ABUSE TRACKER

GENEVA
GlobalPost

By Stephanie Nebehay

GENEVA (Reuters) – The United Nations torture watchdog called on the Vatican on Friday to cooperate with civil authorities in prosecuting all cases of suspected sexual abuse by pedophile priests and to set up its own independent complaints mechanism.

It was the second time this year that a U.N. human rights body has criticized how Roman Catholic officials have handled the decades-long sexual abuse of minors by priests.

Victims accuse the Vatican of still protecting abusers and covering up sex crimes, failing to punish perpetrators, refer them to the authorities or provide adequate compensation.

The Vatican told the committee last week the Church’s accusers were “fossilized in the past” when attitudes were different. Archbishop Silvano Tomasi said the Church had developed model child protection policies over the last decade that other states and institutions might emulate.

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GENEVA
United Nations Committee Against Torture

B. Positive aspects

4. The Committee welcomes the fact that following the ratification of the Convention, the State party acceded to the Convention against Transnational Organized Crime, on 25 January 2012.

5. The Committee also welcomes the State party’s efforts to revise its legislation in areas of relevance to the Convention, including:

(a) The issuance motu proprio by Pope Francis of an Apostolic Letter “On the Jurisdiction of Judicial Authorities of Vatican City State in Criminal Matters”, on 11 July 2013. The letter was promulgated and entered into force on 1 September 2013, establishing the exercise of penal jurisdiction by the Judicial Authorities of Vatican City State over crimes whose prosecution is required by international agreements ratified by the Holy See.

This modified Vatican City State legislation, specifically Law No. VIII on Supplementary Norms on Criminal Law Matters, which became effective 1 September 2013, and which incorporates into the legal system the crime of torture, crimes against humanity and a definition of crimes against minors; and Law N. IX which amends the Criminal Code and the Code of Criminal Procedure to provide for jurisdiction over offenses committed by public officials and citizens abroad and to set standards governing extradition, judicial cooperation, mutual legal assistance, and other matters relevant to the Convention. …

C. Principal subjects of concern and recommendations

Scope of Application of the Convention

8. The Committee notes the Interpretative Declaration made by the Holy See in acceding to the Convention and statements in the report of the State party reinforced by the delegation during the dialogue, expressing the view that the Convention applies exclusively to the Vatican City State. The Committee further notes that the 2013 amendments to laws of the Vatican City State, referred to above, establish that public officials of the Vatican City State include, among other persons, (a) members, officials and personnel of the various organs of the Roman Curia and of the Institutions connected to it and (b) papal legates and diplomatic personnel of the Holy See. The Committee’s General Comment No. 2 recalls that States bear international responsibility for the acts and omissions of their officials and others acting in an official capacity or acting on behalf of the State, in
conjunction with the State, under its direction or control, or otherwise under colour of law.

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GENEVA
Yahoo! News

[Concluding observations on the initial report of the Holy See]

GENEVA (AP) — A United Nations committee says the Vatican has effective worldwide control over bishops and priests who must comply with a U.N. anti-torture treaty, a finding that could expose the Catholic Church to new lawsuits by victims of clerical sex abuse.

The U.N. Committee Against Torture has repeatedly ruled that rape and sexual violence can be considered torture cases, which in much of the world don’t carry statutes of limitations.

The panel of 10 independent experts said Friday the Holy See must ensure that the treaty isn’t violated by its officials and others “in any situation in which they exercise jurisdiction or effective control.”

It says Vatican officials have failed to report abuse charges properly, moved priests rather than disciplined them, and failed to pay adequate compensation to victims.

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VATICAN CITY
Catholic Herald (UK)

The Vatican’s top envoy to the United Nations has said a report by the UN Committee against Torture is “more technical and more professional” than an earlier UN document heavily critical of Church teaching.

Archbishop Silvano Tomasi told the Boston Globe that the report, which was to be published on Friday, “takes into account the positive steps taken by [the Vatican] and the Church in general.”

The Boston Globe said the report cited several cases in which clergy accused of abuse were transferred to other dioceses or institutions where they remained in contact with children. The report also expressed concern that Church officials were resistant to the idea of mandatory reporting of abuse allegations.

A longer report will follow later today.

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VATICAN CITY
Naharnet (Lebanon)

The Vatican said a report from the United Nations due out on Friday would heavily criticize its handling of abuse cases but would not find it in violation of an anti-torture convention.

“The Committee did not find the Holy See in violation of the CAT (Convention Against Torture),” the Vatican said in a statement ahead of the official publication of the conclusions of the Geneva-based panel later on Friday.

The Vatican also said the report did not find the Church’s opposition to abortion constituted torture “thus safeguarding the fundamental right of freedom of religion and the protection and promotion of human life”.

But it said the panel of independent rights and legal experts would accuse the Vatican of “failing to mandate that abuse accusations be reported to police, moving clergy to evade discipline and failing to see that victims obtain adequate compensation.”

“The Holy See takes note and will give serious consideration to these recommendations,” it said.

But the Vatican also reiterated its defense that priests around the world are not “legally tied to the Vatican as a sovereign” and instead fall under national jurisdictions.

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SAMOA
Samoa Observer

Friday, 09 May 201

A Catholic order, the Salesian Order of Don Bosco, has failed to respond to questions from the Samoa Observer on fears about child abuse in Samoa.

The silence happens at a time when the Vatican is facing growing pressure at the United Nations to extend its child abuse protections worldwide.

The failure from the Salesian Order of Don Bosco to respond to questions from the Samoa Observer is despite news this week that the Catholic Church has paid out more than $40 million tala in settlements to child abuse victims in Australia.

Questions were raised last month following the conviction in Australia on child abuse charges of a priest who, police found, had been sent to Samoa to avoid investigation.

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IRELAND
Bette Browne

Stolen Lives brings us the voices of 10 abuse survivors from Baltimore in Cork, to Tralee in Kerry, to Artane in Dublin and in London and Liverpool, who suffered in Ireland’s religious-run industrial institutions, abandoned by courts of the State and in many cases by their families in one of the darkest chapters in Irish history.

Stolen Lives grew from the aftermath of the first national March of Solidarity with survivors on June 10, 2009, which the late Christine Buckley and the author organised with support of Barnardos, One in Four and the Children’s Rights Alliance after publication of the Ryan report.

It focuses on 10 survivors, ranging in age from 54 to 87, and breaks new ground in its chilling level of detail on the effects of the abuse on their lives as adults.

“We cannot re-write those stories, nor can we write a happy ending to them. But it is our clear and inescapable duty to reach out and rescue, to listen and to learn and to create something out of this catalogue of cruelty in which, as a nation, we can take some pride.” – Enda Kenny (now An Taoiseach) speaking in the Dáil Éireann debate on Ryan Commission report, June 11, 2009.

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MINNESOTA
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis

Date: Thursday, May 22, 2014
Source: Jim Accurso

From Auxiliary Bishop Andrew H. Cozzens, Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis

Francis Hoefgen was charged today with first degree criminal sexual conduct in Dakota County Court. Court documents indicate the reported abuse occurred from the spring of 1989 to the fall of 1991. Hoefgen is a former Benedictine religious order priest of St. John’s Abbey (OSB) who was assigned at St. Elizabeth Ann Seton parish in Hastings until 1992, when he left parish ministry. St. John’s Abbey permanently removed him from ministry in 2002. Hoefgen left the priesthood when he was laicized in December 2011. In accord with our new policies, the archdiocese had disclosed his name and ministry assignments on its website in 2013.

We have notified leaders at St. Elizabeth Ann Seton parish of the charges. They, in turn, have notified their school and office staff. The parish community had already been made aware of the abuse accusation against Hoefgen.

I am deeply saddened and angered whenever I hear about the crime of a priest abusing a child. I hope the victim will find help and healing, and justice will be served in our court system.

The Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis encourages anyone who has been abused to contact law enforcement.

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MINNESOTA
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis

Date: Thursday, May 22, 2014
Source: Jim Accurso

As part of our ongoing commitment to address sexual misconduct in Church ministry, the Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis today released the names and assignment history information of three priests and two religious brothers against who claims of sexual abuse of a minor within our archdiocese have been found to be substantiated. This information can be found by going to archspm.org and clicking on “Clergy Abuse Disclosures” in the upper right hand sidebar.
The names released today are:

Stephen Baker
Edmund Frost
Robert Ruglovsky
Justin Weger
Francis Zachman

All the men named today are deceased and in all cases the abuse occurred more than 25 years ago. Four of the men were members of religious orders and the other man was assigned by the Eparchy of Parma at a Byzantine rite parish within the geographical boundaries of the archdiocese. While religious brothers are not ordained clergy, we are including their names because they had an official parish assignment within this archdiocese.

We are making these disclosures as part of the ongoing review of clergy personnel files conducted by Kinsale Management Consulting at the request of the archdiocese. Beginning in December 2013, Kinsale reviewed the personnel files of all men in ministry as clergy in the Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis at any point from 1970 to the present, whether or not they remain in public ministry. Kinsale reviewed a total of 3,333 clergy files before completing their work in April 2014. The purpose of the review was to determine whether there are additional cases of sexual abuse or other misconduct that require investigation by law enforcement, public disclosure or other action by the archdiocese.

The archdiocese has shared information discovered through the Kinsale file review with law enforcement. We pledge to continue to cooperate with civil authorities and we urge any victims of abuse who have not yet come forward to please contact civil authorities to make a report.

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MINNESOTA
KAAL

By: Cassie Hart

The Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis has added five names to its list of priests and religious brothers with substantiated claims of abuse against them.

The names include three priests and two brothers who served in the archdiocese. All are deceased. In all cases, the abuse happened over 25 years ago.

The archdiocese says it’s releasing the names as part of its ongoing review of clergy personnel files. Kinsale Management Consulting has reviewed 3,333 personnel files for all men who served in ministry in the archdiocese from 1970 to now. Kinsale finished its review in April.

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UNITED STATES
Gospel Herald

By Leah Marianne Klett (news@gospelherald.com)

Following Pastor Tullian Tchividjian’s explosive exit from The Gospel Coalition, several reformed pastors have taken to social media to address their take on the situation.

In his letter of resignation, Tchividjian, who is the grandson of evangelist Billy Graham, revealed he had hoped keep blog content on the TGC website until August, but was “disappointed and confused” to discover that TGC members wanted his posts removed “ASAP.”

“I know I have had some differences with some of the other contributors to this site but my goal has always been to do nothing but preach the Good News with every post, to bring relief to the burdened and broken, and rest to the weary and heavy laden by fixing the readers’ eyes on the finished work of Jesus,” he wrote.

According to Tchividjian, the decision seemed to mostly “be personal, some of it theological.”

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SCOTLAND
Scottish Catholic Observer

The Church’s national safeguarding officer in Scotland has said that any Church official who covered up child abuse will face the consequences.

Historic allegations of clergy sexual abuse going back to 1947 are currently subject to a review by the Catholic Church.

Tina Campbell (above), national safeguarding co-ordinator for the Scottish Catholic Church, said that for the first time the eight dioceses will be made accountable for their handling of clerical sexual abuse and that ignored allegations will be reported by her office to Police Scotland.

“They are having to report if they have acted or not,” she said. “If they say, ‘we found something in the file but we haven’t reported it to the police,’ they will be questioned about that. If there is an allegation and it has not been reported to police it must now be reported.”

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AUSTRALIA
Canberra Times

May 23, 2014

Henry Belot
Canberra Times Reporter

The Royal Commission into child sexual abuse in the ACT will focus on the response of the Marist Brothers to allegations of child abuse by Brother John Chute and another former brother whose name has been withheld.

The commission, which will hold a public hearing on June 10, will conduct a forensic analysis into what steps Marist Brothers took to report the allegations of sexual abuse to the police and relevant authorities.

