ABUSE TRACKER

CANADA
Toronto Star

By ALEX BOUTILIER
Ottawa Bureau Reporter
Sat., June 18, 2016

OTTAWA—The federal government is asking the Supreme Court to overturn a decision that gives residential school survivors the ultimate say in what happens to their testimony.

Ottawa has asked the Supreme Court to determine if residential school survivors’ testimony count as “government documents” and should remain archived with the federal government.

If the court agrees, it would overturn a recent decision by the Ontario Court of Appeal, which agreed survivors should have the opportunity to archive their testimony with the arm’s-length National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation, a hub at the University of Manitoba that serves as the permanent repository for records related to the residential school system.

It would also mean the fate of the documents will rest with the government, not the survivors.

If survivors do not decide to have their testimony archived, the Ontario Superior Court ruled the testimony should be destroyed within 15 years.

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UNITED STATES
Church Militant

By Juliana Freitag

Read Part I and Part II of this series.

Earlier in May a third cleric from Brindisi was sentenced to four years of incarceration: Fr. Francesco Legrottaglie, 67, was convicted for possession of child pornography. The sentence also included a 1,600-euro fine, a five-year ban from public office, and a perpetual ban from schools and any other institutions attended by minors.

In November 2015, Legrottaglie was arrested “in flagrante” during a police visit to his house, where they found thousands of files named after Catholic saints containing images and videos of explicit child-related sexual material. The prosecution claims the priest often looked for online interaction with the youngsters and secretly recorded the video chats.

The route that led the magistracy to Legrottaglie has been kept secret, but it’s likely linked to all of the other recent scandals in the Brindisi archdiocese, owing to the fact that all cases have been conducted by state’s attorney Milton Stefano di Nozza, who ordered Legrottaglie’s arrest.

This isn’t the first time the priest has been taken in by the authorities. In 1991, when he was the priest of a parish in Ostuni, the parents of two little girls pressed charges against him, and in 1992 he was sentenced to 1 year and 10 months for “violent libidinous act”. At the time of the condemnation he had already been transferred to a military parish in the city of Bari. After the conviction Legrottaglie was sent to mission in Congo, and when the priest returned in 2010, the Curia of Brindisi-Ostuni, under the discerning guidance of Archbishop RoccoTalucci, nominated him a chaplain at Brindisi’s hospital. He later returned to his hometown Ostuni, where he was allowed to be an assistant in a local parish, which is where he was last arrested.

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KENTUCKY
News-Dispatch

FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) — An Indiana pastor has been arrested in Kentucky after authorities say he traveled to Frankfort to meet a minor for sex.

Local news outlets report that officials arrested 46-year-old David James Brown Wednesday on a charge of prohibited use of an electronic communication system for the purpose of procuring a minor for a sex offense.

Attorney General Andy Beshear’s office said in a news release that Brown used an online messaging application to communicate with an undercover investigator posing as a minor. Brown asked the undercover investigator to have sexual relations with him.

Officials say Brown traveled to Frankfort to meet the minor and was arrested by investigators there.

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NEW YORK
New York Daily News

Editorial

The fight is not over, because this is a fight for morality over money, for justice in daylight over sins buried with the force of law.

New York’s Legislature closed the 2016 session without enacting a law that would empower childhood victims of sexual abuse to bring alleged predators into courts now closed to them.

Gov. Cuomo washed his hands of the bill. He will not be able to do so forever, because the hurt he accepts is too real, too severe.

Republican Senate Majority Leader John Flanagan as much as told those of lost innocence and scarred lives to go to hell. The public will be reminded that Flanagan and his GOP forces stand with predators and their protectors.

Democratic Speaker Carl Heastie inched ever so close to letting the Assembly pass a reform bill — then lost his nerve on even okaying a vote that would have been but a symbolic statement. He and his members will be called to account for failing to do what they knew was right.

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GUAM
Guam Synday Post

A Shot of Jac | Jacqueline Perry Guzman

If you have ever been a victim of sexual abuse you would understand the confusion, hurt, humiliation, shame, disgust and immeasurable other emotions and feelings you cannot explain. There is a part of you that wonders if you somehow asked for this or if you deserve it in some way. This is the reason I can understand victims not coming forward for decades, especially when their abusers are a part of the church— a place where they are taught to follow directions of the leaders because they are stewards of god himself.

Imagine the confusion of being hurt by someone your mother and father told you to listen to and respect regardless of the way they treat you behind closed doors.

After the 2016 Academy Awards announced its winner for Best Picture I was convinced I had to see “Spotlight” as soon as possible. The trailer was an already easy marker for me to know it was an incredible film but winning the Academy’s top bill made it a no-brainer.

The preface of hidden secret sex abuse in the church hit a gut-wrenching place in me. It was all too familiar in a dark, secret cloudy memory where in the schoolyard boys and girls would tease little boys for being touched on their privates by priests. Although none of it ever came about or to the attention of grown-ups, all the kids knew these things sometimes happened and the men of the cloth who we were taught to respect and listen to were doing all the time. To the point of schoolyard bullying? Twice the victimization?

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KENTUCKY
Lexington Herald-Leader

JACOB DICK
jdick@herald-leader.com

Kentucky state Rep. Jim Wayne has made a career of writing professionally as a veteran legislator and contributor to publications like The National Catholic Reporter and America, but Wayne’s latest work is a departure from explanations of social policy or bill proposals.

The Louisville Democrat published his first book this month, a novel called The Unfinished Man.

In Wayne’s fiction debut, Father Justin Zapp is a self-exiled priest in an Indiana parish who is forced to face his own psychological wounds from sexual abuse when he learns of a systematic cover-up of abuse within the church.

Wayne said he had been interested in writing for a long time but had only written pieces on social and political policy until he took a graduate course at the University of Louisville.

His professor encouraged him to continue and in 2008, Wayne enrolled at Spalding University in Louisville. Taking time between legislative sessions and elections, Wayne received a Master of Fine Arts in fiction in 2012.

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MINNESOTA
Grand Forks Herald

By Becky Jacobs on Jun 18, 2016

A Twin Cities attorney and Diocese of Crookston monsignor say they want the same thing: healing and justice for survivors of clergy sexual abuse.

But where attorney Mike Finnegan and Monsignor Mike Foltz differ is who should be sued in the latest wave of lawsuits related to the recent May 25 deadline of the Minnesota Child Victims Act.

Sacred Heart in East Grand Forks was one of the parishes sued before the deadline with claims that the Rev. Stanley Bourassa, who died in 2004, committed sexual abuse of a minor while assigned to the parish from 1965 to 1968.

It’s not that parishes weren’t sued before in clergy sexual abuse cases, but there has been a conscious decision to include both parishes and the diocese more recently, Finnegan said.

“They were sued in all the Minnesota cases across the state right now to protect the survivors’ rights,” said Finnegan, who works with Jeff Anderson & Associates, which is known for its role in pursuing cases involving clergy abuse. “It was kind of a mixed bag historically of whether the parish has been sued or not.”

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GUAM
Guam Sunday Post

Cover story

Tony Azios

Announcements following Sunday Mass typically focus on matters important to a healthy, functioning community, but mundane to the outside world – reminders of an upcoming fundraiser, a change of schedule for the weekly men’s meeting, details of a rosary in honor of a parishioner’s mother. But last Sunday night, as the 6 p.m. Mass wrapped up at Our Lady of Lourdes Church in Yigo, Rev. Patrick Garcia took the opportunity to lead the congregation in a drill.

“Members of the media may come up to you and ask who the archbishop is,” he reportedly said. “Don’t embarrass yourself. Say Savio Tai Fai Hon, not Anthony Apuron.”

Garcia instructed the congregation to repeat Hon’s full name after him several times aloud. As dusk fell, Our Lady of Lourdes echoed with the chorus of the name of a man sent by the Vatican to remedy a church in crisis.

One way or another

Before the recent allegations of sexual abuse against Archbishop Apuron (who currently retains the title but none of the administrative authority of the office), a series of diverse scandals has steadily rocked the foundations of the Archdiocese of Agaña. Much of the conflict is rooted in a perceived power struggle between mainstream Catholics and the Neocatechumenal Way – an organization within the Catholic Church with practices outside traditional Catholic custom. Far beyond a theological disagreement, the situation has devolved into allegations of fiscal mismanagement and the appropriation of community assets; open accusations of corrupt, self-serving relationships among some archdiocesan leadership; the transfer of control of a valuable piece of real estate functioning as a seminary from archdiocesan control to a board controlled by Neocatechumenal officials; the removal of two popular priests; and, the perceived neglect of some parishes in favor of others.

Many devout Catholics on Guam now refuse to attend services held by priests adherent to the Neocatechumenal Way, also known as the NCW. Many “Neos” return the sense of distrust toward the island’s traditional Catholics, claiming persecution by slander.

“The [local] Church is divided. That is a fact,” said David Sablan, vice president of Concerned Catholics of Guam (CCOG), a nonprofit organization formed to give voice and direction to concerns regarding the NCW on Guam and Apuron’s alleged misconduct.

“Apuron has basically abdicated his office to support one particular organization within the archdiocese when he really should be at the head of all of the organization,” said Sablan. “He’s not doing that, and as a result we’re basically without a shepherd and are in a confused state.”

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AUSTRALIA
The Cairns Post

June 18, 2016

Kimberley Vlasic
The Cairns Post

FENCES across the Far North are being adorned with brightly coloured ribbons as Catholic schoolchildren show their support for the victims and survivors of child sexual abuse.

Mount St Bernard College at Herberton and Cairns’ St Monica’s College and St Andrew’s Catholic College are among schools participating in the Loud Fence movement.

It started in May last year when residents were invited to tie ribbons to the front fence of St Alipius Parish School in Ballarat, Victoria, where a Royal Commission uncovered a history of child sexual abuse.

St Monica’s Assistant Principal of Religious Education Adrien Innes said the school’s 660 students had responded very positively to the Catholic Education initiative.

“Even students on block exams have come in to tie a ribbon on the fence,” she said.

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GUAM
Pacific Daily News

Jasmine Stole , Gaynor Dumat-ol Daleno and Shawn Raymundo, sraymundo@guampdn.com
June 18, 2016

When Archbishop Anthony Apuron was publicly accused in 2014 of having allegedly molested a boy while Apuron was a parish priest almost 30 years ago, accuser John Toves’ calls for an investigation went unheard.

After days of failed efforts to seek an audience with Apuron, and after having exhausted media interviews and sending letters to officials of the Catholic church locally and to Pacific representatives of the Vatican, then 50-year-old Toves left Guam and returned to his life in California. The Archdiocese of Agana threatened Toves with a lawsuit if he didn’t stop accusing the archbishop.

“They were communicated through all the proper channels, but they weren’t forwarded beyond certain points,” Toves said Thursday. “My documents never reached that far.”

At the time, Toves said when he was a 16-year-old altar boy, Toves’ cousin and co-seminarian at a high school seminary in Guam, was allegedly sexually abused. The alleged victim also was an altar boy, in the parish in Agat where Apuron was a priest, according to Toves’ allegation.

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MINNESOTA
Mesabi Daily News

Tony Potter | Hibbing Daily Tribune

HIBBING — The former Hibbing priest accused of criminal sexual misconduct took the stand Friday afternoon in St. Louis County District Court in Hibbing.

Brian M. Lederer, 30, is facing four counts of criminal sexual conduct in the second degree and two counts of criminal sexual conduct in the fourth degree.

Defense Attorney Peter Wold began by asking Lederer if he knew the girls who are accusing him of the sexual criminal misconduct to which he confirmed.

Wold asked Lederer a series of questions relating to whether or not the accusations against him are truthful. Lederer denied all accusations.

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NEW YORK
New York Daily News

BY
ARTHUR MCCAFFREY
NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
Saturday, June 18, 2016

Does a verdict without a sentence distort justice? Such a verdict was reached in Pennsylvania recently when the grand jury report on sexual abuse by clergy in the Diocese of Altoona-Johnstown — where hundreds of boys were abused by dozens of priests over a 70-year span — found “the acts of the predator priests and their enabling bishops . . . to be criminal.”

“However,” the report continued, “they cannot be prosecuted at this time. The statute of limitations for many of the loathsome and criminal actions detailed in this report has expired. In some limited cases the unnamed victim or victims are too deeply traumatized to testify in a court of law.”

