Church speaks of “sadness and shame” following child sex conviction of lay preacher Jeremy Dowling

UNITED KINGDOM
West Briton

By Graham Smith

The Bishop of Truro, the Right Reverend Tim Thornton, has issued a statement in reaction to the news that former church spokesman Jeremy Dowling had been convicted of a further six child sex offences.

Dowling had been the official spokesman for the Diocese of Truro for 18 years until his retirement in 2009. The conviction followed a four-day trial at Truro Crown Court and related to Dowling’s time as a lay preacher in North Cornwall in the 1970s.

Here’s Bishop Tim’s statement in full:

“The news that Jeremy Dowling has been found guilty of sexual offences against a boy while he was in a position of trust and responsibility within the Diocese of Truro fills me with sadness and shame.

“I would firstly like to apologise unreservedly to the survivor of his abuse: I am deeply sorry that Jeremy Dowling used a cloak of ecclesiastical respectability to gain trust and access; the church failed in its responsibility when it should have been there as a positive influence.

“I would also like to thank the survivor for coming forward and acknowledge how painful and difficult this must have been. I hope the fact that Jeremy Dowling has been convicted of these offences and will now be subject to a further prison sentence will at least bring some sense of justice.

“This news will come as a further shock to many people Jeremy worked with in his long association with the church, as a Reader, a member of the Diocesan and General Synods, and as the diocesan communications officer.

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