ABUSE TRACKER

A digest of links to media coverage of clergy abuse. For recent coverage listed in this blog, read the full article in the newspaper or other media source by clicking “Read original article.” For earlier coverage, click the title to read the original article.

April 14, 2016

OH– Seminarian who tried to buy baby pleads guilty

OHIO/CALIFORNIA
Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests

For immediate release: Thursday, April 14, 2016

Statement by Judy Jones of St. Louis, Associate Midwest Director of SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (636 433 2511, SNAPjudy@gmail.com)

We’re grateful that a sexually troubled Ohio seminarian has pled guilty to child sex crimes and hope, for the safety of children, that he’s given the longest sentence possible.

We also worry there may be other kids he’s hurt and deplore how little his former church supervisors are doing to find other victims, witnesses or whistleblowers.

[Courthouse News Service]

[KRQE]

After initially claiming he was innocent, Joel A. Wright admitted his guilt in court yesterday. Catholic officials who recruited, accepted, taught and assigned him, however, insist they did nothing wrong.

[SNAP]

Two Ohio prelates – Bishop Jeffrey M. Monforton of Steubenville and Bishop Frederick Campbell of Columbus – should ­­­do aggressive outreach, using church bulletins, parish websites and pulpit announcements.

Church officials in Kentucky (where Wright also attended a Catholic college) and Vermont (where Wright is from) should do likewise.

Bishop Campbell continues to largely being silent and passive about Wright, even though Wright was a student at The Pontifical College Josephinum, just north of Columbus, and within the boundaries of Bishop Campbell’s diocese. (Bishop Campbell in fact has taught at the Josephinum.)

In cases like this, bishops distance themselves from and pretend to be powerless over Catholic institutions in their dioceses, instead of stepping up, admitting responsibility and aggressively helping law enforcement. (According to Catholic church practice, custom and law, a bishop is responsible for the safety and well-being of his entire flock.)

If Josephinum staff were ripping off Columbus Catholics financially, Bishop Campbell wouldn’t be passively sitting back and keeping quiet. He can and should do more.

The only prudent assumption is that Wright has assaulted or exploited kids elsewhere. And Columbus Catholic officials have the ability and duty to see if that’s true by using their resources to beg others with information or suspicions about Wright to call police.

should do outreach seeking other victims of Wright.

News accounts show that Ohio Catholic officials had at least three warnings about Wright. But it seem clear that they did little or nothing to heed those warnings.

1) An informant for Homeland Security called and wrote to Josephinum staff about Wright and his efforts to buy infants or toddlers so he could abuse them.

2) Franciscan University officials in Steubenville reported to police that Wright had offered to pay $150 to babysit young kids alone (but the university may not have told Josephinum officials).

3) Wright’s mother admits that more than 40 seminaries across the US had rejected her son’s applications for enrollment. (She claims it was because of his physical disabilities, but SNAP leaders don’t believe this is true.)

When he was arrested in San Diego en route to Mexico to obtain youngsters, Wright’s studies were sponsored by Bishop Montforton. Wright spent some time in the Steubenville diocese.

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

Former Children’s Ministry Volunteer at Gaithersburg Church Arrested on Charges of Sexual Abuse

MARYLAND
Washingtonian

By Tiffany Stanley on April 14, 2016

Larry Caffery, a former children’s ministry volunteer at Covenant Life Church, was arrested on child sexual-abuse charges last month. The Gaithersburg congregation and its former parent organization, Sovereign Grace Ministries, were at the center of an investigation Washingtonian published in February.

More than a dozen people have alleged they were sexually abused as children by members of Sovereign Grace Ministries. At least seven people have seen their abusers convicted.

Caffery, 66, was charged in March with 11 counts related to sexual abuse, child abuse, sexual offense, and false imprisonment. Caffery’s attorney Mallon Snyder says he denies the allegations against his client. (His case was not part of Washingtonian’s original reporting.)

When reached by phone, the mother of the alleged victim said of her daughter, who is a minor: “I hope she does heal from this, so she can have a full life. That’s what I hope.” The mother is no longer a member of Covenant Life, but she said she does not blame the church for the alleged abuse, nor does she believe the abuse happened on church property.

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

MN–Victims to leaflet about notorious predator priest

MINNESOTA
Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests

For immediate release: Thursday, April 14, 2016

For more information: David Clohessy (314-566-9790 cell, davidgclohessy@gmail.com), Barbara Dorris (314-503-0003 cell, bdorris@SNAPnetwork.org)

Abuse victims to leaflet parishes
They’re worried about convicted predator
Despite priest’s guilt, Vatican lifted his suspension
Group wants to find other “victims, witnesses or whistleblowers”
SNAP: “Another criminal case is our only chance to protect other kids”

Weeks ago, Vatican officials lifted the suspension of a Catholic priest who pled guilty to child sex crimes last year in Minnesota.

That decision is prompting one of his victims to launch a “leafletting tour,” seeking out other victims in each of the four towns where the cleric worked.

Next week, Megan Peterson will spend two days in seven towns handing out fliers at or near Catholic churches where Fr. Joseph Palanivel Jeyapaul was assigned or where his church colleagues and supervisors now work. The leaflets will urge “anyone who saw, suspected or suffered clergy sex crimes or cover ups to call law enforcement immediately,” according to Barbara Dorris, the outreach director of a support group called SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests. She’ll join Peterson in the effort.

And the two vow to keep coming back to northern Minnesota with more leaflets in the future.

“Our goal is to find just one more victim who might be able to file criminal charges and get this proven predator behind bars again,” said Peterson.

“Catholic officials refuse to keep this admitted sex offender away from kids, so our only hope of stopping him is to get him charged and convicted again,” said Dorris. “I’m stunned that top church staff are being so extraordinarily irresponsible, knowing this man is guilty of abusing one girl and is accused of molesting at least two girls.”

News accounts suggest that Fr. Jeyapaul’s current supervisor, Bishop Arulappan Amalraj of the Ootacamund diocese in India (Telephone 0423 2442.366, Fax 0423 – 2441604, 0423 – 2447996, bishopooty@hotmail.com, secretaryooty@yahoo.co.in) plans to re-assign him next month.

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

Stephen Salvatore Trippy

WASHINGTON
Seattle Times

Salvatore (Stephen) Trippy passed away on March 9th 2013 in Seattle at the age of 70. He was born in Seattle March 16th 1942, the beloved son of Salvatore and Mary Trippy. He attended Our Lady of Mount Virgin grade school and Seattle Prep, completing his education at Seattle University. Steve then worked in real estate and with his father in the fur industry. In his 20’s Steve entered into the Dominican Community, and was ordained a Roman Catholic Priest in Seattle. He took the name of Stephen, and ministered in Tacoma and Sedro Woolley, impacting the lives of everyone he touched. He retired early, suffering from emphysema for many years.

Steve was the consummate cook and ultimate host, opening his home and himself to anyone who crossed his path. His celebration of life will truly be missed, Heaven shines a little brighter now that he has walked through those gates.

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

“Baby-buying” Ohio seminarian pleads guilty

CALIFORNIA
The Worthy Adversary

April 14, 2016 Joelle Casteix

Joel Wright, the Steubenville seminarian caught trying to buy children in order to sexually molest them, pleaded guilty to federal charges of trying to entice a minor.

He faces up to 10 years in prison.

Authorities released some of the emails Wright exchanged with undercover agents. You can read some of them here. But a warning: they’re repulsive.

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

ENTREVISTA A LALO RAMOS: AJIJIC DESCONTENTO CON CURA JAVIER GARCÍA OROZCO

GUADALAJARA (MEXICO)
Laguna [Ajijic, Jalisco, Mexico]

April 14, 2016

By Domingo Márquez

Read original article

RAMOS CORDERO HA MANIFESTADO QUE DESDE HACE MÁS DE UN AÑO, LA GENTE NO ESTÁ CONTENTA CON ESTE CURA

(Chapala, Jal.).- La poca solidaridad con el pueblo, su cuadratura para dirigir la iglesia y el poco sentido de identificación con las familias del pueblo son algunos de los factores que han mermado la popularidad del cura Javier García Orozco entre los ajijitecos, ha señalado en entrevista el coordinador de la obra catequista Pasión de Cristo, Eduardo Ramos Coredero, la cual tiene 36 años realizándose ininterrumpidamente en la población de Ajijic.

Ramos Cordero ha manifestado que desde hace más de un año, la gente no está contenta con este cura, quien recibió su nombramiento territorial el 30 de junio del 2014, y que suplió al párroco Alfredo Arreola, quien actualmente se encuentra ejerciendo su ministerio en el templo de la Soledad en Tlaquepaque.

Lalo, como es conocido entre los locales, indicó que la población no busca un sacerdote a su medida y capricho sino que se busca un párroco congruente con su ministerio sacerdotal.

“Que ame a Cristo y que lo demuestre en su pastoreo. No queremos sacerdotes perfectos, porque no los hay, pero queremos un sacerdote que no sea caprichudo y lleno de amargura”, espetó el entrevistado.

Además dijo que es necesario levantar la voz y defender a la iglesia de quien sea. “Si la he defendido de los sacerdotes tengo que hacerlo no porque sea perfecto, sino porque no está cumpliendo con su ministerio con el que se comprometió con Cristo voluntariamente; nadie lo obligó ni a él ni a ningún sacerdote”.

Añadió que da flojera arrimarse con los curas porque son intransigentes, soberbios, no escuchan y sólo quieren hablar de ellos.

También denunció que el cura Javier García Orozco no permite hacer guardia a los difuntos, “que porque no está bien. Bueno esa son nuestras costumbres. Eso lo hace por su falta de amor, de tacto hacia la gente y su apatía a visitar cada hogar del pueblo para empaparse de sus necesidades”.

Eduardo, mencionó que el pueblo debe hablar, externar sus sentimientos. “Tenemos un gran cariño a los sacerdotes, pero ellos mismos se encargan de convertir nuestro cariño en coraje en apatía”.

Además, expresó que el pueblo se tiene que quitar su fanatismo que es lo que más le daña. “Pastores y ovejas son lo mismo y debemos caminar al unísono, ayudarnos unos a otros, el pueblo debe saber, si su sacerdote no está obrando cristianamente, se deben de bajar del pedestal (los sacerdotes) donde ellos mismos se subieron, nadie los subió”.

En el transcurso de la entrevista, realizada en las oficinas de Periódico Laguna, Lalo ahondó explicando que el cristiano, el fiel católico, debe ser valiente, debe denunciar cuando la actitud de los sacerdotes no es buena. “Deben tener miedo de callarse (los habitantes), porque cuando nos muramos, el Señor nos va pedir cuentas de lo que debimos haber hablado”.

“Como yo conozco mi catolicismo, estudié, ya no veo a mis sacerdotes como dioses o seres intocables. Los veo como seres humanos dignos de ser amados, dignos de ser respetados, pero en cuanto ellos sean dignos de eso. Si no lo son yo no les brindo mi respeto”, expresó el coordinador de Pasión de Cristo.

Al preguntarle si había ya tenido un acercamiento con el cura Javier ( foto a la Izq.), Lalo dijo que en un principio se llevaron bien, pero la relación se ha fracturado por la actitud que ha tomado el párroco hacia la población.

Lalo contó a Laguna que cuando fue a buscar al cura para pedir un favor, antes de preguntarle a qué iba, le comenzó a cuestionar por qué no iba a misa, por qué no se confesaba. A los que le respondió que para él era más importante el amor a su comunidad, esforzarse para ayudar al prójimo que estar rezando novenas y pasártela todo el tiempo en el templo.

Además, “si yo no voy al templo y a clases de biblia, él tiene que ir con cariño. No sólo conmigo sino ver qué les pasa a las familias, porque están sufriendo. Lo que están sufriendo por la drogadicción de sus hijos, por la falta de trabajo. Nada más se limitan a oficiar, bautizar,                                                                                                                 confirmar y a administrar las limosnas”, sentenció.

Añadió: “Yo no sé qué están haciendo en sus curatos, administrando el dinero de las limosnas, llenando papeleo, pues para eso tienen un secretario. El único que yo sé que trabaja, aparte de cumplir con su obligación, trabaja en el Instituto de Antropología y es un excelente pastor. Es el padre Everardo”.

Lalo también confesó que un sector del pueblo se encuentra molestó por la actitud que tuvo con la muerte del catequista Manuel España. “Se molestó porque le dieron clamores muy largos. La gente se dio cuenta y comenzó a decir ‘bueno, ¿y en qué le afecta?’ o ‘¿qué las campanas se desgastan?’ o ‘¿acaso ignoraba quién fue Manuel?’. Manuel sangró amor desde niño en Ajijic, por eso cosechó amor, por eso cosechó tantas muestras de cariño, tantas lágrimas el día de su partida”.

El entrevistado explicó que también el párroco se molestó cuando le abrieron la capilla del Rosario para meter por unos momentos el féretro y rezar por el alma del catequista que dedicó más de 50 años de su vida a la evangelización.

“Qué tiene que te abran la capilla para que entre un hombre que amó a María del Rosario. La gente quería rezar un rosario y orar por su alma”, dijo.

Además manifestó que ya descubrió que el cura no está a gusto aquí en Ajijic. “Hay gente que me lo ha dicho. Nos hemos salido de misa porque es incongruente lo que dice. ‘Repórteme en el arzobispado, no me molesta, al contrario, me harían un gran favor; yo no estoy a gusto aquí’”.