Yet such hard evidence of real crimes proven but not prosecutable has yet to change the hearts and minds of political leaders in Pennsylvania or New York. Despite a valiant effort by this newspaper to shame them into action, Albany politicians once again chose safety over bravery, snubbing serious legislation to advantage victims of childhood sexual abuse.

Faced with this kind of legal impotence in at least two states, where do we turn for justice? Not to the Catholic Church. A year ago, Pope Francis raised our hopes when he proposed establishing a new Vatican tribunal to hold bishops accountable for complicity in criminal abuse.

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AUSTRALIA
Sydney Morning Herald

June 18, 2016

Michael Bachelard
Investigations Editor, The Age

Known for its obsession with privacy and its silencing tactics, the Exclusive Brethren has managed to avoid any scrutiny over alleged child sex abuse. Until now.

LATE ONE night, a frightened girl whispered a terrible secret into her mother’s ear. It was about the man in whose house she was living – an elder of the Christian sect to which they all belonged.

But if the girl thought telling her mum would make it stop, she had not reckoned on the power of the Exclusive Brethren.

Just days after her disclosure in mid-2002, the girl’s mother brought her back to the man’s house in a NSW regional town. The elder’s wife took the child into the room where it had happened. Then the interrogation began. For hours the woman questioned the little girl. She made her act out the attacks.

“She wanted me to show her what [her husband] had done to me, she wanted me to demonstrate,” the girl later told a judge.

So long did it go on that the child’s own mother left the room to sleep.

Later still, the perpetrator himself, Lindsay Jensen – nearly two metres tall, weighing 100 kilograms, rich, pious, respected in his religious community – came in and confronted the girl himself.

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UNITED STATES
Baptist News

BOB ALLEN | JUNE 17, 2016

Advocates for survivors of clergy sex abuse say they are disappointed the Southern Baptist Convention has elected a new president once accused of shielding a child molester.

“We’re disappointed that the Southern Baptist Convention just elected Bellevue Baptist pastor Steve Gaines as president,” said David Clohessy, director of the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests. “He covered up abuse by minister Paul Williams for at least six months.”

Gaines, elected by acclamation June 15 as president of the nation’s largest faith group behind Roman Catholics, nearly lost his pulpit 10 years ago for not telling his church that a longtime staff member had confessed in counseling to sexually abusing a family member 17 years earlier.

Gaines kept the secret for six months until details of the incident appeared in a blog.

Bellevue Baptist Church fired Paul Williams, minister of prayer and special projects who served at the church 34 years, in January 2007 after an investigation into a “moral failure” he had confessed to Gaines six months earlier.

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IOWA
WQAD

JUNE 17, 2016, BY SARAH TISINGER

DAVENPORT, Iowa — A former chaplain at Mercy Medical Center in Clinton has been cleared by the Catholic Church after being accused of molestation. He will be reassigned to ministry and service to the Diocese of Davenport.

In 2013, Father John Stack was accused of touching minors inappropriately in the 1980s. The Diocese reported the accusations to the Scott County Attorney and Stack was removed from ministry. The case went through a trial process through the Doctrine of Faith at the Vatican, where three judges found that the accusations of sexual abuse could not be proven, reports the Diocese.

“There was not a finding of innocence or guilt,” stated the press release.

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UNITED STATES
National Catholic Reporter

Thomas P. Doyle | Jun. 17, 2016

When it comes to holding bishops and religious superiors responsible for the cover up of clergy sex abuse, Pope Francis’ June 4 apostolic letter on ecclesial accountability is not only a distinct improvement over the proposal made a year ago to establish a tribunal to hold bishops accountable, it is possibly the most positive and hopeful signal to come out of the Vatican to date.

Canon lawyer Kurt Martens — among others — told NCR, “Everyone seems to be excited about the new [aposotlic letter] but there is really no change.” However, there is something breaking with this pronouncement — the official recognition by the church’s highest authority of hierarchical negligence in dealing with sex abuse by clerics. It is not only acknowledged but named as a crime.

The apostolic letter, or motu proprio known by its Italian title, Come una madre amorevole (“As a loving mother”), has some remarkable positive points that deserve mention:

* Negligence can be punished if it has hurt individuals and/or the community. It is vital that the disastrous impact on the Christian communities because of the bishops’ actions of lack thereof be acknowledged for what it is.

* The norms for removal do not demand that the pope have “moral certitude” of the culpability of the bishop. He can be removed or forced to resign for failure in the diligence required of him. This is a far cry from having to prove “grave moral culpability.” These factors can go a long way in eliminating the possibility of lengthy litigation or protracted appeals which many feared would be the undoing of a tribunal process.

* The U.S. bishops were criticized for not including superiors of religious communities under the Dallas Charter and Essential Norms. The pope plugged that hole in his Apostolic Letter by making it clear that major religious superiors, that is, provincials and superiors general, can also be subjected to this process.

* Unilateral removal is now a distinct reality and distinguishes between removal and an “invited” resignation. Victims, survivors and others have rightly criticized this pope because, rather than removing several U.S. bishops who were blatantly guilty of dereliction of duty, he allowed them to resign or retire. Everyone knew what was really happening yet it served as an insult to the victims and others so gravely wounded by these prelates’ intentional actions. …

What is so special about this latest development is the acknowledgement that the negligent and irresponsible actions of many bishops was not based on their ignorance about the nature of sex abuse or advice given by medical experts — two of the many silly excuses offered — but that their actions and inactions were willful and potentially criminal. This is a mind-blowing change from the past where every effort was made to protect and exonerate the bishops above every other consideration.

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CANADA
The Telegram

Barb Sweet
Published on June 17, 2016

A forensic psychologist acknowledged in Newfoundland Supreme Court the effect on memory of the passage of time – decades since a group of men say they were physically and sexually abused at Mount Cashel.

William Foote of New Mexico, said while specific details can be affected, people will remember the essence of abuse and experts like him take it for what it is.

Chris Blom, lawyer for the Roman Catholic Episcopal Corp. of St. John’s in the Mount Cashel civil trial, noted it was 40-plus years since the boys were at the orphanage by the time Foote interviewed five former residents in 2000.

Three of those men are among four test case John Does who say that the church should be held liable for the physical and sexual abuse they suffered at the hands of certain members of the lay order Christian Brothers from the late 1940s to early 1960s. They represent about 60 claimants.

Blom also suggested Foote, called by lawyers on behalf of the orphanage boys, unfairly depicted to the court that Mount Cashel was a cruel and sadistic experience for all boys over that time period.

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MINNESOTA
Hibbing Daily Tribune

By Kelly Grinsteinner Editor kgrinsteinner@hibbingdailytribune.net

HIBBING — The fourth and eldest accuser alleging a former Hibbing priest of sexual misconduct testified Friday during the third day of trial in St. Louis County District Court in Hibbing.

Brian M. Lederer, 30, is charged with four counts of criminal sexual conduct in the second degree and two counts of criminal sexual conduct in the fourth degree.

Three of the juvenile accusers testified Wednesday, recounting how Lederer touched them inappropriately on more than one occasion. Three parents have also testified, including the mother of two of the girls.

He is accused of snapping bras while massaging shoulders, grabbing two of the girls’ breasts, touching them in the buttocks, and touching and lifting two of them in the groin area.

The incidents took place during the 2014-2015 school year after school hours at Assumption School. One incident took place in a residence, and other actions occurred on a school bus.

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IOWA
Roman Catholic Diocese of Davenport – The Catholic Messenger

Diocese of Davenport Press Release about Rev. John Stack

FROM: Deacon David Montgomery
Director of Communication
montgomery@davenportdiocese.org
Diocese of Davenport

PHONE: 563-888-4222

RE: Rev. John Stack

In 2013, the Diocese of Davenport received a report which stated that Father John Stack, Chaplain at Mercy Medical Center in Clinton, inappropriately touched minors in approximately the 1980s. The Diocese reported this to the Scott County Attorney in compliance with the Memorandum of Understanding between the Diocese and the County Attorney. Father Stack was removed from ministry while this matter was investigated.

As a result of the investigation and with the recommendation of the Diocesan Review Board, Bishop Martin Amos petitioned the Congregation of the Doctrine of the Faith at the Vatican, requesting the case be brought to trial. The trial process could result in one of three judgements: innocent, guilty or that the accusations of sexual abuse of minors were not proven. The three judges, all from outside of the Diocese of Davenport, found that the accusations of sexual abuse of minors by Father Stack were not proven. There was not a finding of innocence or guilt. In order to assure the rights of all, the decision was appealed for further review. The Congregation of the Doctrine of the Faith concurred with the finding of the judges.

After receiving the conclusion from the Vatican, Bishop Amos will assign Father Stack to priestly ministry and service to the Diocese.

To report child sexual abuse Contact the Iowa Department of Human Services Child Abuse Hotline: 800‐362‐2178 If the abuse involves clergy or church personnel, also notify Alicia Owens, Victim Assistance Coordinator: 563‐349‐ 5002 PO Box 232 Bettendorf, IA 52722‐0004 vacdav@diodav.org We apologize for all those who have been abused and continue to pray for them. Information regarding this process can be found at: http://www.usccb.org/upload/FAQs-canonicalprocess-sexual-abuse.pdf.

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IOWA
Quad-City Times

Deirdre Cox Baker dbaker@qctimes.com

Three years after charges of clergy abuse were brought against him, the Rev. John Stack has been cleared by the Vatican and will work again in the Diocese of Davenport.

The findings were announced Friday by Deacon David Montgomery, the diocese’s spokesman.

Stack was accused in 2013 of inappropriately touching minors in the 1980s. The charge was reported to the Scott County Attorney’s Office, the process the diocese now uses in abuse cases. Stack was removed from his ministry at Mercy Medical Center in Clinton while the investigation went forward.

Bishop Martin Amos petitioned the Congregation of the Doctrine of the Faith at the Vatican, requesting that Stack’s case be brought to trial before three judges, none of whom is from the Davenport diocese.

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ROME
Catholic Register

BY CAROL GLATZ, CATHOLIC NEWS SERVICE
June 16, 2016

The Catholic Church has launched a new kind of “special forces” in the fight against child abuse.

Nineteen men and women from Africa, Asia, Europe and the Americas became the first graduates awarded special certification in the safeguarding of minors — an initiative begun in Rome in 2016 to help dioceses, bishops’ conferences, religious orders and other Church bodies excel in child protection.

The graduates — who are psychiatrists, theologians, canon lawyers, educators and child protection officers — were honoured June 14 during a graduation ceremony at Rome’s Pontifical Gregorian University.

Pope Francis sent a personal letter for the occasion, praising the new graduates and telling them, “I wish you courage and patience; be brave and committed.”

The five-month, intensive program is run by the Center for Child Protection at the university’s Institute of Psychology and grew out of an e-learning program, but offers more active discussion and group work with onsite, face-to-face instruction by experts in a variety of fields.

The diploma course includes six in-depth interdisciplinary seminars on: defining the problem of sex abuse; children’s rights; the importance of sacred and safe spaces; the abuse of faith in abuse scandals; the liberating force of truth and justice; and how to help survivors and their families.

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VATICAN CITY
The Tablet (UK)

17 June 2016 | by Christopher Lamb

Financial reforms that have already been put in place are irreversible, claims Pope Francis’ treasurer

The financial reforms of the Holy See are “irreversible” and have ensured there are no more “pools of darkness in the Vatican”, the papal treasurer has said.

Cardinal George Pell, who is Prefect of the Secretariat for the Economy, told The Tablet: “The Vatican is committed to transparency, international cooperation and the use of contemporary international standards in financial reporting.”

He pointed out, however, that the “full implementation of such changes will take time” and that work needed to be done to bring expenditure under control.

Last week, the Holy See announced that an audit by PricewaterhouseCooopers (PwC) would no longer take place and they would instead assist an internal Auditor General with the work.

Cardinal Pell, who helped commission the original audit from PwC, said the new arrangement “is not a rejection of financial reform” but instead “a recognition that the many challenges in transitioning to full implementation must fit the context and a way forward is being found.”

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GUAM
Pacific Daily News

Thomas Garrido
June 17, 2016

The recent news on the accusations against Archbishop Apuron is tragic in many respects.

First to Mr. Roy T. Quintanilla: No one is impeccable. Romans 3:23 – “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” I am a sinner and I still disappoint God and loved ones to this day. We stand alone accountable before God for our own deeds. God is the original authorized judge, jury and executioner. Roy, you have taken it upon yourself to take this tragic incident to the public light. However, the burden of proof is upon you to substantiate your charges. Your burden is great. Without a confession or proof, we expose the accused to incarceration or acts of revenge and injury to family, friends, career, employer and church.

