ABUSE TRACKER

UNITED KINGDOM
National Secular Society

Posted: Wed, 21 Nov 2012

The Supreme Court has today ruled on a dispute between two Catholic organisations about who is responsible for paying compensation to over 170 victims of alleged physical and sexual abuse at a Yorkshire children’s home.

The case involves the Catholic diocese of Middlesbrough and the Catholic De La Salle Brothers order, in respect of alleged systematic abuse of children going back more than fifty years at the St William’s children’s care home and school at Market Weighton. It was ruled that the De La Salle Brothers were “vicariously” (financially) liable for wrongdoing of the members of the Order, even though they are not employees, despite the Order’s attempts to evade responsibility for this reason.

The case has huge implications, potentially beyond the UK, but particularly for the Catholic Church, where many of those responsible for child abuse – such as “brothers” are not, technically, employees. This decision is likely to finally resolve another recent similar case involving the Catholic diocese of Portsmouth, where the appeal court ruled on vicarious liability in the same direction as the Supreme Court has done today.

St William’s took emotionally and behaviourally disturbed boys, aged 10 to 16, referred by councils largely from Yorkshire and the North East. The former headmaster James Carragher has twice been convicted of a series of indecent assaults, buggery and taking photographs of young boys. In 2004 he was sentenced to 14 years in prison, having already served a seven-year sentence imposed in 1993. The institution was closed down in 1992.

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UNITED KINGDOM
ITV

The St Williams ruling has been labelled a “landmark” judgment by Jordans Solicitors, who represented the victims.

Organisations who care for children will now be held liable for the abuse of children in their care if their work creates a risk of abuse.

Prior to this decision, claimants had to show that an organisation employed or closely controlled the abuser. More than 170 men claim they suffered physical and sexual abuse at the home between 1958 and 1992.

In 2004 James Carragher, the former headmaster of St Williams, was found guilty of 14 counts of indecent assault against boys, some as young as 12. He was sentenced to 14 years imprisonment.

“‘It is clear that extensive abuse by staff has taken place at St Williams. Since starting the case both organisations who ran the home have attempted to use legal technicalities to evade responsibility, a tactic mirrored in other church abuse cases. I have had to witness the distasteful spectacle of seeing the two Roman Catholic organisations blame each other . This case should have been settled years ago._

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UNITED KINGDOM
Belfast Telegraph

A Catholic brotherhood which supplied teachers to a residential school can be held legally responsible for sexual abuse of boys, leading judges have ruled.

Around 170 men are seeking damages after alleging they were abused as children at St William’s in Market Weighton, East Yorkshire, and a former head was convicted numerous serious sexual offences, the Supreme Court was told.

A panel of five Supreme Court justices concluded that legal responsibility should be shared between a welfare society which managed the school and a brotherhood which provided teachers.

St William’s was founded in 1865 by Catholic benefactors and run locally as a “reformatory school” for boys, Supreme Court justices had been told at a hearing in London.

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MONTANA
Beaumont Enterprise

MATT VOLZ, Associated Press

Updated 6:56 p.m., Tuesday, November 20, 2012

HELENA, Mont. (AP) — Settlement negotiations between hundreds of alleged sex abuse victims and the Roman Catholic Diocese of Helena may have hit a snag with the church’s insurers refusing to cover the claims.

The insurers and the diocese are locked in a dispute over the terms and conditions of the diocese’s insurance policies that date back to the 1970s — and whether some policies even existed. The sides disagree on how policies apply to the 324 claims of sex abuse stretching back decades by priests and nuns in homes, churches and school across western Montana.

The claims are from two combined lawsuits filed last year against the diocese and the Ursuline Sisters of the Western Province. The plaintiffs, many of them Native Americans, say the diocese and the sisters knew or should have known about the abuse, but covered it up instead of stopping it.

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UNITED KINGDOM
BBC News

A Catholic teaching institute is liable for alleged physical and sexual abuse at a former boys’ school, the Supreme Court has ruled.

Claims of abuse are being made by 170 former pupils of St William’s in Market Weighton, East Yorkshire.

Judges said the De La Salle Brotherhood was liable along with the Middlesbrough diocese which owned the school.

The BBC’s Danny Shaw said it was a landmark ruling which could affect other claims of abuse at institutions.

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AUSTRALIA
The Queensland Times

Peter Foley
21st Nov 2012

A LEADER of Ipswich’s Catholic community has welcomed the announcement of a national royal commission into child abuse.

St Mary’s Ipswich parish priest Father Peter Casey said the care and safety of children was all-important.

Prime Minister Julia Gillard last week announced the creation of the royal commission into institutional child sexual abuse.

Father Casey said Brisbane’s Archbishop Mark Coleridge and the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference had offered to co-operate with the commission.

“The royal commission into child abuse in various institutions, both Church and state, including the Catholic Church, may produce an outcome that will ensure the safety of all children from any form of abuse,” Fr Casey said.

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CONNECTICUT
Easton Courier

Written by Nancy Doniger
Sunday, 18 November 2012 20:04

“Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot

Nothing is going to get better, it’s not.”

— The Lorax, by Dr. Seuss

Elizabeth Wenzel cited the quote from the beloved children’s author when she presented a petition with 736 signatures to the Parks and Recreation Commission at the Nov. 8 special meeting on renaming Toth Memorial Park. She presented a piece of pressure-treated wood to make the point that the current sign “is not serving the community.”

After hearing comments on both sides of the emotionally charged issue — the majority in favor of the name change — the commission voted unanimously to change it. The Toth Park sign came down the next day, replaced by what appeared to be the same piece of wood that Ms. Wenzel supplied.

The issue has divided the community, and it’s time to move on and devote its time and attention to parks and recreation, the commission said, acknowledging it had been a wrenching decision.

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CONNECTICUT
Easton Courier

Written by Nancy Doniger
Sunday, 18 November 2012

In an emotional three-hour meeting on Nov. 8 the Parks and Recreation Commission voted unanimously to rename Toth Memorial Park. The decision came after increasing allegations that the park’s namesake, the late Stephen “Skipper” Toth, was a child molester.

The wooden sign with the Toth name was removed from outside the park on Nov. 9. It will be replaced once the commission comes up with a new policy for naming parks and a new name.

Ted Alexander, 63, was one person who had mixed emotions about the decision. Mr. Alexander, one of Mr. Toth’s alleged victims, had testified in 2004 when a previous Board of Selectmen and parks commission heard private testimony from multiple sources. Mr. Alexander agreed to go public and tell his story to The Courier after resident David Antonez revived the issue in July. Mr. Antonez came across the accusations against Mr. Toth when he was searching for Toth Park on the Internet. …

Attorney Helen McGonigle represented Mr. Powel in 2004 and submitted documents and testimony with updated information. A $10-million judgment was entered against Carlo Fabbozzi, Mr. Toth’s business partner, for molesting Mr. Powel. The Diocese of Bridgeport, which hired Mr. Fabbozzi as a gardener, settled with Mr. Powel.

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AUSTRALIA
ABC Western Queensland

[with audio]

The church has been in the spotlight since early last week when Prime Minister Julia Gillard announced there would be a Royal Commission into child abuse in Australia.

The Prime Minister says the commission will investigate all religious organisations, including the Catholic Church, as well as state care providers, and not-for-profit organisations.

Longreach priest Matthew Moloney says the church is very much on “centre stage”.

“The church is going through a time of deep pain as many of the victims are… the victims are the ones that need to be brought healing and peace so that they can move forward,” the former musterer says.

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UNITED STATES
National Catholic Reporter

by Tom Roberts | Nov. 20, 2012

Ah, they finally got him, as we all knew they probably would. Eventually. And with a press release it was done: Fr. Roy Bourgeois, a Maryknoll priest for 45 years, was told that the Vatican “dispenses” him “from his sacred bonds.”

And the Maryknoll Fathers and Brothers, caught in the culture that finds advocating for women’s ordination such a grievous and unpardonable offense, “warmly thanks” Roy “for his service to mission and all members wish him well in his personal life.”

And so it goes, as Vonnegut would say. So it goes.

Bourgeois’ case is a prime illustration of what, today, the institution can and can’t tolerate. Bourgeois’ major offense, the sin that is unforgiveable in the eyes of the church, for which penalty is removal from the order which he has served for nearly half a century and dismissal from the community, was advocating for women’s ordination. …

The Cardinals Who Nearly Destroyed the Church

The point to be made, now that Bourgeois is out, is an obvious one. There are cardinals who have had as much to do as any individual might with the near destruction of once grand Catholic communities in places like Boston and Philadelphia, who have been permitted to remain priests and go quietly into retirement.

Not a word has been said by Rome or by his successors about Cardinal Anthony Bevilacqua who had a large space in Philadelphia’s chancery office that was filled with files recounting sexual abuse of children.

Bevilacqua oversaw priests who were involved in nothing short of sexual torture of youngsters. And he hid their deeds until the statutes of limitation kicked in and the priests could no longer be prosecuted. They would retire, and he would escape the law and any Vatican sanction until he could retire.

His successor, Cardinal Justin Rigali, ignored the charter that the bishops themselves had been forced to construct in the course of the scandal. He violated the church’s rules and likely violated civil law by not reporting alleged abusers. And off he quietly went, as a middle manager in the chancery office headed to jail.

Cardinal Bernard Law, everyone knows, had to leave Boston because of the enormous public pressure and the outrage of his priests, but he took a cushy job in Rome and retained his seats on at least six powerful Vatican congregations, including the Congregation for Bishops, until he was allowed to quietly retire.

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ITALIA
Style

Concussione e violenza sessuale. Sono queste le accuse contestate a don Alberto Barin, cappellano del carcere milanese di San Vittore arrestato oggi dagli agenti della polizia penitenziaria e della squadra mobile.

Secondo quanto dichiarato dal procuratore Edmondo Bruti Liberati in una nota, il sacerdote è stato denunciato da sei detenuti che lo hanno accusato di aver richiesto prestazioni sessuali in cambio di «generi di conforto» (come sigarette, dentrifici, shampoo e spiccioli) e di «interessamento alla loro posizione carceraria» (ad esempio la promessa di dare parere favorevole alla scarcerazione).