Lalo refirió que “¿por qué tenemos que denunciarlo nosotros? ¿Por qué no les dice a sus superiores que está molesto en Ajijic? ‘Quiero irme, el pueblo está molesto’”.

Al igual, Ramos Cordero, se quejó por el poco apoyo que recibió la obra catequista “Pasión de Cristo” en su treintaiseisava representación, ya que no les permitió el uso de energía eléctrica en el atrio de la Parroquia de San Andrés, ni les facilitó el atrio de la capillita para realizar la “Verbena del Pasado”, kermesse que se hace cada año en la plaza principal para recaudar fondos para la obra catequista. “Nos permiten hacer las cosas, pero no nos ayudan”.

Sin embargo, señaló que “si te pones a pensar a lo mejor tiene razón: En la capillita cada vez que finaliza ‘La Verbena del Pasado’ termina un cochinero, pero deberían tomar en cuenta que al día siguiente se tiran los desperdicios de la comida, [limpiamos] cuatro o tres días [después], y a veces más, porque estamos cansados se recoge absolutamente todo y entregamos el atrio mejor de los que recibimos”.

Además indicó que “yo siempre he cuidado que nos divorciemos del clero (Pasión de Cristo), no de la Iglesia, porque nosotros somos la Iglesia. Como en Iztapalapa, entonces todo se convierte en borrachera, derroche de dinero a manos llenas, mientras no nos den motivo para separarnos”.

Para finalizar, Lalo dijo que el cura Javier García Orozco debería acercarse a platicar para llegar a acuerdos. “’A Pasión de Cristo’ se nos cerraron unas puertas, pero se nos abrieron otras, la Casa de la Cultura de Ajiijc, y el Ayuntamiento de Chapala nos ayudó a sacar la obra catequista mandando personas y facilitando sus instalaciones del Centro Cultural Ajijic para que los actores se cambiaran de vestuario”.

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

Albert Mohler and CJ Mahaney

KENTUCKY
Soundcloud

Southern Baptist Theological Seminary president Albert Mohler introduces CJ Mahaney speaking at Together for the Gospel Conference 2016

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

NEW BEDFORD JURY FINDS FALL RIVER TEACHER LIABLE IN CIVIL TRIAL FOR SEXUAL ASSAULT

MASSACHUSETTS
Durso Law

A New Bedford Superior Court jury has rendered a civil verdict against Albert Vaillancourt, a long-time Fall River Catholic School teacher. The jury awarded $300,000 to the plaintiff, who sued under the name John Doe. A judgment in the amount of $560,352 was then entered by the Court.

The defendant filed post-trial motions, seeking to overturn the verdict, which were denied, on April 4, 2016, by Judge Robert Kane, the presiding judge at the trial. The defendant has now filed a Notice of Appeal.

The plaintiff testified that he was sexually assaulted in 1987, when he was 10 years old, by Vaillancourt, who was his sixth grade teacher at Notre Dame School, Fall River. The abuse occurred on two occasions in the classroom, during recess breaks, and on one occasion at Vaillancourt’s home, when John Doe was there to cut the grass.

A second person testified that during the same time period, when he was 10 years old, he was also sexually assaulted by Vaillancourt, at the Fall River CYO building, in a manner which was similar to the way in which John Doe was assaulted.

The plaintiff was able to prosecute his case because of a new, retroactive, MA statute of limitations law which allows a person sexually abused as a child to file suit at any time prior to his 53rd birthday, against the perpetrator. The MA Supreme Judicial Court declared the law constitutionally sound in December, 2015, and this is the first case tried under that law since the Court’s decision.

The plaintiff was represented by Boston attorneys Carmen L. Durso and Sara Elizabeth Burns. The defendant was represented by Taunton attorney Francis M. O’Boy.

For additional information, contact:

Carmen Durso
DURSO LAW
LAW OFFICE OF CARMEN L. DURSO
175 Federal Street, Suite 1425
Boston, MA 02110-2287
Tel: 617-728-9123 – Fax: 617-426-7972
carmen@dursolaw.com
www.dursolaw.com

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

Attorney General backs Markey’s sex abuse bill

NEW YORK
Times Newsweekly

By Anthony Giudice
agiudice@ridgewoodtimes.com
@A_ GiudiceReport

The fight to allow childhood sexual abuse victims the right to bring their abusers to justice has just gained another supporter.

Attorney General Eric Schneiderman has joined forces with Maspeth-based Assemblywoman Margaret Markey to make the Child Victims Act the law of the land in New York State, which seeks to eliminate the archaic statute of limitations in the state which restricts the time for childhood sexual abuse victims to come forward and expose their abusers and the organizations that hid or protected them.

“As the state’s top law enforcement officer, it is my job to ensure equal justice for all New Yorkers — especially the most vulnerable among us,” Schneiderman wrote in a letter to Senate Majority Leader John Flanagan and Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie. “No one is more vulnerable than children who have been the victims of sexual abuse. Yet, New York remains one of just four states … that denies victims their day in court, and allows those who prey on children to walk away unpunished.”

Currently, New York is among the worst states in the country — along with Georgia, Alabama and Mississippi — on how they deal with child victims of sexual abuse, giving the victim of child sexual abuse until their 23rd birthday to come forward and press charges, or they lose the chance to bring their abuser to justice forever.

Schneiderman has called the state’s current laws “unconscionable,” and that they “must be addressed during this year’s legislative session.”

In the letter, Schneiderman cited statistics from the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention stating that one in four girls, and one in six boys are sexually abused before the age of 18.

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

Archdiocese had no official role at Mount Cashel: witness

CANADA
The Telegram

Barb Sweet
Published on April 14, 2016

The Archdiocese of St. John’s had no control over the vetting of Christian Brothers assigned to Mount Cashel, nor do historical documents show a role in operating or financing the facility or being wardens of the boys at the orphanage, the Mount Cashel civil trial at Newfoundland Supreme Court in St. John’s heard this morning.

Historian John FitzGerald, expert witness for the RC church, is seen prior to testifying Thursday at the Mount Cashel civil trial. — Photo by Barb Sweet/The Telegram
Historian John FitzGerald is testifying as an expert witness for the church and questioning of him by the church’s lawyer Mark Frederick continued this morning.

The lawsuit against the RC Episcopal Corp. of St. John’s seeks compensation and involves four test cases that claim the church should be held liable for the physical and sexual abuse of boys at the orphanage by certain Christian Brothers during the period late 1940s to early 1960s. The test cases represent about 60 claimants in the case being pursued by Budden and Associates.

The church contends it did not run the orphanage, therefore is not responsible for actions of the lay order Christian Brothers there.

FitzGerald, who reviewed historical documents and wrote a report on the relationship between the archdiocese and the Christian Brothers, said the Brothers were a separate incorporated entity.

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

Joel Wright, former seminarian, pleads guilty to child sex charges

CALIFORNIA
10TV

SAN DIEGO – A former Ohio seminarian has pleaded guilty to trying to adopt or purchase infants from Mexico to sexually molest them.

Joel Wright pleaded guilty Wednesday in San Diego to a federal charge of attempted enticement of a minor. The 23-year-old faces 10 years to life in prison when he’s sentenced in July.

Beginning in November, Wright placed Craigslist ads for a Tijuana tour guide, then told someone who responded that he wanted a baby girl for sex.

Wright acknowledged sending explicit emails describing his desires to assault children, from infants up to the age of 4.

The person he contacted was cooperating with federal agents and Wright was arrested when he flew into San Diego in January.

Wright is a former student of Pontifical College Josephinum in Columbus, Ohio.

The Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests released the following statement on the plea:

We’re grateful that a sexually troubled Ohio seminarian has pled guilty to child sex crimes and hope, for the safety of children, that he’s given the longest sentence possible. We also worry there may be other kids he’s hurt and deplore how little his former church supervisors are doing to find other victims, witnesses or whistleblowers.

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

Phil Saviano – SPOTLIGHT movie discussion panel, Salt Lake City April 2016

UTAH
YouTube

Published on Apr 14, 2016

In Salt Lake City on April 6, a screening of the Academy Award winning film, “Spotlight” was followed by this panel discussion moderated by Jim Struve, a founding member of MaleSurvivor.org. Taking part in the discussion before an audience of 300 people were Joe Ellis, local survivor and activist, Boston SNAP leader Phil Saviano (who is portrayed in the film), and DeAnn Tilton, whose campaign “Talk to a Survivor” co-sponsored the event with the Utah Film Center.

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

She runs disastrous day cares. But her church makes her untouchable

UNITED STATES
Reveal: The Center for Investigative Reporting

By Amy Julia Harris / April 14, 2016

She’s been called a crook. A con artist. A snake in the grass. But in Alabama, the only thing that really matters to state regulators is that she calls herself a Christian.

She ran a church day care from a decrepit warehouse that one worker called a “house out of a horror movie.” She opened another child care center next to a porn store.

Each of her day cares has been dogged by complaints of abuse and neglect. Workers said she hit children with flyswatters, locked them in closets or rapped them with rulers. She’s failed to pay so many employees that one reportedly slapped her in the face and another threatened to hurl a pickle jar at her, according to police reports.

She has been arrested multiple times, for crimes ranging from theft to child endangerment.

In total, Deborah Stokes has operated at least a dozen Christian day cares across southern Alabama. Every time she is chased out of town by furious parents, workers or landlords, she reopens in the next town over. In the process, she has collected at least $86,000 in taxpayer funding to run her day cares with almost no oversight.

She doesn’t need a license. She doesn’t need a curriculum or qualified workers. All she needs is a building with a roof, desperate parents and a piece of paper saying she runs a church.

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

Catholic priest causes outrage by comparing adulterous women to paedophile priests

AUSTRALIA
Daily Mail

By MARTHA AZZI FOR DAILY MAIL AUSTRALIA

A Catholic priest has caused outrage after he compared paedophile priests to adulterous women in a primary school’s newsletter.

Father Bill Edebohl’s a parish priest for St Mary’s Primary School in Malvern East, Melbourne, had his homily printed ‘word for word’ in the school’s March newsletter for parents.

The controversial priest also said he was concerned the Royal Commission into child sex abuse will not allow victims to heal, reported The Age.

The priest began his homily recounting a gospel passage of Jesus showing mercy towards an adulterer by halting a mob ready to cast stones after telling them ‘he that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her’.

‘Remember this [adultery] was a sin, a crime that carried the death penalty – by stoning,’ Father Edebohl said.

‘Maybe to get the real drama and effect of the story we ought to replace the adulterous woman with a paedophile priest.

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

T4G conference overshadowed by row over CJ Mahaney presence

KENTUCKY
Christian Today

Mark Woods CHRISTIAN TODAY CONTRIBUTING EDITOR 14 April 2016

Organisers of a major preaching conference have been criticised for involving CJ Mahaney.
A major conference on preaching in Louisville, Kentucky, has been overshadowed by a row over the presence of a pastor who has faced accusations of a cover-up of child sexual abuse at his church.

The Together for the Gospel conference, which finishes today, features leading evangelical figures including Al Mohler, president of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, Mark Dever, senior pastor of Washington’s Capitol Hill Baptist Church, John Piper, founder of Desiring God, and Matt Chandler, lead pastor of The Village Church in Dallas, Texas.

However, the participation of CJ Mahaney, one of its founders and now pastor of Louisville’s Sovereign Grace Church, has led to controversy because of previous accusations that he and other leaders of Covenant Life Church (CLC) in Gaithersburg, Maryland, were complicit in covering up crimes committed by its youth leader Nathaniel Morales.

Mahaney was named as a defendant in a lawsuit which alleged that he and several other leaders of Sovereign Grace Ministries conspired to “permit sexual deviants to have unfettered access to children for purposes of predation and to obstruct justice by covering up ongoing past predation”. This case was dropped due to the statute of limitations. However, the case has recently been the focus of media attention in The Washingtonian and Time magazine, which have raised fresh questions about the conduct of Mahaney and others.

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

Ex-Student Details Abuse at Hearing for 3 Franciscan Friars

PENNSYLVANIA
ABC News

By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
HOLLIDAYSBURG, Pa. — Apr 14, 2016

A former student at a Pennsylvania high school told a judge Thursday that a Franciscan brother who worked as a teacher and athletic trainer molested him and other student-athletes during rubdowns that were meant to stretch out their muscles.

The testimony came at a preliminary hearing for three friars who are charged with endangering Brother Stephen Baker’s students by assigning him to jobs where he had contact with children. Baker, who authorities believe molested more than 100 children, killed himself in 2013.

The hearing will determine whether Robert D’Aversa, Anthony Criscitelli and Giles Schinelli should stand trial on child endangerment and conspiracy charges.

The former student, who is now 30, said Baker was a family friend who molested him on the training table at Bishop McCort High School in Johnstown and fondled him on car trips to other states and when he visited a monastery in Pennsylvania.

The three friars successively headed a Franciscan order in Pennsylvania from 1986 to 2010. They assigned and supervised the order’s members, including Baker.

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

Time limits for reporting sexual abuse are wrong. Scrap them

UNITED STATES
The Guardian

Andy Kopsa

After this month, victims of pedophile priests in the Catholic church will no longer be able to find justice – at least, not in Hawaii or Minnesota, two states that extended the statute of limitations (SOL) after a renewed wave of allegations came to light in 2013. This is yet another perfect example of our country’s willful ignorance about rape and sexual abuse.