I am not unsympathetic with you, Roy. I too was sexually abused as a minor more than 55 years ago. … You and I likely shared most of the same emotions. There are several points I am trying to make to you regarding our experiences.

One: I wished that my love for God and my parents was much, much stronger. I speak of a love that does not share with shame or fear and does not need to sum up courage to speak out to the proper people. I do not blame my parents or anyone for the lack of such a love. God had a wonderful plan for me in the future.

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NEW YORK
New York Daily News

KENNETH LOVETT
DAILY NEWS ALBANY
BUREAU CHIEF
Thursday, June 16, 2016

ALBANY — While state leaders appear ready to turn their backs on child sex abuse victims again this year, they found time to shower love on female hunters, brunch-goers and pet lovers.

Barring a last-minute miracle, the state Legislature was preparing to end its session on Friday with no deal on a bill to make it easier for child sex abuse survivors to seek justice — something victims and advocates have pushed for a decade.

But lawmakers this year did manage to pass an array of apparently more pressing legislation.

Among them is a bill to allow the use of fluorescent pink, instead of just orange, hunting attire in order to attract more women and young people into the woods.

Kathryn Robb, a child sex abuse survivor and advocate, was flabbergasted.

“It’s more important to fashionably dress female hunters than it is to protect children from sexual abuse and give victims of sexual abuse justice?” Robb said. “Wow. That is something much greater than outrageous.”

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SCOTLAND
Daily Record

BY PETER DIAMOND

Bishop Bill Nolan will ask the Holy See to appoint a tribunal to investigate Father Bell’s conduct after he was jailed for 10 months after previously pleading guilty to embezzling the money.

The Diocese of Galloway have confirmed Father Graeme Bell’s future in the church is to be considered.

The parishioners of St Mary’s – and St John’s in Stevenston – who have endured a difficult year were also praised by the church who will now hold a ‘church tribunal’ to decide Mr Bell’s fate.

A spokesperson said: “This is a sad day for the Diocese of Galloway as Father Graeme Bell is sentenced.

“However, given amounts involved it is not surprising he has received a custodial sentence and we hope that in prison he will continue to receive the support he needs and which the diocese has offered him over the past year.

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VATICAN CITY
Vatican Information Service – Bollettino

Vatican City, 16 June 2016 – The Holy Father has appointed: …

– Fr. Emmanuel Gobilliard as auxiliary of the archdiocese of Lyon (area 5,087, population 1,960,898, Catholics 1,255,000, priests 546, permanent deacons 68, religious 1,817), France. The bishop-elect was born in Saumur, France in 1968 and was ordained a priest in 1997. He holds a degree in moral theology from the Pontifical John Paul II Institute of the Lateran University, and has served in a number of pastoral roles including diocesan head of student chaplaincy, diocesan co-ordinator of youth pastoral ministry, member of the Episcopal Council, and missionary in Madagascar as teacher in the interdiocesan seminary of Fianaransoa. He is currently rector of the Cathedral of Le Puy-en-Velay.

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MISSOURI
Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests

For immediate release: Thursday, June 16, 2016

Statement by David Clohessy of St. Louis, Director of SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (314 566 9790,314 645 5915 home, davidgclohessy@gmail.com)

In a new court filing, a Kansas City church is trying to force two girls who were abused by a now-imprisoned child molester to publicly reveal their names. We are appalled.

http://www.jococourts.org/civroa.aspx?which=16CV03415

This mean-spirited move will deter others who see, suspect or suffer child sex crimes into staying silent, enabling more predators to hurt more kids. It will also rub more salt into the already deep and still fresh wounds of this suffering family. It is a shameful move by officials who profess to be “Christians.”

Last week, in public, Westside Family Church officials played “good cop.” This week, in court, Westside is playing “bad cop.” This week is what counts, because now, they’re not just talking, they’re acting. And they’re acting like cold-hearted CEOs, not caring shepherds.

If Westside pastor Dan Chaverin gets his way, two little girls who belonged to his church and sexually abused and exploited by a twice-convicted, admitted predator, may have to publicly reveal their identities. How stunningly callous is that?

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UNITED STATES
Stop Baptist Predators

Christa Brown

At its June 14-15 annual meeting in St. Louis, the Southern Baptist Convention elected Steve Gaines as SBC president. Gaines, who is the pastor of Bellevue Baptist Church in Memphis, Tennessee, was implicated in a widely-publicized clergy child molestation cover-up about nine years ago.

Here’s what was uncovered at the time: Gaines knew for at least six months that a Bellevue staff minister, Paul Williams, had molested a child, and Gaines simply kept quiet. He did not report the crime to the police, and he also kept Williams’ conduct a secret from the congregation. If a blogger had not made the news public, there’s no telling how long Gaines would have persisted in keeping Williams’ dangerous conduct under wraps.

Nevertheless, despite the fact that Gaines had obviously chosen to prioritize the protection of his staff minister rather than the protection of kids, and despite Gaines’ secrecy, the church chose to retain Gaines as its senior pastor. Gaines faced virtually no consequences.

Furthermore, not only did Gaines keep quiet about the fact that a staff minister had admitted to molesting a child, thereby leaving other kids at greater risk, but he also allowed Williams to continue to serve as a counselor for congregants who had been sexually abused as children. Can you imagine how those people felt when they learned that the very minister who had been counseling them was someone who himself had molested a kid? As one woman later explained her pain: “That a suspected pedophile might have been titillated by the story of her abuse at the hands of a since-deceased relative — the thought turns her stomach.”

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AUSTRALIA
Western Advocate

Louise Thrower
@ThrowerLouise

June 17, 2016

INDECENT assault victims of Brother William Standen are seeking compensation from the Christian Brothers Oceania in the wake of his conviction and sentencing.

A Canberra law firm has also revealed it acted in past civil matters for other victims of Brother Standen, who were “beaten like a dog.”

The 67-year-old Standen, known as Brother Dave, was sentenced to nine years two months’ jail with a non-parole period of four years, seven months in Sydney District Court last Friday.

He had pleaded guilty to 17 charges of indecent assault on boys aged 12 to 14, and one act of indecency on a boy, while he was a teacher and dormitory master at St Patrick’s College, Goulburn between 1978 and 1981.

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CANADA
The Telegram

Barb Sweet
Published on June 16, 2016

A lawyer’s cross-examination of a forensic psychologist Thursday in Newfoundland Supreme Court challenged the expert with other potential causes of some Mount Cashel survivors’ life problems, including anger over corporal punishment, accepted by society in the 1950s as a form of disciplining children.

Chris Blom, one of the lawyers representing the Roman Catholic Episcopal Corp. of St. John’s at the civil trial, pointed out to William Foote — an expert from New Mexico brought into the case by lawyers for a group of former orphanage residents — that one of the John Does was physically abused by certain Christian Brothers for several years before he was sexual abused, suggesting the physical trauma was more likely to blame for his anger issues.

Blom also questioned Foote about the likelihood of a child of alcoholic parents developing their own substance abuse issues — the John Doe who went into the military had parents with drinking problems and the atmosphere of soldiering in his day was also hard drinking.

After court Thursday, that John Doe told The Telegram the lawyer was off-base about why his military career, though long, earned him a retirement with a low rank. He said later in his career, he learned to be a good soldier, but by then it was too late to rise through the ranks and he attributes his anger to Mount Cashel.

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WEST VIRGINIA
Charleston Gazette-Mail

Ryan Quinn , Staff Writer

A lawsuit is ongoing against a now-closed Kanawha County Christian boys boarding school and its leaders over allegations that a student was starved and physically abused and — because of alleged lax supervision — sexually abused by another student, and the minor’s lawyer expects the litigation to expand.

“We certainly have had other people reach out to us who are victims of that organization, and we would anticipate filing suit on their behalf,” said Charleston-based attorney Troy Giatras, the lawyer representing the minor and his guardian ad litem in the case against Blue Creek Academy, which Giatras said was in the Clendenin area, near the border of Clay and Kanawha counties.

The lawsuit also names Bible Baptist, a Belva church sponsoring the school, as a defendant, along with James Waldeck and J.R. Thompson, Blue Creek Academy’s former director who, according to The Daily Beast, has started a new religious school in Montana. In answers to the lawsuit, the defendants have denied the allegations.

In an extensive article published online Sunday — titled “Rapes, Daily Beatings, and No Escape: Christian School Was Hell For These Boys” — The Daily Beast reported on the allegations of child abuse and educational neglect at Blue Creek Academy, fitting it into a larger trend of problems at Christian schools that have less oversight, or nearly no oversight, compared to public schools.

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GUAM
KUAM

Updated: Jun 17, 2016

By Krystal Paco

The attorney representing most of Archbishop Anthony Apuron’s alleged victims wants answers.

Attorney David Lujan has now twice addressed Archdiocese of Agana sexual abuse response coordinator Deacon Larry Claros on his role as the SARC and whether Claros can properly and objectively investigate if the alleged perpetrator is his boss.

Last month the archdiocese announced plans to convene the archdiocesan review board in response to the allegations made against Apuron. Soon after however, many of the board’s members resigned or recused themselves. No update has been provided on the board’s status and Deacon Claros did not respond to KUAM’s multiple inquiries as of news time.

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KENTUCKY
LEX 18

[with video]

CASEY COUNTY, Ky. (LEX 18) – According to the Casey County News, a pastor has been indicted and arrested after he was accused of a sex crime against a minor.

George Wayne Cole, 55, was arrested on June 10th, the newspaper reports.

He is charged with two counts of unlawful imprisonment and first degree sexual abuse.

Cole was taken to the Clinton County Jail and later posted bond.

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MISSOURI
KTTN

Allegations of sexual abuse against a Queen City, Missouri pastor have landed a man behind bars.

Multiple sources reveal the pastor of the Queen City Christian Church, George Bradburn, 68, was arrested on Tuesday, June 14at his home in Queen City on a charge of first-degree sodomy involving a teen.

A lengthy investigation by the State Technical Assistance Team, from the Missouri Department of Social Services, resulted in the minister admitting that fondling of the victim began at age 13.

The allegation was first reported to the Kirksville Police Department, who then forwarded information to Schuyler County Sheriff Joe Wueker on May 12, 2016.

The victim stated at approximately age 9 he began spending time at the church assisting in various duties such as cleaning or helping out, when he and Bradburn became good friends. When he was approximately age 12, Bradburn began touching his private parts, both over and under the clothing, with his hands. The teen recalled this happening “several times per week” until the age of approximately 15, at which time the boy went to live in another part of Missouri. He stated Bradburn would come pick him up once per month and bring him back to Queen City for visits, at which time the victim reported the encounters continued by Bradburn. This cycle continued until the victim turned 18.

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MISSOURI
Kirksville Daily Express

Posted Jun. 16, 2016

Queen City, Mo.

A Queen City, Mo., minister faces a felony charge after being accused of sexually abusing a minor for more than five years.

George Bradburn, 69, of Queen City, was recently charged with statutory sodomy in the first degree by the Schuyler County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office.

According to a press release, the Schuyler County Sheriff’s Office received a tip from the Kirksville Police Department in April about the alleged sexual abuse.

In an interview with law enforcement, the victim stated when he was about 9 years old he was introduced to the suspect as the pastor of a local church. The victim later began spending time around the church and became good friends with the suspect.

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UNITED STATES
National Catholic Reporter

Thomas Reese | Jun. 16, 2016

A number of states, including Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and New York, are considering extending the statute of limitations dealing with the sexual abuse of minors. It is a well-documented fact that many victims of abuse do not come forward until long after their abuse occurred.

While a statute of limitations serves a reasonable purpose by preventing prosecution and litigation over actions in the distant past where witnesses, evidence, and alibis are missing and memories are foggy, it is galling to see criminals escape justice on a technicality.

For criminal prosecutions, modifying the statute of limitations is only constitutional for future crimes. In the United States, we cannot extend the statute of limitations for crimes committed in the past.

Civil suits are a different matter. States like California, Virginia, Minnesota, and Delaware have extended the statute of limitations for civil suits against the church when church officials did not protect children from abuse by priests. Often the legislation provides a one- or two-year window during which victims can sue the church for cases that under current law would have been disallowed under the statute of limitations.