The hearing will also assess the response of agencies including the NSW Department of Family and Community Services when alerted to the allegations of abuse by the two brothers.

The settling of compensation by Catholic Church Insurance and the Marist Brothers will also be assessed at the public hearing.

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UNITED KINGDOM
ITV (UK)

Non government organisations representing victims of child abuse at the hands of the Catholic Church are hoping that the UN’s torture committee findings will “shame” the Vatican into changing the rules on how allegations against members of the clergy are dealt with.

Sue Cox from Survivors Voice Europe said so far the response from the Vatican has been “shameful”.

The response of Vatican representatives has been truly shameful. They have displayed no regret and have tried to lie their way put of the many awkward questions put to them by this committee of world renowned experts.

Francis has an opportunity to change church rules and culture but the signs are not good. Rather than engage with the UN and heed its criticisms he has tried to defend the indefensible.

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KENTUCKY
Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests

For immediate release: Thursday, May 22

Statement by Barbara Dorris of St. Louis, Outreach Director of SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests ( 314 503 0003, SNAPdorris@gmail.com )

Louisville’s Rev. C.J. Mahaney is lying. He says he “cannot” speak during a civil child sex abuse and cover up lawsuit. He knows that’s simply not true. He can speak, but he’s choosing not to.

[Christian Post]

Lawyers often advise clients to not talk publicly during litigation. But no one can deny another person his First Amendment rights. So again, Mahaney can talk about the serious and credible allegations that Sovereign Grace officials ignored and concealed heinous sex crimes against kids. He’s simply choosing to do what’s the safest and most convenient and comfortable for him – which is to remain silent.

That’s his choice. But he shouldn’t try to fool people. He shouldn’t deny that his self-serving silence is his doing, no one else’s.

And if he’s lying about this – about his ability to speak – we can’t help but wonder what else he may be lying about.

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CHICAGO (IL)
Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests

For immediate release Thursday, May 22

Statement by Kate Bochte, SNAP Leader, 630-768-1860 keight@sbcglobal.net

Process to get new Chicago cardinal starts

We hope that Chicago’s next Catholic Archbishop will do more to prevent future clergy sex crimes and cover-ups. But we’re not optimistic.

[WLS]

Pope Francis, like his predecessors, keeps promoting bishops who have concealed or are concealing heinous sexual violence against kids.

The list of proven, admitted and credibly accused clerics who committed or concealed child sex crimes and who have been ignored or helped by Cardinal George is a long and sorry one. Some are proven, admitted or credibly accused child molesters (Fr. Kenneth Martin, Fr. Joseph Bennett, Fr. Norbert Maday). Others ignored or concealed abuse, according to SNAP and church records, complicit (Fr. Leonard Dubi and Fr. Edward Grace).

Time and time again, George has been dishonest about child sex crimes and reckless and secretive about the clerics who perpetrated them. He kept knowingly favoring friends and predators over kids and Catholics, to the point of taking extraordinarily obvious and inexcusable risks even with proven pedophiles.

Cardinal George also
— let a convicted pedophile priest quietly work in archdiocese (Fr. Kenneth J. Martin),
— refused for years to suspend a credibly accused predator facing more than 12 abuse allegations (Fr. Joseph Bennett),
— tried to get a convicted pedophile priest released early from prison (Fr. Norbert Maday),
— twice rejected the recommendations of hiw own abuse panel (the Bennett case),
— tolerated the complicit high-ranking chancery office priest who advised an accused predator on how to deceive a church review panel (Fr. Edward Grace),
— named an accused predator’s friend (Fr. Edward Dubi) to allegedly monitor him, despite clear pleas by abuse review panel to name anyone else for that role,
— tolerated the egregious misconduct by a predator’s friend who shoved a person for simply asking questions about the predator (Fr. Edward Dubi)

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MINNESOTA
Pioneer Press

By Emily Gurnon
egurnon@pioneerpress.com
POSTED: 05/22/2014

The Twin Cities archdiocese has released five additional names of clerics with “substantiated” claims of sexual abuse of a minor.

Three were priests and two were religious brothers. All but one had been the subject of media reports or claims alleging abuse, and all are now dead.

— Stephen Baker was assigned to the Church of St. Patrick in Inver Grove Heights from 1977-1981, and committed suicide in the wake of abuse allegations by stabbing himself in the heart in 2013.

— Edmund Frost was assigned to the Church of St. Albert the Great in Minneapolis from 1964-1975. The archdiocese stated only that he died “sometime before 2006.”

— Robert Ruglovsky was ordained in 1961 and was assigned to St. John the Baptist Byzantine Catholic parish in Minneapolis. In 1987, he pleaded guilty to six counts of criminal sexual conduct in Hennepin County District Court and was removed from the ministry that year. He died in 2006.

— Justin Weger was assigned to numerous archdiocese churches, including St. Stephen’s Catholic Church from 1970 to 1971; St. Mary of the Lake in White Bear Lake in 1971; Native American ministry in 1972; and the Basilica of St. Mary in Minneapolis in 1972. He died in 2005.

— Francis Zachman was assigned to numerous archdiocesan churches, including Assumption Catholic Church in Richfield from 1973-81; the church of St. Albert in Albertville in 1981; St. George Catholic Church in Long Lake in 1981; and the church of St. Casimir in St. Paul in 1982. He died in 1983.

Jeffrey Anderson, a St. Paul attorney who represents plaintiffs in sexual abuse cases, said Thursday he did not immediately recognize the names of Weger and Zachman as known abusers. As for the other three, his office has filed claims involving them, Anderson said.

Weger was on a list disclosed by the Diocese of St. Cloud in March.

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AUSTRIA
National Catholic Reporter

Stephanie Yeagle | May. 22, 2014 NCR Today

Martha Heizer, the head of the reform international movement We Are Church in Austria, and her husband, Gert Heizer, have been excommunicated by the Vatican for celebrating Mass without a priest present, according to a statement from the diocese of Innsbruck, Austria.

Bishop Manfred Scheuer said in the statement that “publicizing their practice of having ‘private Eucharistic celebrations without the presence of a priest’ ” forced the bishop “to initiate legal action.”

On Wednesday, the bishop read the final decree issued by the Congregation for the Doctrine of Faith to the Heizers at the diocesan court in Innsbruck in the presence of two judges of the diocese, according to a statement from the Heizers.

“This does not mean that we are not part of the church anymore,” the Heizers said in the statement, published Thursday in Austrian daily Tiroler Tageszeitung and translated for NCR by Bernie Aurin. “By virtue of our baptism we remain part of the church as long as we ourselves do not choose to leave her.”

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UNITED STATES
Berger’s Beat

. . .The largest-ever child porn investigation in New York’s history netted 71 arrests this week. It began, the N.Y. Times reported, with Brian Finelli, a Catholic church official who taught abuse prevention in Cardinal Timothy Dolan’s New York City archdiocese. “Catholic church officials relentlessly brag about these abuse programs. But they are relatively new and untested with little or no independent evaluation,” says SNAP’s Barbara Dorris“. . .

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UNITED STATES
Christian Post

CJ Mahaney Publicly Addresses Sovereign Grace Allegations for First Time in Two Years; Refutes Civil Suit’s Claims

By Morgan Lee
May 22, 2014

C. J. Mahaney, founder of Sovereign Grace Ministries and current pastor of Sovereign Grace Church of Louisville, has released his first statement relating to a sex abuse scandal within his organization since a civil lawsuit was first brought against him and others two years ago.

In the statement, Mahaney rejects claims that he withheld information from authorities or that he tried to protect child predators. He also says he has remained silent because of the ongoing lawsuit.

“I look forward to the day when I can speak freely. For now, the simple and extraordinarily unsatisfying reality — for myself and others — is that in the face of an ongoing civil lawsuit, I simply cannot speak publicly to the specifics of these events,” Mahaney wrote in the statement released Thursday.

“Even with those constraints, however, let me be clear about this: I have never conspired to protect a child predator, and I also deny all the claims made against me in the civil suit,” he asserts.

Over the course of his media silence, many had called on him to address the allegations that he and other SGM leaders withheld sex abuse claims from authorities. Much of the outcry came to a head following his brother-in-law’s acknowledgment under oath last week that he had not gone to police even after hearing reports that church volunteer Nathan Morales had sexually abused children. Grant Layman, former pastor at Covenant Life Church in Gaithersburg, Maryland, said in court that he believed he had an obligation to report the abuse but did not.

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CHICAGO (IL)
WLS

CHICAGO (WLS) — The Vatican has informed Chicago’s Francis Cardinal George that it has begun the process to select the cardinal’s successor.

Archbishop Carlo Maria Vigano, Papal Nuncio to the United States, has informed Cardinal George that he has begun the consulting process to identify his successor as Archbishop of Chicago, the Chciago archdiocese said in a statement.

The process is expected to be completed in late fall, the archdiocese said.

George asked the Catholic Church to begin the process of choosing his successor. He revealed his intention to step down after he spoke in April about how a ”strenuous” round of chemotherapy led him to cancel an important trip to Rome.

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GENEVA
Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests

Second UN panel to judge Vatican for child sex crimes & cover ups
Geneva-based Committee Against Torture releases report Friday morning
A clergy sex abuse victim with SNAP will be available for interviews in Geneva

On Friday, May 23 from 10:30 a.m. until 2 or 3 p.m., Miguel Hurtado will be available for interviews about the United Nations Committee Against Torture’s new report on clergy sexual violence and cover ups in the Catholic church.

He is a London resident who was abused as a child in Spain and is now a leader of an international support group called SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAPnetwork.org).

He will be either directly outside the United Nations building (Place des Nations, 1202 Geneve) or across the street in the park near the Broken Chair monument.

FOR MORE INFORMATION:

Miguel Hurtado (in Geneva) cell +44 7787 638245, michael_uk_1982@hotmail.com

Barbara Blaine (in Chicago) +1 312 399 4747 cell, +1 312 455 1499 office, snapblaine@gmail.com

David Clohessy (in Missouri) +1 314 645 5915 home, +1 314 566 9790 cell, SNAPclohessy@aol.com

Barbara Dorris (in Missouri) +1 314 503 0003 cell, SNAPdorris@gmail.com

There are also dozens of local SNAP volunteer leaders on the SNAP website who are local spokespersons for the group: SNAPnetwork.org. Also please check the SNAP website for details, media statements, etc.

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VATICAN CITY
Vatican Insider

Martha Heizer and her husband Ehemann Gert, members of the critical movement “We are Church” celebrated private masses without priests. They said they are disconcerted by the decision”. The Bishop of Innsbruk said: “Exclusion is always a defeat for the Church

VATICAN INSIDER STAFF
ROME

The Pope has punished Martha Heizer (67) the president of the Austrian Catholic movement “We are Church” and her husband Ehemann Gert, with the highest ecclesiastical sanction: excommunication. The Pope’s decision come after the two regularly simulated Eucharistic celebrations, which is a serious offense (“delictum gravius”). The couple will now no longer be able to receive the sacraments of the Catholic Church. In a statement, they said they were “disconcerted by Rome’s decision.”

The couple celebrated masses in the absence of a priest, in their home in Absam, a small municipality near the Tyrolese capital. According to the Tiroler Tageszeitung, the case had sparked a scandal back in 2011, when the woman – who teaches religion in Innsbruck – decided to defy the Vatican, announcing her intention to celebrate mass even att he cost of risking excommunication.

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CHICAGO (IL)
Chicago Sun-Times

BY TINA SFONDELES Staff Reporter May 22, 2014

A Cook County judge on Thursday denied bond for convicted child molester and defrocked Catholic priest Daniel McCormack who is facing a new charge of aggravated criminal sexual abuse in an alleged 2005 incident involving a minor boy.

The latest criminal charge may bolster state efforts to have McCormack labeled as a sexually violent person, authorities said.