Why are there SOLs in these cases at all? There shouldn’t be.

It’s already impossible in most other states for victims of rape and sexual assault within or beyond the bounds of the church to gain justice, since SOLs vary wildly from state to state but are often impossibly short. Alabama, to offer just one example, gives victims above aged 16 three years to file a criminal complaint in the case of felony sexual abuse. (Civil SOLs are comparatively longer and easier to pursue; criminal cases must be proven beyond a reasonable doubt, while civil suits hinge on the lower bar of providing a preponderance of evidence.)

Some states allow cases to be filed beyond the SOL deadline if definitive DNA evidence is found. It should be noted Alabama isn’t one of them, but they aren’t alone. States have similar windows, and stratify abuse into categories like “forcible” rape or rape with the “threat of harm”. Threat of harm? Rape is itself harm.

Meanwhile, there is a staggeringly unacceptable backlog of untested rape kits in America, as well as loads of research showing that it can take years for victims to feel ready to come forward with their stories.

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Child sex probe ‘should include strictly Orthodox’

UNITED KINGDOM
The JC

By Sandy Rashty, April 14, 2016

A leading campaigner has called for a major inquiry into child sex abuse in England and Wales to investigate strictly Orthodox community institutions.

Australian Manny Waks, who was abused at a yeshivah in Melbourne, said the independent Goddard Inquiry should “seriously consider” looking at Charedi schools.

The inquiry, examining how public bodies protect children from abuse, is due to look at alleged activity across religious groups including the Anglican and Roman Catholic churches.

But in a letter to Dame Lowell Goddard, chair of the Independent Inquiry into Child Sex Abuse (IICSA), Mr Waks called for her to investigate “at least a segment of the Jewish community” in her probe.

He wrote: “While child sexual abuse occurs in every segment of society, the context of the abuse, the response by the institution and community, and other factors differ to some degree.

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Misbruikslachtoffers in noordelijk bisdom krijgen 70.000 euro schadevergoeding

NIDERLANDE
RTV

[The Groningen-Leeuwarden diocese is paying compensation of 70,000 euros to two abuse victims.]

ASSEN – Het bisdom Groningen-Leeuwarden, waar ook Drenthe onder valt, betaalt 70.000 euro aan twee slachtoffers van seksueel misbruik binnen het bisdom.

Dat meldt het Meldpunt Seksueel Misbruik Rooms Katholieke Kerk in het jaarverslag.

Één dader
Volgens het bisdom is één persoon verantwoordelijk voor het misbruik. “Het gaat in ons bisdom in beide gevallen om dezelfde pleger van het seksueel misbruik. Die was al overleden toen de zaken voorgelegd werden”, laat Bisdom Groningen-Leeuwarden in schriftelijke reactie aan RTV Noord weten.

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Pedofilia: Chiesa francese collaborerà ma non espellerà i preti pedofili

FRANCIA
Rete L’Abuso

Di Emanuele Longobardi.

Chiesa cattolica francese nel caos per lo scandalo pedofilia. Dopo la bufera per il cardinale Philippe Barbarin, accusato di aver insabbiato alcuni casi di pedofilia ecclesiastica avvenuti in gruppi scout lionesi, la Conferenza dei vescovi francesi (CEF) ha deciso di collaborare con le autorità per contrastare il fenomeno della pedofilia nella Chiesa cattolica francese.

Più controlli nelle comunità cattoliche.

L’arcivescovo di Marsiglia, Georges Pontier, ha dichiarato al quotidiano Le Monde che la Chiesa cattolica collaborerà con le autorità giudiziarie francesi affinché si faccia luce non solo sui recenti casi di pedofilia ecclesiastica, bensì anche su quelli più vecchi. Inoltre, saranno costituite delle cellule d’ascolto che accoglieranno tutte le segnalazioni di pedofilia provenienti da ogni diocesi e provincia della nazione. Questa nuova struttura di controllo sarà facilmente raggiungibile da chiunque grazie ad un sito web apposito.

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Former Lake area pastor accused of statutory rape heads to trial next week

MISSOURI
Lake News

By LAKE SUN STAFF
newsroom@lakesunonline.com

Posted Apr. 14, 2016

Laclede County

Travis R. Smith of California, Mo. is scheduled to for jury trail in Laclede County Circuit Court April 18-22.

He is facing multiple charges filed by the Missouri State Highway Patrol for alleged incidents that took place in Moniteau County in 1998,1999, 2000 and 2005. The case was transferred to Laclede on a change of venue.

Charges include one county of forcible rape, five counts of second degree statutory rape, one count of sexual abuse, one count of forcible sodomy and one count of second degree statutory sodomy. The charges stem from allegations by two different women who were underage at the time in question.

Smith was arrested in 2012 by the Highway Patrol. After a mistrial in December 2015, the case was transferred from Moniteau County to Laclede.

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Hastert Case Brings Up Painful Memories For Priest Sex Abuse Victim

ILLINOIS
CBS Chicago

April 13, 2016 By Brad Edwards

(CBS) — Two things former House Speaker Dennis Hastert wanted to avoid: jail time and facing those who accused him of sex abuse when they were boys. Wednesday, a judge cleared the way for both.

Hastert will be sentenced in two weeks in his hush money case and, the judge made it pretty clear: He won’t be lenient.

CBS 2’s Brad Edwards reports on how the pain of sex abuse for some, never goes away.

“With the thing with Dennis Hastert right now, there’s a lot remembrance of what I went through,” said Billy Reidy.

Because for him, it was at a school and it was a person in authority.

Starting when he was 15, he says he was abused, “every single day” from 1976 to 1979 by a priest at Loyola Academy in Wilmette. His life changed.

“I had gone through suicide attempts, I had gone through anxiety attacks, lotta depression,” he said.

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A Survivor’s Poem

UNITED STATES
Catholics4Change

Broken Silence
by Victoria Cubberley

So enormously disappointed in human kind. Their choice to deny: live in fear, abandon the most innocent whose childlike eyes seek our refuge. In their helplessness, you chose to look away, turn your back on such screaming pain. A thousand years and still you chose to hurt. This history forever embraced, accepted, fear. Is there no one to stand tall with me free of attachments or agendas? Is there one, single, voice that can listen to my cries, my soft child cries? As I keep reaching, will I ever be touched by love? Must I keep standing here-alone, feeling only my own bravery? In this stillness of my loneliness. I am so angry at your cowardice, the ultimate betrayal in your distortion of my God-my God how you tried to take my very breath. There exists no greater sorrow-my life source, my existence, my harboring soul, than to use what held me together-My God!

I chose to stand tall.
I chose to not allow you, priest, to slowly and deliberately decimate me, God’s child.
I chose to embrace my rage at all of you.
I chose silence.
How could you not see, how could you not hear all the many cries of us, your children?

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Interpol busca a ex sacerdote pederasta de San Luis Potosí

MEXICO
Excelsior

[Interpol seeks former pederast priest of San Luis Potosi. Eduardo Cordova Bautista is accused of abusing dozens of children during the 22 years he was in the Archdiocese]

CIUDAD DE MÉXICO.

Interpol busca a Eduardo Córdova Bautista, ex sacerdote acusado de abusar de decenas de menores durante los 22 años que estuvo en la Arquidiócesis de San Luis Potosí.

En días pasados, la interpol publicó la ficha en la que se describen datos personales del ex sacerdote y los cargos que se le imputan, entre los que se encuentran privación ilegal de la libertad, abuso sexual calificado y corrupción de menores.

Según reportes, Córdova Bautista habría abusado durante años de adolescentes que fueron sus alumnos en diversos colegios católicos privados.

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FUGITIVE RABBI’S LAWYER: HAWKS USING DIRTY TACTICS

SOUTH AFRICA
Eyewitness News

Mia Lindeque

JOHANNESBURG – The lawyer representing a fugitive rabbi wanted for alleged sexual crimes in Israel has accused the Hawks of using “dirty tactics” to arrest him.

The 80-year-old rabbi has repeatedly evaded arrest in South Africa until he was nabbed in a Johannesburg hospital by Interpol.

The rabbi claims he is in South Africa legally.

He is due to appear in the Randburg Magistrates Court today.

Rabbi Eliezer Berland says he had to go to hospital urgently due to a heart condition and members of Interpol arrested the 80-year-old man there last week.

His lawyer Themba Langa claims the Hawks are not acting in the interest of justice and have ulterior motives.

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Melbourne archbishop told of child sex abuse rumours but did nothing – inquiry

AUSTRALIA
The Guardian

Australian Associated Press
Thursday 14 April 2016

A senior Catholic nun, alarmed that a priest had boys in his bedroom, told a Melbourne archbishop about rumours he was sexually abusing boys. Nothing was done.

Boys would climb through a window to get to the bedroom of Gardenvale parish priest Ronald Pickering, the Star of the Sea college superior told the congregation leader of Victoria’s Presentation Sisters order, Sr Marie Therese Harold, in 1978.

“I recall thinking that having boys in a priest’s bedroom was alarming and that it should be reported,” Harold told the child sex abuse royal commission on Thursday.

Around the same time the Gardenvale parish curate, Leslie Harper, also told Harold he was suspicious of Pickering and believed boys were being sexually abused, her statement said.

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Parents shocked as priest compares adultery to paedophilia

AUSTRALIA
The Age

April 14, 2016 –

Henrietta Cook
Education Reporter at The Age

A Catholic priest has offended parents at a Malvern East school by comparing paedophile priests to adulterous women in a school newsletter.

St Mary’s Primary School parish priest Father Bill Edebohls also took aim at lawyers and the media for not showing enough mercy during the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sex Abuse.

He said he was concerned the Royal Commission would not give victims an opportunity to heal.

“Why? Because both the media and the lawyers, like the baying crowd of men in the gospel ready to throw stones, don’t understand the need for a justice that is drenched in mercy.”

The statements were printed in the school’s March newsletter and delivered at the St Mary’s church in East Malvern.

“Maybe to get the real drama and effect of the story we ought to replace the adulterous woman with a paedophile priest,” he wrote, after recounting the gospel tale of Jesus showing mercy towards an adulterous woman, telling the baying mob “he that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her.”

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In Our Opinion: Statute of limitations for molesters is intolerable

NEW YORK
The Daily Star

“Statutes of limitations,” according to Lawyers.com, “are laws that set time limits on how long you have to file a ‘civil’ lawsuit, like a personal injury lawsuit, or how long the state has to prosecute someone for committing a crime.”

As far as we are concerned, the New York state Legislature doesn’t know a statute of limitations from the Statue of Liberty.

There are certain people who have committed atrocities for which there should be no statute of limitation. Among these are murderers, rapists and Auschwitz prison guards.

And, oh yes, child molesters.

In 2006, New York enacted a law eliminating the criminal statute of limitations on felony sex offenses. But our state is among the worst in the country when it comes to allowing civil cases against those who prey on children.

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Debate: bill seeks to extend statute of limitations for rape in California

CALIFORNIA
KPCC – AirTalk

Five of the women have accused comedian Bill Cosby of sexual assault, but at least some of the alleged crimes are too old for prosecution.

A state bill, SB 813, authored by Senator Connie Leyva (D-Chino) would abolish all legal deadlines for rape, sodomy, lewd, or lascivious acts, continuous sexual abuse of a child, oral copulation and sexual penetration.

The bill was heard Tuesday by the Senate Public Safety Committee.

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Catholic monk who carried out brutal and degrading abuse against pupils in “regime of fear” is jailed for seven years

SCOTLAND
Daily Record

BY DAVE FINLAY

MICHAEL Murphy, 82, was jailed this morning following a hearing before Lord Uist at the High Court in Edinburgh.

A CATHOLIC monk who carried out a catalogue of brutality and degrading abuse against pupils at a residential school during “a regime of fear” has been jailed for seven years.

Michael Murphy , 82, was jailed on Friday following a hearing before Lord Uist at the High Court in Edinburgh .

The pervert was known as Brother Benedict or Brother Ben to children in his care at St Joseph’s List D School in Tranent, in East Lothian, where he perpetrated indecency and violence against youngsters.

Irish-born Murphy denied a string of charges against him during his trial at the High Court.

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Former Catholic seminary student admits seeking to sexually assault toddlers, infants

CALIFORNIA
Los Angeles Times

Matt Hamilton

A former Roman Catholic seminary student from Ohio pleaded guilty Wednesday to trying to adopt or “own” young children in Tijuana in order to sexually assault them, prosecutors said.

Joel Alexander Wright, 23, admitted to traveling to San Diego in January, when he was arrested at San Diego International Airport with a duffel bag stocked with baby clothes, bottles, toys, candy and lubricant, according to his plea agreement.

For months before arriving in San Diego, Wright had corresponded with a witness, and later, undercover federal agents, according to court papers. He thought he would be meeting up with three children, all under the age of 3, at a Tijuana hotel.

“There are no words to describe the horror that might have happened, had an innocent baby been placed in this man’s arms,” U.S. Atty. Laura Duffy said in a statement. “There is nothing more important on my agenda than keeping children safe from pedophiles.”

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Seminarian Pleads Guilty to Child-Sex Charge

CALIFORNIA
Courthouse News Service

By WILLIAM DOTINGA

SAN DIEGO (CN) – A former seminary student on Wednesday pleaded guilty to federal charges relating to his efforts to adopt female infants and toddlers from Tijuana in order to sexually molest them, the Justice Department said.