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ITALIA
You Reporter

MILANO / La procura di Milano ha disposto il fermo di don Albero Barin, sacerdote cappellano del carcere di San Vittore. Don Barin è indagato per violenza sessuale reiterata e pluriaggravata ai danni di 6 detenuti della casa circondariale milanese e per il reato di concussione.

Il procuratore della Repubblica di Milano Edmondo Bruti Liberti ha comunicato che in esecuzione dell’ordinanza di custodia cautelare emessa dal gip presso il tribunale di Milano, don Alberto Barin è stato arrestato nel pomeriggio dalla polizia giudiziaria della IV sezione della squadra mobile in collaborazione con la polizia penitenziaria.

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ITALY
Wall Street Journal

By STACY MEICHTRY

Police arrested the chaplain of a Milan prison on Tuesday as part of an investigation by prosecutors into whether the cleric solicited sexual favors from immigrant inmates in exchange for basic goods such as toothpaste, according to the top prosecutor in the investigation.

Milan’s sexual crimes prosecutor Pietro Forno said he had placed Rev. Alberto Barin, the 51 year-old Roman Catholic chaplain of San Vittore prison, under investigation on suspicion of abuse of office and sexual violence.

Mr. Forno is seeking to determine whether Father Barin, who has not been charged, coerced six of San Vittorio’s male inmates to perform sex acts on him over the past four years in exchange for money and staples, such as toiletries and cigarettes.

In a statement, the Archdiocese of Milan, which has oversight of Father Barin, said it was “bewildered and pained” by the chaplain’s arrest and pledged to cooperate with the investigation.

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UNITED STATES
National Catholic Reporte

by Jerry Filteau | Nov. 20, 2012

Baltimore —
Among the actions emerging from the U.S. bishops’ annual fall assembly here, one that was least likely to garner any big headlines was their decision to add a new assistant director to the staff of the National Religious Retirement Office.

But behind it is one of the more dramatic human issues facing the U.S. church in coming years: a growing crisis in the many billions of dollars in unfunded retirement and elderly care costs that religious orders of men and women, especially women, are facing within the next couple of decades.

Nearly two-thirds of U.S. men and women religious today are age 70 or older, and 86 percent are 60 or older, said the report behind the proposal to expand staffing of the office. The office not only allocates funds from the yearly national collection for retired religious, but also provides extensive consultation services to help religious congregations prepare better for the funding crisis for aging members that so many of them face.

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UNITED STATES
National Catholic Reporter

by Joshua J. McElwee | Nov. 20, 2012

A former head of the Maryknoll Fathers and Brothers has expressed support for Roy Bourgeois, saying the longtime peace activist and priest has a “deep love for the church” and his dismissal from the order by the Vatican represents meddling in Maryknoll’s affairs.

In his first statement since the dismissal, Bourgeois said Tuesday, “The Vatican and Maryknoll can dismiss me, but they cannot dismiss the issue of gender equality in the Catholic Church.”

The Vatican’s Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith has “interfered with the integrity of the society,” said Maryknoll Fr. John Sivalon, who served as the order’s superior general from 2002 to 2008.

“It makes it very hard to consider how we talk about mission and visioning for the future and being open to the Spirit, when in fact we’re being dictated to that this is what we need to follow,” Sivalon said Tuesday. “And so I think there is a question about the society itself and how the integrity of the society has been affected by this.”

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SAN JOSE (CA)
Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests

Posted by Barbara Dorris on November 20, 2012

We’re glad this irresponsible pastor, Fr. Lieu Vu, has resigned. He needlessly and deliberately put kids in harm’s way by letting a convicted child molester volunteer at at leastt one parish function. He also foolishly argued for “forgiveness.” While forgiveness is good, it shouldn’t be mistaken for prudence.

We can and should forgive child molesters. But we shouldn’t give them the chance to hurt more kids.

Bishop Patrick McGrath should publicly disclose and denounce the church employee who wrote the perpetrator a permission slip to be on school property. It is especially disturbing that that letter was written on November 15, 2010, almost two years ago. It is frightening to think of how many times that letter could have been used to gain access to kids. Bishop McGrath should clarify what the original purpose of the letter was, and should also tell parishioners whether the church staffer who penned the letter was fired or quit.

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UNITED KINGDOM
AO Advocates

Posted by: A.Dean on Nov 20 2012

The past month and a half has seen of the most significant periods of media coverage about child sexual abuse in the history of the UK. It has also, by extension, been one of the most harrowing months for survivors of sexual abuse who are still coming to terms with their experiences.

The Jimmy Savile scandal continues to grow in the number of alleged victims and lines of inquiry, even as the police have begun arresting living people who may have been involved in elements of the scandal. Meanwhile, investigations into abuse in north Wales, the reopening of old official inquiries, and potential connections to government officials have filled the newspapers.

This culminated recently with the wrongful implication on BBC Newsnight that a senior Tory politician, Lord McAlpine, had abused a child in a Welsh care home. The abused person, Steve Messham, later admitted to the Guardian that he mixed up the identity of his perpetrator. When actually shown a picture of Lord McAlpine, Messham affirmed that McAlpine was not the man who abused him, and apologised. But the ensuing firestorm, including the resignation of BBC General Director George Entwistle and the stepping aside of other senior staff, threatens to obscure that there really are a lot of survivors out there who have not yet told their stories. That doing so became messy in Meesham’s case should not, we hope, convince other survivors to stay quiet.

Mistaken accusations of sexual abuse do happen, just as they do with other sorts of crimes. But the recent BBC Newsnight scandal does not give credence to the argument that there is a growing threat from false accusations. These are extremely rare. Child sex abuse is not the kind of crime that people like to associate with. The opposite, in fact, is true: we see repeatedly how brutally hard most survivors of child abuse find even admitting the abuse to themselves, let alone to loved ones and then to the world. They typically feel terrible shame, as if it’s their fault, and bottle it up for decades – very often forever.

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ITALY
National Secular Society (United Kingdom)

Posted: Thu, 15 Nov 2012

Italy’s Catholic Church will be forced to pay taxes starting in 2013 after the EU pressured the country’s government to pass a controversial law stripping the Church of its historic property tax exemption.

The Catholic Church in Italy is excluded from paying taxes on its land if at least a part of a Church property is used non-commercially – for instance, a chapel in a bed-and-breakfast. “The regulatory framework will be definite by January 1, 2013 – the start of the fiscal year – and will fully respect the [European] Community law,” Italian premier Mario Monti’s government said in a statement on Tuesday.

The move could net Italy revenues of 500 million to 2 billion euros annually across the country, municipal government associations said. The extra income from previously exempt properties in Rome alone – including hotels, restaurants and sports centres – could reach 25.5 million euros a year, La Repubblica daily newspaper reported.

On Monday, the Council of State, Italy’s highest ranking court for administrative litigation, ruled against the new law. Authorities stepped in, arguing that everyone in Italy should pay property tax, including the Church.

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MISSOURI
Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests

Posted by David Clohessy on November 19, 2012

A civil child sex abuse and cover up lawsuit against who has been called “Illinois’ most notorious predator priest” is moving ahead and will be the focus of a hearing today in St. Clair County Illlinois.

It involves Fr. Raymond Kownacki of the Belleville Diocese. He’s been accused of molesting boys and girls and was once sued for impregnating a teenager and performing an abortion himself.

Leaders of a support group called SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, are applauding the victim for “helping to expose wrongdoing, by both a child molesting cleric and corrupt church colleagues, and helping to deter such awful behavior in the future.”

They urged current and former employees of the Belleville Catholic diocese to help find other victims, witnesses and whistleblowers, “so that Kownacki might be criminally prosecuted and kept away from kids.”

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SAN JOSE (CA)
KGO

Lilian Kim

SAN JOSE, Calif. (KGO) — The pastor of a San Jose church is stepping down after a convicted child molester was granted official permission to be on school property.

It’s still not clear who granted that permission, but on Monday the Diocese of San Jose announced the pastor of St. Frances Cabrini School is stepping down. Father Lieu Vu’s resignation is effective immediately and there are no plans to reassign him in a position as pastor.

The Diocese of San Jose won’t say why Father Vu is stepping down, but his resignation comes just one month after an incident that left parents outraged. It was during the St. Frances Cabrini School’s festival fundraiser when a group of parents noticed that Mark Gurries, a former parent and registered sex offender, was volunteering at the event.

T.J. Locke-Scheig was among a handful of parents who urged Father Vu to do something, but the pastor was said to have resisted and told the parents to be compassionate.

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SAN JOSE (CA)
San Francisco Chronicle

SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) — A California pastor has resigned in wake of a scandal involving a registered sex offender who was allowed to work as a Catholic school festival volunteer.

The Diocese of San Jose says the Rev. Lieu Vu resigned on Monday as pastor of the St. Frances Cabrini School and Parish.

The San Jose Mercury News (http://bit.ly/QqYVzV) says the diocese also released a letter written by a former diocese human resources employee permitting convicted 51-year-old pedophile Mark Gurries to participate at last month’s elementary school festival.

Someone at the festival recognized Gurries and reported it to a security officer. The convicted molester was escorted off campus.

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SAN JOSE (CA)
Mercury News

By Julia Prodis Sulek and Mark Gomez Mercury News
contracostatimes.com

SAN JOSE — The pastor of the Saint Frances Cabrini School and Parish resigned Monday, weeks after his defense of a convicted child molester at a parish festival infuriated parents and scandalized the Diocese of San Jose.

In announcing the resignation of the Rev. Lieu Vu, the diocese also released a letter written by a former diocese human resources employee permitting convicted pedophile Mark Gurries to participate and volunteer at parish and school events.

Gurries unveiled a copy of the letter Oct. 6 when a 19-year-old former student recognized him working the sound system at a parish festival, setting off a heated exchange between a group of parents and the Rev. Vu.

When parents expressed outrage and demanded Gurries be removed from campus, the pastor reportedly defended Gurries, saying he had a right to be there and should be forgiven.