McCormack, dressed in a White Sox T-shirt, shorts and gym shoes, appeared at the Leighton Criminal Courthouse on Thursday afternoon.

Prosecutors say the alleged victim was 10 at the time of the alleged abuse and a parishioner at St. Agatha Catholic Church in the 3100 block of West Douglas in Chicago where McCormack worked as a priest.

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CHICAGO (IL)
CSNChicago

A defrocked Catholic priest and convicted child molester was held without bail Thursday after being arrested in Chicago a day earlier for a sex crime that authorities say occurred in 2005.

Officials said in court Thursday a 10-year-old victim was attending an after school program at St. Agatha’s church, where McCormack was a priest.

Prosecutors allege that on more than one occasion McCormack reached into the victim’s pants and fondled him, ordering him not to tell anyone.

Police said they were notified of the alleged abuse in November of 2013 after the victim told someone about what happened.

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UNITED STATES
Legal Examiner

Posted by Mike Bryant
May 22, 2014

Over time, I have heard a number of victim impact statements. Some are touching, others seem to miss the point. They can be rambling dissertations that make everyone in the courtroom uncomfortable or even confused. They are sometimes read by the lawyers in the case, but in those circumstances they seem more like a performance than an actual heartfelt statement. There are even times where they hurt the real effort to punish. My advice when a client asks about what to say is:

1. Speak from the heart.

2. Stick to what the real damage was.

3. Get it down to be as succinct as possible.

I was sent the following statement recently. For background a priest named Robert Poandl was sentenced to 7 ½ years in federal prison for raping a 10-year-old boy in 1991. He was convicted by a jury in September of 2013. This is the statement that the 6’5” 280-pound former football player survivor read in court:

Victim Impact Statement

I cannot possibly convey the swath of destruction that lay in Robert Poandl’s wake. We all create ripple effects in the universe around us. These ripple effects can be negative, positive or something in between. I have no doubt Robert helped many people and did many good works, making positive ripple effects. His family and friends are convinced of his innocence which both he and I know is amazing. It attests to the power of faith and love. How anyone could sit through his trial and not be convinced of his guilt is remarkable; Robert certainly did not react when a jury of his peers found him guilty. The sad fact is his family and friends do not truly know him. No person can completely know the depths of another person but they are not even close to knowing his true nature. Unfortunately, I was exposed to his true nature in August of 1991 and have been in a living hell much of the time since. I was a kind and trusting child from a modest family, but that ended that night. He used my parents’ faith in God and Catholicism against them. They too were blinded by faith and love. He preyed on the weak and the poor. He preyed on children to satisfy his own deviant sexual desires. He dropped a nuclear bomb on my psyche. These negative ripple effects did not stop with me. They do not stop with his victims but are transferred to those around them. The angry child who felt betrayed by his parents and by God raged against those who he saw as his betrayers. He saw the world as one without meaning or God. He could not reconcile an omniscient and omnipotent God who loved him with the reality of being handed over to a servant of this God by his mother and then anally raped and told he had in some way sinned.

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CHICAGO (IL)
CBS Chicago

CHICAGO (CBS) — A judge denied bond to a pedophile ex-priest who is now facing additional sexual abuse charges.

Daniel McCormack was taken into custody Wednesday and charged with criminal sexual abuse.
He appeared in bond court on Thursday.

McCormack has been held in a state facility after doing time in connection with incidents that happened when he led two Chicago churches.

In 2007, McCormack was removed from the priesthood and pleaded guilty to abusing five children while he was a priest at St. Agatha’s parish.

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AUSTRALIA
The Tablet (UK)

22 May 2014 by Abigail Frymann, Christa Pongratz-Lippitt

The head of pro-reform movement We Are Church in Austria has been excommunicated by Pope Francis for “celebrating” Mass, the Austrian press has reported.

According to the Austrian daily Tiroler Tageszeitung Martha Heizer and her husband Gert were excommunicated for regularly “simulating the Mass”, which the Church considers a delictum gravius, or “grave delict”. The couple are now barred from the sacraments.

The couple has reportedly been celebrating Mass privately at their house together with a small group of friends for several years in what they term “celebrations of the Eucharist without a priest”.

Bishop Manfred Scheuer of Innsbruck received the decree of excommunication last night. He took the excommunication decree to their house last night and read it out to them but they refused to accept it.

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VATICAN CITY
The Garden Island

VATICAN CITY (AP) — The Vatican says an Austrian woman who defied church teaching by celebrating Mass has been excommunicated.

Vatican Radio said Thursday that Martha Heizer, a founder of the progressive We Are Church movement, was notified Wednesday by Innsbruck Bishop Manfred Scheuer that she and her husband, Gert, were excommunicated.

Celebrating Mass at their apartment defied church teaching that only a priest can celebrate Mass and that only a male can become a priest. Heizer advocates ending mandatory celibacy for priests and allowing women to become priests.

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UNITED STATES
BishopAccountability.org

Summary of Case: Patrick H. NcNamara was a priest of the California Province of the Society of Jesus, ordained in 1962. He was on the faculty of Loyola University in Los Angeles from 1964-1969, after which he resigned from the priesthood. He went on to marry, settling in New Mexico with his family. He was a professor at the University of New Mexico until his retirement in 1998. He died in 2001. McNamara’s name was on the Los Angeles archdiocese’s 2004 list of clerics against whom there were complaints of sexual misconduct. There was one complaint against McNamara, from the 1960s.

Ordained: 1962
Died: 2001

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AUSTRALIA
ABC News

Mandatory reporting policies do not go far enough to protect children from sexual abuse, a royal commission has heard.

The Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse is examining a prestigious Perth private school’s response to allegations of inappropriate conduct by a teacher dating back to 1999.

The teacher, referred to as YJ, was jailed for five years in 2010 for sexually abusing five students.

The school and its staff cannot be identified.

Professor Stephen Smallbone, a psychologist and Griffith University professor who specialises in the prevention of child sexual abuse, told the commission that mandatory reporting, which came into effect in 2009, does not adequately address the grooming of children prior to abuse.

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UNITED STATES
Christian Today

Published 22 May 2014 | Carey Lodge

US based Sovereign Grace Ministries (SGM) has been embroiled in controversy following allegations of a child abuse cover up in its former flagship church; Covenant Life Church (CLC).

Nathaniel Morales, now 56, was convicted on May 15 this year of sexually abusing three underage boys between 1983 and 1991 during his time as youth pastor at Covenant Life. Sovereign Grace is a coalition of 80 Reformed evangelical churches.

During his trial, questions were raised as to whether or not the leadership of the church knew about Morales’ transgressions.

In a separate civil lawsuit, bestselling author and lead pastor of CLC during Morales’ employment CJ Mahaney (who founded Sovereign Grace) – was accused of being aware of the youth leader’s crimes and failing to take action against him.

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UNITED STATES
Mary DeMuth

I haven’t publicly commented on the Nathaniel Morales case–a man who was convicted last week on five counts of sexual molestation. (He faces more trials with more victims.)

Unfortunately, sexual abuse of children is not an uncommon thing. It runs rampant in this broken world. What is scandalous is the confirmed fact that the church leadership who became awareof the predator’s crimes never reported him to authorities. Instead, they remained silent. From reports of the trial:

“Covenant Life Church former pastor Grant Layman admitted on Tuesday while testifying about allegations against Nathaniel Morales that he withheld incriminating information from the police about the abuse.

Public defender Alan Drew asked Layman if had an “obligation to report the alleged abuse?”

“I believe so,” he replied.

“And you didn’t?” asked Drew, to which Layman responded “no.”” source here.

I am not one to swear. But this situation makes me want to. Loud and angry. Because this should NOT BE SO {excuse the hollering!} A parent who reports a church member’s molestation and rape of his/her child to the church leaders should KNOW that the leadership will report the perpetrator to the authorities.

Sadly, and terribly, they kept silent. Leaders seemed to prefer the safety of silence and the need for protected reputation over the cry of the victims and their parents.

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CHICAGO (IL)
Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests

For immediate release: Thursday, May 22, 2014

Statement by David Clohessy of St. Louis, director of SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests ( 314 566 9790, SNAPclohessy@aol.com )

Chicago’s most notorious predator priest Daniel McCormack will be in court today on new child sex charges.

There’s a simple but crucial lesson here and it can be summed up in the old adage “Where there’s a will, there’s a way.”

We believe law enforcement officials have brought these charges, in part, because they fear McCormack could walk free soon if the effort to have him permanently locked up isn’t taken.

So this is a smart prevention step. We applaud police and prosecutors and, most of all, the victim – all of whom are helping to stop future child sex crimes through these new charges.

But, this development shows that when law enforcement officials really put forth the effort, they can find ways to get and keep child molesting clerics behind bars. All too often, prosecutors decline to press charges against clergy who commit or conceal heinous child sex crimes, claiming they’re hamstrung by archaic laws, limited resources, uncooperative witnesses, intimidated victims or other reasons. The real reason, we often suspect, is simply a lack of political will to take on powerful, popular, well-funded institutions like the Catholic archdiocese.

In our 25 years, however, we’ve seen determined and savvy police and prosecutors become increasingly creative and aggressive about pursuing criminal cases against predator priests and their complicit supervisors. We hope that this trend continues and escalates.

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MICHIGAN
New York Daily News

BY DEBORAH HASTINGS
NEW YORK DAILY NEWS Wednesday, May 21, 2014

A defrocked Michigan pastor has made a courtroom confession.

Jeremy Grinnell, 42, pleaded guilty May 13 to being a Peeping Tom in Kent County Circuit Court.
He had propped a ladder against a Grand Rapids home in November and climbed up to watch a female couple having sex in their bedroom.

He was discovered peering in the window and told one woman he was praying for her.

The next night, he decided to do it again. This time, he was arrested by police.

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NEW YORK
Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests

For immediate release: Thursday, May 22, 2014

Statement by Barbara Dorris of St. Louis, Outreach Director of SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests ( 314-503-0003, SNAPdorris@gmail.com )

A Catholic church official, who taught abuse prevention in the New York City archdiocese, is charged with child pornography. His alleged crimes have led to the arrest of 71 individuals on child sex charges. This raises concerns about the church’s abuse programs and who runs them.

Click here to read the story.

Catholic officials relentlessly brag about these abuse programs. But they are relatively new and untested with little or no independent evaluation. They were adopted by bishops who were pressured by their insurers and public relations staff. They were set up to try to trick parishioners into believing that “things are changing in the church.” And these programs miss the boat, because the church’s horrific, on-going child sex abuse and cover up scandal was caused by – and is perpetuated by – the church hierarchy, not by church members.

Reckless, callous and self-serving bishops have put and still put kids in harm’s way. So no amount of training of lay people can remedy a crisis that continues thanks to the men atop the church’s rigid, secretive, all-male monarchy.

According to the New York Times, the investigation “began in Westchester County with the arrest of a police chief who was teaching classes about sexual abuse at a Roman Catholic church. Brian Fanelli, 54, who until January was the police chief of Mount Pleasant, N.Y. He was charged in federal court in White Plains with possession of child pornography, which carries a maximum prison term of 10 years and a $250,000 fine. Until October, Mr. Fanelli had been teaching children in religious classes at a Catholic church in Shrub Oak, N.Y., how to be alert to sexual abuse, covering topics like improper touching and the pitfalls of social media devices.”

We urge Catholic parishioners to remain vigilant. Despite decades of pledges, promises, programs and protocols, child sex crimes and cover-ups still happen in the church. Complacency protects no one. Only continued skepticism and vigilance protects kids.

And we urge parishioners to join the effort to reform New York’s archaic, predator-friendly statute of limitations, which enables more sex offenders to commit more crimes.

Finally, we urge Cardinal Timothy Dolan to spend less time bragging about untested abuse programs and more time improving them.