In the plea agreement, Joel Alexander Wright admitted to placing ads on Craigslist Tijuana for the purpose of adopting or buying a baby girl under the age of three because he wanted “to have intercourse with her after I own her.”

Wright further admitted that after federal agents took over the email account of the person he had been corresponding with, he wrote that “I think one fun thing we could do at the same time with the infant baby is you could be in her mouth with your thing and I could be penetrating her so she would be getting it from both ways,” according to the plea agreement.

He added, “With the four-year-old I think I will spank her a while to warm her up and make her a little angry so we can chase her around the place, and I will penetrate her very hard which will be fun and if she is angry at me she will be even more fun because she will probably try to get away and it is so much more fun when it is a bit of a struggle.”

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Former seminarian pleads guilty to trying to entice infants

CALIFORNIA
KRQE

SAN DIEGO (AP) — A former Ohio seminarian has pleaded guilty to trying to adopt or purchase infants from Mexico to sexually molest them.

Joel Wright pleaded guilty Wednesday in San Diego to a federal charge of attempted enticement of a minor. The 23-year-old faces 10 years to life in prison when he’s sentenced in July.

Beginning in November, Wright placed Craigslist ads for a Tijuana tour guide, then told someone who responded that he wanted a baby girl for sex.

Wright acknowledged sending explicit emails describing his desires to assault children, from infants up to the age of 4.

The person he contacted was cooperating with federal agents and Wright was arrested when he flew into San Diego in January.

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Seminary Student Pleads Guilty to Arranging Sex With Babies in Tijuana

CALIFORNIA
NBC San Diego

By Samantha Tatro

A former seminary student pleaded guilty Wednesday to traveling to San Diego seeking to adopt and have sex with infant girls, according to a plea agreement.

In the plea agreement, Joel A. Wright, 23, admitted to writing numerous explicit emails where he described how he wanted to sexually assault infants under the age of four in Mexico.

“There are no words to describe the horror that might have happened, had an innocent baby been placed in this man’s arms,” said U.S. Attorney Laura Duffy in a statement. “There is nothing more important on my agenda than keeping children safe from pedophiles.”

Wright, a former seminary student in Columbus, Ohio, originally posted Craigslist ads starting Nov. 25, seeking a female tour guide, according to the guilty plea. When an unidentified witness replied, he told the witness he wanted to “adopt/own a baby girl (under the age of 3)” and have sexual intercourse with her, according to the plea agreement.

In a different email with an undercover federal agent, Wright admitted to telling the agent he bought infant pain relief medication and a “pretty outfit” for a 1- or 2-year-old, according to the document.

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3 Franciscan Friars Face Child Endangerment Hearing

PENNSYLVANIA
ABC News

By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
HOLLIDAYSBURG, Pa. — Apr 14, 2016

Three Franciscan friars face a hearing on charges they allowed a suspected sexual predator to teach at a Pennsylvania high school and hold other jobs where he molested more than 100 children.

Thursday’s hearing will determine whether Robert D’Aversa, Anthony Criscitelli, and Giles Schinelli stand trial on child endangerment and conspiracy charges.

The three successively headed a Franciscan order in Pennsylvania from 1986 to 2010. They assigned and supervised the order’s members, including Brother Stephen Baker. Authorities say Baker molested scores of children, most at a high school. Baker killed himself in 2013.

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Royal Commission hosts criminal justice public roundtables

AUSTRALIA
Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse

14 April, 2016

The Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse is holding a series of public roundtables in April to discuss a range of criminal justice issues with invited participants.

The public roundtables follow March’s public hearing into criminal justice issues.

Royal Commission Chief Executive Officer Philip Reed said the public roundtables will discuss adult sex offender treatment programs, Director of Public Prosecution’s (DPP) oversight and complaint mechanisms and reporting offences.

“These roundtables will invite comment and discussion from a range of participants, including police, public prosecutors, criminal justice policy officials, academic and practitioner experts and others,” Mr Reed said.

“Consultation through these public roundtables will help inform the Royal Commission’s criminal justice policy work,” Mr Reed said.

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3 sex abuse lawsuits filed against Catholic diocese

HAWAII
The Eagle

HONOLULU (AP) — Three additional lawsuits were filed Wednesday accusing Catholic priests in the Diocese of Honolulu of sexual abuse.

The three suits allege that priests abused children and teens throughout the 1950s and 1960s. The Diocese of Honolulu is a defendant in all three cases, which say the diocese knew or should’ve known about the abuse. The Maryknoll Fathers and Brothers were also named as a defendant in two of the cases.

The Very Rev. Gary Secor of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Honolulu said the organization hasn’t reviewed the lawsuits filed Wednesday yet.

“However, the Roman Catholic Diocese of Honolulu remains committed to treating victims of sexual abuse with compassion and respect, with the goal of providing just resolution,” Secor said.

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GRONINGEN CATHOLIC DIOCESE TO PAY OUT SEXUAL ABUSE CLAIMS

NETHERLANDS
NL Times

Posted on Apr 14, 2016 by Janene Pieters

The diocese of Groningen/Friesland is paying a total of 700 thousand euros in compensation to two victims of sexual abuse within the diocese, according to the annual report of Hotline Sexual Abuse Roman Catholic Church, RTV Noord reports.

According to the diocese, both cases involved the same perpetrator, who died even before the cases got started. As much of the sexual abuse happened in the 50’s and 60’s, many of the perpetrators are now deceased. “But the impact on the victims remain high”, Ben Spekman, spokesperson for the hotline, said to the broadcaster.

The Catholic Church itself established the hotline five years ago when it became known that priests abusing kids, with the knowledge of the church, was a widespread problem. Over the past five years, the hotline received 3,656 complaints from Dutch victims. 700 of these victims received compensation, totaling at 21 million euros.

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Five men in dock accused of sexually abusing boys at school in Fife over sixteen year period

SCOTLAND
Daily Record

BY WILMA RILEY

FIVE men went on trial yesterday accused of sexually and physically abusing boys in their care at a school between 1967 and 1983.

It’s claimed they attacked pupils aged 11 to 16 at the former St Ninian’s School in Falkland, Fife. There are 121 charges on the indictment involving abuse, and prosecutors say there were 35 victims.

Many ex-pupils claim they were assaulted with implements, including shoes, a belt and a ruler.

John Farrell, 73, Paul Kelly, 63, Edward Egan, 78, Michael Murphy, 76, and William Don, 61, deny all the charges they face.

Most of the allegations are against Kelly and Farrell. Kelly is alleged to have left a boy of 13 rolled up in a rug overnight, and to have stripped another pupil and hung him upside-down from a bridge.

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Rabbi Rosenblatt’s RJC Pulpit Comes to an End

NEW YORK
The Jewish Link

THURSDAY, 14 APRIL 2016

BY PHIL JACOBS

Riverdale—It was in late February that Rabbi Jonathan Rosenblatt, Riverdale Jewish Center’s embattled spiritual leader of 31 years, gave notice to its board that he intended to step down from his pulpit.

On April 6, RJC’s membership overwhelmingly approved the proposed retirement agreement, 352-75.

An email sent to shul members from Board President Samson Fine and VP Chaim Haas thanked those who participated in the “special meeting” and apologized “if the tone and tenor became contentious at times.”

In a follow-up email to RJC members, questions were addressed. Rabbi Rosenblatt’s retirement was effective Tuesday, April 12. “His entry into early retirement would follow a board vote to approve the agreement, including the transfer of the residence at 3039 Netherland Avenue to the rabbi.”

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Alleged child sex abuse in schools and termination of employment

AUSTRALIA
Clayton Utz

By Jennifer Wyborn and Nick West-Foy.

Key Points:

Employers will probably be protected from unfair dismissal claims by employees who are subsequently convicted, but it will be harder to resist claims from employees who are subsequently found to have no case to answer.

Allegations of child sex abuse are extremely serious. When they occur in the workplace they raise questions relating to the security and health and safety of a range of parties. One would think the ability to terminate an employee accused of such behaviour in a school setting would be uncontroversial. A recent decision, however, suggests that this is not so and employers must now grapple with two cases providing conflicting guidance on terminating employees in these situations.

The most recent decision from the Full Bench of the Fair Work Commission (FWC) specifically considers the scenario where a teacher is charged with offences relating to child sex abuse and whether or not termination of employment in circumstances where an employee is not qualified to work with children can amount to unfair dismissal.

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Former Mount Cashel resident says he went to priests about abuse

CANADA
The Telegram

Barb Sweet
Published on April 14, 2016

A man told the Mount Cashel civil trial at Newfoundland Supreme Court Wednesday he was taken in the 1950s by a Christian Brother to the orphanage boiler room where he was kissed and fondled, beginning a pattern of being sexually “stalked” by that Brother and abused numerous times.

And during that period, he said, he asked priests for help.

The man also talked about another Brother who beat him, leaving his eye swollen for two weeks.

“Sexual stalking, it was persistent,” the man, now in his early 70s, said of the Brother who sexually abused him. “The two years, the 2 1/2 years, were probably the worst period of my life ever, under any circumstances, when (the two Brothers) were in the orphanage. It was awful.”

The man said he told some Roman Catholic priests about the incidents in and out of confession, and his once-serious interest in pursuing a career in the priesthood or as a Christian Brother ended because they did not help him.

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Pennsylvania Catholics face hearing in child sex abuse case

PENNSYLVANIA
Reuters

HARRISBURG, PA. | BY DAVID DEKOK

Pennsylvania prosecutors will lay out their case on Thursday against three former leaders of a Roman Catholic order accused of endangering hundreds of boys by putting them in contact with a priest they knew to be a sexual predator.

The preliminary hearing for Giles Schinelli, 73, Robert D’Aversa, 69, and Anthony Criscitelli, 61, on felony charges of endangering the welfare of children and conspiracy is expected to last much of the day at the Blair County Courthouse in Hollidaysburg, Pennsylvania.

Each is a former leader of the Franciscan Friars, Third Order Regulars, Province of the Immaculate Conception based in Hollidaysburg. Prosecutors accuse them of enabling the sexual predations of Brother Steven Baker, a member of their order who committed suicide in 2013.

“They acted to protect the institutions they led rather than the children and family they served,” according to the grand jury presentment which recommended charges. “Moreover, they could have prevented additional victims.”

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Vicario sostiene que Luis Figari debe ser condenado por abusos sexuales

PERU
La Republica

[The Vicar General of the Archdiocese of Cusco, Monsignor Fredy Aparicio Quispe, said that Luis Fernando Figari, founder of the Sodality of Christian Life, should be condemned by justice. Figari was convicted for sexual abuse committed against its members.]

José Víctor Salcedo

Cusco

El Vicario General de la Arquidiócesis del Cusco, monseñor Fredy Aparicio Quispe, consideró que Luis Fernando Figari, fundador del Sodalicio de Vida Cristiana, debe ser condenado por la justicia. Figari fue hallado culpable por abusos sexuales cometidos en contra de sus miembros.

“Se tiene que revisar y buscar a los culpables. Y la ley y la justicia están para eso, para poder poner un límite y condenar a estas personas que han incurrido en faltas que están demostradas”, anotó.

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Peru church sex abuse: Founder and leader found guilty of physical and sexual abuse

PERU
CCTV America

[with video]

Dan Collyns

April 13, 2016
Last week, an elite Peruvian Catholic group admitted that its founder and former leader is guilty of the accusations of sexual and physical abuse made against him last year.

CCTV America’s Dan Collyns reports from Lima

For victims of Luis Fernando Figari, founder and leader of Sodalitium Christianae Vitae, the statement from the church’s current leader has been a long time coming. Last October, Peru’s attorney general launched an investigation into allegations Figari sexually and physically abused children and former members of the sect.

The investigation was prompted following the publication of the book, “Half Monks-Half Soldiers,” by investigative authors, Paola Ugaz and Pedro Salinas. They interviewed 30 former members of the Catholic society known as Sodalitium Christianae Vitae, who describe being physically abused and brainwashed.

Three anonymous former members accused Figari of rape and molestation when they were boys.

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Experts push Episcopal Church to explain firings

UNITED STATES
The Gazette

By: G. Jeffrey MacDonald, RNS April 13, 2016

(RNS) The firing of two senior Episcopal Church administrators for unspecified reasons after a four-month misconduct investigation has prompted warnings that the church’s “cover-up” could endanger future victims.

Some legal experts and advocates are calling for more disclosure about the managerial misconduct that led to the firings of Chief Deputy Operating Officer Sam McDonald and Director of Public Engagement Alex Baumgarten.

Presiding Bishop Michael Curry said in a brief April 4 statement that the two “violated established workplace policies” and “failed to live up to the Church’s standards of personal conduct in their relationships with employees.” Through a spokesperson, he said the church would have no further comment on the matter.

By saying nothing about what types of violations occurred, the church heightens the risk that wrongful behavior will be repeated elsewhere as McDonald and Baumgarten move on, according to Colby Bruno, senior legal counsel for the Victim Rights Law Center, a national nonprofit that provides free legal services from its offices in Boston and Portland, Ore. The silence also discourages other victims from coming forward and saying “this happened to me, too,” she said.