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MISSOURI
St. Louis Review

Safe Touch, a curriculum offered annually to all children enrolled in archdiocesan schools and PSR programs, teaches children about healthy boundaries and personal safety. The curriculum was updated in 2016 to include resources for adults and children regarding safety and responsibility when using technology and social media.

Predators gain access to children and teens through social media and gaming sites where they can immediately begin the grooming process. Predators can remain anonymous and no longer have to leave their homes in order to abuse a child or a teen. A predator no longer needs physical access to make contact with a child or teen. It is important to educate children on technology safety and monitor their usage regardless of age or gender. Children and teens must be taught to identify and report inappropriate electronic contact in the same way they are taught about inappropriate in person contact.

The Safe Environment Program also recommends NetSmartz, a program of the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, which provides age-appropriate resources for staying safe online. For more information, see www.netsmartz.org.

For more information on Safe Touch and the Safe Environment Program, contact director Sandra Price at (314) 792-7271 or email sandraprice@archstl.org, or visit www.archstl.org/sep.

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MINNESOTA
Mesabi Daily News

Kelly Grinsteinner | Hibbing Daily Tribune

HIBBING — The mother with a set of daughters both accusing a former Hibbing priest of sexual misconduct took the stand Thursday during trial day two in St. Louis County District Court in Hibbing.

Brian M. Lederer, 30, is facing four counts of criminal sexual conduct in the second degree and two counts of criminal sexual conduct in the fourth degree.

Three of the juvenile accusers testified Wednesday, recounting how Lederer touched them inappropriately on more than one occasion.

He is accused of snapping bras while massaging shoulders, grabbing two of the girls’ breasts, touching one in the buttocks and lifting another by her groin area.

The incidents took place during the 2014-2015 school year after school hours at Assumption School. One incident took place in a residence, and other actions occurred on a school bus. Lederer was arrested and charged on May 7, 2015.

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AUSTRALIA
The Advertiser

June 17, 2016

Keith Moor
Insight Editor
Herald Sun

VICTORIA’s top cop has revealed detectives might go to Italy to interview Cardinal George Pell about child sex abuse allegations.

Chief Commissioner Graham Ashton was this week reluctant to talk about the Cardinal Pell probe during a wideranging interview with the Herald Sun to mark his first year in the job.

“We don’t give running commentary on ongoing investigations,” he said.

But comments Mr Ashton made when pressed by the Herald Sun confirmed Sano taskforce detectives are investigating multiple sexual abuse allegations made against Cardinal Pell.

The Herald Sun asked Mr Ashton if the Cardinal Pell investigation might result in Sano sex crime specialists being sent to the Vatican to speak to Cardinal Pell if he didn’t return to Australia.

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PENNSYLVANIA
The Guardian (UK)

Stephanie Kirchgaessner in New York
Friday 17 June 2016

The Catholic church in Pennsylvania has been accused of employing “mafia-like” tactics in a campaign to put pressure on individual Catholic lawmakers who support state legislation that would give victims of sexual abuse more time to sue their abusers.

The lobbying campaign against the legislation is being led by Philadelphia archbishop Charles Chaput, a staunch conservative who recently created a stir after inadvertently sending an email to a state representative Jamie Santora, in which he accused the lawmaker of “betraying” the church and said Santora would suffer “consequences” for his support of the legislation. The email was also sent to a senior staff member in Chaput’s office, who was apparently the only intended recipient.

The email has infuriated some Catholic lawmakers, who say they voted their conscience in support of the legislation on behalf of sexual abuse victims. One Republican legislator, Mike Vareb, accused the archbishop of using mafia-style tactics.

“This mob boss approach of having legislators called out, he really went right up to the line,” Vareb told the Guardian. “He is going down a road that is frankly dangerous for the status of the church in terms of it being a non-profit.”

Under US tax laws, organisations like churches that are classified as non-profit groups are not supposed to be engaged in political activity, though they are allowed to publish legislators’ voting records in some cases.

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RHODE ISLAND
Boston Globe

By Bella English GLOBE STAFF JUNE 16, 2016

A committee charged with finding the next headmaster of St. George’s School is already coming under fire for not including any victims of alleged sexual abuse at the school, the scandal that many believe led to Eric Peterson’s recent decision not to seek renewal of his contract after next year.

Two weeks ago, Peterson, 50, informed trustees that he will leave by the end of the 2016-2017 school year. St. George’s has been embroiled in controversy since December, after Anne Scott and two other alumnae told of being molested or raped by athletic trainer Al Gibbs in the late 1970s.

In a letter to the school community on Thursday, Tad Van Norden, a St. George’s alumnus and trustee, introduced himself as chair of the new search committee, which is made up of trustees, parents, faculty and alumni. Nine of the 12 search committee members are trustees, who have also been criticized by victims for their handling of the scandal. Of the remaining three, two are faculty members and the other is co-chair of the school’s Parents’ Committee.

Van Norden said the committee, aided by the executive search firm Spencer Stuart, hopes to identify candidates in the early fall, and a head of school by year’s end.

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OREGON
Dalles Chronicle

By Neita Cecil
As of Thursday, June 16, 2016

A police interview with the senior pastor of First Christian Church showed that church officials had “expressed concerns” about the behavior of a youth leader who was eventually convicted of sexually abusing teen girls.

Michael Cele Stephens, 20, was sentenced to 15 years in prison early this year for sexually abusing six teen girls. He met his victims through the church youth group and 4-H.

One of his victims has sued First Christian Church for $5 million, alleging the church was negligent in not heeding and investigating warning signs that Stephens was grooming girls for sexual abuse.

Stephens befriended his victims, eventually exchanging sexual texts and photos.

He abused them at their homes, their relative’s homes or his relative’s homes, and in a parking lot.

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AUSTRALIA
Sydney Morning Herald

June 16, 2016

Angela Thompson

Boys at Wollongong’s Edmund Rice College in the 1980s knew sexual predators moved freely among them, and would share advice about who to avoid being alone with, Throsby MP Stephen Jones — a former school captain — has revealed.

Following another teacher’s admission of guilt over historic child sex crimes at the West Wollongong all-boys college, Mr Jones said the school had felt like a “dumping ground” for paedophiles whose crimes were overlooked by those who could have ended the abuse.

“There was a whole bunch of them [paedophiles] at the time I was there,” said Mr Jones, who graduated from the school in 1983.

“Boys would [avoid them] in all sorts of ways. We would just talk amongst ourselves about it — ‘don’t get caught with this person or that person’.”

Brother John Vincent Roberts was allowed to teach at the school despite at least one prior complaint of abuse at another NSW Christian Brothers School.

In Wollongong Local Court on Wednesday, Roberts, 73, admitted to 11 charges relating to the sexual abuse of a young male student at Edmund Rice in the late 1980s.

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AUSTRALIA
Canberra Times

June 17 2016

Christopher Knaus and Cydonee Mardon

A former Catholic brother has pleaded guilty to repeatedly molesting a child at a school in Wollongong, where he was allowed to teach despite two prior complaints of abuse, including one at St Edmund’s College.

The first known complaint about John Vincent Roberts, now 73, was made in Christian Brothers schools in NSW at some point before 1978, when he moved to the order’s ACT school, St Edmund’s.

Here, he allegedly abused another student during his five-year stint in Canberra between 1978 and 1983.

Roberts was allowed to continue teaching, and he moved to Wollongong, where he taught at the prestigious Edmund Rice College.

He again abused a child in Wollongong, this time repeatedly molesting a 12-year-old boy in the late 1980s.

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GUAM
Pacific Daily News

Haidee V Eugenio, Pacific Daily News June 17, 2016

For the second time in two weeks, the attorney for at least three of Archbishop Anthony Apuron’s accusers is pressing the Guam Catholic church for answers related to its ability to conduct an impartial investigation into multiple child molestation allegations against Apuron.

Attorney David J. Lujan informed the local Catholic Church’s sexual assault response coordinator Deacon Larry Claros that he now also represents Walter Denton and Doris Concepcion, mother of Joseph “Sonny” Quinata, in addition to Roy Quintanilla.

Claros leads a group in the local Catholic Church charged with reviewing sexual abuse allegations involving the clergy and other church officials and personnel.

Lujan’s June 13 letter was sent two days prior to the public accusation against Apuron by a fourth individual, Roland Sondia.

Claros and the Archdiocese of Agana were sought for comment on Lujan’s letter, but hadn’t commented as of early Thursday evening.

When allegations against Apuron came out in recent weeks, the archbishop and his representatives threatened to sue individuals they said were spreading malicious and calumnious lies. Thus far, no lawsuit has been filed or has become publicly known.

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NEW YORK
Queens Chronicle

Posted: Thursday, June 16, 2016

by Christopher Barca, Associate Editor

Assemblywoman Marge Markey (D-Maspeth) has been catching hell in recent days over her claim that Bishop Nicholas DiMarzio, head of the Diocese of Brooklyn, tried to bribe her in 2007 to end her support of legislation to extend the statute of limitations for lawsuits over child sex abuse allegations.

“She’s definitely anti-Catholic,” Tony Nunziato, Markey’s two-time Assembly race opponent, said at the Juniper Park Civic Association last Thursday. “Her attack against the bishop was horrendous.”

The assemblywoman — who for a decade has been fighting to pass reforms to the statute of limitations regarding child sex abuse crimes — told the Daily News last Tuesday that DiMarzio offered her $5,000 to drop her support for such legislation

However, the clergyman denied the allegation in a June 7 letter to Markey and in a letter last weekend to the diocese, calling it “patently false.”

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PENNSYLVANIA
Catholic Philly

By A.B. Hill • Posted June 16, 2016

The Pennsylvania Senate Judiciary Committee hosted a hearing this week regarding the legality and constitutionality of House Bill 1947. The measure, passed the Pennsylvania House of Representatives in April, proposes to remove the criminal statute of limitations (SoL) for childhood sexual abuse and raise the civil SoL from age 30 to 50 moving forward.

It also retroactively opens the civil SoL from survivor’s age 30 to age 50.

Experts on Pennsylvania’s constitution presented their opinions to Judiciary Committee members with a particular focus on the retroactive provision of the bill.

“The purpose of today’s hearing is not to hear about those facts (that child abuse occurred),” said committee chairman Sen. Stewart J. Greenleaf (R-Bucks, Montgomery). “These matters are highly complex and I expect that this committee will require ample time to carefully consider today’s testimony and weigh each side.”

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GUAM
Pacific Daily News

Shawn Raymundo, sraymundo@guampdn.com June 17, 2016

In the wake of a fourth person accusing Archbishop Anthony Apuron of child molestation, Sen. Frank Aguon Jr., D-Yona, on Thursday released a statement apologizing to all victims of sexual abuse for not coming to their aid sooner.

“After a great deal of prayer and consideration over the current state of affairs — which have been profoundly painful for everyone — I sincerely apologize for not immediately coming to the defense of the alleged victims of child sexual abuse,” he said.

On Wednesday, Roland Paul L. Sondia became the fourth person to publicly accuse Apuron of sexual abuse. Sondia, 54, alleged that Apuron molested him when he was 15-years old during a sleepover at the Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church rectory in 1977.

Sondia and two other former altar boys of the Agat church have recently given similar accounts of Apuron, when he was the parish priest, sexually abusing them during sleepovers at the rectory back in the 1970’s.

Doris Concepcion also alleged that Apuron molested her son, Joseph Quinata, when he was an altar boy in the 70s. Quinata briefly told his mother of the incident shortly before he died 11 years ago.

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VATICAN CITY
Crux

John L. Allen Jr.June 14, 2016
EDITOR

On Tuesday, the Vatican released its latest reflection on what German Cardinal Gerhard Müller amusingly has called the “unplanned pregnancies” of the Catholic Church, meaning its sprawling galaxy of new lay movements, most of which have been born in the last 100 years and have had their real growth since Vatican II.

One has to say “latest” because this is hardly the first time various departments and officials in the Vatican have issued documents, released interviews, given talks, organized meetings, etc., on the relationship between the hierarchy and what English-speakers often call the “new movements.” …

For the movements, what they gain out of a healthy working relationship with the hierarchy is access to dioceses, institutional support, and long-term viability. For the bishops, what they gain, aside from the fresh blood of gung-ho lay missionaries and a reliable way to boost Mass attendance, is a degree of quality control and a way to handle problems when they arise.

A recent story out of Peru illustrates why that’s important for both sides. As documented in Crux by Austen Ivereigh, a large movement there called the Sodalitium Christianae Vitae has been rocked by an abuse scandal involving its founder, Luis Fernando Figari.