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AUSTRIA
Catholic Herald (UK)

[statement from the Holzers]

A senior figure in the We are Church movement has been excommunicated, the Austrian media have reported.

Martha Holzer and her husband, Gert, were excommunicated for “simulating the Mass”, according to the website Kath.net.

Mrs Holzer is a leading personality in We are Church, which was founded in 1995 in Austria, German and South Tyrol and seeks liberal reforms within the Catholic Church.

According to reports, the 67-year-old regularly took part in “private Eucharistic celebrations” at her home with no priest present. The Church considers the simulation of the Mass a delictum gravius, or “grave delict”.

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VATICAN CITY
Catholic News Service

By Cindy Wooden
Catholic News Service

VATICAN CITY (CNS) — The Vatican spokesman denied a German newspaper report that Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, retired Vatican secretary of state, was under criminal investigation for misappropriating funds from the so-called Vatican bank.

“No investigation of a criminal nature is being conducted by the Vatican magistrate involving Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone,” said Jesuit Father Federico Lombardi, Vatican spokesman, in a statement issued late May 20.

The German newspaper Bild had published a report the day before claiming an investigation had been launched into a 15-million-euro (about $20.5 million) loss resulting from an arrangement with Lux Vide, an Italian producer of television programs and films, mostly of a religious nature.

At the time the arrangement was made, Cardinal Bertone was president of the cardinals’ commission overseeing the Institute for the Works of Religion, commonly called the Vatican bank. In mid-January, Pope Francis replaced Cardinal Bertone and another three of the five cardinals on the commission.

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MISSOURI
Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests

For immediate release: Thursday, May 22, 2014

Statement by David Clohessy of St. Louis, director of SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests ( 314 566 9790, SNAPclohessy@aol.com )

We are very disappointed that an accused child molesting Missouri pastor has won another delay in his criminal trial and we are outraged that his flock lets him stay on the job despite multiple child sex abuse charges.

Every mid-Missouri clergyman and woman should use their pulpits to denounce the recklessness of the members of First Baptist Church in Moniteau County.

Rev. Travis Ray Smith continues to head his congregation even though he is accused of forcible rape, sexual abuse and two counts of statutory rape involving two girls.

[Lake News Online]

This isn’t the internal business of an isolated church. It’s a public safety matter. If Rev. Smith molests again, it won’t necessarily be a child in his congregation.

So we beg this judge to allow no further delays. We beg First Baptist officials to oust Smith. We beg religious figures in central Missouri to speak out against this callous and irresponsible move by church members to keep Rev. Smith in the pulpit. And we beg every single person who saw, suspected or suffered his crimes to call law enforcement immediately. It’s our civic and moral duty to help police and prosecutors convict child molesters so kids will be safe.

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VATICAN CITY
Vatican Information Service

Vatican City, 22 May 2014 (VIS) – The Holy Father has:

– appointed as members of the dicasteries of the Roman Curia the following cardinals, created during the consistory of 22 February 2014:

1. In the Congregation for the Oriental Churches: Cardinal Secretary of State Pietro Parolin; Cardinal Vincent Gerard Nichols, archbishop of Westminster, Great Britain; Cardinal Mario Aurelio Poli, archbishop of Buenos Aires, Argentina; Cardinal Gerhard Ludwig Muller, prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith;

2. In the Congregation for the Causes of Saints: Cardinal Lorenzo Baldisseri, secretary general of the Synod of Bishops; Cardinal Beniamino Stella, prefect of the Congregation for the Clergy;

3. In the Congregation for Bishops: Cardinal Secretary of State Pietro Parolin; Cardinal Vincent Gerard Nichols, archbishop of Westminster, Great Britain; Cardinal Gualtiero Bassetti, archbishop of Perugia-Citta della Pieve, Italy; Cardinal Lorenzo Baldisseri, secretary general of the Synod of Bishops; Cardinal Beniamino Stella, prefect of the Congregation for the Clergy;

4. In the Congregation for the Evangelisation of Peoples: Cardinal Secretary of State Pietro Parolin; Cardinal Andrew Yeom Soo-jung, archbishop of Seoul, Korea; Cardinal Philippe Nakellentuba Ouedraogo, archbishop of Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso;

5. In the Congregation for the Clergy: Cardinal Vincent Gerard Nichols, archbishop of Westminster, Great Britain; Cardinal Gualtiero Bassetti, archbishop of Perugia-Citta della Pieve, Italy; Cardinal Andrew Yeom Soo-jung, archbishop of Seoul, Korea;

6. In the Congregation for the Institutes of Consecrated Life and the Societies of Apostolic Life: Cardinal Gerald Cyprien Lacroix, archbishop of Quebec, Canada; Cardinal Jean-Pierre Kutwa, archbishop of Abidjan, Cote d’Ivoire; Cardinal Gerard Ludwig Muller, prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith; Cardinal Beniamino Stella, prefect of the Congregation for the Clergy;

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IRELAND
Galway Advertiser

By Kernan Andrews Galway Advertiser, Thu, May 22, 2014

Funding of more than €1 million has been secured for a new women’s refuge in Forster Street on the site of a former Magdalene Laundry.

Last year the Sisters of Mercy donated one of their properties to COPE Galway, with a view to developing a women’s refuge. The building needs extensive renovation in order to develop it into a state of the art facility, which will also offer extensive facilities for children.

COPE applied for funding through the Capital Assistance Scheme and has now received funding of more than €1.1 million, following a visit to the site by the Housing Minister Jan O’Sullivan. The Galway City Council has also supported the project.

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ITALY
The Local

A priest from the southern Italian city of Salerno is facing trial for allegedly forcing a man in his early twenties to have sex in exchange for giving him a job.

The priest invited the man to stay at his home when he moved to the city from the town of Valle dell’Urno, Il Mattino reported.

In exchange for the promise of work as a “driver or handyman”, the man claims the priest forced him to have sex.

The allegations date back before 2011, the year the priest was moved from the church.

Local magistrates have reportedly ordered the priest to stand trial.

In early April, a priest from Feltre, a hillside town in the northern Italian province of Belluno, was said to be under investigation for allegedly paying a Moroccan man for sex, and with cash from the local convent.

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GERMANY
Times of Malta

Thursday, May 22, 2014, 00:01 by John von Radowitz, PA

Paedophile brains are abnormally ‘tuned’ to be attracted to the faces of children, a study has found.
Scientists scanned the brains of 56 men, including 24 paedophiles, while showing them photos of adult men and women and boys’ and girls’ faces.

They found the same face and sexual processing regions of the brain activated in all the participants. The findings confirmed previous research showing that human face processing reflects sexual preferences.

It also showed, for the first time, that face processing is tuned to the age that is sexually preferred as well as the gender. In the case of paedophiles, their brains were activated most when they were looking at pictures of children.

The scientists, led by Jorge Ponseti – from Christian-Albrechts University in Kiel, Germany, wrote in the Royal Society journal Biology Letters: “The critical new finding is that face processing is also tuned to face cues revealing the developmental age that is sexually preferred.

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NEW YORK
Tageblatt

New York (dpa) – Die New Yorker Polizei hat einen großen Kinderporno-Ring gesprengt und 71 Verdächtige festgenommen. Darunter sind auch zwei Polizisten, zwei Krankenpfleger, ein Rabbi, ein Au-Pair und der Trainer eines Kinder-Baseballteams, wie die US-Verfassungsschutzbehörde mitteilte.

Den Verdächtigen wird Besitz, Herstellung und Verbreitung von Kinderpornografie vorgeworfen. Es war die bisher größte Razzia dieser Art der New Yorker Polizei.

«Für Verbrechen an Kindern gibt es keine Rechtfertigung, vor allem wenn die Täter eine Vertrauensstellung innehaben», sagte der Staatsanwalt des Bezirks Manhattan, Cyrus Vance.

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FRANKREICH
Kipa

[Summary: A priest in the Lyon area has been arrested and charged with sexual abuse of a 14-year-old runaway. The priest has been suspended from priestly duties by the Cardinal-Archbishop of Lyon, Philippe Barbarin.]

Lyon, 21 mai 2014 (Apic) Un prêtre de 45 ans a été déféré le 20 mai 2014 au parquet de Lyon pour corruption de mineur et atteinte sexuelle sur mineur de moins de quinze ans. Le parquet a requis sa mise en détention. Dès la nouvelle connue, le cardinal-archevêque de Lyon, Mgr Philippe Barbarin, a suspendu le prêtre de ses fonctions

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SCHWEIZ
Kipa

[Summary: Kipa surveyed the Swiss Bishops Conference to find how they they have handled complaints of sexual abuse. The result is there is plenty of goodwill but much remains to be done.]

Zürich, 22.5.14 (Kipa) Im Jahr 2010 häuften sich Meldungen von sexuellen Übergriffen im Umfeld der katholischen Kirche weltweit. Auch aus der Schweiz wurden Fälle publik. Wie hat die Kirche darauf reagiert, und was ist seither geschehen? Die Presseagentur Kipa hat beim Fachgremium der Schweizer Bischofskonferenz (SBK), bei einer Opfervereinigung und bei Bistümern nachgefragt. Fazit: Trotz viel gutem Willen bleibt noch einiges zu tun.

Die Kirche sei sich bewusst geworden, dass das Thema aktiv und konsequent angegangen werden müsse, sagt Giorgio Prestele, seit diesem Jahr Präsident des Fachgremiums «Sexuelle Übergriffe in der Pastoral». So seien in allen Diözesen entsprechende Fachgremien als neutrale Anlaufstellen eingerichtet worden. Die Richtlinien der SBK betreffend «Sexuelle Übergriffe im kirchlichen Umfeld» wurden zweimal revidiert. In der letzten Auflage vom Januar 2014 sind neu auch die Ordensgemeinschaften mit einbezogen.

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OSTERREICH
Kronen Zeitung

Wegen der Abhaltung privater Eucharistiefeiern ist die Vorsitzende der Plattform “Wir sind Kirche” in Tirol, Martha Heizer, per Dekret aus Rom exkommuniziert worden. Der Innsbrucker Bischof Manfred Scheuer informierte das Ehepaar Heizer am Mittwochabend persönlich über diese höchstmögliche Strafsanktion der katholischen Kirche.

Stein des Anstoßes war die Abhaltung von privaten Eucharistiefeiern im September 2011 zusammen mit fünf weiteren Gläubigen im Haus der Heizers in der Tiroler Ortschaft Absams. Solche Feiern, ohne die Anwesenheit eines geweihten Priesters, gelten in Rom als “delicta graviora”, also als schweres Vergehen.

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OSTERREICH
Die Welt

[Summary: Pope Francis has excommunicated the Austrian president of the Catholic reform movement called We Are Church. A report in Tiroler Tageszeitung has confirmed that Martha Heizer and her husband can no longer participate in the sacraments. Excommunication is the most severe penalty the church can impose. The retired religious educator and her husband in their private home regularly celebrated a simulated Mass with other believers but without ordained priests.]

Von Lucas Wiegelmann

Papst Franziskus hat die österreichische Vorsitzende der katholischen Reformbewegung “Wir sind Kirche” exkommuniziert. Einen entsprechenden Bericht der “Tiroler Tageszeitung” haben katholische Kirchenkreise bestätigt. Demnach dürfen die bekannte Kirchenreformerin Martha Heizer sowie ihr Mann künftig nicht mehr an den Sakramenten teilnehmen. Die Exkommunikation ist die strengste Strafe, die die Kirche verhängen kann.

Die pensionierte Religionspädagogin Heizer (67) und ihr Mann hatten regelmäßig in ihrem Privathaus im österreichischen Absam (Tirol) Messen gefeiert, gemeinsam mit anderen Gläubigen, allerdings ohne geweihte Priester. Das ist nach katholischer Lehre nicht zulässig.