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More information emerges about church bus driver accused of aggravated child abuse

OHIO
WLWT

HAMILTON, Ohio —The Franklin man accused of sexually abusing two young boys he met while volunteering as a church bus driver paid bills for their parents and showered them with gifts, a police report states.

According to investigators with the FBI and the Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office, 46-year-old Jory Leedy met the boys in 2012 while he was a volunteer bus driver for Target Ministries of Dayton.

“Leedy would go to poorer neighborhoods in the Dayton area and give rides to those who needed assistance from the ministry,” court documents state.

Among those he picked up in 2012 were two young boys, who investigators say would become his victims.

Over a two-year period, detectives said Leedy showered the boys with gifts and trips.

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Sex offender accused of abusing boys met on church bus

OHIO
WDTN

[with video]

WARREN COUNTY, Ohio (WDTN) — A convicted sex offender in Warren County has been arrested for allegedly sexually abusing boys he met while driving a church bus, officials said.

According to investigators, Jory Leedy of Franklin met two boys in 2012 while volunteering as a driver for Target Ministries in Dayton.

The boys were 7 and 8-years-old at the time. Leedy started buying the boys clothes, games, and took them on trips. Eventually, he spent nearly every weekend with them, according to court documents.

Leedy told the boys’ mother his first name was “Jordan” to avoid his sex offender status showing up in any searches, according to court documents. Investigators said by 2013, he was taking the boys to out-of-state hotels and would sexually abuse them.

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Three More Lawsuits Allege Sexual Abuse By Hawaii Priests

HAWAII
Honolulu Civil Beat

APRIL 13, 2016 · By Chad Blair

The fact that more lawsuits were filed Wednesday against the Roman Catholic Church in Hawaii alleging sexual abuse may not elicit much shock.

Such legal action against the church in Hawaii and everywhere else has been widespread in recent years.

So Kailua attorney Mark Gallagher, who filed the three latest lawsuits in 1st Circuit Court in Honolulu, shared information with reporters at a brief press conference to illustrate just how terrible child sex abuse can be for the young victim.

Here’s that information, claimed in a lawsuit and an August 2015 report written for Gallagher by Thomas Patrick Doyle, a Catholic priest now living in Virginia:

The sexual abuse of a victim identified as John Roe 2 began in 1973, when the boy’s family joined St. Anthony Parish in Kailua. That’s where Roe met two men who would become his alleged abusers, Fathers Joseph Henry and Joseph Ferrario.

Henry exposed himself to the 9-year-old victim, pushed him face down on the carpet and raped him, according to Doyle and the lawsuit.

A year later, Ferrario was named pastor of St. Anthony’s. The victim asked to speak with the priest about Father Henry and the sexual assault. As the victim spoke, Ferrario became sexually excited and forced the boy to perform oral sex, according to Doyle and the suit.

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Dozens of parishes prepare for lawsuits

MINNESOTA
Catholic Spirit

Maria Wiering | April 12, 2016

A number of parishes implicated in child sex abuse claims should prepare for lawsuits related to those allegations to be filed before mid-May, according to the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis.

In a March 30 letter to members of parishes implicated in sexual abuse claims filed against the archdiocese, Archbishop-designate Bernard Hebda called the anticipated lawsuits “a normal part of the litigation process” and urged Catholics to heed Scripture and “do not be afraid.”

Archdiocesan officials have anticipated the suits since it filed for Reorganization under Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code in January 2015 in response to mounting claims of child sexual abuse by clergy. The archdiocese is aiming to resolve claims against individual parishes as part of its bankruptcy proceedings, but encourages parishes that are sued to consult their own attorneys.

“All parties involved — including dozens of insurance carriers that issued policies over the past six decades — are participating in mediation with the hope of settling the more than 400 sexual abuse claims that have been brought against the archdiocese and that presumably will soon be filed against parishes arising from the same facts,” Archbishop Hebda wrote.

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Darrin Patrick Removed from Acts 29 Megachurch for ‘Historical Pattern of Sin’

ST. LOUIS (MO)
Christianity Today

Kate Shellnutt
POSTED 4/13/2016

Darrin Patrick, vice president of the Acts 29 church planting network and founding pastor of The Journey megachurch in St. Louis, has been fired for violating his duties as a pastor.

The Journey cited a range of ongoing sinful behaviors over the past few years including manipulation, domineering, lack of biblical community, and “a history of building his identity through ministry and media platforms.”

In a letter announcing its lead pastor’s removal after 14 years of leadership, the church clarified that adultery was not a factor, though elders looked into inappropriate interactions with two women.

“In short, I am a completely devastated man, utterly broken by my sin and in need of deep healing,” said Patrick in an apology to his 3,000-person congregation. “The way that the Journey elders have demonstrated their desire to see me restored to Jesus, as well as their love for me, Amie, and our family is nothing short of miraculous and beyond gracious.”

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Darrin Patrick Has Been Relieved of Pastoral Duties at The Journey

ST. LOUIS (MO)
Warren Throckmorton

April 12, 2016 by Warren Throckmorton

Another megachurch pastor has fallen on hard times.

According to the church website, Darrin Patrick pastor at The Journey in St. Louis has been relieved of duty.

In recent weeks, allegations of pastoral misconduct regarding Pastor Darrin Patrick were made and confirmed. These actions, combined with a historical pattern of sin, led to the heartbreaking decision to remove Pastor Darrin from his role at The Journey and require him to step down from all internal and external leadership positions.

The accusations were not of adultery, but his behavior violates the high standard for a pastor/elder. In the last few years the elders have experienced and confronted issues regularly and intentionally with Darrin. This reveals that he has not been pursuing a personal walk with Jesus in a manner that reflects his pastoral calling and position as an elder in the church (I Peter 5:1-5, I Tim. 3:1-7). Though we all stumble in many ways, those called to teaching and preaching carry the weighty responsibility of setting an example of a Christ honoring lifestyle with the consequence of stricter judgment (James 3:1).

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Canberra churchgoers seek training in how to spot, report child sex abusers

AUSTRALIA
ABC News

By Alexandra Beech

There has been a spike in Canberra churchgoers seeking child protection training following royal commission revelations of past Australian child sex abuse.

The Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse has uncovered horrific cases of abuse and failures to report attackers across the country.

Assistant bishop in the Anglican Diocese of Canberra and Goulburn Matt Brain said it had led to a surge in interest in child protection training in the ACT.

“People will often come either with scenarios that they’ve heard in the media or scenarios from personal experience of when things have gone wrong,” Dr Brain said.

“We’ll often have times just of question and answer on how to deal with particular circumstances that have arisen.”

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Pa. House, at long last, offers hope to victims of child sexual abuse; now it’s up to the Senate

PENNSYLVANIA
Lancaster Online

Editorial

THE ISSUE

The state House voted 180-15 on Tuesday in favor of House Bill 1947, which would abolish the statute of limitations for future criminal cases of child sexual abuse, and extend the time by 20 years for victims to bring civil suits against their assailants and an agency whose negligence enabled the abuse. The bill would give victims until they turned 50 to bring civil cases, and it would be retroactive, so victims now between the ages of 30 and 50 could bring civil suits. It was opposed by the Pennsylvania Catholic Conference and the Insurance Federation of Pennsylvania. It now may be referred to the Senate Judiciary Committee.

The days aren’t always good for victims of childhood sexual abuse. Some days, some hours or moments, are clouded by trauma; some are occupied with the ongoing struggle to overcome shame and sorrow.

But Tuesday was a good day for many victims of child sexual abuse — a good and hopeful day.

Statute of limitations reform had been held up for years in the House Judiciary Committee, chaired by Dauphin County Republican Rep. Ron Marsico.

Then, on March 1, state Attorney General Kathleen Kane unveiled an investigative grand jury report that said hundreds of children in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Altoona-Johnstown had been sexually abused by at least 50 priests or religious leaders over at least 40 years, and two bishops had covered up the abuse.

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Pennsylvania Legislature finally ends losing streak

PENNSYLVANIA
The Morning Call

Bill White

Pennsylvania House offers pleasant surprises

Polls have shown our state lawmakers are rated dismally by most Pennsylvanians, with good reason.

They have been on a terrible run of dysfunction and ineptitude for years, capped by last year’s disgraceful budget impasse.

So when House lawmakers accomplished TWO really good things in recent weeks, back to back, it was a very pleasant surprise. On March 13, they passed a bill legalizing medical marijuana. They followed up this week by passing a bill that loosens the statutes of limitations in child sex abuse cases, eliminating them for criminal cases and raising the limit to 50 for civil suits, even for people who previously were blocked by the law. …

As for the statute of limitations changes, yes, the House voted overwhelmingly for an amendment proposed by Rep. Mark Rozzi, D-Berks, to let all child sex abuse victims have access to the civil courts until age 50, a giant step forward. It passed the entire bill the next day, sending it on to the Senate.

But for some reason, the House left intact a tacked-on provision that partially lifts sovereign immunity protection shielding public entities such as public schools. That’s clearly a poison pill designed to kill the bill instead of allowing a clean vote.

I have no problem with exploring the sovereign immunity question, a focus of Catholic leaders who have vigorously opposed the statute changes. But it should be considered separately, not as part of this debate. At the very least, it’s likely to delay and complicate the discussion, attracting a new collection of lobbying opponents, which I suspect was the whole point.

Past statute of limitations bills have been buried in the Senate Judiciary Committee chaired by Sen. Stewart Greenleaf, R-Montgomery. So with the newly passed H.B. 1947 assigned once again to Greenleaf’s committee, all eyes are on him.

Rozzi, whose own story of rape by a priest has been powerfully persuasive, told me he’s spoken to Greenleaf. Rozzi said, “My message to him is: You’re on deck. You need to do the right thing.”

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Victims’ group asks Notre Dame to discipline priest for comments

INDIANA
South Bend Tribune

By Margaret Fosmoe
South Bend Tribune

A victims’ group is asking University of Notre Dame officials to discipline the Rev. Daniel Groody, a theology professor, for comments he made last week during a memorial service on campus for the Rev. Virgilio Elizondo, a priest who committed suicide in Texas after being accused of child sexual abuse.

During the service, Groody said Elizondo was accused of abuse “not because he was a serial abuser, but because he was a highly visible, accomplished, respected cleric. …,” according to a news report in the Observer, the student newspaper.

SNAP (Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests) is asking the Rev. John I. Jenkins, Notre Dame’s president, to take disciplinary action against Groody for his comments.

“Survivors who read Father Groody’s words can only feel horribly discouraged: many abusers tell their victims that no one will believe them over a respected man of the cloth. As a result, they will be less likely to seek help, and they will continue to suffer alone and in silence, and their abuser will go on to hurt more children,” SNAP officials David Clohessy and Barbara Dorris wrote in a letter to Jenkins.

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Green Bay diocese reaches out to church abuse victims

WISCONSIN
Green Bay Press-Gazette

Todd McMahon, USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin

Bishop David Ricken led healing services this week for victims of sexual abuse and other pain caused by the church.

DE PERE – At the bottom of the Catholic Diocese of Green Bay marquee on Riverside Drive in Allouez are the words “Compassionately Serves Those in Need.”

Gene Van Asten is thankful the diocese has been practicing what it preaches.

After decades of having nowhere to turn, Van Asten has been getting the help he needs from the diocese the last few years.

Molested as a teenager by a Catholic priest in central Wisconsin, the 66-year-old Van Asten credits the comforting support of Bishop David Ricken and others from the Green Bay diocese for easing the enduring pain.

Ricken for the third straight year led a Prayer Service for Healing at two diocesan churches this week. More than 125 people attended those services, including about 50 at Our Lady of Lourdes Parish in De Pere on Wednesday night.

The solemn services of more than an hour focus on individuals in need of healing from the Roman Catholic Church, including those who have been sexually abused by clergy.

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Deacon Says Archdiocese Not Following its Own Sex Abuse Policy

GUAM
Pacific News Center

Written by Janela Carrera

Deacon Steve Martinez was the former sexual abuse response coordinator for the Archdiocese of Agana.

Guam – In light of the recent controversy regarding Father Luis Camacho who’s now in Qatar, we sat down with Deacon Steve Martinez, the former sex abuse response coordinator for the Archdiocese of Agana, to get his thoughts on the situation.

It was just about a year ago when Father Luis Camacho was arrested by police and charged with custodial interference. He was accused of picking up a 17-year-old student without her parents’ or the school’s permission and then taking her to a secluded beach.

Although police never charged Father Luis with sexual misconduct because the minor was of the age of consent, allegations surfaced that Father Luis and the student did engage in sexual contact. Deacon Steve Martinez was the former sex abuse response coordinator for the Archdiocese of Agana.

“If they’ve been conducting their investigation based on solely custodial interference, it’s a dog chasing its tail going in the wrong direction,” says Deacon Steve.

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April 13, 2016

Psychiatric Spotlight on Child Sexual Abuse

UNITED STATES
Psychiatric Times

April 13, 2016
By Ariana Nesbit, MD and Renee Sorrentino, MD

COMMENTARY

“If it takes a village to raise a child, it takes a village to abuse one.” This line from the film Spotlight emphasizes the sad fact that when something horrible happens at home, most people don’t want to know about it. And—as psychiatrists—we know too well that those closest to the victim can “turn a blind eye.”

The 2016 Oscar winner for Best Picture does an excellent job of portraying the brave and thorough work of the Boston Globe’s investigative journalism team known as “Spotlight.” The Globe would later go on to win the 2003 Pulitzer Prize for the exposé that was the result of the investigation dramatized in this film.