The heated confrontation continued for five hours, ending when a Santa Clara County sheriff’s deputy, who was working the festival as security, escorted Gurries off campus.

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AUSTRALIA
Knox Weekly

By TARA McGRATH
Nov. 21, 2012

CARMEL Rafferty was silenced, shut down and bullied in 1992 when she dared to question the behaviour of a parish priest at the school where she worked as a teacher.

The Boronia resident — known as Mrs Giddings during her teaching life — taught at Holy Family in Doveton for five years from the late 1980s, before being appointed as a senior school teacher in grades 5 and 6.

It was during this year that her pupils started coming forward to tell her that they were uncomfortable with the way the priest, Peter Searson, was touching them.

It’s because of her experiences more than 20 years ago that Ms Rafferty was “overjoyed” to hear the federal government’s announcement of a royal commission on institutional responses to allegations of child abuse.

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AUSTRALIA
The Chronicle

Adam Carroll
20th Nov 2012

UPDATE: FEDERAL Attorney General Nicola Roxon has defended the tight deadline that has been set for stakeholders to have their say on the terms of reference for the royal commission into child abuse.

Victim groups, religious organisations and other interested parties have until Monday to make written submissions as the government draws up the terms of reference and decides on the make-up of the commission.

Ms Roxon said the government remained eager to have things in place of the investigation to begin early next year.

“I don’t want the drafting of the terms of reference and the consultation to turn into a royal commission in itself,” Ms Roxon said on Tuesday.

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AUSTRALIA
The Australian

Jill Rowbotham and Milanda Rout
From:The Australian
November 21, 2012

THE Catholic Church will review its national sexual abuse complaints policy, with the Archbishop of Sydney, George Pell, believing it ultimately will be revised during the course of the royal commission.

Australian Catholic Bishops Conference president Denis Hart confirmed both Towards Healing and the church’s other complaints process, the Melbourne Response, would be on the agenda at next week’s Sydney meeting of the church’s peak body.

“I am sure the bishops will discuss the two present responses in the light of their inherent value, as well as any criticism, to assess the best way forward for all,” Archbishop Hart said.

A spokesperson for Cardinal Pell’s archdiocese of Sydney said the sexual abuse complaints policy had been reviewed since it was introduced in 1997.

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AUSTRALIA
The Australian

Michael Owen
From:The Australian
November 21, 2012

SHIELD laws to protect journalists, professionals and whistleblowers from revealing their sources cannot be considered in South Australia because of Julia Gillard’s royal commission into child sexual abuse, the Weatherill government says.

South Australian Attorney-General and Acting Premier John Rau yesterday said “matters concerning disclosure” related to the commission, announced by the Prime Minister last Monday, meant he could not consider drafting state legislation to provide legal protection for journalists and other professionals who did not want to reveal details about confidential discussions they had with sources or clients.

“In light of the current ambiguities on matters related to disclosure, particularly in the context of the forthcoming commonwealth royal commission, it is not appropriate for me to advance any consideration of this matter until issues become more clearly resolved,” Mr Rau said.

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SOUTH AFRICA
IOL

November 20 2012
By Yogas Nair

KwaZulu-Natal – A priest visiting from India, who had sexually groomed a 12-year-old North Coast girl for two months on Skype by showing her images of the Kama Sutra, has been convicted of rape.

Adhyatma Adhyatma Amithananda, 57, a Hindu priest and self-proclaimed spiritual teacher, arrived in South Africa from Kerala in March 2010. He had been invited by religious leaders in oThongathi (Tongaat).

The victim’s family met him at a local temple where he was delivering a religious discourse.

The girl had epilepsy with chronic seizures and the family had asked him to pray for her to cure her of her condition.

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OHIO
Fairfield Echo

By Ed Richter

CINCINNATI —

A Fairfield-based Glenmary Missioners priest accused of federal child sex charge was released on his own recognizance and was placed on house arrest with GPS monitoring pending trial following a detention hearing Monday in U.S. District Court in Cincinnati.

During Monday’s hearing, the Rev. Robert Frank Poandl, 71, also entered a plea of not guilty on the sole charge of transporting a minor across state lines for illicit purposes, according to Fred Alverson, spokesman for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Ohio. If convicted, Poandl faces up to 10 years in prison.

Alverson said Poandl will be released from custody later Monday evening after the GPS monitoring has been set-up and the remaining paperwork is completed. Poandl has been held in the Butler County Jail since voluntarily turning himself in to the FBI last Thursday following his Nov. 14 indictment. The case has been assigned to Judge Michael Barrett.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office alleges that Poandl had transported a 10-year old boy from Cincinnati to West Virginia in August 1991 where he is alleged to have sexually assaulted the child, and that he has substantial international travel and connections across the country which makes him a flight risk. The crime was not disclosed until the victim came forward, according to the FBI’s Cincinnati field office.

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CONNECTICUT
Law360

By Juan Carlos Rodriguez

Law360, New York (November 19, 2012, 7:41 PM ET) — The Hartford Roman Catholic Diocesan Corp. on Monday claimed Interstate Fire & Casualty Co. has improperly failed to cover at least $800,000 in settlements with several victims who allegedly suffered childhood sexual abuse at the hands of priests.

The Archdiocese is seeking damages for breach of contract, breach of the covenant of good faith and fair dealing, and violation of the Connecticut Unfair Insurance Practices Act and the Connecticut Unfair Trade Practices Act that resulted from Interstate’s alleged failure to provide indemnification under excess general liability…

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AUSTRALIA
ABC News

By Gordon Taylor

An Indigenous woman from Queensland who was abused by a Catholic priest in the 1960s says the Royal Commission into child sexual abuse must examine the widespread abuse of Aboriginal children by members of the Catholic Church.

Tjanara Goreng Goreng was repeatedly sexually abused by a Catholic priest over several years while attending boarding school at the Range Convent in Rockhampton.

After 30 years of silence, she took on the Catholic Church and won a settlement for the years of abuse by the priest.

He had abused many other Indigenous children throughout Queensland and was eventually jailed for his crimes.

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UNITED STATES
Chicago Tribune

Andrea Burzynski
Reuters

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Four deaf Wisconsin men were some of the first to seek justice after suffering childhood sexual abuse at the hands of a priest, and a new documentary about the Catholic Church’s poor handling of such cases stemming from the Vatican seeks to make their voices heard.

“Mea Maxima Culpa: Silence in the House of God” explores the impact of the Roman Catholic Church’s protocol as dictated from the Vatican for dealing with pedophile priests. It opens in U.S. cinemas on November 16, and will air on cable channel HBO in February.

“A lot of individual stories had been done about clerical sex abuse, but I hadn’t seen one that really connected the individual stories with the larger cover-up by the Vatican, so that was important,” Gibney told Reuters in an interview.

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AUSTRALIA
The Australian

Ben Packham
From:The Australian
November 20, 2012

COMPENSATION for victims will be a second order priority for the royal commission into child abuse, Attorney-General Nicola Roxon says.

Contrary to other media reports today, Ms Roxon has also signalled that every victim may not get a chance to tell their story to the royal commission, saying she wants to ensure the inquiry is “manageable”.

But she said the priority was learning how to reduce child sexual abuse and improve the handling of complaints.

“Our primary concern is to look at the recommendation that will help fix the system for the future,” she said.

“So our primary concern is not to be looking at compensation as a starting point. But I think … the entire community understands that that might be something that flows from the work of the commission, so we are not ruling that out.”

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AUSTRALIA
Brisbane Times

November 20, 2012

Dan Harrison
Indigenous Affairs and Social Affairs Correspondent

Attorney General Nicola Roxon has defended the tight timeframe for feedback on proposed arrangements for the Royal Commission on Child Sexual Abuse.

The government has allowed just one week for comments on a discussion paper it released late yesterday which sets out options for the commission’s terms of reference and other details

Victims groups such as the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, have said the timeline is too tight.

But Ms Roxon defended the process, hinting the government would take a flexible approach to late submissions.

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AUSTRALIA
ABC News

The Premier Barry O’Farrell says it is disappointing there is only a one week public consultation period over the terms of reference for the Federal Government’s Royal Commission into child sex abuse.

The Greens say the public has not been given enough time to have a say about the terms of reference for the Commonwealth’s Royal Commission into child sex abuse.

Stakeholders will have seven days to make submissions about what issues they think should be investigated by the Commission and how different governments should work together to share information.

But NSW Greens MP David Shoebridge says a week is not enough time for victims groups to give considered responses.

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AUSTRALIA
ABC – 7.30

Australian Broadcasting Corporation
Broadcast: 20/11/2012
Reporter: Leigh Sales

Federal Attorney-General Nicola Roxon has called for input into the establishment of the Royal Commission into institutional child abuse. She joined 7.30 to explain the process.

Transcript
LEIGH SALES, PRESENTER: Many people who suffered sexual abuse as children in institutions will be desperate to tell their stories to the royal commission the Federal Government announced last week, but how many of those cases will be investigated? The Government has released a discussion paper on the inquiry and is calling on any interested parties to provide suggestions about how it should run. The Attorney-General, Nicola Roxon, is in Sydney today to promote changes to the federal anti-discrimination laws but she made time to join me in the studio to discussion the royal commission plans.

Nicola Roxon, will every person who wants to tell their tale of sexual abuse to this royal commission be able to do so, and will every one of those cases be investigated?

NICOLA ROXON, ATTORNEY-GENERAL: Well, our position and our starting point is yes, they should be able to, but of course there’s going to be a lot of work done – particularly with victims’ groups who are talking with us now about how you potentially might group people together, how you might find a selection of individual stories. We do think it’s important for people to have the opportunity to tell their story and we do think that that informs the sorts of recommendations commissioners will make – but it has to be manageable, so there’s a difficult balance there. Whether they will all be investigated is going to depend on the circumstances of every case. We’re really trying to make clear that a royal commission is not a police force, it’s not a prosecuting body, it’s not a court and the normal criminal processes should still continue. We don’t want people to see this as an alternative to pursuing, in the proper forums, criminal action if that should be taken.