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CHICAGO (IL)
Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests

For immediate release Wednesday, May 21

Statement by Barbara Blaine of Chicago, Founder and President of SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests ( 312-399-4747, SNAPblaine@gmail.com )

We are grateful for the victim and police who are working to get Fr. Daniel McCormack locked up again. He’s one of Illinois’ most egregious predator priests.

[CBS Chicago]

Chicago Catholic officials will no doubt try hard to distance themselves from him, arguing that he’s been defrocked. But we think it’s irresponsible for church officials to recruit, educate, train, hire, supervise, transfer and protect child molesting clerics, then suddenly pretend to be powerless once they are defrocked.

Top Chicago Catholic officials ignored warning signs, kept silent, and enabled McCormack to sexually violate perhaps dozens of boys. Those same Catholic officials have a moral and civic duty to help law enforcement pursue McCormack now, whether he’s defrocked or not.

There are hundreds of parish bulletins, church websites and pulpits where verbal announcements could and should be made, imploring every single person who saw, suspected or suffered McCormack’s crimes to call police immediately. Cardinal Francis George himself should personally visit every church where McCormack worked, begging his flock to step forward with what they know or suspect about McCormack. That’s what a truly caring shepherd would do.

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NEW YORK
The Daily Beast

Emily Shire

Samuel Waldman, one of the main alleged child porn purveyors named in ‘Operation Caireen,’ is only the latest in a series of scandals buffeting Brooklyn’s ultra-Orthodox community.

Among the 71 people charged in Wednesday’s Immigration and Customs Enforcement child porn ring bust, there are more than a handful of surprising offenders, including a Little League coach and a former Westchester police chief. But for those familiar with the Brooklyn ultra-Orthodox community’s repeated failure to report sexual abuse, seeing Rabbi Samuel Waldman arrested for the alleged possession of child pornography is no shocker.

It was Waldman’s own disturbing collection of child pornography, law enforcement officials say, that helped lead them to uncover dozens of other purveyors in “Operation Caireen.” His was one of two initial investigations—the other was of Brian Fanelli, a one-time Mount Pleasant police chief—that eventually led to Wednesday’s announcement of 71 arrests. On March 5, Waldman, 52, was charged with the transportation and distribution of child pornography. According to a criminal complaint filed in federal court, Waldman shared multiple child pornography files on publicly available peer-to-peer networks out of his home in the Kensington section of Brooklyn. These files, the complaint alleges, included a video of girls “between the ages of approximately four and eleven years of age” performing oral sex and being anally and vaginally penetrated by older men, and a clip of a naked prepubescent boy “being masturbated by another unknown person until the child ejaculates.”

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CHICAGO (IL)
Telemundo Chicago

El ex-religioso católico Daniel McCormack fue detenido el miércoles en conexión con acusaciones de abuso sexual.

La policía de Chicago confirmó la orden de detención en contra de McCormack por cargos criminales abuso sexual agravado, que presuntamente ocurrió en el 2005.

Se sabe que el ex-sacerdote, quien estuvo sirviendo en la Parroquia St. Agatha, estaba actualmente en un centro médico de salud mental.

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SOUTH AFRICA
Noseweek

Highly respected teacher scapegoated over 30-year-old sexual abuse incident – to save school’s reputation

By end of this school term, Bishops – formally Cape Town’s (Anglican) Diocesan School for Boys – and its powerful old boys union will ever so quietly have cut all ties with Tim Hamilton-Smith, who for 40 years has been an admired and beloved master, housemaster, vice-principal and rugby coach at South Africa’s oldest private school.

The school authorities had every reason to hope the event would pass unremarked-upon by most old boys, let alone the public, because it is intended to be the final stage of a protracted cover-up; and the school chairman has said (in a confidential email) that he has received information which tells of a “long and sorry history” of such cover-ups, devised to ensure the school’s reputation remained untarnished by sexual scandal.

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SCOTLAND
Daily Record

May 22, 2014 09:44 By James Moncur

GEORGE Clark has told how he would hear Christian Brothers at St Ninians School in Fife sneaking into dormitories at night as they hunted for the most vulnerable children.

A FORMER pupil of a boarding school at the centre of a child abuse probe yesterday revealed Christian Brothers prowled dormitories at night hunting for victims.

George Clark came forward after the Record told how youngster Dave Sharp was raped by Brother Gerry Ryan at St Ninians School, Fife, and trafficked to Ireland for further abuse by more men.

We then revealed six men in their 60s and 70s had been arrested and charged with multiple complaints of physical and sexual abuse at the school between January 1978 and July 1983.

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TENNESSEE
WBBJ

[with video]

By Heather Mathis
By hmathis@wbbjtv.com
Story Created: May 21, 2014

MADISON COUNTY, Tenn. — A Bemis church is in legal trouble after a mother alleges it created a “foreseeable risk of harm” that led to the molestation of her young daughter.

According to the lawsuit, Chad Lutrell, a longtime member of First Baptist Church in Bemis, inappropriately touched the 10-year-old while volunteering at the church’s Vacation Bible School in June 2009.

The girl’s mother now says the church is to blame for her daughter’s abuse because it did not properly handle similar sexual assault claims made years prior.

WBBJ 7 Eyewitness News spoke to the family’s attorney, Adam Horowitz Wednesday. He tells us the family had no idea of Lutrell’s past when they sent their daughter to the church program.

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UNITED STATES
Gospel Herald

Billy Graham’s Grandson Tullian Tchividjian Leaves The Gospel Coalition, Cites CJ Mahaney Controversy

By LEAH MARIEANN KLETT (NEWS@GOSPELHERALD.COM)

Popular author and speaker Tullian Tchividjian announced earlier this week that he would depart as a top contributor for the evangelical website The Gospel Coalition. In a post titled,

“I’ve Come to Set the Captives Free,” Tullian, who is the grandson of evangelist Billy Graham and the pastor of Coral Ridge Presbyterian Church, wrote that the “the messaging of The Gospel Coalition has morphed over the last seven years” into something he feels is no longer consistent with their original mission: “to be a hallway where Christians from all denominational backgrounds who may disagree on non-essentials could gather and rally around the Good News.”

Tchividjian stated that he will instead be focusing his efforts on his own ministry, Liberate, which he describes as connecting “God’s inexhaustible grace to an exhausted world.” He reportedly informed TGC editors that he intended to move all of his blog content to his new site.

But his exit has been anything but pretty.

Although Tchividjian hoped to remain at TGC until August, he was informed that “certain members of The Gospel Coalition wanted the transition to happen ASAP.”

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MISSOURI
Lake News Online

Posted May. 21, 2014

Morgan County

The jury trial of a California, Mo. man charged with multiple counts related to child sexual abuse has been rescheduled again.

Travis Ray Smith, 44, was scheduled to go to trial in Moniteau County on June 2, 2014 after the trial was first continued in late 2013.

In a pre-trial conference May 16 for the June trial, Smith’s trial date was reset to begin Dec. 1, 2014 with the pre-trial conference scheduled for Nov. 14.

Smith’s defense attorney, Shane Farrow of Jefferson City, was granted the continuance by Judge Kenneth Hayden over the objection of Moniteau County Prosecuting Attorney Shayne Healea.

In September 2012, Smith was arrested by the Missouri State Highway Patrol on charges of forcible rape, sexual abuse and two counts of statutory rape in the second degree in incidents alleged to have taken place in 1998 and 1999. He was also then charged in Moniteau County Circuit Court with statutory rape in the second degree and statutory sodomy in the second degree related to incidents alleged to have occurred in 2005.

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TENNESSEE
Jackson Sun

Family claims First Baptist Church of Bemis was negligent, seeks more than $2M in lawsuit over sexual abuse

Written by
Nichole Manna

The family of a girl who was molested by a member of First Baptist Church of Bemis in 2009 is suing the church for negligence because the church allowed the man to volunteer at the Vacation Bible School during which the incident occurred, according to the lawsuit filed Wednesday.

The suit, filed in Madison County Circuit Court, seeks $2 million in compensatory damages plus punitive damages, medical expenses and any other costs the court deems proper. The family is asking for a jury trial.

The law firm of Farmer, Jaffe, Weissing, Edwards, Fistos & Lehrman in Ft. Lauderdale, Fla, filed the suit on behalf of the family. The lawsuit does not identify the girl but instead uses the name Jane Doe because of the allegations of sexual abuse.

The church’s current pastor, Brother John Norvell, said the church did not have a comment to make at this time.

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CHICAGO (IL)
WGN

[with video]

by Frank Holland
Anchor/Reporter

A former Chicago priest is in police custody again in connection with sexual abuse allegation from 2005.

An arrest warrant was obtain for former priest Daniel McCormack, police said. They confirm McCormack is currently in custody.

Earlier this year, three men filed suit against the Chicago Archdiocese claiming they were molested by former priest Daniel McCormack when they played on the basketball team at Our Lady of the Westside School a decade ago.

The lawsuit also accuses the Archdiocese of knowingly letting McCormack work unsupervised with children after it knew there were serious allegations against him.

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CHICAGO (IL)
Chicago Sun-Times

BY MITCH DUDEK Staff Reporter May 21, 2014

Convicted child molester and defrocked Catholic priest Daniel McCormack was charged Wednesday with aggravated criminal sexual abuse in a 2005 incident involving a minor boy, according to the Cook County State’s Attorney’s office.

McCormack is expected to appear in bond court on the latest charges on Thursday.

He remains in custody pending a hearing on whether he is declared a sexual deviant person, according to Sally Daly, a spokeswoman with the Cook County State’s Attorney’s office.

Chicago Police officers arrested McCormack at a Department of Human Services treatment facility in Rushville, Ill. — about 230 miles southwest of Chicago.

McCormack had been serving his sentence at the Western Illinois Correctional Center in Mount Sterling, Ill., until he was paroled to the Rushville facility in 2009, according to Illinois Department of Corrections spokesman Tom Shaer.

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CHICAGO (IL)
WLS

By Stacey Baca
Wednesday, May 21, 2014

CHICAGO (WLS) — Former Chicago priest Daniel McCormack is in custody again. The convicted child molester was arrested Wednesday night in connection with another alleged sexual assault.

McCormack is facing one charge of aggravated criminal sexual abuse, according to the Cook County State’s Attorney’s office. Prosecutors expect more details to be released in court Thursday.

McCormack was brought to the 1st District in the South Loop on an arrest warrant Wednesday night.

“When we hear that he is being prosecuted again, and inevitably incarcerated perhaps for life. It gives us some comfort to us and those whose lives who have been shattered and torn,” said Jeff Anderson, attorney. ”

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MASSACHUSETTS
The Salem News

May 22, 2014

BY JULIE MANGANIS
STAFF WRITER

IPSWICH — A Salem Superior Court judge has denied a motion to dismiss some of the charges against a retired Roman Catholic priest charged with molesting two boys decades ago at a summer camp run by the Salesian Brothers of Don Bosco in Ipswich.

The Rev. Richard McCormick, 73, is facing allegations of child rape involving two now-grown victims who attended the camp in the early 1980s.

Last month, McCormick’s attorney, Stephen Neyman, argued that the testimony from one of the two men to a grand jury was not specific enough to warrant an indictment on child rape.

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CHICAGO (IL)
The Washington Times

By Cheryl K. Chumley-The Washington Times Thursday, May 22, 2014

A defrocked Catholic priest who admitted in 2007 to abusing five children has now been arrested and charged with aggravated criminal sexual abuse, Chicago law enforcement confirmed.

Daniel McCormack was taken into custody over allegations that involve another victim who was 10 during the alleged abuse, which took place in 2005, Cook County State’s Attorney spokesperson Sally Daley said to NBC 5.

McCormack admitted he abused five children years ago and was sentenced to five years in prison and booted from the priesthood. He’s been staying at a state mental health facility, NBC 5 reported.