Ivereigh reported that a local church tribunal tried for four years to get the Vatican to act on those allegations before anything happened. Had there been a more cooperative relationship, it’s possible the problems could have been flagged and resolved earlier.

Probably, that story should also be a wake-up call for bishops with new movements in their own backyards to take a closer look, in the spirit of trying to defuse a possible bomb before it goes off.

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PENNSYLVANIA
SOL Reform

Marci A. Hamilton
Academic Director and Chairman, Board of Directors
CHILD USA
(215) 746-4165

Resident Senior Scholar
Program for Research on Religion
Co-chair, Common Ground for the Common Good Project
Fox Leadership Program
University of Pennsylvania
3814 Walnut Street
Philadelphia, PA 19104
(215) 353-8984 (cell)
hamilton.marci@gmail.com

Sen. Stewart J. Greenleaf
Chair
PA Senate Judiciary Committee
Main Capitol, 19 EW
Harrisburg, PA 17120
June 13, 2016
RE: Constitutionality of HB 1947

Dear Sen. Greenleaf and Members of the Committee:

Thank you for asking me to testify at this hearing on the constitutionality of HB 1947, which modestly amends Pennsylvania’s statutes of limitations (SOLs) for child sex abuse.

I am a Resident Senior Fellow in the Program for Research on Religion in the Fox Leadership Program at the University of Pennsylvania; a co-chair of the Common Ground for the Common Good project; and the Academic Director of CHILD USA, an interdisciplinary think tank on child abuse and neglect. After 26 years of full-time teaching, I now hold the Paul R. Verkuil Research Chair at the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law, Yeshiva University. My book, Justice Denied: What America Must Do to Protect Its Children (Cambridge University Press 2008, 2012), and website, www.sol-reform.com, are the leading resources on child sex abuse statutes of limitations, and I have researched, written, and testified on the issue in many states and abroad. The views expressed in this testimony are solely my own.

The issue this Committee has asked me to focus on is whether the revival of a civil SOL for child sex abuse is consistent with the Pennsylvania Constitution. The short answer is that along with a majority of the states, it is constitutional in Pennsylvania to revive an expired civil SOL.

HB 1947 does not violate due process under the Pennsylvania or Federal Constitution.

Let me first set aside the due process issues in this arena. It is unconstitutional to revive a criminal SOL, because it violates the Ex Post Facto Clause. Stogner v. California, 539 U.S. 607, 610 (2003). At the same time, it is not a due process violation and, therefore, it is constitutional to revive a civil SOL. Landgraf v. USI Film Prods., 511 U.S. 244, 267 (1994). Under the federal Constitution, revival of a civil SOL is constitutional if two due process requirements are met: (1) clear legislative intent and (2) the change is to a procedural element, like a statute of limitations. See Republic of Austria v. Altmann, 541 U.S. 677, 692-93 (2004); see also Landgraf, 511 U.S. at 267-68; Chase Sec. Corp. v. Donaldson, 325 U.S. 304, 311-15 (1945); Campbell v. Holt, 115 U.S. 620, 6 S. Ct. 209 (1885).

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TEXAS
Liberal America

By Darrell Lucus on June 13, 2016

In case you missed it, two weeks ago Baylor University announced it was firing head football coach Art Briles in the wake of overwhelming evidence that his program had utterly mishandled allegations that players had raped and sexually assaulted women. Well, a flurry of activity on Monday revealed just how far gone Baylor’s football culture had become. A small, misguided, and mind-blowingly stupid cabal of Baylor donors has been angling to bring Briles back as head coach.

When the Baylor Board of Regents announced that Briles was out, it officially characterized the move as an indefinite suspension with intent to terminate him as soon as it was legally possible to do so. However, USA Today reported that a small minority of Baylor donors are pushing for a compromise–have Briles sit out the 2016 season and allow him to return in 2017. According to KCEN-TV in Waco, some Baylor players have been briefed on the proposal.

However, according to USA Today, such moves are “unlikely to result in any action.” There’s very good reason to think this is a wasted effort. The findings of fact from an independent investigation into Baylor’s response to sexual assault so unnerved university officials that they immediately forwarded the report to the NCAA and Big 12 Conference. Bringing back a coach who, at best, was disengaged from how disciplinary issues were handled wouldn’t exactly allow Baylor to look good with the NCAA, and would all but assure heavy sanctions.

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IRELAND
Irish Times

Patsy McGarry

Catholicism in Ireland is being abandoned to obsessive extremists and a religious media more anxious to protect its pockets than engage with realities of faith in the world, a leading priest has said.

“If bishops or priests or intelligent ‘lay’ Catholics are not prepared to reflectively engage in the public market-place then that space is left open to obsessive Catholic extremists who seek to psychologically bludgeon anyone who doesn’t agree with them – and do untold damage to the Catholic faith in Ireland – and to religious media who often seem more anxious to protect their pockets than to engage with the realities of faith in the world,” said Fr Brendan Hoban.

Co-founder of the Association of Catholic Priests, Fr Hoban was commenting on recent remarks by the Archbishop of Dublin Diarmuid Martin bemoaning the dearth of Catholic intellectuals in Ireland.

“Diarmuid Martin has pointed us in the right direction,” Fr Hoban said, but “the difficult truth is that there is little institutional support for intellectual debate in the Catholic Church – as distinct from cheer-leaders”.

He said: “For example, there is little or no respect for theologians in the upper reaches of the Irish Church, by which I mean theologians of the calibre of Enda McDonagh, Gabriel Daly, Sean Fagan, Vincent McNamara and others rather than those others of whom great things were expected but who now seem often to use every opportunity to ingratiate themselves with church authorities, with an eye to promotion.”

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TENNESSEE
The Commercial Appeal

By Kayleigh Skinner of The Commercial Appeal

A Cordova pastor was named the new president of the Southern Baptist Convention in St. Louis, on Wednesday.

Pastor Steve Gaines of Bellevue Baptist Church was elected after the first vote resulted in a tie between Gaines and North Carolina pastor J. D. Greear of The Summit Church of Raleigh-Durham.

Of the 5,784 ballots cast, Gaines received 44.1 percent; Greear received 44.97 percent, according to a statement from the convention. A second runoff election produced similar results.

To avoid another runoff election Wednesday morning, Greear withdrew the race Wednesday and Gaines was elected by acclimation.

Gaines agreed to accept the presidency after a talk with Greear, saying “we need to leave St. Louis united,” according to the statement.

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MICHIGAN
Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests

For immediate release: Thursday, June 16, 2016

Statement by David Clohessy of St. Louis, Director of SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (314 566 9790, 314 645 5915 home, davidgclohessy@gmail.com)

A Detroit Catholic school official charged in 2014 with child sex crimes continues to win delay after delay after delay. For the safety of kids, the healing of victims and the health of the church and its schools, we urge judges and prosecutors to speed up this case.

[C & G Newspapers]

It’s been more than a year and a half since a Ray Township teacher at Austin Catholic Academy first faced allegations that he sent sexually graphic emails to a child.

We call on Detroit Archbishop Allen Vigneron to personally visit the school where the alleged predator worked, begging victims, witnesses, employees, former employees, alumni, students, staff and whistleblowers to call law enforcement if they have any information or suspicions about the alleged crimes.

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GUAM
KUAM

Updated: Jun 16, 2016

By Ken Quintanilla

A bill that would lift the statute of limitations in cases involving child sex abuse will go up for a public hearing on June 27. Introduced by Senator Frank Blas, Jr., Bill 326 was referred to Senator Frank Aguon Jr.’s committee. Aguon says he is working with Blas to strengthen the measure.

The hearing on the 27th gets underway at 10am at the Guam Legislature in Hagatna.

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AUSTRALIA
ABC News

By Nick McLaren

An Illawarra MP has spoken of his sadness after his former school admitted it had let one of its students down by failing to protect him from a paedophile Christian Brother.

Stephen Jones is the Federal Member for Whitlam and a former school captain and dux at Edmund Rice College in West Wollongong.

The conviction, and likely jail sentence, of a former Christian Brother has prompted the catholic MP to reflect on his own personal experience at the school.

John Vincent Roberts, aged 73, yesterday pleaded guilty to 11 of 21 charges relating to the historical sex abuse of a 12-year-old boy at the school.

Police only became aware of the abuse as a result of hearings before the royal commission into child sexual abuse last year.

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AUSTRALIA
Canberra Times

A former St Edmund’s College brother has pleaded guilty to repeatedly molesting a child at a school in Wollongong, where he was allowed to teach despite prior complaints of abuse.

The first known complaint about John Vincent Roberts, now 73, was made in Christian Brothers schools in NSW at some point before 1978, when he moved to the order’s ACT school, St Edmund’s.

He allegedly abused another student during his five-year stint in Canberra between 1978 and 1983.

Roberts was allowed to continue teaching, and he moved to Wollongong where he taught at the prestigious Edmund Rice College.

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TEXAS
Times Record News

By Times Record News

A former preacher in Young County has been arrested on charges of child pornography.

A news release from the Texas Rangers stated Dennis Harmon Bell was first arrested on March 17 on one count of possession of child pornography from his residence in Graham. On June 8, a Young County grand jury indicted Bell on five counts of possession of child pornography.

Bell was arrested Tuesday and charged with the four new counts. His total bail was set at $87,500 and he was not in Young County Jail on Wednesday afternoon.

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IRELAND
Irish Examiner

Thursday, June 16, 2016

Jack Power

Justice for Magdalenes Research and Adoption Rights Alliance have launched a pro-bono legal initiative to assist witnesses drafting statements to the state commission of inquiry.

The Commission of Investigation into Mother and Baby Homes will not provide any legal advice to affected individuals who wish to submit a witness statement to the body.

Speaking yesterday, Maeve O’Rourke, of Justice for Magdalenes, said legal advice would be crucial to people or relatives of those affected by abuse in Mother and Baby homes.

“It is something that people should have been provided with,” she said, given the potential major legal implications of the of the commission’s findings. The statements compiled with the help of the Clann initiative could be used by individuals as the basis to take action seeking compensation from the

Ms O’Rourke stated that future reparations could come in many forms for potential victims, from financial compensation, to access to medical records and the identification of the whereabouts of remains.

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GUAM
Pacific News Center

Written by Janela Carrera

Archbishop Hon’s decree also rescinds another decree. However, details of that decree are not being released to the public.

Guam – Archbishop Savio Tai Fai Hon made perhaps his first big move since taking over the helm at the Archdiocese of Agana.

He rescinded a general decree that threatened catholics with harsh consequences if they associated with the group Concerned Catholics of Guam.

Archbishop Hon rescinded the decree, which is numbered 2016-028, a day after CCOG wrote to Pope Francis with demands for the decree to be rescinded and for an apology from the author of the decree, Archbishop Anthony Apuron.

Archbishop Apuron, who’s administrative authority was removed earlier this month by Pope Francis, has not issued an apology.

Meanwhile, Archbishop Hon also rescinded another decree, namely, decree number 2016-022. That decree was never made public and in a statement to the media, Archbishop Hon’s assistant, Father Ted Novak said the second decree pertains to a private matter and details of the decree will not be released to the public.

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GUAM
KUAM

[with video]

Updated: Jun 16, 2016

By Krystal Paco

It appears the island’s interim archbishop doesn’t agree with Archbishop Anthony Apuron’s last orders. Just hours before the Vatican placed Apuron on leave last week, Apuron issued decrees intended to place gag orders on those he alleged were part of a malicious smear campaign to oust him.

The Concerned Catholics of Guam organization doesn’t need the church’s blessing after all. In a release dated June 15, Vatican-appointed apostolic administrator Archbishop Savio Hon Tai Fai rescinded a previous decree issued to the CCOG. The decree was intended for local Catholics to cease any contact with the CCOG and alleged the organization was instigating and soliciting a malicious smear campaign to oust Apuron. The decree was published online on the Archdiocese of Agana website, but removed shortly after.

According to CCOG president Gregory Perez, part of the decree called for the CCOG to publicly retract all their allegations against Apuron. “He wanted us to something to apologize to him. Apologize for what? For being Catholics and standing up for what we believe is true? For truth and justice and accountability and transparency? So that’s why I didn’t view the decree as anything important or anything to worry about – because that decree was challenging my right and everyone else’s right as a Catholic to stand up and ask,” he shared with KUAM News.