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AUSTRALIA
Pro Bono Australia

Posted: Tuesday, November 20, 2012

The Federal Government has released a consultation paper on the Terms of Reference for the Royal Commission into Child Sexual Abuse, announced last week by the Prime Minister.

The consultation paper asks for stakeholder views on:
• The scope of the Terms of Reference, including the issues the Commission should investigate and make recommendations on;
• The form of the Royal Commission, including how the Commonwealth and states and territories could work together to ensure full access to information;
• The number of Royal Commissioners and appropriate expertise; and
• The timetable and reporting arrangements.

Attorney General Nicola Roxon and Acting Minister for Families Brendan O’Connor said: ”We want all stakeholders, especially survivors of child sexual abuse, their families and their advocates, to help shape the development of the Royal Commission.”

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AUSTRALIA
ABC Adelaide

The Federal Government has recently announced a Royal Commission into institutionalised child abuse in Australia, and many are wondering just how it will work, and what the legal implications could be. Dr Rita Shackel is a senior lecturer at Sydney University’s Faculty of Law and she’s discussing the terms of reference for the Royal Commission, and the legal implications given that many new cases of abuse are expected to be brought to light as a result. She has been conducting research on the dynamics of child sexual abuse and the barriers to disclosure, and has a particular interest in historical cases of child sexual abuse, both in terms of the evidentiary, procedural and legal issues such cases throw up, but also regarding the rights and needs of victims. Dr Shackel is speaking here with Stan Thomson…..

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OKLAHOMA
KXII

COAL COUNTY, OK — A Former Coalgate youth pastor has been arrested for sex crimes against children. 28-year-old Dustin Werneberg was taken into custody Wednesday on several second degree rape charges.

An affidavit states the sexual abuse has been going on for more than a year. Kristen Shanahan spoke with the lead investigator of this case and the pastor who says he never believed his employee could be involved in something like this.

Police tell us Werneburg was arrested at Blanchard Middle School in McClain County Wednesday where he was serving as a teacher’s aid. He is now behind bars in Coal County on three counts of Second Degree Rape, three counts of Forcible Sodomy, a charge of Lewd or Indecent Proposals to a Child and Lewd Molestation. Investigators say all these crimes were committed against a girl under the age of 16.

Coalgate police investigator Richard Costantino says former youth minister Dustin Ray Werneburg was arrested on eight sex crime charges after a parent came forward saying Werneburg had inappropriate contact with their daughter.

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OHIO
WHIO

The Associated Press

CINCINNATI —

A Roman Catholic priest has pleaded not guilty to taking a 10-year-old boy to West Virginia in 1991 so he could sexually abuse him.

The Rev. Robert Poandl, of the Cincinnati-based Glenmary Home Missioners, was released on his own recognizance following his not guilty plea Monday in federal court in Cincinnati.

An indictment last week accused Poandl of taking the boy on Aug. 3, 1991.

The religious order says the indictment is related to a June 2009 accusation of sexual misconduct with a minor in Spencer, W.Va.

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OHIO
Fox 19

CINCINNATI, OH (FOX19)- With a call for a bible verse written on his chest, a former Cincinnati-area priest appeared in court on Monday to plead not guilty for a child sex charge.

A federal grand jury has charged Robert Frank Poandl, 71, of Fairfield with one count of transportation of a minor across state lines for illicit purposes.

Poandl, who is also known as “Father Bob,” was arrested by FBI agents at the Glenmary Missioners in Fairfield.

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OHIO
San Francisco Chronicle

CINCINNATI (AP) — A Roman Catholic priest has pleaded not guilty to taking a 10-year-old boy to West Virginia in 1991 so he could sexually abuse him.

The Rev. Robert Poandl, of the Cincinnati-based Glenmary Home Missioners, was released on his own recognizance following his not guilty plea Monday in federal court in Cincinnati.

An indictment last week accused Poandl of taking the boy on Aug. 3, 1991.

The religious order says the indictment is related to a June 2009 accusation of sexual misconduct with a minor in Spencer, W.Va.

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UNITED STATES
National Catholic Reporter

by Joshua J. McElwee | Nov. 19, 2012

Roy Bourgeois, a longtime peace activist and priest who had come under scrutiny for his support of women’s ordination, has been dismissed from the Maryknoll Fathers and Brothers, which he served for 45 years, according to the congregation.

The Vatican’s Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith made the dismissal in October, according to a news release issued Monday afternoon by the Maryknoll Fathers and Brothers.

Dominican Fr. Tom Doyle, a canon lawyer acting on Bourgeois’ behalf, told NCR he was not aware of the move.

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UNITED KINGDOM
Calgary Herald

By The Associated Press
November 19, 2012

LONDON – A retired Church of England priest has been jailed for four years after admitting that he sexually abused three boys between 1983 and 1991.

The case against 75-year-old Rev. Ronald Johns revealed that the bishop of Carlisle had responded to another boy’s complaint in 1993 by moving the priest but taking no further action.

Judge Rabinder Singh, presiding Monday in Carlisle Crown Court, noted that a pre-sentence report described Johns’ behaviour as manipulative and predatory.

When a complaint was made in 1993, the late Bishop Ian Harland removed Johns from his post and reassigned him to a village church.

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VATICAN CITY
National Catholic Reporter

by Joshua J. McElwee | Nov. 19, 2012

Bishops, priests and religious should wear the formal long robes of a cassock during most occasions when visiting Rome, a high-ranking Vatican official has said.

Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, the Vatican’s Secretariat of State, made the request for the formal dress in a letter released during last month’s Synod of Bishops.

It came at the bequest of Pope Benedict XVI, reports a posting at veteran Italian journalist Sandro Magister’s site at the Italian newsmagazine l’Espresso.

Bertone’s letter, first made public Monday but dated Oct. 15, asks bishops and cardinals “kindly to guarantee” the observance of a 1982 letter by Pope John Paul II on the matter.

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OHIO
FBI

U.S. Attorney’s Office
November 15, 2012 Southern District of Ohio
(937) 225-2910

CINCINNATI—A federal grand jury has charged Robert Frank Poandl, 71, of Fairfield with one count of transportation of a minor across state lines for illicit purposes.

Carter M. Stewart, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio; Edward J. Hanko, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI); William Hayes, Acting Special Agent in Charge of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) in Ohio and Michigan; and agencies in the Greater Cincinnati Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force announced the indictment today following Poandl’s arrest by FBI agents at the Glenmary Missioners in Fairfield where Poandl, known as “Father Bob,” lives.

The indictment alleges that in August 1991, Poandl took a 10-year-old boy across state lines with intent to engage in sexual activity with him. The crime is punishable by up to 10 years in prison.

During Poandl’s initial appearance, Assistant U.S. Attorney Christy Muncy told U.S. Magistrate Judge Stephanie Bowman that Poandl had transported a 10-year-old boy from Cincinnati to West Virginia in 1991, where he is alleged to have sexually assaulted the child, and that he has substantial international travel and connections across the country, which makes him a flight risk. Muncy also told the court that the crime was not disclosed until the victim came forward. Magistrate Judge Bowman ordered Poandl detained and scheduled a detention hearing for Monday, November 19, 2012, at 1:30 p.m.

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UNITED KINGDOM
The Australian

AAP
November 20, 2012

A FORMER canon of a British cathedral has been jailed for four years for sexually abusing three teenage boys.

Ronald Johns, the 75-year-old former canon of Carlisle Cathedral in northern England, had pleaded guilty to sexual offences against three boys from 1983 to 1991.

The victims were aged between 14 and 17 at the time.

“As you accept, you have ruined your life and brought disgrace upon yourself,” judge Rabinder Singh said as he sentenced the former clergyman on Monday.

The court heard that when the allegations were first made in 1993, Johns’ bishop demoted him to a village parish instead of telling police.

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TEXAS
Courthouse News Service

By DAVID LEE

DALLAS (CN) – A regional body of the United Methodist Church has called for protective orders in sexual misconduct lawsuits against an allegedly abusive pastor.

Jeffrey Carson, a former church member at St. Luke Community United Methodist Church in Dallas, filed suit eight months ago against St. Luke’s, the North Texas Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church and former pastor Tyrone Gordon in county court.

Last month, former St. Luke’s employees Anthony Bollin and Christopher Mosley filed similar, separate suits in county court.

All three men allege that Gordon engaged in sexual misconduct and harassment against male employees and parishioners at the church.

The conference filed three motions for protective orders last week, arguing that the claims exceeded the statute of limitations and that the plaintiffs failed to exhaust administrative remedies afforded by the federal Equal Employment & Opportunity Commission and Texas Workforce Commission.

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AUSTRALIA
Sydney Morning Herald

November 20, 2012

Lindsay Murdoch

PHNOM PENH: The Prime Minister, Julia Gillard, says her government will need to be careful to handle high expectations of the royal commission into child sexual abuse.

Asked about a Herald/Nielsen poll showing the inquiry has the backing of almost every Australian, Ms Gillard said: ”The best we can do is to be consultative and be clear about what we are trying to do and what we are trying to achieve.

”The royal commission decision has been well received by the nation, it’s a decision the nation needed,” Ms Gillard said in the Cambodian capital Phnom Penh, where she is attending the East Asian Summit, a forum of 18 world leaders.

”People do want to see the tragic instances of child abuse addressed … people want to see our institutions of the future not repeat the mistakes of the past.

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AUSTRALIA
9 News

West Australian Premier Colin Barnett says the state opposition’s response to his comments about the royal commission into child sex abuse was wrong and inappropriate.

Opposition child protection spokeswoman Sue Ellery called on the premier to apologise to victims of child abuse after he told ABC radio that the far-reaching national inquiry announced by Prime Minister Julia Gillard last week could destroy institutions around the country.

Mr Barnett said he held grave concerns about the legacy the massive inquiry may leave on the organisations investigated and the victims involved.

The premier said he hoped the royal commission would achieve positive outcomes, “but I also fear for the negativity that could come out of it”.

