has been taken off the air for good.

The show, which was responsible for the hugely damaging and defamatory Mission To Prey programme, has been shelved in an attempt to rebuild public trust.

Noel Curran, RTE director general, announced the move as part of wide-ranging reforms in its personnel, management and operations in the current affairs division.

“Mistakes will happen in broadcasting and in journalism, no matter what changes are made. Programme makers must be and will be supported in making challenging programming,” he said.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

IRELAND
RTE News

RTÉ has announced significant changes in the personnel, management structure and operations of its current affairs output.

Yesterday, the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland announced it had made a decision in relation to its investigation into the Prime Time Investigates programme, A Mission to Prey.

RTÉ has not yet received formal notification of its decision or the finalised report.

However, the broadcaster’s director general said today that pending the conclusion of the BAI process, RTÉ must deal with issues that have arisen in respect of current affairs programming, and several key changes and actions will now take place.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

IRELAND
The Irish Times

RONAN McGREEVY

RTÉ IS to find out shortly if a fine of up to €250,000 is to be imposed upon it as a result of the station’s libel of Fr Kevin Reynolds.

The Broadcasting Authority of Ireland (BAI) has sent a copy of the independent report into the matter along with notification of any sanction to RTÉ for consideration.

The station will be given 14 days to respond or make submissions.

At the end of the process the BAI will publish the report into the libel action and announce any financial sanctions it might impose on the broadcaster.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

PHILIPPINES
ABS-CBN

by Ina Reformina, ABS-CBN News

Posted at 04/03/2012

MANILA, Philippines – A Filipino priest will face trial for child sex abuse in the United States after the Court of Appeals (CA) First Division upheld a lower court’s order for the priest’s extradition.

CA Associate Justice Amy Lazaro-Javier, in a 22-page ruling, said Fernando Laude Sayasaya should be extradited because the evidence against himon the alleged sexual offenses “met the standard of probable cause.”

Sayasaya allegedly committed “gross sexual imposition” on two 15-year-old boys on several occasions between July 1995 to August 1998, while he was assigned as a priest at the Blessed Sacrament Catholic Church in West Fargo, North Dakota.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

IRELAND
The Irish Times

RONAN MCGREEVY

RTÉ’s head of current affairs Ed Mulhall has retired and the editor of Prime Time Investigates Ken O’Shea has resigned from the programme over the Fr Kevin Reynolds libel affair.

The announcement was made to staff in RTÉ this afternoon in a message from director-general Noel Curran.

The Broadcasting Authority of Ireland (BAI) announced yesterday that it had completed its report into the Prime Time Investigates Programme that had libelled Fr Reynolds. It had sent copies of the independent investigation into the programme to RTÉ. The investigation was carried out by former BBC Northern Ireland controller Anna Carragher.

The programme, which was broadcast last May, falsely accused Fr Reynolds of raping a minor while working as a missionary in Africa and fathering a child by her.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

PHILIPPINES
Zambo Times

by Perfecto T. Raymundo Jr.

The United States government sought Sayasaya’s extradition so that he can face the two counts of gross sexual imposition filed by brothers Hugo Zamarron and Pablo Zamarron before the District Court, East Central Judicial District, Cass Country, North Dakota.

The Zamarron brothers alleged that Sayasaya engaged them in sexual contact in separate occasions at their residence and at the church.

In its decision, the CA echoed the Manila RTC’s findings that the affidavit of detective Grey Clayton Warren of the Police Department of West Fargo, North Dakota, who interviewed the minor victims that described in detail the illegal acts committed by the priest were credible.

“This Court gives respect and credence to the foregoing factual findings, which are amply supported by the evidence on record,” the CA said.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

PHILADELPHIA (PA)
Philadelphia Weekly – Daily Grinder

Apr 3, 2012 by Randy LoBasso

Priest abuse cases are always bad. Sure. But there’s something about the Philadelphia case, specifically, that sort of makes me throw up a little, each time I read about it. Maybe it’s the detailed, alleged maniacal perversion of the individual, uncharged priests who will never see the inside of a jail cell or that Cardinal Lynn apparently let it all happen. Or maybe it’s the fact that Archbishop Charles Chaput has publicly endorsed Lynn and focused on national healthcare and school vouchers instead of, I don’t know, showing any remorse for what happened or, let’s say apologizing to the victims of the crimes he and his organization have now come to represent in this city. Either way, yesterday a detective read internal church memos about one priest who “joked about how hard it was to have sex with three boys in one week.” Another priest, Rev. John Cannon, used to sneak into a cabin at a church-run camp, “groped the boys in their beds, and forced them to do the same to him.”