Archbishop Hon’s work doesn’t stop there. Hon goes on to rescind a second decree that was never made public. According to Father Tadeusz Jan Nowak, the second decree rescinded pertains to a private matter and was not published by the archdiocese. KUAM News, however, has confirmed the decree was a gag order issued to Deacon Steve Martinez. Martinez was a former sexual abuse response coordinator for the Archdiocese of Agana until 2014, when he says he was dismissed for speaking up about a conflict in church policies. In a previous interview with media, Martinez clarified that church policy currently reads that the archbishop is responsible for determining what sexual abuse allegations get investigated, even if he stands as the accused.

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GUAM
KUAM

Updated: Jun 16, 2016

By Krystal Paco

Roland Sondia and his wife Frances thank the community for their support. The couple appeared on KUAM Radio this morning On Wednesday, Sondia publicly accused Archbishop Anthony Apuron of molesting him decades ago, when he was only 15 years old. Although Apuron has denied child sex abuse allegations and blames such allegations for the growing divide in the church, Sondia hopes his story can help make the local Catholic Church whole again.

“I’m not going to destroy the church,” he said on KUAM Radio this morning. “My effort is to bring the church back together – to unify the church and make it whole again. He divided the church, and the church is the people, of course. We’re just approaching the individual. We want this individual to acknowledge what he did and apologize to all the Catholic faithful here on the island.”

Sondia and his wife Frances were guests on Isla63-AM’s talkradio with Jess Lujan.

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GUAM
St. Louis Post-Dispatch

HAGATNA, Guam (AP) — The Latest on accusations that Guam Archbishop Anthony Apuron sexually abused minors when he was a parish priest in the 1970s (all times local):

3:30 p.m. Thursday

A Catholic Church official has rescinded a recent decree that was aimed at preventing Catholics from associating with a group that calls for the removal of Guam Archbishop Anthony Apuron, amid allegations of sexual abuse.

Three men have accused Apuron of sexually abusing them while they were minors in the 1970s and Apuron was a parish priest.

Apuron — who has not been charged with any crime and has denied the allegations — issued the decree opposing association with Concerned Catholics of Guam on June 5.

As the allegations began surfacing, the Vatican this month appointed Archbishop Savio Hon Tai Fai as temporary administrator.

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GUAM
Pacific Daily News

Gaynor Dumat-ol Daleno, gdumat-ol@guampdn.com June 16, 2016

The whistleblower group Concerned Catholics of Guam is officially no longer a “prohibited society” in the eyes of the Guam Catholic church’s leadership.

Archbishop Savio Hon Tai Fai, apostolic administrator of the Archdiocese of Agana, issued a decree Thursday rescinding Archbishop Anthony Apuron’s June 5 decree banning Concerned Catholics and its supporters from local churches.

Apuron issued the decree shortly before the Vatican clipped his administrative powers at the archdiocese in light of mounting allegations he sexually abused minor altar boys when he was a priest at a parish in Agat decades ago. Apuron hasn’t been charged with any crime.

Apuron’s ban on Concerned Catholics was supposed to go into effect June 14, but the archdiocesan leadership under Hon placed it under review.

Hon stated in his June 16 decree he rescinded and annulled Apuron’s decree “after seven days of consultation and reflection, with deep concern for the best interests of the Archdiocese of Agana, particularly for the promotion of reconciliation and deeper communion of all members of this particular church.”

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OREGON
Dalles Chronicle

By Neita Cecil
As of Wednesday, June 15, 2016

The mother of a sex abuse victim has sued First Christian Church in The Dalles for $5 million, alleging the church did not adequately supervise the youth leader who abused her teen daughter.

This is the second leader from First Christian to be convicted of sexually abusing church youth in the last three years.

The victim from that earlier criminal case sued the church in 2013 and reached an undisclosed settlement in 2014.

Later in 2014, youth leader Michael Cele Stephens, now 20, began abusing girls he met through youth group at the church, said attorney Peter Janci, whose firm has brought both lawsuits against the church.

The latest suit, filed last Thursday in Wasco County Circuit Court, alleges the church was negligent in failing to investigate warning signs involving Stephens, who was recently sentenced to 15 years in prison for sexually abusing six teen girls.

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MAINE
Foster’s

Ellen W. Todd
Sanford News Writer

PORTLAND — A Roman Catholic priest who once served at the former St. Ignatius Parish in Sanford has been dismissed by the Vatican following a charge of sexual abuse.

Antonin R. Caron, who retired in 1994, was an ordained priest for the Roman Catholic Diocese of Portland and was an associate pastor at St. Ignatius Church in the 1970s. He was transferred to Waterville in 1978.

The Portland Diocese received a complaint regarding sexual abuse of a minor by Caron from an individual in November of 2012. The complainant reported that the sexual abuse occurred in the early 1980s.

After receiving the complaint, the Diocesan Office of Professional Responsibility conducted a full investigation and, as with every report of possible sexual abuse of a minor by a church representative, immediately notified public authorities. Upon completion of the investigation, the case was referred to the Diocesan Review Board, an independent review entity comprised mostly of lay people, which confirmed the findings of the Office of Professional Responsibility that the claim of abuse was substantiated, according to a news release from the diocese.

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NEW YORK
The Villager

BY MICHAEL OSSURGUINE | The Omnibus Child Victims Act, or Senate Bill S6367, is the latest effort from state Democrats to reform the statute of limitations on victims of child sexual abuse. The bill, though still in committee, has momentum in the Senate as victims are stepping forward and Senate Democrats are arguing against entrenched opposition.

State Senator Brad Hoylman introduced the Senate version of the bill with several co-sponsors, including Senator Andrea Stewart-Cousins, the leader of the Democratic Conference.

The proposed act amends the Criminal Procedure Law and the Civil Practice Law to eliminate the statute of limitations, and offers a one-year “civil window” during which civil suits that were previously barred could be filed. Versions of the Child Victims Act have won significant bipartisan support in the Assembly, but the Senate’s G.O.P. majority has so far kept the act from coming to the floor for a floor vote.

“I have spoken to several Republican colleagues that say they support the general concept of the bill,” Hoylman said, adding he hopes to bring it to the floor before the end of this year’s legislative session on Thurs., June 16.

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ROME
The Guardian (UK)

Dan Collyns in Lima and Stephanie Kirchgaessner in Rome
Thursday 16 June 2016

Only the faint sound of shuffling feet could be heard behind the heavy wooden door of the apartment in Rome where Luis Fernando Figari has lived since 2010. And then, silence.

Close by, another tenant in the upscale apartment building – which sits a short walk from Campo de’ Fiori in the centre of the city – vaguely recognised a picture of Figari taken decades ago, which showed him standing beside Pope John Paul II. She had seen him around, but only rarely.

What residents don’t know is that the now frail, bearded man who lives in their building founded a Catholic sect in Peru which answers only to the Vatican and which he once ran like a new age guru.

Figari – who is a layman, not a priest – is now considered persona non grata within the group, the Sodalitium of Christian Life, following allegations by former followers that he physically, emotionally and sexually abused them.

But he is also considered legally untouchable, both in Peru and the Vatican – even though the new leader of the sect has said Figari is guilty of many of the allegations that have been lodged against him.

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MINNESOTA
Duluth News Tribune

By Lisa Kaczke

HIBBING — A Hibbing priest accused of sexually abusing four girls was “grooming” the girls and their families by befriending them, St. Louis County prosecutor Jeff Vlatkovich told jurors Wednesday.

“Any time he saw an opportunity to get what he wanted, he took it,” Vlatkovich said in his opening statement as the criminal sexual conduct trial of Brian Michael Lederer began in State District Court in Hibbing.

A 12-year-old girl was the first of the alleged victims to take the witness stand in the trial that is expected to last five days. She recounted the surprise she felt when Lederer allegedly touched her inappropriately several times at Assumption Catholic School in Hibbing, while her father recalled in his testimony the shock he felt on the day his daughter told him about the touching.

“You always think it’ll happen to someone else, in some other town. You don’t think it’ll happen in your family,” the girl’s father said.

However, Lederer’s defense attorney, Peter Wold of Minneapolis, said the allegations are the result of an infatuation the girls had with Lederer, who was described as a young priest beloved by Assumption students. The touching occurred at times when other adults and students were in the room and were nothing more than misperceived and misunderstood moments, possibly caused by hard feelings of rejection and jealousy over Lederer, Wold said. Once two sisters came forward with allegations, it snowballed into four girls making allegations, three of whom were classmates, he said.

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TEXAS
The Monitor

LORENZO ZAZUETA-CASTRO | STAFF WRITER

EDINBURG — The former priest accused of killing a McAllen teacher and beauty queen was back at the scene of the alleged crime Tuesday during a walkthrough with his attorney.

Feit’s attorney O. Rene Flores and the state’s attorney, Michael Garza, inspected the grounds of the Basilica of the National Shrine of Our Lady of San Juan del Valle on Tuesday, where John Bernard Feit once lived and where the state alleges he hid Irene Garza’s body before dumping it in a nearby canal.

Flores on Wednesday declined comment on what he and his staff looked at and reviewed during the walk-through.

The Edinburg-based attorney said he and Garza were not permitted to speak to the media regarding the walk-through.

The 83-year-old former priest is accused in the April 1960 death of Irene Garza, a schoolteacher and beauty queen who was last seen going to confession at McAllen’s Sacred Heart Catholic Church. Her body was found five days later after it was dumped in a canal.

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MEXICO
Latin American Herald Tribune

GUADALAJARA, Mexico – The house used until 2001 to rehabilitate Catholic priests accused of being pedophiles in Mexico is an open secret that no dares to discuss, Cardinal Emeritus Juan Sandoval Iñiguez said.

The Alberione house in San Pedrito, a town outside the city of Tlaquepaque, is located in a poor area between Pemex and Alba streets.

The property, which has large gardens, a two-story house and another building, is under the care of sisters from the Pious Disciples of the Divine Master, an order founded by Santiago Alberione.

In response to questions from EFE, the women said they did not know of the rehabilitation program’s existence and said the property was used by Kairos, a “full training” program for nuns described on the order’s Web site.

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UNITED STATES
Forward

Sam Kestenbaum
June 15, 2016

Whole Foods CEO John Mackey is standing by his friend Marc Gafni, a controversial New Age guru and former rabbi accused of abuses of power through his career, including molestation of a teenage girl.

Mackey until recently sat on the board of Gafni’s think-tank, Center for Integral Wisdom. Activists have been pushing Mackey to publicly denounce Gafni.

In a recent statement given through a publicist Mackey said he did not condone sexual assault — but would believe Gafni was innocent until he was proven guilty, and that he would remain loyal to his friend.

“Loyalty and the presumption of innocence are important values to me, so I will not join those who are condemning him,” Mackey said. “I am, at once, presuming Marc’s innocence and firmly standing against what he’s accused of.”

The statement appeared first in a LinkedIn post by Nancy Levine, a recruiter in Marin County who has been blogging regularly about Gafni. Julie van Amerongan, director of programs and events of Conscious Capitalism a business ethics group at which Mackey is a board member, emailed the statement and verified it in a later exchange with the Forward.

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UNITED STATES
Christianity Today

Sarah Eekhoff Zylstra
POSTED 6/15/2016

In an unusually contested race, Southern Baptist messengers elected Tennessee pastor Steve Gaines as their next president this morning.

Gaines replaces Ronnie Floyd, who has served the maximum two consecutive terms. SBC presidents are elected one year at a time; the post is largely honorific, except for its ability to fill certain leadership positions.

The SBC actually meant to elect a new president yesterday. But a rare tight race between the top two out of three candidates—North Carolina pastor J. D. Greear (45%) and Gaines (44%)—led to a runoff vote. (A candidate must receive just over 50 percent of the vote to win.)

Yesterday’s runoff vote was also too close to call, with Gaines receiving 49.96 percent of the votes and Greear receiving 47.8 percent. (More than 100 ballots were disqualified, yet were included in the determination of the total number of votes needed for a victory.)

This morning, in a surprise move, Greear pulled out.

“I spent a good amount of time last night praying, and believe that for the sake of our convention and our mission we need to leave St. Louis united,” he told the messengers. “In this room, we have various minor points of difference between us … but we are united by a gospel too great and a mission too urgent to let any lesser thing stand in our way. And one of the candidates leaving the convention with a 51 to 49 victory on a third ballot is just not going to serve our mission well. So I am respectfully withdrawing my candidacy as president.”