“I think you will see many people’s lives destroyed. I think you will see many of Australia’s institutions – which may have been at fault – also destroyed, and great divisions in the community,” he told ABC radio.

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AUSTRALIA
9 News

The federal government has allowed barely a week for Australians to help shape the terms of reference for a royal commission into child sexual abuse.

The tight deadline reflects Prime Minister Julia Gillard’s wish for the inquiry, which is likely to take years and involve thousands of individuals, to be established by the end of this year so it can begin its work in early 2013.

Ms Gillard last week announced the planned a royal commission to investigate how child sex abuse allegations have been handled by religious, community and state institutions.

Labor on Monday released a consultation paper asking for public submissions on the scope of the terms of reference, the form of the commission, the number of commissioners and reporting arrangements, by close of business on November 26.

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AUSTRALIA
Sydney Morning Herald

November 20, 2012 15

Phillip Coorey, Jacqueline Maley

VICTIMS of sexual abuse would be able to sue the Catholic Church for compensation as a result of the recommendations of the Royal Commission on Child Sexual Abuse, legal experts say.

And any victim of sexual abuse would be able to give evidence, if they wished.

A discussion paper released late on Monday by the commission secretariat says the commission’s findings ”may extend to ensuring that there are no obstacles to the making of claims and that there is sufficient support for victims of abuse in pursuing those claims”.

Presently, the church is classified as an non-legal entity for the purpose of compensation claims, which means victims cannot sue.

The discussion paper, part of the consultation process to establish the terms of reference, has been sent to all state and territory leaders as well as the Opposition Leader, Tony Abbott, the Greens and the federal independents.

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AUSTRALIA
The Australian

A WEEK after Julia Gillard announced a royal commission into child sexual abuse, the challenge of satisfying community expectations is growing harder by the day. The government was right to respond to community concerns, but a nagging question still remains: what is the commission designed to do?

In the absence of a carefully defined brief, the commission – which is yet to be established – is being wildly misconstrued by politicians, lawyers and children’s advocates. Australians have overwhelmingly welcomed the commission, and so does The Australian. From the outset, however, we argued that the terms of reference and timetable for the commission will be critical. First and foremost, the government must be clear about what it wants from the inquiry. Should it be an investigative commission to uncover new cases of abuse and lead to police action or is that a job for another body? Should it have a therapeutic purpose, offering a forum for victims of child abuse to tell their stories? Or should it concentrate firmly on institutional failings and look at regulations, practices and procedures that could be put in place to help ensure that such abuse of children is not repeated?

Several lawyers have seized on the commission as an opportunity sign up new clients and to make money from it. This presents a risk that the commission could be turned into a legal circus. As reported in The Australian yesterday, at least one law firm is spruiking its services, asking victims of child sexual abuse to come forward so that they may have a “claim” to make to the commission once it is up and running. But as yet there is no procedure for hearing or investigating such claims, let alone any discussion of paying compensation. In addition, a number of victims’ advocacy groups have been contacted about new claims of abuse. Other well-meaning advocacy and victim support groups are recording a sharp increase in inquiries made to their organisations. The inflated expectations may be impossible to meet.

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AUSTRALIA
NEWS.com.au

Royal commission into child sexual abuse will be asked to suggest new rules and preventive action

Phillip Hudson
Herald Sun
November 20, 2012

THE royal commission into child sexual abuse will be asked to suggest new rules to prevent future attacks, procedures to follow when allegations are raised and how to deal with abuse that has occurred.

A discussion paper released by the Federal Government also says the commission can suggest new laws as well as policies to make government agencies better able to respond.

It will also be asked to identify roadblocks inside institutions and organisations that prevent proper notification and investigation of claims.

State governments will be asked to hand over information to ensure no individual, institution or organisation “can avoid scrutiny”.

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AUSTRALIA
The Age

November 20, 2012

Michelle Grattan

THE federal government’s royal commission into child sexual abuse is expected to be the biggest inquiry held in Australia, involving thousands of victims and hundreds of organisations.

A government consultation paper sent to premiers on Monday flags that the massive investigation – lasting years and probing religious and secular organisations as well as government bodies – is set to facilitate victims making compensation claims and will be able to refer matters to the police as it goes along.

With this week’s Age/Nielsen poll showing 95 per cent support for the commission, the government is asking the states and stakeholders to provide written feedback by next Monday on the terms of reference and the inquiry’s form and timetable. The paper has also been sent to Opposition Leader Tony Abbott, Greens leader Christine Milne, crossbenchers and stakeholders.

Asked about the poll result, Prime Minister Julia Gillard said her government would need to carefully handle the public’s high expectations.

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UNITED KINGDOM
BBC News

Church bosses missed three chances to report a child sex abusing vicar to the police, the BBC has learned.

Between 1983 and 1991, the Reverend Ronald Johns sexually abused three boys while working in Cumbria.

In 1993 he admitted his crimes to his Bishop, but instead of reporting him to police the Church of England moved him to a different parish.

Archdeacon of West Cumberland, the Venerable Richard Pratt, said the church missed three chances to report Johns to police delaying an investigation.

In September, Johns, a former canon of Carlisle Cathedral, pleaded guilty at the city’s crown court to assaulting three teenage boys.

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UNITED KINGDOM
Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests

Posted by Barbara Dorris on November 19, 2012

This investigation is a huge step in the right direction. Too often, those with positions of authority within the church are able to avoid punishment for their crimes. We are grateful to police and prosecutors for their years-long effort to investigate these crimes and to apprehend those responsible.

It is rare for church officials in authority positions (like Bishop Peter Ball) to be arrested, so the fact that he has been shows us that secular officials are taking these crimes very seriously.

According to The Guardian, three more sex abuse cases against the Diocese of Chicester are set to be heard in the coming months. Now, more than ever, those who may have seen or suspected crimes within this diocese must come forward and make a report to police. A seemingly small bit of information may turn out to be the difference in any one of these cases.

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MICHIGAN
Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests

Posted by David Clohessy on November 19, 2012

A former Catholic school teacher accused of inappropriate sexual activity with children has pled guilty to domestic violence charges and had the child abuse charges against him dropped.

According to Lansing prosecutor Stuart Dunnings III, the state believed their case against Christopher deMorrow was strong enough to convict without requiring the young children to testify and potentially re-traumatize themselves. DeMorrow, who had previously taught at St. Michael’s in Grand Ledge, had been accused of inappropriately touching and licking children, and allegedly masturbated in front of them.

It’s always easy to second guess police and prosecutors, and wanting abused kids to be spared the trauma of a trial is admirable. Still, we are troubled by the dropping of child sex charges against this Catholic teacher. Especially given the depraved nature of the accusations in combination with the fact that deMorrow was a teacher we would have liked to see the prosecutor’s office follow through on these charges as well.

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UNITED KINGDOM
In-Cumbria

A former Carlisle Cathedral canon who sexually abused three boys has been jailed.

Ronald Johns, 75, used pornographic films and whisky to groom his victims.

At Carlisle Crown Court today, he was sentenced to four years in prison.

He was also ordered to sign the sex offenders’ register and was banned from working with children for life.

Earlier, Johns apologised for his crimes.

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MICHIGAN
Lansing State Journal

Written by
Kevin Grasha

A former Catholic school teacher accused of sexual crimes against two children has pleaded guilty to domestic violence charges, and prosecutors have dropped all criminal sexual conduct charges he faced.

At a hearing last month in Ingham County Circuit Court, 40-year-old Christopher deMorrow admitted kicking his former wife in the back in a dispute over what to watch on television. She suffered a severe bruise to her tailbone, court documents say.

He also admitted in court that he “ripped a rake out of” his former wife’s hand during a dispute, placing her in fear.

But testimony his former wife gave last year during a preliminary hearing — including descriptions of deMorrow allegedly masturbating in front of children, touching a child inappropriately and licking a child’s face — was not mentioned.

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AUSTRALIA
ABC News

One of the world’s leading advocates against clergy sex abuse has offered to help victims and their families at Australia’s Royal Commission.

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NORTHERN IRELAND
Belfast Telegraph

By David Young
Monday, 19 November 2012

No criminal charges will be brought against a west Belfast priest who stepped down after the Catholic Church received claims about his conduct.

Father Hugh Kennedy (55) was asked to temporarily stop working in St Peter’s Cathedral last year while Church authorities passed the information to the police and social services.

His decision to stop his work followed a meeting with he Bishop of Down and Connor Noel Treanor in July 2011. Fr Kennedy (right) was already on sick leave at that point, and described his situation as a “personal crisis”.

Specific allegations were not outlined but at the time Fr Kennedy issued a statement insisting he was not a child molester.

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NEDERLAND
RKKerk

15-11-2012

Middels een brief reageren de Nederlandse bisschoppen op de eind september verschenen rapportage over de uitvoering van de aanbevelingen van de (voormalige) Commissie van Onderzoek naar Seksueel Misbruik van Minderjarigen in de RK Kerk in Nederland (Commissie Deetman). De brief is gericht aan de vaste commissie voor Veiligheid en Justitie van de Tweede Kamer die hierom had gevraagd.

De bisschoppen staan in hun brief stil bij een aantal in de rapportage (monitoring) genoemde verbeterpunten. Deze monitoring is voor de bisschoppen, zo stellen zij, aanleiding om hun betrokkenheid op het Meldpunt Seksueel Misbruik RKK actiever vorm te geven. Hierover zijn inmiddels afspraken gemaakt.

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AUSTRALIA
ABC – Religion and Ethics

By Simon Longstaff ABC Religion and Ethics 19 Nov 2012

In 1077, a penitent Holy Roman Emperor, Henry IV, crossed the Alps by foot and knelt for three days in snow before the castle of Pope Gregory VII. Only then did the Pope emerge to forgive the excommunicated Emperor and readmit him into the body of the Church.

In this increasingly secular age, it is almost inconceivable that a head of state would bend the knee to a religious leader. So, what brought Henry IV to this point of obeisance – and what does this episode have to do with contemporary Australian life?