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CHICAGO (IL)
Comcast Sportsnet

Former Catholic priest Daniel McCormack was taken into police custody Wednesday in connection with sexual abuse allegations.

Police confirm that an arrest warrant was obtained for McCormack on charges of aggravated criminal sexual abuse that allegedly occurred in 2005.

McCormack, who served at St. Agatha’s parish, was currently staying at a state mental health facility.

McCormack pleaded guilty in 2007 to abusing five children. He was sentenced to five years in prison and removed from the priesthood.

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CHICAGO (IL)
Chicago Tribune

By Carlos Sadovi
Tribune reporter
7:56 p.m. CDT, May 21, 2014

A defrocked priest who had been convicted of abusing several children at his West Side parish was arrested today after a warrant was issued regarding a new allegation stemming from a 2005 incident, police said.

Daniel McCormack, who pleaded guilty in 2007 to multiple counts of criminal sexual assault and was sentenced to five years in prison, was taken into custody after a warrant for aggravated criminal sexual abuse was served, according to Chicago police. He was being processed, police said.

McCormack, 45, pleaded guilty to three counts of aggravated criminal sexual abuse to children under the age of 13, according to Illinois Department of Corrections.

According to court records, the latest warrant was issued by Cook County Criminal Court Judge Mary Margaret Brosnahan on May 16. According to records, the address given for McCormack was the Illinois Department of Human Services Treatment and Detention Facility in Rushville.

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NEW YORK
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE)

HSI New York announces arrest of 71 individuals for sexual exploitation crimes against children in ‘Operation Caireen’ Federal, state charges include possession, distribution of child pornography

Visit our DVIDS page for part one and part two of the b-roll video footage of the operation.

NEW YORK — A senior official from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) announced Wednesday the arrest of 71 individuals for crimes involving the sexual exploitation of children in Operation Caireen, the largest-ever enforcement operation in New York targeting predators who possess, produce or distribute sexually explicit images of children.

Special Agent in Charge James T. Hayes, Jr., head of the HSI New York office, made the announcement in Manhattan with Queens County District Attorney Richard A. Brown, Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus R. Vance, Jr., Brooklyn District Attorney Kenneth P. Thompson, Richmond County District Attorney Daniel M. Donovan, Jr., New York City Police Department Chief of Detectives Robert Boyce, Deputy Chief of the Criminal Division for the Eastern District of New York Lisa Kramer, Deputy Chief of the Criminal Division for the Southern District of New York Joan Loughnane, Special Agent in Charge for the United States Coast Guard Investigative Service Otis E. Harris, Jr., Special Agent in Charge for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms Thomas J. Cannon, Assistant Special Agent in Charge for the United States Secret Service Michael Seremetis, Chief of the General Crimes Section for the Eastern District of New York Patrick Sinclair, Chief of the Rockland County Sheriff’s Office William Barbera, and Putnam County District Attorney’s Office Senior Investigator Henry Lopez. …

Arrests predicating Operation Caireen:

On January 23, HSI agents arrested Brian Fanelli, chief of the Mount Pleasant Police Department in Valhalla, New York. Fanelli has been charged with Federal child pornography violations in the Southern District of New York.

On March 5, HSI agents arrested Samuel Waldman, a rabbi and an instructor of Judaic studies, at his residence in Brooklyn. Waldman has been charged with possession of child pornography in the Southern District of New York. While utilizing the P2P file sharing system, agents identified Waldman’s IP address as one that offered for dissemination videos of child pornography.

High profile arrests during Operation Caireen:

On April 8, Kenneth Gardner, a registered nurse at Westchester County Medical Center, was arrested at his residence in Astoria and charged with violations of New York State Penal Law 263.15, promoting a sex performance of a child under age 17; 263.11, possessing an obscene sexual performance by a child; and 263.16, possessing a sexual performance by a child.

On April 17, Eduardo Salcedo Urzola, who was working as an au pair, was arrested at his residence in Brooklyn and charged with possession of child pornography under federal law. This arrest followed the execution of a search warrant issued by a U.S. magistrate judge in the Eastern District of New York. While utilizing the P2P file sharing system, agents identified an IP address at a residence associated with Salcedo Urzola’s that made known images and/or movies of child pornography available for distribution.

On April 28, Aaron Young, a paramedic, was arrested at his residence in Queens and charged under New York State law with possession of child pornography. This arrest followed the execution of a state search warrant issued by a judge in Queens County. While utilizing the P2P file sharing system, agents identified an IP address at Young’s residence that made known images and/or movies of child pornography available for distribution.

On April 28, Yong Wu, a police officer, was arrested at his residence in Ozone Park and charged with possession of child pornography under state law. This arrest followed the execution of a search warrant issued by a judge in Queens County. While utilizing the P2P file sharing system, agents identified an IP address at Wu’s residence that made known images and/or movies of child pornography available for distribution.

On May 9, Jonathan Silber, a Boy Scout den leader and Little League baseball coach, was arrested at his residence in Suffern and charged under New York state law with possession of child pornography. This arrest followed the execution of a state search warrant issued by a judge in Rockland County. While utilizing the P2P file sharing system, agents identified an IP address connected to Silber that made known images and/or movies of child pornography available for distribution.

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NEW YORK
The Jewish Daily Forward

A Jewish Boy Scout leader from Long Island, a Brooklyn rabbi and a police officer were among some 71 people arrested in the New York City-area, in one of the largest roundups of those who share child pornography online, a federal official said Wednesday.

Jonathan Silber, a Boy Scout den leader and Little League baseball coach, was arrested on May 9 at his residence in Suffern and charged under New York state law with possession of child pornography.

The new arrests was part of the same probe that led to the March arrest of Rabbi Samuel Waldman, a teacher at a Jewish school, at his home in Brooklyn in March.

Waldman, 52, a teacher at a Jewish girls seminary, faces a possible five years in prison after he admitted downloading at least three short films depicting young boys and girls engaging in sex acts.

Those arrested face charges of sharing and distributing child pornography through peer-to-peer file networks, which allow massive numbers of images, documents and videos to be traded online, said a federal agent who declined to be named ahead of an official announcement later on Wednesday.

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NEW YORK
New York Daily News

BY ERICA PEARSON , BILL HUTCHINSON
NEW YORK DAILY NEWS Published: Wednesday, May 21, 2014

A shocking investigation resulted in the arrests of 71 “twisted individuals” who swapped thousands of sick kiddie porn images on the Internet like baseball cards, officials said Wednesday.

Nabbed in the crackdown were an NYPD officer, a Westchester County police chief, a Brooklyn rabbi, two registered nurses, a paramedic and an au pair. One suspect was both a Boy Scout den leader and a Little League baseball coach.

The arrests also included High Bridge, N.J., mother Lori Bauer, who was charged with producing and distributing pornography involving her own child.

Officials said the voluminous evidence seized suggests the sexual exploitation of children in the New York City area has hit “epidemic proportions.”

The disturbing images confiscated off computers, smartphones and thumb drives included children as young as 3 years old being sexually abused, officials said.

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NEW YORK
The American Conservative

By ROD DREHER • May 21, 2014

This unnerves me:

In what law enforcement officials have described as the largest-ever enforcement operation in New York going after people who “possess, produce or distribute sexually explicit images of children,” 70 people have been arrested across the state and charged with crimes involving the exploitation of children.

The people arrested include two police officers, two registered nurses, a paramedic, an au pair, and an individual who served as both a den master with the Boy Scouts of America and a Little League baseball coach. …

A chief of police (who was also a Sunday school teacher and child sex-abuse educator) and a rabbi — and their arrests led to the others. Stunning. It makes you feel that you can never, ever let your guard down. Ever.

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NEW YORK
New Tang Dynasty Television

Two police officers, a Little League coach, and a mother were among 71 people arrested across the New York City-area in the largest-ever roundup of people who share child pornography online, federal and local law enforcement said Wednesday (May 21).

The 70 men and one woman came from all five boroughs of New York City and the surrounding suburbs, including New Jersey and Long Island, and range in age from their 20s to 50s, authorities said.

The investigation was led by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), whose agents identified an online network sharing child pornography, said Special Agent James Hayes. …

Authorities became aware of the file-sharing ring after the January arrest of Brian Fanelli, a former police chief in Mount Pleasant, 24 miles (38 km) north of New York City and the March arrest of a Brooklyn rabbi, Samuel Waldman, on child pornography charges.

Both men’s computers were linked to a peer-to-peer network that allowed users to share caches of child pornography while easily importing materials from other computers linked on the network, authorities said.

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NEW YORK
Gnomes

New York (CNN) — They are people children are supposed to trust: A New York Police Department officer, a Fire Department of New York paramedic, a rabbi and a scoutmaster were among more than 70 people arrested in a major child porn bust, authorities said Wednesday.

One of those arrested — a supervisor with the Transportation Security Administration — allegedly traveled to the Dominican Republic to have sex with children, a law enforcement official said. He allegedly made more than 50 trips there. …

State and federal authorities said the alleged offenders included:

•NYPD Sgt. Alberto Randazzo is on paid suspension after being arrested in February 2013 by the Internal Affairs Bureau on 57 felony counts of child pornography. Randazzo was allegedly communicating with women in video chat rooms and ordering the women to sexually abuse their children, prosecutors said. In one video allegedly recorded by Randazzo, he can be heard directing a woman to molest her infant child.

•Samuel Waldman, a rabbi and an instructor of Judaic studies, was arrested at his Brooklyn residence and charged under federal law with possession of child pornography, prosecutors said. Using a file sharing system, agents identified Waldman’s IP address as one that offered the dissemination of videos of child pornography.

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NEW YORK
The New York Times

By JOSEPH BERGER
MAY 21, 2014

It began in Westchester County with the arrest of a police chief who was teaching classes about sexual abuse at a Roman Catholic church. The investigation soon swept up many others who were swapping files of children forced into explicit sexual acts: two registered nurses, a Brooklyn rabbi, a New York City police officer, a paramedic and a Boy Scout leader.

All told, 71 people — 70 men and one woman — were taken into custody in the New York City area in recent months on charges of possessing, producing or distributing child pornography, the federal Department of Homeland Security announced on Wednesday at a news conference in Manhattan attended by four New York district attorneys.

“The professional backgrounds of many of the defendants is troubling,” said James T. Hayes Jr., a special agent in charge of Homeland Security Investigations. “We can no longer assume that the only people who would stoop to prey on children are unemployed drifters.” Other suspects include an airline pilot and an architect. …

The investigation began after agents, using software available to law enforcement, were able to trace files of child pornography to an I.P. address on a computer used by Brian Fanelli, 54, who until January was the police chief of Mount Pleasant, N.Y. He was charged in federal court in White Plains with possession of child pornography, which carries a maximum prison term of 10 years and a $250,000 fine.

Until October, Mr. Fanelli had been teaching children in religious classes at a Catholic church in Shrub Oak, N.Y., how to be alert to sexual abuse, covering topics like improper touching and the pitfalls of social media devices. His lawyer, Susanne Brody, has declined to comment on his case.

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MASSACHUSETTS
WGGB

ALTOONA-JOHNSTOWN, PA (WGGB) – A reverend, who spent some time at parishes in Chicopee, was removed from active ministry this past weekend, due to allegations of sexual misconduct dating back to the 1980s.

Reverend Michael Lewandowski was assigned to both St. Stanislaus Basilica and St. Anthony of Padua parishes in Chicopee during the 1990s. But no complaints against the priest were made during his time in western Mass.

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MASSACHUSETTS
iobserve

SPRINGFIELD- A Franciscan friar who served in two western Massachusetts parishes in the 1990’s has been removed from active ministry by both his Conventual Franciscan Order and the Roman Catholic Diocese of Altoona-Johnstown, PA where he had served since 1997.