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MISSOURI
Christian Examiner

by Joni B. Hannigan | 15 June, 2016

ST. LOUIS (Christian Examiner) –Steve Gaines, 59, pastor of the Memphis area Bellevue Baptist Church was elected by acclamation as the new president of the Southern Baptist Convention today following a historic and unprecedented delay the first day of the June 14-15 SBC annual meeting.

The surprise announcement came at the start what was to be a third vote for president at the end of the June 15 morning session.

North Carolina pastor J.D. Greear withdrew his nomination to lead the largest non-Catholic denomination in America after two inconclusive votes, but then made a motion to elect Gaines by acclamation.

“I’ve said from the beginning it is tricky to lead the SBC,” Greear said. “I’ve spent a good amount of time praying and I believe for the sake of our convention and our election we need to leave St. Louis united. … We are united by a Gospel too great, and a mission too urgent, to let a lesser message stand in our way. I am respectfully withdrawing my candidacy as president.”

When a first vote split three ways between the three nominees for president – Gaines; Greenville, North Carolina pastor J.D. Greear; and New Orleans pastor David Crosby – failed to secure a 50 percent vote for any candidate, a second vote was cast.

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UNITED STATES
Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests

For immediate release: Wednesday, June 15, 2016

Statement by David Clohessy of St. Louis, Director of SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (314 566 9790, 314 645 5915 home, davidgclohessy@gmail.com)

We’re disappointed that the Southern Baptist Convention just elected Bellevue Baptist pastor Steve Gaines as president. He covered up abuse by minister Paul Williams for at least six months.

[Christian Examiner]

[SNAP]

No matter what church officials do or don’t do, we urge every single person who saw, suspected or suffered child sex crimes and cover ups in Baptist churches or institutions to protect kids by calling police, get help by calling therapists, expose wrongdoers by calling law enforcement, get justice by calling attorneys, and be comforted by calling support groups like ours. This is how kids will be safer, adults will recover, criminals will be prosecuted, cover ups will be deterred and the truth will surface.

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UNITED KINGDOM
Boston News

Joanne Rowe, Reporter

A CHURCH youth leader who sexually abused two young girls has been jailed for eight years.

Michael Higson began abusing his first victim when she was just 14 years old, persuading her to undress for him over a webcam and taking her to his work office in Bolton for sex.

Bolton Crown Court heard how 33-year-old Higson’s distorted thinking led him to believe he was in a relationship with the girl.

But when she ended the secret relationship after six years, he turned his attentions to a second 14-year-old girl.

Karen Brooks, prosecuting, told the court how Higson’s offending only came to light in February this year when the girl’s mother spotted a text message from him on her daughter’s phone reading “Night … I love you x.”

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IRELAND
Solicitors Journal

International firm Hogan Lovells is to provide pro bono support to mothers and adopted people giving evidence to an independent investigation into Irish Mother and Baby Homes.

Working in collaboration with the Adoption Rights Alliance (ARA) and Justice for Magdalenes Research (JFMR), Hogan Lovells lawyers will assist in the preparation of witness statements to be sent to Ireland’s Commission of Investigation.

The Hogan Lovells team will also use the documents and information gathered to create an archive of the experiences of various stakeholders, and assist ARA and JFMR in making submissions to the commission.

In 2015, the Irish government announced the formation of the commission to investigate Mother and Baby Homes in Ireland, following concerns about the deaths of children at a home in Tuam, County Galway.

Many unmarried mothers and children born out of wedlock experienced trauma resulting from their treatment at various institutions across Ireland. Even today, many continue to experience difficulties in accessing records and discovering their identities and family histories.

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WASHINGTON (DC)
PRNewswire

NEW YORK, June 15, 2016 /PRNewswire/ — When Rabbi Bernard “Barry” Freundel, a nationally recognized authority in Jewish law, and the longstanding rabbi of Georgetown Synagogue-Kesher Israel Congregation was arrested in October 2014 on charges of voyeurism, the news made national headlines and generated two proposed class action suits. Yesterday, in a significant move forward, the D.C. Superior Court issued an omnibus order establishing a series of deadlines for vigorous prosecution of several proposed class actions arising out of Freundel’s voyeuristic and criminal acts. The order set dates for the filing of a consolidated class action complaint, specifies deadlines for the close of fact and expert witness discovery, and directs that any motion for class certification be submitted on May 12, 2017, with a hearing on class certification to be held on June 13, 2017. In another important move, the Court appointed Sanford Heisler, LLP as interim class counsel.

The lawsuit arose from a shocking betrayal of trust by Bernard Freundel. Early in 2015, Freundel plead guilty, in a criminal proceeding before the Superior Court of the District of Columbia, to numerous counts of illicitly filming women as they used the “mikvah”- a Jewish ritual bath frequently used by married Orthodox women as well as by women undergoing conversion to Judaism.

The D. C. law firm of Chaikin, Sherman, Cammarata & Siegel, P.C. filed one of the original class actions. “We are honored to be working with Sanford Heisler to bring relief to the women who were so terribly abused by Bernard Freundel’s illegal conduct,” said Ira Sherman, founding partner of Chaikin Sherman, who is collaborating with Sanford Heisler on this matter. “It’s a team effort we are proud of and I am confident that together we can achieve some measure of justice for the victims in this case.”

After briefing and argument, Judge Brian F. Holeman of the D.C. Superior Court appointed Sanford Heisler as lead interim counsel. The Court stated that Sanford Heisler Chairman David Sanford’s “willingness to follow the Court’s directions and his succinct presentation on behalf of [Sanford Heisler] demonstrates that [the firm] possesses the understanding, knowledge, experience, and capability to perform the required work on behalf of the putative class Plaintiffs.” The court also praised Mr. Sanford’s candor, experience, and foresight in proposing a definitive timeframe for pre-certification discovery. Judge Holeman emphasized that Sanford Heisler has been recognized by various courts for excellence in class action litigation and representation. Based on all of these factors, Judge Holeman concluded that Sanford Heisler is “capable of exercising the managerial functions required of lead interim class counsel.”

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CANADA
The Telegram

Barb Sweet
Published on June 15, 2016

A New Mexico forensic psychologist in Newfoundland Supreme Court this morning called the boys at Mount Cashel as vulnerable as they could be when they were horribly wronged at the orphanage.

William Foote was qualified this morning at the Mount Cashel civil trial as an expert on the long-term effects of childhood sexual abuse. The request was made on behalf of the former residents from the 1940s to ’60s who say the Catholic Church should be held liable for physical and sexual abuse perpetrated by certain members of the lay order Christian Brothers.

The church contends it wasn’t involved in the orphanage’s operation.

For more coverage from this case click here

Foote also commented on the sexual sadism practised by certain Christian Brothers at the orphanage, noting everyone agrees it was a toxic place where boys were also humiliated and degraded through physical abuse.

The boys were at Mount Cashel usually because of a loss of a parent and Foote said during testimony on how research indicates children from a loving home life tend to fare better in recovering from sexual abuse. At the orphanage, the Brothers were in a position of trust in the boys’ lives.

Under questioning by former residents’ lawyer Will Hiscock, Foote said the fact that some boys were given penance when they confided in clergy about the abuse amounted to blaming the victim. (The court has already heard of instances of boys telling of abuse in confession).

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PENNSYLVANIA
Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests

For immediate release, June 14, 2016

Statement by David Clohessy of St. Louis, Director of SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (314 566 9790,314 645 5915 home, davidgclohessy@gmail.com)

It is the job of judges to decide if those laws pass constitutional muster. Pennsylvania legislatures must put the safety of kids first, above all other considerations.

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TEXAS
Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests

For immediate release: Wednesday, June 15, 2016

Statement by David Clohessy of St. Louis, Director of SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (314 566 9790,314 645 5915 home, davidgclohessy@gmail.com)

We call on top US Baptist officials to denounce a plan being discussed by some Baylor alums to keep a controversial coach who has been ousted for turning a blind eye to rapes.

[SportsDay]

The annual meeting of the Southern Baptist Convention is being held now in St. Louis. We urge delegates and officials to introduce and pass a resolution condemning the suggested retention of Coach Art Briles.

It’s tough to deter rapists. It’s not tough, however, to deter their enablers – colleagues and supervisors who ignore or hide rapists’ crimes. All it takes is harsh discipline. That’s what Briles deserves. That’s what will protect college students and others from sexual violence.

Even discussing a lesser punishment for Briles rubs salt into the already deep and still fresh wounds of many victims of sexual violence. It tells us “Baylor football is more important than your pain.” It’s extraordinarily callous. And speaking of deterrence, such irresponsible and cold-hearted discussion deters others who’ve been assaulted from reporting criminals, helping police, and stopping more sexual violence.

No matter what university or church officials do or don’t do, we urge every single person who saw, suspected or suffered child sex crimes and cover ups in Baptist churches or institutions – especially at Baylor – to protect kids by calling police, get help by calling therapists, expose wrongdoers by calling law enforcement, get justice by calling attorneys, and be comforted by calling support groups like ours. This is how kids will be safer, adults will recover, criminals will be prosecuted, cover ups will be deterred and the truth will surface.

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GUAM
Pacific New Center

Written by Janela Carrera

Roland Paul Lizama Sondia says Archbishop Anthony Apuron molested him when he was an altar boy in Agat.

Guam – Yet another victim has come forward with sex abuse claims against Archbishop Anthony Apuron. Roland Paul Lizama Sondia says he was molested by Archbishop Apuron in 1977.

Sondia is now the fourth victim to publicly accuse the archbishop of sexual assault.

Like the three other alleged victims, Sondia says it happened at the rectory of the Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Church in Agat. Sondia was 15 years old in the summer of 1977 and one night he and a few other altar servers were sleeping over at the rectory.

“I was awakened when I felt someone tapping on my shoulder and calling my name,” says Sondia. “I looked up and it was Father Anthony Apuron.”

Sondia says Apuron gestured him to come into his bedroom. While inside, Sondia says Apuron propositioned him.

“He put his right arm around my shoulders and pulled me closer saying, ‘Do you want to try me?'” recalls Sondia. “Before I could do anything he started rubbing my privates. I loudly asked him, ‘What are you doing?’ I told him to stop but he didn’t. Instead he continued on and this time squeezing my penis and kept saying, ‘Just try me.'”

Sondia says he eventually managed to break free and run toward the door.

“I remember glancing back and he was just sitting there at the edge of his bed with his head down,” says Sondia.

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GUAM
Guam Daily Post

Louella Losinio | Post News Staff

Roland Sondia yesterday became the fourth Agat resident since mid-May to accuse Archbishop Anthony Apuron of sexual abuse. He made the accusation yesterday, June 15 during a press conference in front of the Pastoral Office at the Dulce Nombre de Maria Cathedral-Basilica in Hagåtña.

“When I was an altar boy almost 39 years ago, at the age of 15, I was molested by then-parish priest Anthony Sablan Apuron. This was a man who I trusted and had a lot of respect for,” Sondia said.

According to Sondia, the incident occurred in 1977 when he was an altar boy at Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church in Agat.

“In the middle of the night, I was sexually molested by Apuron,” he said. “It was around 1 a.m. in the middle of the week when a couple of altar boys and I were asleep on futons on the living room floor at the Mount Carmel rectory. I was awakened when I felt someone tapping on my shoulder and calling my name.”

Sondia said he looked up and Apuron was asking for his help and gestured to follow him to the bedroom. In the dark, Sondia said Apuron put his arms around his shoulder, pulled him closer and asked, “Do you want to try me?” Before he could do anything, Sondia said Apuron started “rubbing my privates.” Sondia asked, “What are you doing?” and told Apuron to stop. However, Sondia said Apuron continued and kept saying, “Just try me.”

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IRELAND
CLANN Project

Press Release, 15th June 2016

Launch of major project to assist with Mother and Baby Homes Commission of Investigation

Justice for Magdalenes Research (JFMR) and Adoption Rights Alliance (ARA) are delighted to announce the launch of a major project which will offer support to those who wish to make a statement to the Commission of Investigation into Mother and Baby Homes and Certain Related Matters.

The project will provide individuals with free witness statement drafting assistance and it has been endorsed by Philomena Lee and her daughter Jane Libberton. It will be known as Clann: Ireland’s Unmarried Mothers and their Children: Gathering the Data (Clann) and it will be delivered in association with global law firm Hogan Lovells.

JFMR and ARA believe firstly that it is crucial that those who wish to give evidence to the Commission of Investigation have access to legal assistance at no cost, and secondly that the putting in place of such assistance will help ensure that the Commission of Investigation conducts the most comprehensive investigation possible and that it makes appropriate findings and recommendations.