This was a time before Luther and the Protestant Reformation, a time before the Enlightenment and the ascent of secular thinking, a time when the Roman Catholic Church enjoyed effective hegemony over the spiritual life of Western Europe – and with this, considerable influence, if not outright power, over large swathes of secular life. The Church controlled its own territory, put armies in the field, dispensed justice and in most respects acted as a “monarchical state” indistinguishable from others. But it was not these aspects of the Pope’s rule that brought Henry to his knees.

Rather, it was Henry’s belief that Gregory had the spiritual power as Christ’s Vicar to “bind and to loose” on earth. Whatever the realpolitik of Henry’s situation as an excommunicated person (to whom obedience was no longer owed by the faithful), there was also a personal reason for seeking the Pope’s forgiveness – to save the Emperor’s immortal soul. This was part of the calculation of 1077, that the cost of “this worldly” humiliation counted for little in comparison with eternal damnation.

It is something of this medieval world view that is at play today in the debate about whether or not Catholic Priests should break the “seal of the confessional” and disclose the identity of those who confess to the crime of sexually abusing children (and other vulnerable people). For many people, probably the majority, this seems like an easy question to answer – in the affirmative.

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AUSTRALIA
Sydney Morning Herald

Godless Gross

Dick Gross has written and broadcast about living and dying without a god for over a decade

The Catholic train wreck is unfolding before us. An organisation that claims moral leadership ought to be a paragon.

The evidence of abuse has been compounded by a sordid protection of the guilty and the resistance to scrutiny and change. Weird and neolithic attitudes about obedience, sex and forgiveness appear to have produced strange and cruel consequences. The damage to lives is incalculable. This we all know and have known for years. It has consumed this blog on and off for some time.

But what is the damage to the church and its moral authority?

In all of the noise and fury, we may be witnessing a historical moment for faith in Australia. Apart from the damage to individuals, what does this crisis mean for Catholicism and other faiths? Will it destroy the credibility of Catholicism as we know it or will it galvanise the change agents in the Catholic kingdom and lead to adjustment and renewal? Can the reputational damage be limited to Catholicism?

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AUSTRALIA
Sky News

West Australian Premier Colin Barnett fears the national royal commission into child sex abuse could destroy lives and various institutions around the country.

In a surprisingly frank personal assessment of the commission announced by Prime Minister Julia Gillard last week, Mr Barnett said he held grave concerns about the legacy the massive inquiry might leave.

The federal government expects the terms of reference for the royal commission to be established by the end of the year.

Speaking on ABC Radio National on Monday, Mr Barnett said those terms of reference were crucial.

‘My concern would be that this seems to be a very wide brief and not restricted in any sense in time,’ Mr Barnett said.

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AUSTRALIA
ABC News

The Premier Colin Barnett has urged the Federal Government to impose a time limit on its royal commission into institutional child sex abuse.

He says while the State Government will co-operate with the inquiry, it will not be jointly running the investigation.

The commission was ordered by the Prime Minister following fresh allegations of cover-ups by the Catholic Church and police.

The Federal Government is yet to announce the terms of reference for its inquiry, announced last week.

Mr Barnett has voiced concerns about a number of issues.

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AUSTRALIA
Herald Sun

WEST Australian Premier Colin Barnett has been called on to apologise to victims of child abuse after claiming the royal commission into child sex abuse could destroy institutions around the country.

Prime Minister Julia Gillard last week announced a far-reaching national inquiry would be held into abuse and allegations of abuse across many years and institutions.

On ABC radio on Monday, Mr Barnett said he held grave concerns about the legacy the massive inquiry may leave on the organisations investigated and the victims involved.

But the state opposition said the premier’s reservations made light of the abuse suffered by many people over many years.

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AUSTRALIA
The Age

November 19, 2012

Benjamin Millar

The Catholic Church in Melbourne has responded to one of the most tumultuous weeks in its history by urging parishioners to maintain the faith.

Sunday’s services, the first since Prime Minister Julia Gillard announced a royal commission on child sexual abuse in the church and other institutions, avoided direct references to the upheaval facing the church.

But gospel readings and sermons drew attention to the impending day of judgment, reminding churchgoers of the strength that can be found in faith during testing times.

Archbishop of Melbourne Denis Hart addressed a congregation of about 200 people at St Patrick’s Cathedral in East Melbourne.

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AUSTRALIA
ABC – AM

[with audio]

TONY EASTLEY: There’s renewed scrutiny of the legal status of the Catholic Church and how it avoids being sued by victims of abuse.

A court case in New South Wales five years ago found that the Church could not be held legally liable for abuse cases because the Church doesn’t exist as a legal entity and it’s also not liable for its priests nor their actions.

As Emily Bourke reports there are now moves now to change the laws, making the Church legally responsible and its assets subject to damages claims.

EMILY BOURKE: It’s a legal technicality that dates back to the 1930s and it’s given the Catholic Church unique legal status.

Unlike other Christian denominations that have been corporatised, the Catholic Church is not recognised as a legal entity and as such can shield its assets that are held in property trusts from any civil legal liability.

ANDREW MORRISON: This is a defence that is peculiar to the Roman Catholic Church in Australia and it’s used as a very efficient weapon for beating down plaintiffs.

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AUSTRALIA
Herald Sun

OPPOSITION Leader Tony Abbott believes the federal government should fund the lion’s share of the royal commission into child sexual abuse.

Prime Minister Julia Gillard announced the creation of a royal commission last week, and has promised to unveil its terms of reference before the end of the year.

“This is going to be a national royal commission and I think that does make it first and foremost the responsibility of the national government,” Mr Abbott told reporters in Canberra on Monday.

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AUSTRALIA
The Australian

Royal commission into child sexual abuse will be asked to suggest new rules and preventive action

Phillip Hudson
From:Herald Sun
November 20, 2012

THE royal commission into child sexual abuse will be asked to suggest new rules to prevent future attacks, procedures to follow when allegations are raised and how to deal with abuse that has occurred.

A discussion paper released by the Federal Government also says the commission can suggest new laws as well as policies to make government agencies better able to respond.

It will also be asked to identify roadblocks inside institutions and organisations that prevent proper notification and investigation of claims.

State governments will be asked to hand over information to ensure no individual, institution or organisation “can avoid scrutiny”.

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AUSTRALIA
Adelaide Now

A GREENS MP has renewed his bid to introduce NSW legislation that would allow victims of sexual abuse to sue the Catholic Church.

Under state laws that have been in place since 1936, the Catholic Church does not exist as an individual legal entity.

Now that a royal commission into the abuse scandal has been announced, David Shoebridge wants victims to be offered a legal remedy and have larger compensation payments made available to them.

“We have achieved the royal commission, so now it is essential that we press forward with this legislation. It needs to be part of the commission’s terms of reference,” Mr Shoebridge said on Monday.

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AUSTRALIA
SBS

19 Nov 2012 – Source: AAP

The government wants victims of child sexual abuse to make suggestions for the terms of reference for a royal commission into the matter.

The federal government has allowed barely a week for Australians to help shape the terms of reference for a royal commission into child sexual abuse.

The tight deadline reflects Prime Minister Julia Gillard’s wish for the inquiry, which is likely to take years and involve thousands of individuals, to be established by the end of this year so it can begin its work in early 2013.

Ms Gillard last week announced the planned a royal commission to investigate how child sex abuse allegations have been handled by religious, community and state institutions.

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AUSTRALIA
ABC News

The Federal Government is calling for public feedback on the terms of reference for its royal commission into child abuse.

The inquiry was announced last week after the latest in a series of paedophilia allegations, most of which were directed at the Catholic Church.

The Government today released a consultation paper that will be used to help frame the inquiry.

Stakeholders are being encouraged to give their views on how the commission should be conducted, who should be in charge and how long it should take.

“We want all stakeholders, especially survivors of child sexual abuse, their families and their advocates, to help shape the development of the royal commission,” Attorney-General Nicola Roxon said in a statement.

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UNITED STATES
Deadline

By NANCY TARTAGLIONE, International Editor | Monday, 19 November 2012

Alex Gibney won an Oscar for his 2007 documentary Taxi To The Dark Side about U.S. policy on torture and interrogation. He was also nominated for 2005’s Enron: The Smartest Guys In The Room. His latest film, Mea Maxima Culpa: Silence In The House Of God, taps into a subject that has, in various forms, increasingly made headlines this year. As allegations of the sexual abuse of minors by trusted figures have continued to surface – think: the Penn State scandal and the ongoing crisis over BBC kids’ show host Jimmy Savile – Gibney’s film is a damning investigation into pedophilia in the Catholic Church. Shining a light on what it calls “an international conspiracy of silence” that reaches all the way to the Vatican, the documentary “teaches us that we must recognize that the worst predators often consciously use their own personal charisma and the prestige of their institutions to commit and cover up their crimes,” Gibney says.

At the outset, the story is told from the point of view of four deaf men who attended a Milwaukee Catholic boys school in the 50s and 60s where Father Lawrence Murphy abused them as well as what is believed to be over 200 others over time. Interweaving the boys’ saga, which the now-adult men recount in sign language voiced over by actors Chris Cooper, Ethan Hawke, Jamey Sheridan and John Slattery, the story travels to two of the world’s most Catholic countries: Ireland and Italy. There, stories of similar sex abuse cases are revealed as well as the actions of members and friends of the Holy See. Mea Maxima Culpa debuted in Toronto and won the documentary feature prize at the recent London Film Festival. It was released in NY and LA on Friday for its Oscar-qualifying run and will air on HBO on February 4. It was also, surprisingly given the subject matter, picked up for distribution in both Ireland (Element Pictures) and Italy (Feltrinelli), although it was refused by recent Italian festivals. I recently had the chance to catch up with Gibney and our coversation follows:

DEADLINE: How will the film be released in Italy?
ALEX GIBNEY: Feltrinelli is a classic publisher. They will release it theatrically first and then as a DVD in bookstores. They really wanted to take this on after they saw it and liked it. They’re courageous and tough and imaginative. They may also do a simultaneous stunt release by beaming it out across Italy with Q & A sessions.