Sometimes silence is loud. The film sheds light on the important issue of sexual abuse and illustrates the most damaging part of abuse—the failure of those who were supposed to protect the victim. Our experience living and training in Boston made the movie particularly disturbing to watch. We have savored the hot dogs at Fenway Park. We recognized the South End Buttery. We know the steeples rising amidst the rundown triple-deckers. How could its inhabitants have been blind to such a devastating problem for so long?

As a psychiatrist who specializes in paraphilic disorders in the Boston area and as a student of Ed Messner, MD—a psychiatrist whose patient was the notorious Father Geogun, who sexually abused children while assigned to various parishes in the Boston Archdiocese—I (Dr Sorrento) was encouraged to see the attention Spotlight brought to the subject of child sexual abuse.

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From ‘hot hand’ to ‘banana pinch,’ church day cares are hurting kids

UNITED STATES
Reveal: The Center for Investigative Reporting

By Amy Julia Harris / April 13, 2016

Corporal punishment is banned in most day cares across America. But four states have carved out exceptions for religious day cares. In North Carolina, Alabama, Missouri and Indiana, church day cares may physically punish children in accordance with their religious beliefs. But when workers don’t spare the rod, children can be hurt in ways that child welfare regulators consider abuse and neglect, licensing and other records show. Here are some of the ways we found children were punished.

At the Twin Rivers Worship Center’s day care in St. Louis, workers disciplined children with a “banana pinch” – a twist between the crease of the upper thigh and butt cheek designed to leave no trace.

At Twin Rivers Worship Center’s day care in St. Louis, workers disciplined children with a “banana pinch” – a twist between the crease of the upper thigh and butt cheek designed to leave no trace. The church day care had told parents that children wouldn’t be physically disciplined.

Staff would hit children with belts, paddles, rulers, large paint sticks and fly swatters.

Children in many states were whipped with belts and hit with paddles. The beatings often left bruises. Toddlers in Missouri regularly were struck with a paddle emblazoned with Bible verses from Proverbs: “Withhold not correction from a child, for if you beat him with a rod he shall not die.”

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Perspective from UK member of the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors

AUSTRALIA
Truth, Justice and Healing Council

13 April 2016

This week I met up with Baroness Sheila Hollins from the UK. She is a member of the House of Lords and has been appointed to Pope Francis’ Commission for the Protection of Minors. She is a very accomplished and eminent person, former president of the Royal College of Psychiatrists and part of the Vatican team sent to Ireland to inquire into the Diocese of Armagh.

Baroness Hollins speaks gently and frankly about the enormous task facing the global Catholic Church to address child abuse and to prevent it happening again. She acknowledges that some, like Pope Francis “get it “, and others don’t.

Ever the realist she knows that real change takes shifts in culture as well as practice. For the Church, that means understanding the impacts of clericalism and the abuse of power. It means having a deep appreciation of how entrenched, defensive institutional attitudes pervade across the life of the Church. It means being explicit about how victims and survivors are placed first in every consideration.

Practical steps are required to bring compliance with safe guarding up to best practice. This is at the heart of the Royal Commission’s agenda. It is also deeply sought after by victims who repeatedly ask that every measure is taken to prevent the abuse ever happening again.

Our Council has recommended a new oversight regime be instigated in the Church to such an end. Ideally governments would set up structures for all institutions that provide services for children. But governments are slow to move. Just look at how long they are taking to get their collective act together on national redress!

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Voices from the Universal Church

AUSTRALIA
Archbishop’s Office for Evangelization

The Melbourne Archdiocese continues to host a number of speakers from the Universal Church who will share their experience and insights on a variety of themes.

Baroness Sheila Hollins (April 2016)
Distinguished Catholic lay woman, Psychiatrist, Member of the House of Lords and Senior Papal Advisor visits Australia this April to talk on mercy and compassion in today’s society.

SYDNEY
Monday 11 April, from 5.15pm for a 6pm start to 7pm
“Living Mercy Today in Society and Church”
A conversation with Baroness Sheila Hollins, led by Frank Brennan sj
Domain Theatre, Art Gallery of New South Wales (1 Art Gallery Rd, Sydney)
RSVP >

MELBOURNE
Wednesday 13 April, 5.45pm – 7pm
“The Medicine of Mercy” *
Public Lecture & Conferral of Honorary Doctorate
Australian Catholic University – Philippa Brazill rsm Lecture Theatre (115 Victoria Pde, Fitzroy)
RSVP >

Saturday 16 April, 9.30am – 12.30pm
“Taste & See: Parable of the Good Samaritan”
Year of Mercy Reflection Morning – interview by Eileen Glass (L’Arche Internationale)
Treacy Centre (126 The Avenue, Parkville)
RSVP >

About Baroness Sheila Hollins
Baroness Sheila Hollins is emeritus professor of the psychiatry of learning disability at St George’s, London, and was created a crossbench life peer in the House of Lords in 2010. She has served as president of the Royal College of Psychiatrists and president of the British Medical Association. In 2014 she was appointed to the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors, to propose policy initiatives that promote local responsibility for the protection of all minors and vulnerable adults. She has also been a leader in the area of palliative care and assisting people with issues of grief and bereavement. Baroness Hollins would be of special interest to many educators because of her extraordinary leadership over a lifetime in assisting people to understand and care for young people with educational disabilities.

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Whipped, hit and locked in closets: Life inside some religious day cares

UNITED STATES
Reveal: The Center for Investigative Reporting

By Amy Julia Harris / April 13, 2016

Across the country, children suffered extreme punishments in the name of God.

In Alabama, children were whipped with belts and locked in closets for so long that they peed their pants.

A boy in North Carolina was beaten so badly that bruises mottled his backside. Toddlers in Missouri regularly were struck with a paddle emblazoned with Bible verses from Proverbs: “Withhold not correction from a child, for if you beat him with a rod he shall not die.”

At another church day care in Missouri, children received a painful “banana pinch,” designed to leave no trace.

At the Twin Rivers Worship Center’s day care in St. Louis, workers disciplined children with a “banana pinch” – a twist between the crease of the upper thigh and butt cheek designed to leave no trace.
At the Twin Rivers Worship Center’s day care in St. Louis, workers disciplined children with a “banana pinch” – a twist between the crease of the upper thigh and butt cheek designed to leave no trace.
Credit: Allison McCartney for Reveal

Physically punishing children is outlawed in almost all day cares in America. But at least four states offer an exception for religious providers: In North Carolina, Indiana, Alabama and Missouri, those day care workers may slap and spank children as long as they warn parents.

But an investigation by Reveal from The Center for Investigative Reporting found that hundreds of religious day cares exploited corporal punishment rules. In case after case, they downplayed to parents how harshly children would be disciplined, disregarded parents’ edicts against physical punishment or lied about policies and practices. Regulators often were powerless to address the problems.

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Pastor in alleged sex abuse cover-up returns to preaching conference roster

KENTUCKY
Baptist News

BOB ALLEN | APRIL 13, 2016

Organizers of a major preaching conference this week in Louisville, Ky., ignored calls to disinvite a founder of the conference accused of participating in a cover-up of child sexual abuse.

C.J. Mahaney, pastor of Sovereign Grace Church in Louisville, took the stage April 12 at the Together for the Gospel conference at the KFC Yum! Center in downtown Louisville, while leaders with the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests staged a protest outside.

SNAP, an advocacy and support group formed in response to the pedophile priest scandal in the Roman Catholic Church, previously called on the other three conference founders to disinvite Mahaney. Allegations were made against Mahaney, former pastor of Covenant Life Church in Gaithersburg, Md., and other leaders of Sovereign Grace Ministries in a 2012 lawsuit dismissed on a legal technicality.

One of the protestors, Pam Palmer of Hagerstown, Md., told local media that after her 3-year-old daughter was abused by a teenage boy who was eventually convicted, a pastor serving under Mahaney told her family not to call the police.

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Never threatened Vallejo Balda

VATICAN CITY
ANSA

(ANSA) – Vatican City, April 13 – Vatileaks 2 defendant Gianluigi Nuzzi, author of the financial exposé book The Way of the Cross, on Wednesday testified that he had never threatened or pressured a co-defendant accused of passing him confidential documents, Msgr Lucio Vallejo Balda.

In the trial, investigative reporters Emiliano Fittipaldi and Nuzzi are accused of using leaked documents from three Vatican officials to write two expose’-style books, respectively Avarice and The Way of the Cross, which respectively examine the Vatican’s financial empire and Pope Francis’s efforts to bring about reform.

The other defendants are Italian PR expert Francesca Chaouqi and Spanish prelate Balda, both former members of the now-defunct COSEA commission set up to advise Pope Francis on the reform of the Holy See’s economic and administrative structure, and Balda’s former assistant Nicola Maio.

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Vatileaks 2: Journalist that published the documents says that were not state secrets

VATICAN CITY
Rome Reports

[with video]

Today, Gianluigi Nuzzi has appeared in the Vatican court, he is one of the two journalists accused in the case Vatileaks 2.

During the interrogation, the prosecutor has reconstructed the exchange of messages between Gianluigi Nuzzi and the priest Lucio Ángel Vallejo Balda, but has not shown that the journalist pressed the priest for documents.

“He was a person who informed me about the abnormalities that prevented the change (in the Vatican),” Nuzzi said. “He helped me edit the text” from the book, in order to supplement and explain its contents.

Nuzzi has confirmed that he was introduced to the accused by Francesca Chaouqui, but he says that he did not speak to her about the book because he had his reservations about the project.

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Reporter tells Vatican court he was obliged to publish news

VATICAN CITY
San Diego Union-Tribune

VATICAN CITY (AP) — An Italian journalist has testified that he never pressured a Vatican monsignor to give him confidential documents and says it was his obligation as a journalist to publish them because they were in the public interest.

Gianluigi Nuzzi was the fifth and final defendant to testify in the Vatican’s trial over leaked documents that exposed greed, waste and mismanagement in the Holy See administration.

Nuzzi and another journalist, Emiliano Fittipaldi, wrote blockbuster books based on confidential Vatican information. They are on trial along with a former high-ranking Vatican official accused of leaking the documents and two other people. All five face up to eight years in prison if convicted.

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Man tells Mount Cashel civil trial he was sexually stalked at orphanage

CANADA
The Telegram

Barb Sweet
Published on April 13, 2016

A man told the Mount Cashel civil trial at Newfoundland Supreme Court that he was taken in the 1950s by a Christian Brother to the boiler room at the orphanage and fondled, beginning the two worst years of his life ever in which he said he was sexually “stalked” by that Brother and abused numerous times.

The man also talked about another Brother that beat him, leaving his eye swollen for two weeks.

The man said he told priests about the incidents in and out of confession and his once serious interest in pursuing a career in the priesthood or as a Christian Brother ended with a loss of faith because his situation was not helped.

Outside of those conversations, he said he first personally spoke of the incidents in the 1990s. None of the allegations were ever dealt with in a criminal court, he testified. (There were criminal cases in the era following the 1989 Hughes Inquiry.)

The man is not represented by lawyers Budden and Associates as part of the case before Justice Alphonsus Faour, but said he contacted the firm after he read newspaper coverage of the civil trial. He has been a claimant with another St. John’s law firm.

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‘VatiLeaks’ trial: Author says he had duty to publish private documents

VATICAN CITY
Catholic Register

BY JUNNO AROCHO ESTEVES, CATHOLIC NEWS SERVICE

April 13, 2016

An Italian journalist said he was given private documents by a Vatican official detailing problems with financial reforms and that he had a duty to publish them.

Testifying at his Vatican trial April 13, Gianluigi Nuzzi, author of Merchants in the Temple, denied pressuring Spanish Msgr. Lucio Vallejo Balda, secretary of the Prefecture for the Economic Affairs of the Holy See, for access to the documents.

Nuzzi and Italian journalist Emiliano Fittipaldi, author of Avarice, are accused by the Vatican of soliciting the documents and exercising pressure on the defendants, especially Vallejo Balda.

The monsignor, along with his former executive secretary and assistant, Nicola Maio, and Francesca Chaouqui, a member of the former Pontifical Commission for Reference on the Economic-Administrative Structure of the Holy See, are accused of “divulging news and documents concerning fundamental interests” of the Vatican.

Nuzzi said he was first informed of the challenges facing the commission’s financial reform by Chaouqui, whom he had known for some time. She then organized a meeting between the journalist and Vallejo Balda at Rome’s Ambassador Hotel.

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MEDIA RELEASE – APRIL 13, 2016

PENNSYLVANIA
Road to Recovery

Three criminally indicted Third Order Regular Franciscan priests, Rev. Giles A Schinelli, TOR, Rev. Robert D’Aversa, TOR, and Rev. Anthony M. Criscitelli, TOR, all of whom were major superiors and supervisors of their religious order based at St. Bernardine Monastery, Hollidaysburg, PA, will face a Pennsylvania judge at the first hearing on their cases of child endangerment on Thursday, April 14, 2016, at 9:30am, in Blair County Courthouse, Hollidaysburg, PA

After dozens of children were sexually abused by Br. Stephen Baker, TOR, over the course of several decades, after years of cover-up and mismanagement of allegations of sexual abuse against Br. Stephen Baker and possibly other Third Order Regular Franciscan Friars by major superiors and supervisors of the Third Order Regular Franciscans, and after two suicides in the Monastery of St. Bernardine, it is time for the Third Order Regular Franciscan Friars of St. Bernardine Monastery, Hollidaysburg, PA, to admit their guilt, apologize to their victims and families, work with criminal authorities, and agree to be monitored by a truly independent agency

What
A press conference alerting Catholics of the Diocese of Altoona-Johnstown, residents of the Altoona-Johnstown area, the media, and general public that it is time for the Third Order Regular Franciscans of St. Bernardine Monastery, Hollidaysburg, PA to “come clean” in every way regarding the sexual abuse of children by members of their monastery and those who enabled it.