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

TOLEDO (OH)
WUPW

[with video]

TOLEDO, Ohio (WUPW) – Legal experts and leaders of the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests wrangled over the complaint SNAP lodged with the International Criminal Court in a legal debate Monday.

It asks the court to investigate the leaders of the church for allegedly allowing priest abuse to happen.

SNAP leaders say this is not about putting the catholic religion on trial.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

NORTHERN IRELAND
Irish Central

By
CATHY HAYES,
IrishCentral Staff Writer

Published Tuesday, April 3, 2012

The Archdiocese of Armagh, headed up by Ireland’s Primate Cardina Sean Brady, has launched a formal investigation into Father Martin McVeigh, the Tyrone priest who accidentally aired gay porn to members of his parish during a PowerPoint presentation for parents of First Communicants.

Last week McVeigh was setting up a PowerPoint presentation for a group of parents, in preparation for the parish’s upcoming First Holy Communion services. Sixteen gay porn images allegedly flashed on the screen when McVeigh inserted his USB into the computer.

Brady released a statement on the matter. He said the images had been “immediately removed” from the overhead projector’s screen and he added that McVeigh had “no knowledge of the offending imagery”.

The Archbishop said the Church had immediately sought the advice of the local police who said that no crime had been committed.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

PHILADELPHIA (PA)
WFMZ

PHILADELPHIA –
Jurors in the Philadelphia priest sex abuse trial heard startling testimony Monday about a priest who allegedly bragged about having sex with boys.

A detective took the stand and read a memo about a priest who quote “joked about how difficult it was to have sex with three boys in one week.”

Monsignor William Lynn is on trial for child endangerment and conspiracy. He is the first Roman Catholic church official in the U.S. charged for his handling of priest-abuse complaints.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

MASSACHUSETTS
Irish Central

Taking a side in a Boston Irish row – Kevin Cullen’s attack on Eugene O’Flaherty

[Let’s give justice time]

Larry Donnelly

What I’m about to write might not be too popular in the Boston Irish community – or elsewhere, for that matter.

On the pages of the Boston Globe last week, columnist Kevin Cullen blasted Massachusetts State Representative Eugene O’Flaherty (D-Chelsea). Cullen accused O’Flaherty of “stifling a proposal to eliminate the statute of limitations on prosecuting child sexual abuse crimes” in his capacity as co-chairman of the Judiciary Committee. O’Flaherty responded by stating that he took issue with being depicted as someone “unconcerned about the murder of children’s souls” and by announcing that he would resign his chairmanship at the close of the current legislative session.

Kevin Cullen and Eugene O’Flaherty have very close ties to their ancestral country. Cullen was based here as a Globe correspondent for a number of years and is regarded as one of the most knowledgeable journalists in the United States on all things Irish. He continues to contribute regularly to Irish newspapers and is a frequent guest on national radio.

O’Flaherty was born in Boston to emigrants from Co. Kerry, spent nearly as much time in Kerry as he did in Boston growing up and is a first cousin to the McEllistrim Fianna Fáil political dynasty in Kerry. As a state legislator, he spearheads a number of different initiatives to foster cooperation between Massachusetts and Ireland on several fronts.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

UNITED STATES
National Survivor Advocates Coalition

We are pleased to congratulate author Jason Berry on being named the Investigative Reporter and Editors (IRE) award winner in the book category for the great work he produced in “Render Unto Rome: The Secret Life of Money in the Catholic Church.”

IRE announced its award winners yesterday.

Here are the judges’ comments regarding Mr. Berry and “Render Unto Rome.”

Author Jason Berry delves deeply into a topic few have examined – the secretive finances of the Roman Catholic Church. Using voluminous background research that takes the reader back centuries, Berry uncovers abuses of the trust of church members by influential bishops who diverted funds intended for philanthropic purposes into accounts used for plugging Vatican operating deficits or defending priests accused of pedophilia. Berry details how the modern church is systematically closing churches in poorer parishes while at the same time opening churches in affluent suburbs where the weekly “take” is greater.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

BELGIE
RKnieuws

BRUSSEL (RKnieuws.net) – Colette Callewaert is de nieuwe onderzoeksrechter in Operatie Kelk, het onderzoek naar seksueel misbruik in de Kerk.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

BELGIE
Zita

Operatie Kelk, het gerechtelijk onderzoek naar schuldig verzuim bij seksueel misbruik van kinderen in de katholieke kerk, is in handen van een nieuwe onderzoeksrechter. De rechter die het onderzoek in handen had, Wim De Troy (foto links), is sinds 1 april geen onderzoeksrechter meer.