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SAN JOSE (CA)
KGO

SAN JOSE, Calif. — A Catholic bishop issued an apology today to parents and community members after a registered sex offender was issued a letter allowing him to attend an elementary school festival last month.

Bishop Patrick McGrath, head of the Diocese of San Jose, said that it was a “mistake” that allowed Mark Christopher Gurries to attend and volunteer at a Saint Frances Cabrini Parish festival on Oct. 6.

“Our policy is clear: no one who has been found guilty of sexual abuse of a minor or vulnerable adult can be hired as an employee or allowed to volunteer in any activity that involves children, young people, or vulnerable adults,” McGrath wrote.

“I am deeply troubled and I apologize to you that this policy was not followed,” he said.

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AUSTRALIA
Armidale Express

By Phillip Coorey
Nov. 19, 2012

The Royal Commission into child sexual abuse is prepared to hear testimony from anybody who has ever been abused and will pass information onto police along the way, rather than than wait ”years” until the Commission has concluded.

A discussion paper released late Monday by the secretariat of the Royal Commission into Child Sexual Abuse says the Commission ”should provide an opportunity for those affected by child sexual abuse to share their experiences if that is their wish”.

”The Commission will be able to refer matters to the relevant police authorities. This could be done during the course of the Royal Commission, but investigation and prosecution would ultimately be a matter for the relevant authorities to pursue.”

The paper has been sent to state and territory leaders as part of the consultation process to develop the terms of reference and is open to comment for a week.

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UNITED STATES
PR Web

Child Sexual Abuse by Catholic Priests, Athletic Coaches, Teachers, Family Members & Neighbors on Dr. Carol Francis Radio Talk Show for Sexual Abuse Awareness Event

Author James Dunlap’s newest novel MILLSTONE depicts the grooming of children by authorities such as Catholic Priests and Athletic Coaches for chronic sexual abuse. Dunlap’s novel, based on true events, bravely cracks the barrier of cover-ups which enable sex-offenders to be sheltered. On the Dr. Carol Francis Radio Talk Show, Author Dunlap is joined by Joelle Casteix and Officer Tom Townsend. Casteix is the leading national spokesperson for victims of child sexual abuse and the Western Regional Director for SNAP, Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests.

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AUSTRALIA
Eureka Street

Geoffrey Robinson
November 15, 2012

In two weeks’ time the Australian bishops will meet in their biannual meeting. It is obvious the Royal Commission into sexual abuse will be a major topic. I respectfully suggest some matters for their attention.

I suggest they invite as many leaders of religious institutes as possible to be present and join in the discussion.

Individual bishops have already promised ‘full cooperation’ with the Commission, but the gathered bishops and religious need to have a serious discussion concerning exactly what ‘full’ cooperation will mean. It is vital that all agree in detail on this point.

I suggest that they invite a couple of experts to speak to them on what the Commission will probably require. For example, they might seek out some persons who were involved in the Wood Royal Commission in 1996. They then need to ensure that they are all on exactly the same page.

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SAN JOSE (CA)
Mercury News

By Julia Prodis Sulek and Mark Gomez
Staff Writersmercurynews.com

Posted: 11/18/2012

SAN JOSE — Bishop Patrick McGrath apologized during a family Mass on Sunday for “a failure at the diocese level” that gave permission to a convicted child molester to volunteer at the St. Frances Cabrini parish festival last month.

“I take full responsibility,” McGrath told the congregation from the podium moments before the service began at Cabrini, located on Camden Avenue in San Jose. “I pledge to you I will do everything in my power to make sure this doesn’t happen again.”

Although the bishop said he hoped his remarks and a letter he included in the parish bulletin would “answer some of your questions,” neither explained how or why a letter was written and signed by someone at the diocese vouching for pedophile Mark Gurries. The 51-year-old engineer, married to a former teacher at St. Francis Cabrini, was convicted just two years ago of “lewd and lascivious conduct” on a minor under 14 years old. He served nearly a year in county jail and remains on probation. The victim was a relative.

“As a matter of record, it was a mistake that allowed Mr. Gurries to be a parish volunteer and to be present at the festival,” the bishop wrote in the letter included in the bulletin. “Our policy is clear: no one who has been found guilty of sexual abuse of a minor or vulnerable adult can be hired or allowed to be a volunteer that involves children, young people or vulnerable adults. ”

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AUSTRALIA
Fraser Coast Chronicle

[M’boro priest would break silence to out child sex abusers]

Father Paul Kelly |
19th Nov 2012

I WRITE to clarify my position in relation to the Catholic sacrament of penance, (reconciliation), or “confession” as it is often called.

1. I am not at odds with my church, nor am I intending to go against my church or go outside of my church.

The issue of sexual abuse of minors and vulnerable adults is one that is abhorrent to us all. It is an horrendous crime and the article rightly indicated that I and the church I belong to want no part in anything that even unwittingly hides or fosters the continuation of these devastating crimes that have far reaching and unspeakable effects on the lives of its victims.

In the interview, in which I felt I was not getting my thoughts on this at all clear because it is so complex and with many issues, I tried to indicate that confession is for the purpose of allowing those who have done wrong to admit and face the full reality of their wrongdoing in front of God.

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AUSTRALIA
Sydney Morning Herald

November 16, 2012

Bernard Toutounji

So once again we see the inner workings of the Catholic Church being dissected by an audience that has little understanding of, or care for, matters of faith. Interestingly while commentators are usually quick to point out perceived trespassing by the church into the domain of the state, there doesn’t seem to be quite the same concern about calls for the state to come wandering into the inner sanctum of the church. With a royal commission having being called into the sin of child sexual abuse, the latest target is, somewhat ironically, the very sacrament that exists to forgive sin – confession.

The criticism stems around the thousand-year-old church law which binds priests to never disclose anything they learn from penitents during the course of the sacrament. This confidentiality between priest and penitent is the oldest kind of confidential communication that exists. It has been upheld by priests down the ages and around the world regardless of where they may sit on the theological spectrum. It doesn’t take much logic to consider why the seal of confession is essential to the integrity of the sacrament. Without anonymity people would simply not pursue sacramental forgiveness. While some might respond “who cares”, the truth is that confession has a greater potential for effect on the citizens of a nation than a hundred royal commissions.

The sacrament of confession is easily mocked, especially by those who went once as a child but never came to understand its value in the faith of an adult pursuing a life of virtue. The sacrament involves the full disclosure of serious sin to a priest who, ordained to act in the person of Jesus Christ, becomes, in one sense, the channel of God’s forgiveness. Now of course Father X has no more power to personally forgive sin than I have the power to fly, which is why when he says “I absolve you of your sins in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit” the “I” is referring to the direct forgiveness of Christ through the instrumentality of that particular priest.

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AUSTRALIA
Otago Daily Times

Mon, 19 Nov 2012
Editorial

The announcement by Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard last week that its Government will set up a Royal Commission of inquiry into institutional child sexual abuse is a major step towards shining a light on the dark deeds, secrets, lies and cover-ups of the past – and hopefully providing victims with an opportunity for recognition and justice in the future.

Although its terms of reference are yet to be outlined, it appears the investigation will be the most comprehensive inquiry into child sexual abuse in Australia’s history, focusing not just on abuse in religious organisations, but also state-care providers and not-for-profit bodies. It will also examine the responses of child-service agencies and police.

There had been calls for a national and wide-ranging inquiry after allegations by a senior New South Wales police investigator that the Catholic Church covered up evidence involving paedophile priests, thwarting attempts to investigate hundreds of allegations of abuse in the Hunter region since the mid-1990s. Ms Gillard said “the allegations that have come to light recently about child sexual abuse have been heartbreaking”.

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MISSISSIPPI
WREG

[with video]

November 16, 2012, by Michele Reese

(New Albany, MS) It was the third day of school at Victory Christian Academy in New Albany when a father, who we’re not identifying in order to protect his daughter, says she got a Facebook message from her teacher 25-year-old Benjamin Bishop.

“He asked her to get on an app called Voxer and it is a highly encrypted cell phone app,” he said. “It’s very hard to trace. As a matter of fact police could not even pull those messages off of her phone they had to have the phone itself.”

He says more than a dozen messages were exchanged between his daughter and Bishop. He found them on his daughter’s phone after she confided in a family member.

The messages are so sexually explicit, he says, he doesn’t feel comfortable sharing them.

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AUSTRALIA
Central Western Daily

By LOUISE EDDY
Nov. 19, 2012

PRIESTS would likely go to jail rather than break the confessional seal, says Bathurst Catholic Bishop Michael McKenna.

A royal commission into child sexual abuse, announced last week, will have the power to compel priests to answer questions about what they have been told in the confessional.

But Bishop McKenna said priests had gone to jail in the past for refusing to betray the confessional seal, though he hoped it did not come to this in Australia.

“If a priest cannot give this assurance to people who approach him for the sacrament, he cannot hear confessions,” he said.

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NORTHERN IRELAND
UTV

A west Belfast priest, who stepped down after the church received claims about his alleged conduct, will not be prosecuted following a police investigation.

Father Hugh Kennedy was administrator of St Peter’s Cathedral when he stepped aside in September 2011.

At the time, the church said that information had been passed by church officials to social services and police.

Fr Kennedy, who was already on sick leave at that point, had said he took the decision after talks with Bishop of Down and Connor Noel Treanor.

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MASSACHUSETTS
The Republican

By Elizabeth Roman, The Republican
on November 18, 2012

EAST LONGMEADOW – James Scahill, 65, has been charged with operating under the influence after a minor accident on the corner of Harnkness Avenue and North Main Street Friday, police said.

In 2010 Scahill, pastor at St. Michael’s Parish, attracted international attention for suggesting that Pope Benedict XVI should resign if he did not take stronger action to confront the church’s sexual abuse scandal.

Sgt. Patrick Manley said Scahill was involved in a three-car accident on Friday at 5:20 p.m. There were no injuries.