When
Thursday, April 14, 2016 after the court hearing

Where
On the public sidewalk outside the Blair County Courthouse, 423 Allegheny Street, Hollidaysburg, PA

Who
Dr. Robert M. Hoatson, Co-founder and President of Road to Recovery, Inc., a non-profit charity based in New Jersey that assists victims of sexual abuse and their families; and, Barbara Aponte from Poland, Ohio, and mother of Br. Stephen Baker suicide victim Luke Bradesku from John F. Kennedy High School, Warren, Ohio

Why
Br. Stephen Baker, TOR, a deceased member of the Third Order Regular Franciscans of Hollidaysburg, PA, was allowed for decades to sexually abuse minor children while his superiors and supervisors looked the other way and enabled his sexually abusive behavior to continue in Virginia, Minnesota, Michigan, Ohio, and Pennsylvania, at least. Dozens of young lives and their families’ lives were forever altered by Br. Baker’s sexual abuse, and at least one of Br. Baker’s victims, Luke Bradesku, took his own life as a result of the sexual abuse he experienced. Frs. Schinelli, D’Aversa, and Criscitelli were Br. Baker’s major superiors and supervisors for decades and continued to assign him to Catholic schools and parishes despite knowing about his sexual abuse of children. Demonstrators will call on the Third Order Regular Franciscans to: admit their guilt, apologize to their victims and families, work with criminal authorities, and agree to be monitored by a truly independent agency.

Contact
Robert M. Hoatson, Ph.D., Road to Recovery, Inc. – 862-368-2800 –roberthoatson@gmail.com
Attorney Mitchell Garabedian, Boston, MA – 617-523-6250

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Leg Update: California and Pennsylvania

UNITED STATES
The Worthy Adversry

April 13, 2016 Joelle Casteix

California

Victims of sex crimes have won another battle in the effort to extend the criminal statute of limitations for rape and sexual assault.

SB 813, sponsored by Senator Connie M. Leyva (D-Chino), which seeks to eliminate the criminal statute of limitations for rape and related crimes, passed out of the Senate Public Safety Committee yesterday. Witnesses in support of the legislation included attorneys for alleged victims of comedian Bill Cosby and the district attorney of San Bernardino County.

The current statute is ten years, unless there is DNA evidence.

If made into law, SB 813 will be a huge win for rape victims who simply want the right to be able to use the court system to get justice and put rapists behind bars.

Pennsylvania

On the heels of another devastating grand jury report, which outlined how the Catholic Diocese of Altoona covered up for priests who sexually abused hundreds of children, legislators there won a huge victory for victims of child sexual abuse.

State Rep. Mark Rozzi, a Muhlenberg Township Democrat, introduced a key amendment to House Bill 1947 extending the civil rights of child victims. The amendment, which passed the State House yesterday, extends the age that victims of child sex abuse can come forward and use the civil justice system from age 30 to age 50.

What’s more important to note is that the the extension is retroactive, meaning that if you are a victim from Pennsylvania who is between the ages of 30 and 50, you can take advantage of civil justice.

The bill, which was passed by the full House yesterday, is now on to the Senate Judiciary Committee.

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Former North Alabama youth pastor indicted for sending obscene images to young girl

ALABAMA
AL.com

By Crystal Bonvillian | cbonvillian@al.com

A former Huntsville-area youth pastor has been indicted on charges that he sent obscene materials to a child.

Cristopher Bernal Alfaro, 30, is charged with two counts of transmitting obscene material to a child. He was indicted by a Madison County grand jury last week.

Alfaro served as the director of the youth ministry at Covenant Presbyterian Church in Huntsville, though he had been removed from the position prior to his arrest in December. A church member allegedly reported Alfaro’s crime to police.

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Five men deny abuse at St Ninian’s School in Fife

SCOTLAND
BBC News

Five men have gone on trial accused of sexually and physically abusing pupils in their care at a school in Fife between 1967 and 1983.

They are charged with abusing boys who were aged between 11 and 16 at the former St Ninian’s School in Falkland.

At the High Court in Glasgow John Farrell, 73, Paul Kelly, 63, Edward Egan, 78, Michael Murphy, 76, and William Don, 61, denied the charges.

The court indictment lists 121 charges involving sexual and physical abuse.

The majority of the allegations are against Farrell and Kelly.

The Crown claim that a total of 35 boys were allegedly abused at the school.

Many of them allege they were assaulted with a variety of implements, including shoes, belt and a ruler.

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Conclusion of interrogation of defendants in trial for dissemination of reserved information and documents, 13.04.2016

VATICAN CITY
Vatican Information Service – Bollettino

Vatican City, 13 April 2016 – Today at 10.30 a.m. a new hearing began in the ongoing trial for the dissemination of reserved information and documents in Vatican City State Tribunal, according to information provided by the director of the Holy See Press Office, Fr. Federico Lombardi, S.J. It was attended by the members of the Tribunal (Professors Giuseppe Dalla Torre, Piero Antonio Bonnet, Paolo Papanti-Pelletier and Venerando Marano), the Promoter of Justice (Professors Gian Pietro Milano and Roberto Zannotti), and the defendants Ángel Lucio Vallejo Balda, Francesca Immacolata Chaouqui, Nicola Maio, Gianluigi Nuzzi, and Emiliano Fittipaldi, with their respective legal representatives Emanuela Bellardini, Laura Sgrò, Rita Claudia Baffioni, Roberto Palombi and Lucia Teresa Musso.

The hearing was dedicated entirely to the interrogation of the defendant Gianluigi Nuzzi by the President, the Promoter of Justice, and the counsels for the defence of the other defendants.

Some lawyers then requested that the Court admit certain witnesses other than those already previously requested and admitted. The Court retired to the Counsel Chamber and subsequently refused the requests for new witnesses.

The hearing ended at around 2.15 p.m. The next hearing is scheduled to take place on 26 April at 3.30 p.m. Since the interrogation of the defendants has now been concluded, the examination of witnesses will take place.

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14th meeting of the Council of Cardinals: towards a new apostolic constitution, 13.04.2016

VATICAN CITY
Vatican Information Service – Bollettino

Vatican City, 13 April 2016 – The Council of Cardinals met with the Holy Father from Monday 11 to Wednesday 13 April. All members were present apart from Cardinal Oswald Gracias, archbishop of Bombay, India, who was unable to attend for health reasons. The Pope participated in all the meetings aside from this morning’s session, due to the usual Wednesday general audience.

The conversations focused mostly on the various dicasteries of the Curia which have been the subject of reflection in previous meetings, with a view to the new apostolic constitution. These included the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, the Congregation for Consecrated Life and the Societies of Apostolic Life, the Congregation for the Causes of Saints, the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, and others.

The tests regarding the Holy Father’s proposal for the two new dicasteries referred to on other occasions – “Laity, Family, Life” and “Justice, Peace, Migrations” (also including Charity and Health Pastoral Care) were reread and submitted to the Holy Father for his decisions.

Other issues were considered: in particular, the criteria for gathering information for the appointment of new bishops, in the light of their identity and pastoral mission. The cardinals also reflected on the meaning and role of the nuncio.

Updates were also presented in the form of reports from the prefect of the Secretariat for the Economy on issues within its sphere of competence, and from Cardinal O’Malley on the activity of the Commission for the Protection of Minors.

On the final day the Council worked to gather, order and integrate the various contributions that have emerged from the meetings so far, so as to begin to structure an overall proposal to offer to the Pope from the Council in view of the new Constitution.

The next meetings of the Council this year are scheduled to take place from 6 to 8 June, 12 to 14 September, and 12 to 14 December.

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Council of Cardinals discuss new Vatican organizational chart, selection of bishops

VATICAN CITY
National Catholic Reporter

Joshua J. McElwee | Apr. 13, 2016

VATICAN CITY
The nine cardinals advising Pope Francis on reforming the Catholic church’s central bureaucracy have begun to organize a general overview for the full restructuring of what is commonly called the Roman Curia, the Vatican’s main spokesman said Wednesday.

Jesuit Fr. Federico Lombardi said the cardinals are now putting together their thoughts after doing an office-by-office review of the Vatican bureaucracy in hopes of creating a new general constitution outlining a reimagined curial organizational structure.

The cardinals are working “to construct the advice the council will give to the pope in view of the new constitution,” said Lombardi.

The Council has been meeting with the pope in Rome Monday through Wednesday for the 14th of its in-person meetings. The only American serving on the Council is Boston Cardinal Sean O’Malley.

Lombardi said the group had finalized pending plans for the creation of two new Vatican offices, and had also discussed the way in which Catholic bishops are chosen for positions leading dioceses around the world.

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Child abuse royal commission to focus back on Cardinal George Pell

AUSTRALIA
Daily Telegraph

April 13, 2016

Shannon Deery
Herald Sun

THE child abuse royal commission will turn its focus back to Cardinal George Pell with four new witnesses to give evidence refuting claims he was kept in the dark about abuse.

During his most recent ­appearance before the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse, Cardinal Pell said he had been deceived by ­Catholic Education Office (CEO) staff.

He said that while he was Melbourne’s auxiliary bishop, CEO staff had failed to tell him about abuse being perpetrated by Doveton parish priest Peter Searson.

Four former CEO employees have now made statements to the commission over his claims and will be called to give evidence at a hearing on April 27.

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France sets up new clerical sex abuse body

FRANCE
Christian Today

Ruth Gledhill CHRISTIAN TODAY CONTRIBUTING EDITOR 13 April 2016

The French Catholic Church is to set up a new commission to advise bishops and help them handle cases of child sex abuse by priests.

Bishop Georges Pontier, head of the French bishops’ coference, disclosed the new commission’s growing concerns about child sex abuse and the Catholic Church in France.

The new body will be independent, secular and chaired by a lay person. Members will include former magistrates, doctors, psychologists, teachers and parents, according to AP.

It will be set up soon, said Bishop Pontier, who met Pope Francis a few days ago.

It will include a new website and other measures.

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Religious day cares get freedom from oversight, with tragic results

UNITED STATES
Reveal: The Center for Investigative Reporting

By Amy Julia Harris / April 12, 2016

The God Loophole: Thousands of religious day cares across America legally are allowed to run their facilities with little government oversight. But freedom from regulation can come at a high price for children. And when things go wrong, parents have little recourse.

Like many parents, when Juan Cardenas began looking for a day care for his 1-year-old son, Carlos, he relied on word-of-mouth. A friend recommended Praise Fellowship Assembly of God in Indianapolis.

Cardenas never had planned to put his baby in day care, so he didn’t know the questions to ask. He just knew Praise Fellowship was a church. He is devoutly Catholic, so he trusted that.

“I thought they were going to do a good job because they served God,” he said.

Almost immediately, Cardenas noticed things were amiss. One day, he arrived to pick up Carlos and found the children waiting in the dark. When he asked why, someone at the day care threw the question back at him: “Do you want to pay for the lights?”

That’s when Cardenas decided Praise Fellowship wasn’t going to work out after all. He found another day care in the area, and Carlos was set to start the next week.

He never made it.

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State House overwhelmingly approves proposal to aid victims of child sex abuse

PENNSYLVANIA
Reading Eagle

By Liam Migdail-Smith

The state House broke into applause Tuesday as lawmakers overwhelmingly approved a proposal to give victims of child sex abuse more time to come forward.

The House approved a bill that revamps the statutes of limitation for child sex abuse victims. The 180-15 vote marks a victory for victims and their advocates who have long pushed for the legislation.

“Today we’ve given them a little bit of hope,” said state Rep. Mark Rozzi, a Muhlenberg Township Democrat who has spearheaded the reform effort. “Justice has been denied for a long time. But my message to victims is justice is right around the corner.”

The plan would eliminate the age limit for victims to pursue criminal charges and give victims until age 50 to bring civil cases against their alleged abusers and the organizations that shield them. The limit now is age 30 for civil cases and age 50 for criminal cases.

The change for civil cases would be retroactive, allowing victims now older than 30 to file suits until they reach age 50.

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Windows closing for clergy sex abuse victims to sue Catholic church

UNITED STATES
The Guardian (UK)

Amanda Holpuch in New York
@holpuch
Wednesday 13 April 2016

The courthouse doors will soon close on victims of clergy sex abuse in Minnesota and Hawaii when a brief window to bring charges against the Catholic church expires.

Statute of limitations laws have made it nearly impossible for adults who were abused as children to put their claims before a court, even after revelations in 2002 about decades of widespread child sex abuse by Catholic priests.

But in May 2013, Minnesota created a three-year window for past victims of abuse to file child sex abuse lawsuits against the church and other institutions, even after the statute of limitations has closed. This was a life-changing opportunity for people like James Hlavka, who told the Guardian he has “lived hell on earth” since being abused by a priest from age 10 to 15 in the 1960s.