Rechtbankvoorzitter Luc Hénart heeft nu beslist het dossier in handen te geven van onderzoeksrechter Colette Callewaert, de oudst benoemde Brusselse onderzoeksrechter en dus deken van de onderzoeksrechters.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

NEDERLAND
Kerknieuws

Het onderzoek over misbruik in de Rooms-Katholieke Kerk berust op feiten en zorgvuldige afwegingen. Dat schreef de commissie-Deetman vrijdag in een notitie aan de Tweede Kamer.

De volledigheid van het rapport, dat in december verscheen, werd de afgelopen tijd in twijfel getrokken. Volgens NRC Handelsblad ontbreekt in het rapport informatie over castraties in de jaren ’50 in het jongensinternaat Harreveld en de bemoeienis van Vic Marijnen, in de jaren ’50 bestuursvoorzitter van Harreveld en later minister-president. De commissie verwierp die kritiek vrijdag en stelt dat de informatie in de artikelen niet berust op feiten.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

NEDERLAND
Skipr

De overheid moet ook de rol van de psychiatrie en psychiaters bij seksueel misbruik in de kerk en andere instellingen onderzoeken. Dat bepleitte slachtofferkoepel Klokk maandag.

Volgens de organisatie is extra wetenschappelijk onderzoek nodig naar mogelijke medische ingrepen, maar ook naar verbanden tussen psychiatrie, justitiële instanties en kerkelijke organisaties. Vorige maand ontstond ophef over berichten over mogelijke gevallen, in de jaren vijftig, van castratie om homoseksuele gevoelens bij jongens uit te bannen. Klokk roept de Tweede Kamer op bij de regering aan te dringen op het aanvullende onderzoek.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

IRELAND
International Business Times

By Amrutha Gayathri:

April 3, 2012

The Roman Catholic Church in Ireland has said that it is looking into claims that a priest inadvertently showed gay pornographic images during a PowerPoint presentation to the parents of children who were set to receive their first communion.

Priest Martin McVeigh has been accused of showing a series of “indecent images of men” while using a projector March 26 to a group of 26 parents at a grade school in Pomeroy, County Tyrone, Northern Ireland, the BBC reported.

The parents, who were shocked to watch as many as 16 sleazy images on the big screen, told reporters that the images were from the memory stick the cleric inserted into the computer port before the presentation. However, the priest said that he had no knowledge of the images. “I don’t know how it happened but I know what happened,” McVeigh was quoted as saying.

“He was visibly shaken and flustered,” a parent told the BBC. “He gave no explanation or apology to the group and bolted out of the room. The coordinator and the teachers then continued with the presentation.”

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

PHILIPPINES
Inquirer

By Tetch Torres
INQUIRER.net
4:41 pm | Tuesday, April 3rd, 2012

MANILA, Philippines—The Court of Appeals allowed the extradition of a former Filipino priest to the United States who is facing a case of sexually molesting two minors from 1995 to 1998.

In a 23-page decision, the appeals court’s first division through Associate Justice Amy C. Lazaro-Javier, denied the petition filed by Fernando Sayasaya, formerly assigned as a priest at the Blessed Sacrament Catholic Church in West Fargo, North Dakota and/or at St. Mary’s Cathedral in Fargo, North Dakota.

Sayasaya sought a reversal of the Dec. 28, 2010 decision of the Manila City Regional Trial Court who found probable cause to grant the petition for extradition filed by the Department of Justice (DoJ) on behalf of the US government.

The US government sought Sayasaya’s extradition so that he can face the two counts of gross sexual imposition filed by brothers Hugo Zamarron and Pablo Zamarron before the District Court, East Central Judicial District, Cass Country, North Dakota.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

PHILADELPHIA (PA)
CBS Philly

By Tony Hanson

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) – The prosecution in the clergy abuse case alleges defendant Monsignor William Lynn, charged with endangering children by allowing alleged and admitted predator priests to remain in ministry, is guilty of a pattern of conduct that dates back decades in the Philadelphia Archdiocese.

The prosecution has presented evidence of a priest, Father John Cannon, who allegedly sexually assaulted a series of boys at a school summer camp from 1959 through 1964 and admitted it to church officials. But, he remained in ministry for decades.

And, authorities allege Monsignor William Lynn, who became secretary for clergy in 1992, knew of these allegations, but neither he nor any other church official did anything until a victim came forward in 1992 and threatened legal action.

Then, mental health treatment was ordered, but still Father Cannon continued as chaplain at a girl’s high school until 2004. Cannon was never charged with any crimes. The archdiocese says he has accepted a supervised life of prayer and penance.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

PHILADELPHIA (PA)
Daily Mail (United Kingdom)

By Damien Gayle

A priest joked about how hard it was to have sex with three boys in one week, claimed internal Catholic church documents revealed in court for the first time yesterday.

The startling testimony came in the trial of Monsignor William Lynn, 61, who is accused of helping the Philadelphia archdiocese bury priest abuse complaints in secret files.