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NEW JERSEY
The Star-Ledger

By Ben Horowitz/The Star-Ledger
on November 15, 2012

MORRIS TOWNSHIP — The Delbarton School in Morris Township is suing an attorney it says violated a confidentiality agreement by publicly disclosing terms of a 1988 settlement of a lawsuit filed by a teenager who was a victim of sexual misconduct by a monk at the school.

The suit, filed in Superior Court in Morristown by the Order of St. Benedict of New Jersey, says attorney Gregory Gianforcaro of Phillipsburg “breached the agreement” made with a previous attorney when, among other things, he “trumpeted a seven-figure settlement” during a news conference June 29 outside the Morris County Courthouse in Morristown.

The suit filed by Delbarton accuses Gianforcaro of trying to “advance (his) own financial interests by attempting to improperly inflate the value of cases (he) has pending” against Delbarton and by trying to attract additional clients.

Gianforcaro also represents six other men who joined a lawsuit earlier this year alleging decades-old sexual abuse and/or sexual misconduct by Delbarton monks.

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AUSTRALIA
Monash Weekly

By DANIEL TRAN
Nov. 19, 2012

THE Gillard government’s decision to launch a royal commission into child sex abuse in Australia has left survivors and their families elated.

Oakleigh’s Chrissie and Anthony Foster, whose daughters Katie and Emma were abused by a Catholic priest, last week welcomed the news.

The couple, who are ambassadors for Adults Surviving Child Abuse, have long campaigned for a royal commission into abuse.

Mrs Foster said the establishment of the commission was wonderful news. “All of us have been heard and believed,” she said. “This is justice … It’s wonderful.”

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AUSTRALIA
The Age

November 19, 2012

Barney Zwartz

LAWYERS for Susan Sharkey, who runs the counselling, co-ordination and support office for the Catholic Church in Melbourne, have sent threatening letters to two witnesses to the state inquiry into how the churches handled child sex abuse.

The letters warn victims’ advocates Helen Last and Judy Courtin that if there is ”any publication” by them to a journalist or anyone that defames Ms Sharkey ”our client will not hesitate to take legal action against you without further notice”.

The letters were sent on November 2, but Ms Last – a consultant for the Melbourne Victims Collective – only received it on Thursday due to various circumstances.

Ms Last, who gave evidence to the inquiry last Monday, said the letter from Wisewould Mahony partner Robert McGirr misrepresented her and intimidated her.

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AUSTRALIA
Adelaide Now

HEINOUS crimes such as paedophilia have devastating consequences that last a lifetime, writes Alexander Downer.
———–

One thing we can all universally abhor is paedophilia. For most people such disgusting behaviour is unimaginable.

But like murder and other forms of brutality, it always seems to be with us. Somewhere, there’s a paedophile out there.

The consequences for the victims and hence society can be horrific.

According to a study by America’s National Institute of Justice, abused and neglected children are 11 times more likely to be arrested for criminal behaviour as a juvenile, and 2.7 times more likely to be arrested for violent and criminal behaviour as an adult.

Studies have found abused and neglected children to be at least 25 per cent more likely to experience problems such as delinquency, teen pregnancy, low academic achievement, drug use and mental-health issues.

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AUSTRALIA
The Age

November 19, 2012

Michelle Grattan
Political editor of The Age

ALMOST every Australian voter backs the royal commission on child sex abuse in an Age-Nielsen poll that shows little change in support for the parties or leaders.

An extraordinary 95 per cent support the inquiry, which has bipartisan backing although it does not as yet have terms of reference. It is highly unusual for a political decision to have such a level of support.

The Coalition would win an election held now on a two-party vote of 53 per cent (up a point since last month) to 47 per cent (down one point). In Victoria, the split is 50-50.

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AUSTRALIA
Herald Sun

AAP
November 19, 2012

THE decision by Prime Minister Julia Gillard to establish a royal commission into child sexual abuse has the backing of almost every Australian, according to a Fairfax/Nielsen poll.

The poll shows 95 per cent of voters support the royal commission, while only three per cent are against it.

Nielsen poll director John Stirton told Fairfax he could not recall a poll issue ever receiving such universal support.

The royal commission, which will inquire into all institutions, not only churches, has the support of all political parties, state and federal.

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NORTHERN IRELAND
Gorey Guardian

Sunday November 18 2012

No criminal charges are to be brought against a west Belfast priest who stepped down after the church received claims about his conduct.

Father Hugh Kennedy was asked to temporarily stop working in St Peter’s Cathedral last year while church authorities passed the information to the police and social services. He was already on sick leave at that point.

Specific allegations were not outlined, but at the time Fr Kennedy issued a statement insisting he was not a child molester.

Police have confirmed that their investigation is now complete. No file will be passed to the Public Prosecution Service.

The priest will remain on leave from duties while a separate internal investigation by the Catholic church is conducted.

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NORTHERN IRELAND
BBC News

A police investigation into a well-known Catholic priest in Belfast has ended and he will not be prosecuted.

Father Hugh Kennedy stepped down as administrator of St Peter’s Cathedral in west Belfast more than a year ago.

When Fr Kennedy stepped down from his post, the church said it had received information about him which it passed on to the police and social services.

A spokesman said Fr Kennedy, who had been on sick leave, had agreed to step aside pending inquiries.

The details of the information in question was not disclosed, but the Church said it was not connected to the boys’ choir at St. Peter’s.

In a statement at the time, Fr Kennedy said that he had never violated or molested a child.

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AUSTRALIA
The Australian

Greg Craven
From:The Australian
November 19, 2012

THERE are some ideas so bad they need to be killed quickly. Not just to protect those affected by them, but those pushing them.

Breaking the seal of the Catholic confessional is such an albatross. Pursue it, and Australia will carry a human rights cross through a constitutional minefield. The appeal is obvious. Why should a criminal priest unburden himself to his brethren without fear of disclosure?

The obvious fact that criminal clergy do not go to confession, and would not receive absolution unless they agreed to turn themselves in, is ignored. And if the seal is withdrawn, so will be the disclosures. But beyond this are immense constitutional and human rights problems.

First Section 116 of the Constitution bans the commonwealth from prohibiting the “free exercise of religion”. Few outside the Catholic Church understand confession. The sacrament is central to being a Catholic. Catholics must confess, and priests must hear their confession in absolute secrecy. The priest acts as the ear of God. In other words, a priest cannot be a priest and a Catholic cannot be a Catholic without the sealed confessional.

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LOUISIANA
Houma Today

By Katie Urbaszewski
Staff Writer

Diocese of Houma-Thibodaux officials have said they had not heard reports of any predatory behavior by a former priest before a man came forward, accusing the priest of molesting him as an altar boy.

However, people who claim to have had sexual relationships with the Rev. Etienne LeBlanc said they felt preyed on by an authority figure who took advantage of them, even if they were not victims in the eyes of criminal law.

A civil suit against LeBlanc and the diocese, filed by Morgan City native Jared Ribardi, was settled last month, and LeBlanc, who couldn’t be reached for comment, has never been arrested under any criminal charges.

The alleged encounters happened at Holy Cross Catholic Church in Morgan City, which is part of the Diocese of Houma-Thibodaux. LeBlanc has also worked at Annunziata Catholic Church in Houma and is now retired.

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SAN JOSE (CA)
NBC Bay Area

A Catholic bishop issued an apology today to parents and community members after a registered sex offender was issued a letter allowing him to attend an elementary school festival last month.

Bishop Patrick McGrath, head of the Diocese of San Jose, said that it was a “mistake” that allowed Mark Christopher Gurries to attend and volunteer at a Saint Frances Cabrini Parish festival on Oct. 6.

“Our policy is clear: no one who has been found guilty of sexual abuse of a minor or vulnerable adult can be hired as an employee or allowed to volunteer in any activity that involves children, young people, or vulnerable adults,” McGrath wrote.

“I am deeply troubled and I apologize to you that this policy was not followed,” he said. By state law, Gurries, as a registered sex offender, is only allowed on a school property around children if he can produce written permission from a school administrator, according to the Santa Clara County Sheriff’s Office.

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SAN JOSE (CA)
San Francisco Chronicle

Bay City News Service

Published 9:11 p.m., Saturday, November 17, 2012

A Catholic bishop issued an apology today to parents and community members after a registered sex offender was issued a letter allowing him to attend an elementary school festival last month.

Bishop Patrick McGrath, head of the Diocese of San Jose, said that it was a “mistake” that allowed Mark Christopher Gurries to attend and volunteer at a Saint Frances Cabrini Parish festival on Oct. 6.

“Our policy is clear: no one who has been found guilty of sexual abuse of a minor or vulnerable adult can be hired as an employee or allowed to volunteer in any activity that involves children, young people, or vulnerable adults,” McGrath wrote.

“I am deeply troubled and I apologize to you that this policy was not followed,” he said.

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NEW JERSEY
The Record

Sunday, November 18, 2012

BY MARY JO LAYTON
STAFF WRITER
The Record

As Richard Schultz tells it, his childhood ended in a trailer at a Boy Scout camp when his troop leader stripped him, tied him up and took Polaroids of the 13-year-old boy “modeling” Stations of the Cross.

“Rape victims talk of having this disconnected feeling from the body and going numb, which is how I was,” Schultz said.

Seven weeks later, his younger brother Christopher was sexually assaulted by the same troop leader. It happened, Schultz said, on his brother’s 12th birthday.

The abuse is described in graphic detail in File No. 1524 in recently released documents from the Boy Scouts of America, which identify thousands of scoutmasters and other volunteers the organization suspected of molesting children.

The faded police statements, letters warning of a predator and other documents in the file tell the story of the Schultz family: The molestation did more than damage two boys, it triggered a series of events that ripped the family apart. A child was lost, a marriage imploded. Thirty-five years later, Richard Schultz continues to be haunted by what happened in that trailer.

Schultz is now a 48-year-old police sergeant in Fair Lawn, always in uniform, always on patrol, a voice for victims in the most recent sex-abuse scandal sweeping the nation. He speaks about the abuse in candid detail — how Robert E. Coakley, a Franciscan friar who also taught at the Catholic school the boys attended in Emerson — lured him into that trailer at the Scout camp in New York 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.