Conventual Franciscan Father Michael Lewandowski was removed from his position at St. Anne’s Parish in Davidsville, PA on May 19 based on allegations dating back to the 1980’s which happened in Maryland according to news reports. In removing him, Altonna diocesan officials indicated that there had been no complaints regarding Fr. Lewandowski during his 17 years in their diocese.

Likewise in a statement released late Wednesday afternoon May 21 by the Roman Catholic Diocese of Springfield, officials here also indicated that “(n)o complaints against this priest have been forthcoming from his time in western Massachusetts.”

Fr. Lewandowski served locally at both St. Stanislaus Basilica and St. Anthony of Padua parishes in Chicopee starting in October 1991 until shortly before his re-assignment to Davidsville, PA.

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MASSACHUSETTS
WWLP

Barry Kriger
Updated: Wednesday, May 21, 2014

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (WWLP) – A priest who had served in two Chicopee parishes has been suspended by a Pennsylvania Diocese because of unspecified sexual allegations dating back three decades.

The Roman Catholic Diocese of Springfield issued a News Release Wednesday saying, “The Diocese has learned … of the removal from active ministry this past weekend by the Diocese of Altoona-Johnstown, PA of Conventual Franciscan friar, Rev. Michael Lewandowski. That diocese undertook this action because of Fr. Lewandowski’s suspension by the Conventual Franciscans of Our Lady of the Angels Province in Ellicott City, Maryland resulting from an allegation of sexual misconduct dating back to the 1980’s elsewhere.”

The Springfield Diocese News Release goes on to say that Fr. Lewandowski was assigned to both St. Stanislaus Basilica and St. Anthony of Padua parishes in Chicopee during the 1990’s.

Diocese spokesman Mark Dupont wrote, “No complaints against this priest have been forthcoming from his time in western Massachusetts.”

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NEW YORK
WBNG

By Conor Mooney

May 21, 2014

(WBNG Binghamton) A local priest is accused of possessing child pornography, according to the diocese of Syracuse.

A spokeswoman from the diocese said in a statement Wednesday afternoon that Fr. Robert Ours was indicted by an Onondaga County grand jury and arraigned in Onondaga County Court Wednesday morning on charges of possessing child pornography.

Ours — who became inactive in 2011 because of personal reasons — was a member of the faculty at Seton Catholic Central and served as an administrator at the former St. Rita’s Church in Chenango Forks, which closed in January 2006, according to Action News archives. He was also an associate pastor at Holy Family in Endwell.

Ours is a resident of Onondaga County, according to Danielle Cummings, assistant chancellor and director of communications with the diocese. That’s why the case is being handled in Onondaga County, Cummings said.

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MINNESOTA
KARE

[with video]

Adrienne Broaddus, KARE May 21, 2014

MINNEAPOLIS – Years have passed but the memories haven’t faded. A man, now in his 30s, told investigators in Dakota County he was sexually abused by former catholic priest Francis Hoefgen from the spring of 1989 to the fall of 1991. Wednesday, Hoefgen was charged with two counts of criminal sexual conduct in the first degree in Dakota County.

The victim, a former altar boy, said the repeated abuse started when he was nine and ended when he was 12. He told investigators he was inappropriately touched and penetrated. After suffering in silence, police said the victim came forward in November of 2013.

“It is not surprising that the victim in this case waited over 20 years to report this matter to the Hastings Police Department,” Prosecutor James Backstrom said. “Most child victims of sexual crimes repress the troubling memories of their abuse for many years.”

Backstrom is asking other victims to come forward.

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CHICAGO (IL)
CBS Chicago

May 21, 2014 7:05 PM

(CBS) — A former Roman Catholic priest who pleaded guilty to numerous cases of child molestation is back in police custody.

Chicago Police News Affairs has confirmed to Newsradio that officers took Daniel McCormack into custody Wednesday on a charge of aggravated criminal sexual abuse.

Police say the arrest stems from a complaint back in 2005.

McCormack was being held in a state facility after doing time in connection with incidents that happened when he led two Chicago churches.

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MASSACHUSETTS
The Republican

By Jeanette DeForge | jdeforge@repub.com
on May 21, 2014

CHICOPEE — A Franciscan priest who served at St. Stanislaus Basilica and St. Anthony of Padua parishes during the 1990s has been suspended from active ministry in Pennsylvania after an allegation of sexual misconduct was filed against him.

Rev. Michael Lewandowski was removed from active ministry this weekend by the Diocese of Altoona-Johnson, Pa. He had been was serving as the pastor of St. Anne Parish in Davidsville, Pa., since 1997, according to officials for the Roman Catholic Diocese of Springfield.

Church officials did not reveal details about the allegation of sexual misconduct, except to say it happened in the 1980s. No location was given, but officials said it did not happen in Pennsylvania or Western Massachusetts.

Placing a priest on leave after allegations of sexual misconduct has become a standard practice while an investigation is conducted.

Anyone with knowledge of sexual abuse of a minor by Lewandowski, any member of the clergy or other church personnel is urged to contact the local district attorney’s office and Patricia McManamy, a licensed social worker and victim assistance coordinator for the Diocese of Springfield, at 800-842-9055.

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NEW YORK
Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests

For immediate release: Wednesday, May 21

Statement by David Clohessy of St. Louis, Director of SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests ( 314 566 9790, SNAPclohessy@aol.com )

We are grateful that Fr. Robert Ours has been arrested on child porn charges. Now, we hope his superiors in the Syracuse Catholic diocese aggressively seek out others who may have seen, suspected or suffered Fr. Ours’ crimes and urge them to contact police and prosecutors immediately.

[Binghamton Homepage]

In cases like this, Catholic church employees and members have a simple choice. They can passively sit back, do nothing, and hope that police and prosecutors build a strong case, win a conviction, and put a dangerous cleric behind bars. Or they can actively seek out others with knowledge and suspicions that might help police and prosecutors build a strong case. We hope they will act responsibly and use their church bulletins, parish websites and pulpit announcements to break a centuries-old culture of silence in Catholicism about clergy sex crimes.

Specifically, we urge Syracuse’s bishop to personally visit every parish where Fr. Ours worked, begging victims, witnesses and whistle blowers to contact law enforcement so that kids can be protected and justice can be done.

Finally, Fr. Ours is NOT a “former” priest or an “ex” priest. A priest becomes an ex-priest when the Vatican defrocks him and not before. This has not happened. So Fr. Ours is a Syracuse diocese priest, even if he is retired.

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CHICAGO (IL)
Legal Broadcast Network

[with audio]

A lawsuit was filed in April 2014 against the Archdiocese of Chicago and Cardinal Francis George by a man who alleges that he was abused as young boy by Father Daniel McCormack. Lyndsay Markley represents alleged victim, suit in Cook County court. According to Markley there are ten

“Societally, we seem to have an epidemic of turning our heads the other way,” Markley opines. As early as 1997, Markley says, there were allegations of sexual abuse by McCormack. By the time he was moved to Chicago to St. Agatha’s Parish, the Archidiocese was well on notice that this was not an individual who could be trusted around children. He was moved to a place where he had more access to children. According to Marklye, the Archdiocese, in this context, is a business corporation operating schools, so how could it give McCormack access to the children? Also, his proclivities were known when he was in the seminary, yet he was anointed a priest.

Had the Archidiocese acted more quickly, it would have prevented more children from being exposed to abuse, and it would have limited the Archdiocese’s exposure to damages.

Markley observed that “Passersby on the street can turn their heads, but when you are legally responsible for people, that can’t be your attitude.”

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MINNESOTA
Star Tribune

Article by: PAUL WALSH and PAT PHEIFER , Star Tribune staff writers Updated: May 21, 2014

Francis Hoefgen was charged with two counts of first-degree criminal sexual conduct for allegedly abusing the boy in the late 1980s and early 1990s. The alleged abuse began when the boy was 9 or 10 years old.

A onetime priest at a Catholic parish in Hastings was charged Wednesday with repeatedly sexually abusing an altar boy in the late 1980s and into early 1990s, acts that allegedly occurred after he was removed from a central Minnesota parish after similar behavior.

Francis Hoefgen, 63, of Columbia Heights, was charged with two counts of first-degree criminal sexual conduct for allegedly abusing the boy from early 1989 to late 1991. Hoefgen posted bond Wednesday and was released from the Dakota County jail.

The abuse began when the victim was 9 or 10 years old years old and an altar boy at St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Catholic Church (formerly St. Boniface), where Hoefgen was assigned, according to the charges. …

The Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, a national clergy sex abuse watchdog group, said in a statement released by regional director Joelle Casteix, “We applaud Hastings-area law enforcement for thoroughly investigating [Hoefgen], as well as the sex abuse and cover-up documents in his secret personnel file.”

The group added that if those allegedly abused by Hoefgen had not stepped forward, the public may have never learned the extent of the cleric’s crimes. In fact, he would probably still be working with vulnerable children.”

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UNITED STATES
Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests

For immediate release Thursday May 21, 2014

Statement by Barbara Blaine, SNAP President, bblaine@SNAPnetwork.org, +1 312-455-1499 (office), +1 312-399-4747 (cell)

On Friday, a second United Nations panel will release a new report that looks at Catholic officials’ handling of rape and sexual violence by clergy. This time, the UN Committee Against Torture will issue its findings as to whether Catholic officials are violation of the Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman and Degrading Treatment.

But it has now been 12 weeks since another United Nations panel released a lengthy report about the church’s on-going clergy sexual violence and cover up crisis. That panel made 22 recommendations on how Vatican officials can better implement the Convention on the Rights of the Child.

As best we can tell, every Catholic official is ignoring every one of those recommendations. That is shameful.

We expect on Friday, when the U.N. Committee Against Torture issues its new report, that apologists for the Catholic hierarchy will question the panel’s judgment, perhaps even its motives. We hope we are wrong.

But if that happens, we hope citizens and Catholics will look at these claims by church officials with great skepticism. The Catholic hierarchy has long tried to evade responsibility for and deflect attention from its long-standing and devastating wrongdoing by attacking those who expose clergy sexual violence and cover ups.

[Convention on the Rights of the Child]

The Committee Against Torture questioned Vatican officials earlier this month about widespread sexual violence.

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VATICAN CITY
Religion News Service

Josephine McKenna | May 21, 2014

VATICAN CITY (RNS) The Italian cardinal who served as the Vatican’s No. 2 official under Pope Benedict XVI has rejected allegations that he mishandled 15 million euros ($20 million) from Vatican bank accounts.

The German daily Bild Zeitung reported Tuesday (May 20) that Vatican regulators had opened an investigation into the allegations against former Secretary of State Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, citing unofficial church sources.

The newspaper said the money went to a TV production company, later identified as Lux Vide, that is owned by Bertone’s friend Ettore Bernabei, a former director general of Italian state broadcaster Rai.

Bertone told the Italian news agency ANSA that there was “no problem linked to this operation” and that everything had been conducted according to “all the regulations” at the Vatican bank, officially known as the Institute for Religious Works.

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NEW YORK
Binghamton Homepage

Syracuse (WSYR-TV/WIVT) – A former priest in the Syracuse Diocese was arraigned on child pornography charges on Wednesday, the Onondaga County District Attorney’s Office says.

Father Robert Ours was arraigned on a single count of possession of child pornography, a class E felony.

The Syracuse Diocese said Father Ours retired in 2012.

He mostly served in the Binghamton area at Seton Catholic Central.

Diocesan officials say they contacted the District Attorney’s office when they learned of Father Ours’ actions.

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MINNESOTA
KVRR

A former Catholic priest has been charged in Dakota County with sexually abusing an altar boy from 1989 to 1991.

Sixty-three-year-old Francis Hoefgen has been charged with first-degree criminal sexual conduct.

Hoefgen is accused of abusing the boy at a catholic church in Hastings when the child was 9 to 12 years old.