Lynn, who faces charges of child endangerment and conspiracy, is the first Roman Catholic church official to be charged in the U.S. for his handling of priest abuse complaints.

The scandal of child sex abuse by Catholic priests has reverberated internationally, and caused a worldwide crisis of faith in the Roman church.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

PHILADELPHIA (PA)
Philadelphia Inquirer

April 02, 2012|By John P. Martin, INQUIRER STAFF WRITER

One priest, the Rev. John Cannon, sneaked into a cabin at night at a church-run camp, groped the boys in their beds, and forced them to do the same to him.

Another, the Rev. Stanley Gana, had a stable of boys rotate through his rectory bedroom, once inviting two at the same time so neither thought he was playing favorites.

In both cases, the Archdiocese of Philadelphia left the men in ministry for years after allegations against them first surfaced, a Philadelphia jury was told Monday.

As the landmark conspiracy and endangerment trial started a second week, prosecutors offered scores of secret church documents in their bid to prove that Msgr. William J. Lynn and other church leaders ignored or failed to act swiftly on claims that priests were sexually abusing children.

By that time, Cannon had similar complaints in his secret file, according to records read at the trial by Detective David Fisher of the Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

UNITED STATES
The Worthy Adversary

Posted by Joelle Casteix on April 2, 2012

Why, oh why, does the Catholic Church continue to bestow honors and awards on tragically flawed wrong-doers?

Trial watchers in Philadelphia have been treated to a firsthand view of vile and disgusting human behavior. What makes it worse is that the evildoers are priests and the victims are children. The lede from the Philadephia Inquirer’s Sunday story on the trial is enough to make even the hard-hearted ill:

Stalking. Groping. Gay bondage porn.

A sexually graphic love letter to a grade-school boy.

That they emerged in testimony about priests – and at times, from priests – only amplified the uneasiness.

One would think that the big boss who allowed this activity to continue and flourish would be castigated and forced to live a life of penance and contrition. Not so much.

Disgraced Philly Cardinal Justin Rigali—who retired last year after the Philadelphia Grand Jury exposed the fact that he was keeping more than two dozen accused priests in ministry in 2011—has been honored by the Pope as a special envoy and this week will be a special Mass celebrant at St. Patrick’s Cathedral in New York.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

BELGIE
Knack

dinsdag 03 april 2012

Het laatste arrest dat de Brusselse kamer van inbeschuldigingstelling (KI) heeft uitgesproken over de huiszoekingen op 24 juni 2010 in Operatie Kelk, dreigt ook verbroken te worden.

Op 29 november 2011 besliste de KI dat de huiszoekingen in het aartsbisschoppelijk paleis en bij kardinaal Danneels, in Mechelen, nietig waren en dat de stukken die daar in beslag genomen werden, uit het dossier moesten verwijderd worden. Volgens het parket-generaal bij Cassatie was die beslissing onvoldoende gemotiveerd.

Operatie Kelk

De huiszoekingen van 24 juni 2010 kaderden in Operatie Kelk, het gerechtelijk onderzoek dat de Brusselse onderzoeksrechter Wim De Troy voerde naar seksueel misbruik van kinderen en een mogelijke doofpotoperatie daar rond binnen de katholieke kerk. Drie verschillend samengestelde KI’s beslisten achtereenvolgens dat die huiszoekingen nietig waren, vervolgens dat ze perfect wettelijk waren en tenslotte dat ze toch nietig waren.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

MEDFORD (MA)
Boston Globe

April 03, 2012|By Michael Rezendes

Medford police are investigating allegations that the former longtime rector of Grace Episcopal Church sexually abused a female college student and two high school students during private counseling sessions in the early 1980s.

The former rector, Robert M. Durkee, now 85 and living in New Hampshire, was removed from the priesthood last Tuesday following a January allegation that he sexually abused a female college student in 1980. Durkee was the church rector from 1964 to 1989.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

TOLEDO (OH)
Toledo Blade

BY DAVID YONKE
BLADE RELIGION EDITOR

It was only after two decades of frustration battling the Catholic Church on behalf of victims of clerical sexual abuse, Barbara Blaine said, that she and SNAP decided to take their case to “a court of last resort”: the International Criminal Court in the Hague, Netherlands.

Ms. Blaine, a Toledo native and lawyer who is founder and president of the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, explained the reasoning behind the filing in a panel discussion Monday at the University of Toledo College of Law.

Ultimately, the filing’s goals are to prevent more children from being sexually abused by priests and to encourage victims of abuse to step forward and be counted, Ms. Blaine said. After SNAP filed with the court in September, more than 600 people from 65 nations have contacted the victims-advocacy group saying they were abused by priests, she said.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.