Everyone who compiles a witness statement with Hogan Lovells’ assistance will retain a copy and will be free to use it for any other purpose, including making a written submission to the Commission should they wish not to appear in person. The Clann project has also created a Guide to the Commission of Investigation as a resource.

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IRELAND
irish Independent

Catherine Devine
PUBLISHED
15/06/2016

Women who lived in mother and baby homes in Ireland will now be able to avail of free legal assistance to make a witness statement.

Justice for Magdalene Research (JFMR) and Adoption Rights Alliance (ARA) have launched the new plan known as “Clann”.
.
The project will provide free legal assistance to allow individuals in the homes to draft witness statements.

The project aims to help ensure that the Commission of Investigation conducts the most comprehensive investigation possible into the treatment of unmarried mother in the homes.

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CANADA
Out in the Open

Angela Kennedy, chair of the Toronto Catholic School Board, got in touch with Out in the Open after listening to last week’s episode on The Sex Talk, to explain why her thinking on the subject had changed after she learned that one of her adult sons, Brian, had been sexually abused at age 11.

As a trustee for the Catholic board last year, she was critical of Ontario’s sex-education curriculum. She called for a delay on the implementation of the plan, and released a statement last year, reading in part, “Catholic schools shouldn’t be forced to teach a program that doesn’t ground the expression of sexuality in love and marriage.”

She no longer feels that way. “That’s the Church’s position, but my position has changed,” she told Out in the Open host Piya Chattopadhyay.

“My position has changed because of what happened to Brian. A very sensitive and disturbing revelation to us has caused me to pause and to reflect on my own attitudes.”

Brian Kennedy, now a 30-year-old teacher at Toronto Catholic secondary school, told his story in the online article, “Tough Enough To Talk.”

“I’m a living example that we need more dialogue around sexual health, not less,” Brian wrote. “We need to encourage boys and girls to ask questions, or risk that they’ll bury them, like I did.”

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PENNSYLVANIA
The Morning Call

Bill White

Here are answers to some claims about statute of limitations reform

I’ve been writing — here and here — about the way the Catholic Church is working hard to convince its faithful to exert pressure on state lawmakers over a bill that would extend statutes of limitations in cases of child sex abuse.

House Bill 1947, which easily passed the House in April, would eliminate the statute of limitations for criminal cases of child sexual abuse and extend the statute for civil cases until the victim reaches age 50, retroactively, from the present age 30.

It also would partially lift sovereign immunity protection shielding public entities such as public schools, although the retroactive provision wouldn’t apply in those cases because experts say it would be illegal.

As I watched comments unfold after I posted the link on Facebook, it occurred to me that I should address some of the concerns raised by the Philadelphia Archdiocese in the letters being read from the pulpit, sent to the parents of Catholic schoolchildren and posted in church bulletins and church websites. We may also be seeing a commercial before long, if advance publicity for a recent Catholic gathering was correct.

The blog post I linked to above included a letter from Philadelphia Archbishop Charles Chaput that lays out many of the church’s arguments. I encourage you to check it out.

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GUAM
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Agana

The Most Reverend Archbishop Savio Hon Tai Fai, S.D.B.
Secretary of the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples,
Apostolic Administrator of the Archdiocese of Agana

On behalf of the Holy Father, I wish to thank the clergy, religious, and lay faithful of Guam for their openness, trust, and prayers as I carry out the duties that our Holy Father has entrusted to me as the Apostolic Administrator, sede plena, of the Archdiocese of Agana effective June 6, 2016.

It has been just seven days since I arrived on Guam Wednesday, June 8 with Rev. Fr. Tadeusz Jan Nowak, O.M.I., who has been assisting me.

During the past week, we have met with various Archdiocesan Councils and I have met individually with many priests. We have visited a few parishes and celebrated Mass with the People, including a Vigil service on Saturday evening and Sunday Mass at the Cathedral-Basilica. In all of these encounters we have found the priests, deacons, religious, and lay faithful to be very collaborative and helpful in promoting the good of the diocese. They have displayed a deep love for Christ and for His Church.

I ask for the people’s patience and trust as we continue this process of consulting, reflecting, and promoting the unity, harmony, and stability of the Church in Guam.

+ Savio Hon Tai Fai, SDB

Apostolic Administrator
Archdiocese of Agana

14 June 2016

Download Full Statement

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GUAM
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Agana

This morning Mr. Roland Paul Lizama Sondia, a resident of Guam presented to the public media accusations against the Archbishop of Agana, namely, that when he was an altar boy at Our Lady of Mount Carmel parish in Agat, he was molested by the then Father Anthony Sablan Apuron. The Archdiocese of Agana, taking into serious consideration the allegations presented to the public this morning, will take the necessary steps to present the matter to the Holy See, which has final authority in cases related to Bishops. In the mean time, I am earnestly praying for all those concerned in this matter, without prejudice to both the alleged victim and the accused and ask for the prayers and support of the entire Church community.

Most Rev. Savio Hon Tai Fai, SDB

Apostolic Administrator
Archdiocese of Agana

June 15, 2016

Download Full Statement

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GUAN
Clay Center Dispatch

HAGATNA, Guam (AP) — Another former altar boy has come forward to publicly accuse Guam’s archbishop of sexual abuse.

The Pacific Daily News reports (http://bit.ly/21mlTr9) that 54-year-old Roland Paul L. Sondia said Wednesday that he was a 15-year-old altar boy when Archbishop Anthony Apuron sexually abused him during a sleepover in a church rectory. That was in summer 1977, when Apuron was a parish priest.

Sondia says he has tried to put the abuse behind him but felt that he should come forward when childhood friends began sharing similar stories in May.

Archbishop Savio Hon Tai Fai, a temporary administrator appointed by the Vatican, said in a statement that the Guam archdiocese will take the allegations into “serious consideration.”

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NEW YORK
New York Daily News

KENNETH LOVETT
NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
Monday, June 13, 2016

ALBANY – With three days left in the state legislative session and their chances fading, advocates for a bill to make it easier for child sexual assault victims to seek justice are hoping for a miracle.

And they’ll need it.

Gov. Cuomo sent a letter to the Legislature Monday outlining six end-of-session issues he believes can be achieved – and the Child Victims Act was not among them. Allowing restaurants to sell booze on Sundays before noon, made the list as did improving safety at rail crossings, and ethics and campaign finance reform.

“It’s not in the letter, so obviously he’s not pushing for it,” Gary Greenberg, an upstate investor and a child sex abuse victim, said. “If he was, it would be in the letter. By not including it, the message to the Legislature is they don’t have to pass it.”

State lawmakers, meanwhile, have reached a tentative deal to allow bars and restaurants to begin selling liquor at 10 a.m. Sunday morning, sources told the Daily News.

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IRELAND
RTE News

Women who lived in mother and baby homes across Ireland can now avail of free legal assistance to make a witness statement.

The project, which will be known as Clann, has been set up by Justice for Magdalenes Research and the Adoption Rights Alliance.

They say the initiative will ensure the commission conducts the most comprehensive investigation possible.

The new project will provide women who lived at any of the country’s mother and baby homes with free legal assistance in drafting witness statements.

Those behind the project say it will allow women to make a comprehensive statement to the commission which is investigating how unmarried mothers and their babies were treated at 14 State-linked religious institutions.

They say that it will ensure that women can still give evidence even if they do not wish to do so in person.

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ITALY
The Local

An Italian priest, arrested on Tuesday on suspicion of sexually abusing a minor, allegedly told his victim that he would go to hell if he spoke out about the abuse.

The 55-year-old, from Corna di Darfo parish near the Lombardy city of Brescia, allegedly abused the boy, of foreign origin, from when he was aged 12 until he reached 14.

The priest, who has been suspended from the parish, is alleged to have said to the child that if he told anyone about the abuse then he would go to hell.

The boy, who attended the parish in order to be baptized, eventually confided in a priest in Milan, who told him to tell police.

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DEUTSCHLAND
RP

Nettetal. Die Initiative gegen Gewalt und sexuellen Missbrauch an Kindern und Jugendlichen hegt den Verdacht, dass die Kirche die Missbrauchsvorwürfe gegen Georg K. aus Südafrika nicht aufklären möchte Von Marc Schütz

Johannes Heibel ist wütend auf die katholische Kirche. Diese hat den aus Willich stammenden Georg K. zwar jetzt aus dem Priesteramt entlassen, weil er wegen teilweise schweren Missbrauchs von Minderjährigen Anfang 2015 zu sechs Jahren Haft verurteilt wurde.

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ROM
Jesuiten

[The Jesuit Pontifical Gregorian University has graduated its first class of people who completed a course in protection of minors.]

Rom (KNA) – Am Kinderschutzzentrum der Päpstlichen Universität Gregoriana haben die ersten 19 Teilnehmer den Studiengang “Schutz von Minderjährigen” erfolgreich absolviert. Die Studierenden aus vier Kontinenten erhielten am Dienstag ihr Abschlusszeugnis vom Leiter des Kinderschutzzentrums, P. Hans Zollner SJ. Das einsemestrige Qualifikationsprogramm bildet internationale Studenten geistlicher und säkularer Fachrichtungen zu Präventionsfachleuten für den Schutz von Minderjährigen vor sexuellem Missbrauch aus.

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AUSTRALIA
Illawarra Mercury

Cydonee Mardon
June 15, 2016

A former Catholic Brother has pleaded guilty to sexually abusing a young male student at Edmund Rice College in the late 1980s.

John Vincent Roberts was a teacher at the single-sex school when he repeatedly molested and raped the 12-year-old boy while on school grounds.

Roberts, now aged 73 and living in Sydney, was arrested after voluntarily attending Redfern Police Station on December 14 at the request of investigating officers.

He was charged with 21 offences in total, including multiple counts of homosexual intercourse (teacher of pupil) and indecent assault where the victim was under his authority.

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TEXAS
Wall Street Journal

By BRAD REAGAN and REBECCA DAVIS O’BRIEN
June 14, 2016

A small group of powerful Baylor University alumni are pushing the school to reconsider its plan to fire football coach Art Briles, a move that threatens to inflame the controversy over the Baptist school’s handling of sexual violence on campus.

The issue was discussed Monday night in a teleconference between members of the Baylor board of regents but no action was taken, according to people familiar with the matter.

Based in Waco, Texas, Baylor three weeks ago forced out its president, Kenneth Starr, and suspended Briles in response to an outside law firm’s report concluding that the school turned a blind eye to sexual assaults and other incidents involving members of the football team. The board’s actions drew national attention because they implicated Starr, whose prosecution of former President Bill Clinton led to his impeachment, and Briles, a beloved figure among many alumni for revitalizing the football program.

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WALES
Advertiser

Published date: 14 June 2016 | Published by: Daniel Heald

A PRIEST, who had been arrested on suspicion of historical child sexual abuse, committed suicide at his home near Oswestry, a coroner has ruled.

Father Ernest Sands, 67, was found dead inside a shed on April 11 near his home at Hirnant on the day he was due to answer bail set by Lancashire Police.

Last year, Fr Sands was arrested on suspicion of sexually abusing five boys aged from 11 to 15 at a Catholic seminary in the late 1970s and 1980s.

The alleged offences were believed to have occurred during Fr Sands’ time as a teacher at St Joseph’s Roman Catholic College, Upholland, Lancashire.

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PENNSYLVANIA
Times Herald

By Kathleen E. Carey, kcarey@21st-centurymedia.com, @dtbusiness on Twitter
POSTED: 06/14/16

The head of the state Senate Judiciary Committee was labeled “biased” and his oversight at a hearing on extending the statue of limitations for child sex abuse victims to file civil lawsuits called “legislative ethics at its worst” because of his law firm’s representation of Catholic interests contesting a similar statute in Delaware.

State Sen. Stewart J. Greenleaf, R-12, of Willow Grove, headed the Judiciary Committee hearing on HB 1947 Monday. He chairs that committee. The bill would extend the time child sex abuse victims can file civil lawsuits 20 years to when they are 50 years old.

The Archdiocese of Philadelphia launched an aggressive campaign earlier this month urging its members to oppose the proposal because of the potential financial peril it could pose to parishes and services.

Thomas S. Neuberger of the Wilmington, Del., law firm that represented more than 110 child abuse victims under the Delaware Child Victims Act of 2007, said Greenleaf has “an irreconcilable conflict of interest” in this matter and called for him to step down.

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