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NEW YORK
Post-Standard

By Douglass Dowty | ddowty@syracuse.com
on May 21, 2014

Syracuse, NY — A Catholic priest living in Syracuse has been charged with possessing child pornography.

Robert Ours, 65, was arraigned this morning on one count of possessing a sexual performance by a child, according to the Onondaga County District Attorney’s Office.

The Syracuse Catholic Diocese reported the allegations of child porn to the DA’s office a few months ago, said diocese Director of Communications Danielle Cummings. The diocese has fully cooperated in the investigation, the DA’s office confirmed.

Ours led churches in the Southern Tier before retiring in 2012, Cummings said. He has since lived at the Tommy Coyne Residence for Priests, at 714 Brighton Ave.

Ours had no known history of pornography or sexual abuse, Cummings said. He has been a priest since 1980.

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UNITED STATES
BishopAccountability.org

Summary of Case: A Jesuit priest of the New Orleans Province ordained in 1950, Madrid worked in El Paso, Mexico, New Orleans, Albuquerque and San Antonio. He died in 1982. Madrid was accused in a 2011 lawsuit of the sexual abuse of an 8 to 12-year-old altar boy in El Paso in the 1970s, and in a 2013 lawsuit of sexually abusing another 8 year-old boy at the same parish during 1975-1975. Further, Madrid is said to have “petted and kissed” a nine-year-old in San Antonio prior to his transfer to El Paso; the Jesuits are said to have known this and that Madrid was having hallucinations and a “nervous breakdown.”

Ordained: 1950
Died: 1982

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UNITED STATES
YouTube

Uploaded on May 16, 2014

CCR presents the 2014 Social Justice Ally Award to the Survivor’s Network of Those Abused by Priests (SNAP) for their incredible partnership and tireless advocacy.

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ESPANA
El Pais

[Summary: Sara Oviedo Fierro was in 2012 elected president of the UN Committee of the Convention of the Rights of the Child. The Ecuadorian sociologist, who started at age 13 to defend the rights of indigenous people, witnessed the elusive answers and refusal of the Holy See spokesman to provide data and factors on cases of sexual abuse within the Catholic Church. Oviedo was interviewed on the issue of child abuse which she said is is rooted in the foundations of the church and church authorities fear to confront the problem.]

INÉS SANTAEULALIA México DF 14 FEB 2014

Sara Oviedo Fierro (Ecuador, 28 de julio de 1952) fue elegida en 2012 vicepresidenta del Comité de la Convención de Derechos del Niño en la ONU ante el que compareció el Vaticano el pasado 16 de enero. La socióloga ecuatoriana, que empezó a los 13 años a defender los derechos de los indígenas, las mujeres y los niños, fue testigo de las respuestas esquivas y de la negativa de los portavoces de la Santa Sede a ofrecer datos y hechos concretos sobre los casos de abusos sexuales en el seno de la Iglesia. Como coautora del durísimo informe emitido tras la comparencia, en el que la ONU exige a la Iglesia que entregue a los curas pederastas y que proteja a los niños, Oviedo afirma en esta entrevista, a través de videoconferencia, que el tema de la pederastia está “tan enraizado en las bases de la Iglesia” que sus autoridades tienen miedo a enfrentar el problema.

Pregunta. Hasta ahora nunca nadie había conseguido interpelar a la Santa Sede. ¿Fue difícil sentar al Vaticano?

Respuesta. Lo que hicimos fue cumplir con el procedimiento de realizar exámenes a todos los países firmantes del tratado de los derechos del niño, pero la diferencia es que teníamos la convicción de que había que hablar de la pederastia. El diálogo con la Santa Sede se dio en un momento en el que era factible. Existe una mayor apertura de la Santa Sede y existe una necesidad latente de las víctimas y la sociedad de reconocer este tema.

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UNITED STATES
St. Lous Post-Dispatch

By Christian Cary

WASHINGTON • A United Nations committee is set to publish its verdict Friday on the child abuse scandal in the Catholic Church. It’s hard to tell what the result is going be. But it’s entirely possible that the committee will rule that the Vatican is guilty of violating international laws on torture for allowing Catholic priests to commit acts of pedophilia (and by covering up their crimes).

If the U.N. Committee Against Torture rules against the Holy See, church leaders will have only themselves to blame. Both the recently canonized John Paul II and his successor, Pope Benedict XVI, could have chosen to tackle the abuse allegations head-on. Instead they went to considerable effort to cover up cases of abuse, in some cases moving suspect priests away from their accusers to help them evade criminal responsibility.

The current pontiff, Francis I, has vowed to resolve the scandal, appointing a commission to address past cases and implement reforms that will prevent further abuses. But this new body has been slow to get off the ground. Victims have criticized the new pope for not acting more decisively. Last month, Francis finally issued a public apology to those affected by the abuse, including a personal plea for forgiveness — a gesture that went quite a bit farther than he’d previously been willing to.

The case currently under review by the U.N. torture panel has the potential to send the scandal into a whole new realm. A ruling against the Vatican could usher in a fresh wave of lawsuits and legal challenges. The reason: according to international law there is no statute of limitations on torture. If members of the panel deem the Holy See to be guilty of abetting torture, that could encourage the filing of allegations dating back, well, forever. Lawyers pressing the claims of abuse victims say that the Vatican, as a signatory to the Convention Against Torture, should assume full legal responsibility for the crimes committed by its priests.

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MINNESOTA
Star Tribune

Article by: PAUL WALSH , Star Tribune Updated: May 21, 2014

Francis Hoefgen was charged with two counts of first-degree criminal sexual conduct for allegedly abusing the boy in the late 1980s and early 1990s. The alleged abuse began when the boy was 9 or 10 years old.

A onetime priest at a Catholic parish in Hastings was charged Wednesday with repeatedly sexually abusing an altar boy in the late 1980s and into early 1990s, acts that allegedly occurred after he was removed from a central Minnesota parish after similar behavior.

Francis Hoefgen, 63, of Columbia Heights, was charged with two counts of first-degree criminal sexual conduct for allegedly abusing the boy from early 1989 to late 1991. Hoefgen remains held in the Dakota County jail.

The abuse began when the victim was 9 or 10 years old years old and an altar boy at St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Catholic Church (formerly St. Boniface), where Hoefgen was assigned, according to the charges.

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MINNESOTA
KAAL

By: Jennie Olson

A former priest has been charged with two counts of first-degree criminal sexual conduct for allegedly abusing an altar boy from 1989 to 1991.

The Dakota County charges allege that 63-year-old Francis Hoefgen repeatedly abused an altar boy at St. Elizabeth Ann Seaton Catholic Church in Hastings. The victim was 9-12 years old during the period of abuse.

Dakota County Attorney James Backstrom and Hastings Police Chief Bryan Schafer will host a press conference at 2 p.m. Wednesday to discuss the charges.

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MINNESOTA
The Reporter

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
First Posted: May 21, 2014

MINNEAPOLIS — A former Catholic priest has been charged in Dakota County with sexually abusing an altar boy from 1989 to 1991.

County Attorney James Backstrom said Wednesday that 63-year-old Francis Hoefgen (HUHF’-jen) has been charged with first-degree criminal sexual conduct. Hoefgen is accused of abusing the boy at St. Elizabeth Ann Seaton Catholic Church in Hastings when the child was 9 to 12 years of age.

Hoefgen’s attorney, Andy Small, declined comment.

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VATICAN CITY
Financial Times

By Giulia Segreti in Rome

The Vatican’s troubled bank is embroiled in fresh controversy over its financial management following revelations that it faces losses of €15m over a loan sought by Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone for an Italian media company headed by a long-time acquaintance of the Holy See’s then secretary of state.

Cardinal Bertone, who retired last year from the second most powerful position in the Vatican hierarchy, confirmed a €15m convertible loan was made to Lux Vide, a television production company specialising in religious programmes. In a statement on Tuesday he said that the operation was carried out “regularly”.

A Vatican official familiar with the matter who asked not to be named, confirmed that the senior prelate was instrumental in approving the loan in December 2012 when he headed the commission of cardinals overseeing the Vatican bank, formally known as the Institute for the Works of Religion (IOR).

The controversy, which raises questions over the bank’s handling of its finances, prompted Father Federico Lombardi, Vatican spokesman, to deny a report in the German newspaper Bild on Tuesday that the 79-year-old cardinal was under investigation by Vatican magistrates.

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NEW YORK
JTA

NEW YORK (JTA) — A New York-area rabbi is among dozens to be charged with trafficking in child pornography.

The rabbi, whose name was not released, will be charged Wednesday after being arrested in recent weeks, according to The Associated Press. He was among about 70 people arrested in an operation to nab individuals trading child pornography online.

Authorities called the operation one of the largest local roundups ever of individual consumers of child porn, the AP reported.

The investigation, led by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, was sparked by the arrest in January of Brian Fanelli, a former police chief in suburban Mount Pleasant, N.Y., who was caught receiving and distributing child pornography. Fanelli said he began viewing the material for research purposes before it grew into a “personal interest.”

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MINNESOTA
Fox 9

by Mike Durkin

HASTINGS, Minn. (KMSP) –
Former Rev. Francis Hoefgen was charged Wednesday in Dakota County with two counts of first-degree criminal sexual conduct in connection with allegations he sexually abused a former altar boy.

The alleged abuse occurred at St. Elizabeth Ann Seaton Catholic Church in Hastings, Minn., from the spring of 1989 to the fall of 1991 when the boy was 9 to 12 years old.

Hoefgen, 63, currently lives in Columbia Heights, Minn.

DETAILS AT 2 PM

Dakota County Attorney James Backstrom and Hastings Police Chief Bryan Schafer are holding a 2 p.m. news conference to discuss the charges.

LAWSUIT: ‘THEY TURNED HIM LOOSE’

Last November, a Minnesota man filed a lawsuit against St. John’s Abbey, the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis and the St. Luke Institute, alleging they should have known Hoefgen was a sexual predator

The lawsuit alleges the defendants should have known Hoefgen was a danger to children because he sexually abused another boy at the St. Boniface Church in Cold Spring, Minn. in 1983.

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PHILIPPINES
Yahoo! Celebrity

Archbishop Oscar Cruz said making celibacy optional for priests would be very expensive because the faithful will have to support not only the priest but his family as well.

Cruz, the current head of the National Appellate Matrimonial Tribunal of the CBCP and in charge of the dispensation of priests in the country, was reacting to a story of 26 Italian women who wrote to Pope Francis recently urging the Pontiff to make celibacy optional and end their “devastating suffering” caused by the church’s ban on priests having sex and marrying.

The women told the Pope in a letter published on the website Vatican Insider, “we love these men and they love us. With humility, we place at your feet our suffering so that something can change, not just for us but for the good of the whole church”, adding their men would be able to serve the church “with greater passion” if they are supported by a woman who loves them and their children. …

But Cruz admits there is something in being celibate that attracts men of the cloth to women.

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MINNESOTA
Hastings Star Gazette

By Chad Richardson

A former Catholic priest in Hastings, Francis Hoefgen, will be charged in Dakota County today for sexual abuse, county attorney James Backstrom announced.

A press conference is planned for 2 p.m. on the matter.

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MINNESOTA
Pioneer Press

By Emily Gurnon
egurnon@pioneerpress.com
POSTED: 05/21/2014

A former Hastings priest has been charged with sexually abusing a young altar boy over a period of more than two years.

Francis Frederick Hoefgen, 63, of Columbia Heights subjected the boy to oral and anal sex as well as fondling of his genitals, according to a criminal complaint filed Tuesday in Dakota County District Court. The child was between the ages of about 9 or 10 and 12.

The victim, now an adult, went to Hastings Police with the allegations in November.

According to the complaint:

The man said he attended St. Boniface Church and school as a child. While serving as an altar boy, he was sexually abused by Hoefgen “on several occasions over an extended period of time,” the complaint said.

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