Hlavka, who lives in one of four states that have created such windows, said a chance to appear in court gave him the courage to speak about the five years of abuse that sent him spiralling into a lifestyle of binge eating, starvation, promiscuity, drug abuse and alcohol addiction. This interview was the first time Hlavka spoke publicly about the abuse he suffered, having initially filed his case against the church as “John Doe 117”.

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Prominent Toronto pastor pleads not guilty to sexually assaulting teen boy more than 40 years ago in N.S.

CANADA
National Post

Michael MacDonald, The Canadian Press | April 13, 2016

KENTVILLE, N.S. — Prominent Toronto pastor Brent Hawkes pleaded not guilty Monday to decades-old sex-crime allegations in Nova Scotia, where supporters gathered outside a Kentville courtroom to denounce the charges as outdated and unfair.

Hawkes, 65, is accused of indecent assault on a male and gross indecency related to allegations of a sexual assault against a minor in 1974 and 1975.

The alleged victim was 15 and 16 years old at the time, Nova Scotia’s Public Prosecution Service said. Few other details have been released about the case.

The accused did not appear in provincial court Monday. Halifax lawyer Joel Pink appeared on behalf of Hawkes’ Toronto lawyer, Clayton Ruby. Pink declined to comment after the proceedings, as did Ruby.

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Lawyer Alex Lewenberg banned after telling sex abuse victim not to acuse a ‘fellow Yid’

AUSTRALIA
The Age

[Victorian Legal Services Commissioner v Lewenberg (Legal Practice) [2016] VCAT 439 (23 March 2016)]

[Victorian Legal Services Commissioner v Lewenberg No 2 (Legal Practice) [2016] VCAT 556 (12 April 2016)]

April 13, 2016

Tom Cowie
Reporter

Criminal solicitor Alex Lewenberg has been banned from practising law for 15 months after telling a Jewish sexual abuse victim not to help police prosecute Yeshivah College paedophile David Cyprys.

​The lawyer, who has represented a string of notorious clients including Billy “The Texan” Longley and Boris “The Black Diamond” Beljajev, must also take an ethics course before being reinstated.

The 74-year-old was found guilty of professional misconduct by the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal last month after the Legal Services Commissioner took action over two comments he admitted making in 2011.

On two occasions, once while in court for a bail hearing for Cyprys and later in a secretly recorded telephone conversation, Mr Lewenberg said that Jews shouldn’t help prosecute fellow Jews.
At the time Mr Lewenberg, a Russian-born Jew, was representing Cyprys, who was later jailed for the rape and sexual assault of young boys at Yeshivah College.

VCAT vice-president Judge Pamela Jenkins ordered on Tuesday that Mr Lewenberg be reprimanded for his behaviour and should have his practising certificate suspended for 15 months from June 1.

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California weighs changing rape statute after Cosby claims

CALIFORNIA
KCRA

SACRAMENTO, Calif. —The California Legislature is advancing a bill driven in part by prosecutors’ difficulty in pursuing sexual assault charges against Bill Cosby.

SB813 would eliminate the state’s 10-year statute of limitations on rape and child molestation charges.

“When only two in 100 rapists are actually convicted and go to jail, maybe we’re doing something wrong,” the bill’s author Connie Leyva, D-Chino, said. “No one is ever raped by accident. It is intentional and it harms these victims.”

Previous versions failed years ago in the Senate Public Safety Committee. But the new bill by Leyva passed the committee 4-0 on Tuesday after testimony by witnesses including lawyer Gloria Allred, who represents 30 of Cosby’s accusers.

Several of his accusers told senators they are unable to bring charges now because they didn’t come forward years ago.

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Kincora abuse probe disarray as second witness Colin Wallace rules out testifying

NORTHERN IRELAND
Belfast Telegraph

By Rebecca Black
PUBLISHED
13/04/2016

The inquiry into historical sex abuse at the former Kincora boys’ home in east Belfast has been dealt a second blow in as many days after another key witness yesterday vowed he would not testify at the probe.

Former Army captain Colin Wallace spoke out after another witness, Roy Garland, said he would not speak at the Historical Institutional Abuse inquiry (HIA) in Banbridge.

Both men feel it does not have enough power to get answers and were disappointed by a High Court ruling that barred a judicial review of Secretary of State Theresa Villiers’ decision not to refer Kincora to the more powerful London-based Goddard Inquiry.

Mr Wallace previously told this newspaper that with witnesses ageing every day, time was quickly running out to get to the truth of what really happened at Kincora.

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Villiers needs rethink on Kincora

NORTHERN IRELAND
Belfast Telegraph

Editor’s Viewpoint

The reality of child sex abuse continues to disfigure our society, and inquiries into this dark subject need every shred of evidence.

It is unfortunate therefore that Colin Wallace, the Ulster-born former Army officer who first raised concerns about the sexual abuse of boys at Kincora in the early Seventies, has decided not to give evidence to the long-running Historical Institutional Abuse inquiry (HIA).

He says that the decision of the High Court not to allow a judicial review challenge of Secretary of State Theresa Villiers’ decision not to refer the evidence to the more powerful Goddard Inquiry in London is a bitter blow to the victims of abuse here.

Mr Wallace asks the pertinent question: “Is the sexual abuse of children in London really more significant than the sexual abuse of children in Northern Ireland?”

He also states bluntly that in the current circumstances, he feels that there would be no useful purpose in participating in the HIA in Banbridge and expresses the hope that others with knowledge of child abuse in Northern Ireland will decide for themselves about taking part, or not, in the inquiry.

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Support for Ballarat’s female sex abuse victims

AUSTRALIA
SBS

By Debi Marshall
13 APR 2016

There is light at the end of a very dark tunnel for female sexual and physical assault victims of Australia”s worst paedophile priest, Fr Gerald Ridsdale and other Catholic clergy, including nuns stationed in Ballarat. Following the SBS Online feature, ‘The girls, the paedophile and Cardinal Pell’ in February and the recent Royal Commission revelations that the Ballarat diocese was a hotbed of cover-ups and paedophilia, CASA (the Ballarat Centre Against Sexual Assault) is now, for the first time seeking expressions of interest for a support group to offer assistance to female survivors. Manager of the Ballarat CASA, Shireen Gunn, says while there has long been a support group for males, they have now identified that a number of female survivors also need ongoing support. “We believe that group work is an important part of assisting recovery to break down isolation,” she says.

No one welcomes the news more than Gabbi Short, now 60, who was regarded as a “lifer” at the Nazareth House Girls Home. She describes her time at the orphanage as a “living hell”; a daily battle for survival. Prey to unceasing violence from sadistic nuns – one in particular – Ms Short was just three years old between 1993 and 1994 when a young Fr Ridsdale, then chaplain of the school, ruled the orphanage with an iron fist. “Ridsdale chose girls on a daily basis to sexually abuse. The nuns knew what was going on and either turned a blind eye or helped clean the girls up after he had finished with them.” The depraved sexual abuse and violence inflicted on numerous girls has had lifelong repercussions for many. “It has shattered so many lives,” Ms Short says. “Who knows how many of those orphans have committed suicide or died from illnesses brought on by post-traumatic stress. This is an opportunity to save lives.”

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Puerto Rico Church Strips Teachers Of Pension Amid Crisis

PUERTO RICO
The Gleaner (Jamaica)

SAN JUAN (AP):

After 36 years teaching English at a Roman Catholic school near Puerto Rico’s capital, Norma Cardoza planned to retire with a modest pension she trusted she would get from the Archdiocese of San Juan.

Her faith was misplaced.

Archdiocese officials in recent weeks informed Cardoza and several hundred other current and retired teachers that their pensions will be eliminated because payouts exceeded contributions. Enrollment at Catholic schools in Puerto Rico has plunged with so many families leaving the island for the US mainland amid the island’s economic crunch.

It has been a devastating blow to Catholic school teachers who had counted on those pensions to supplement the Social Security checks they’ll be getting.

The church noted in the letter that its contract with employees allows it to terminate the pension plan at any moment and said the remaining money would be distributed among retired teachers. Officials signed off with, “May God bless you all.”

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Archdiocese says Investigation into Father Luis Still Ongoing

GUAM
Pacific News Center

Written by Janela Carrera

Father Luis Camacho was arrested last year March for allegedly picking up a minor from school without her parents’ permission.

Guam – The Archdiocese of Agana has issued a statement regarding Father Luis Camacho who was recently discovered to be in active ministry in Qatar a year after he was accused of having sexual contact with a minor.

Father Adrian Cristobal, spokesperson for the Archdiocese says Father Luis is still considered a priest of the Archdiocese of Agana. He says a canonical investigation was conducted last year after Father Camacho was arrested. However, Father Adrian notes that although Father Luis was arrested, he was not charged with sexual misconduct, Father Luis was charged with custodial interference.

Father Luis was arrested last year in March by police, who accused him of picking up a 17-year-old student from school without permission, then taking the minor to a secluded beach. Father Luis was booked and released. The Attorney General’s Office has not yet pursued charges against him in court.

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Mark Rozzi on a personal journey: Abuse victim determined to change laws

PENNSYLVANIA
PennLive

By Ivey DeJesus | idejesus@pennlive.com

His voice, though quivering, filled the cavernous chamber.

Rep. Mark Rozzi didn’t have to dig too deeply. The emotion had been welling in him – not for weeks – but years.

Rozzi, who was abused by a priest at the age of 13, was determined not to fail.

The legislation that could hold out some justice and recompense for hundreds if not thousands of victims like him was on the line.

In the House of Representatives on Tuesday afternoon, the hum of conversations among representatives and staffers came to a halt, the kind that amplifies a pin drop.

House Bill 1947 faced a motion for suspension. The bill would eliminate criminal statutes of limitation on child sex crimes here on out; it would extend the window for victims of child sexual abuse to take civil actions to age 50. Even past victims, under the law, would have until age 50 to file civil action.

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Mexicans expect far more from the Pope than we will ever get

MEXICO
Open Democracy

ARIADNA ESTÉVEZ 13 April 2016

The Pope’s first official visit to Mexico was all talk and no action, but it was exactly what many Mexicans expected. A contribution to the openGlobalRights debate on religion and human rights. Español

Filled with contradictions, Pope Francis’ first official visit to Mexico was disheartening in relation to the human rights situation that is taking place. But at the same time, anything else would have been totally out of character. Upon arriving to Mexico two weeks ago the Pope found a country immersed in a serious human rights crisis characterized by forced disappearances, femicide, racism and socioeconomic inequality. On top of all that, he faced multiple reports of pedophilia among Catholic priests in Oaxaca and Michoacán, among other places. As a Jesuit priest but also the ultimate hierarch of the Catholic Church, the Mexican people expected a lot, and many were disappointed.

Many Mexicans hoped that the Pope would take a clear stance politically about the human rights violations for three simple reasons: 1) the Compañía de Jesús (Society of Jesus) in Mexico and its social ministry organizations has headed the defense of human rights for decades; 2) the groups of victims and their families, many of them Catholic, requested that he intervene on their behalf in order to advance justice and to talk about the national mood; and 3) avoiding the crisis is essentially to avoid the country with the second largest number of Catholics in Latin America.

Indeed, shortly before arriving, and later on with the mediation of Mexican Jesuit priests, the family members of the 43 missing students from Ayotzinapa explicitly requested an audience. To their disappointment, Pope Francis refused the visit. At first his spokespeople said it was because there were divisions and interests between the different groups of victims, and then later they said that due to their large numbers he couldn’t receive them all. For his last Mass in Juarez City, he did offer a few seats for the families, but they turned down the invitation—not out of pride, but because they were seeking more than a mere visit—they wanted his solidarity. What they hoped for—and did not get—was an agreement to bring their demand for justice before the Mexican president and other indolent politicians.

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Yeshivah Centre announces child safety accreditation

AUSTRALIA
Manny Waks

Having moved away from Australia, I have the luxury of no longer getting caught up with Yeshivah Centre matters. I feel as though I have moved on (not just physically) from the emotional toll of dealing with matters concerning the child sexual abuse at Yeshivah, including the pain and suffering they caused (and in some cases continue to cause) to myself and other victims. I am of the view that I have said and done everything I can to effect positive change within Yeshivah and, if the leadership there still refuses to be accountable for their actions, it will ultimately be up to the appropriate authorities to deal with them. At the very least, it’s now up to their community to finally speak up and if their leadership won’t listen to them, to make their views known to external authorities who will listen.

That said, a number of people associated with the Yeshivah Centre have contacted me to draw my attention to its recent Safeguarding Children Organisation accreditation from the Australian Childhood Foundation (ACF). Clearly, they want to highlight the positive developments at Yeshivah and expect me to congratulate them publicly on this achievement. Regrettably, I find myself quite conflicted and unable to heap praise on Yeshivah, as some might like me to do – indeed, as I’d like to do.

That is not to say that I do not recognise and acknowledge the enormous effort which has obviously gone in to achieving this accreditation and important milestone. Andrew Blode, a founding director of the accreditation program, is a friend and a great supporter of my work. He continues to do fantastic work in the area of child safety and it gives me confidence to see him presenting the accreditation to Yeshivah. Moreover, it is particularly impressive that Yeshivah is the first school in Australia to have achieved this milestone.

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Kinderporno-Verdacht gegen Pfarrer

DEUTSCHLAND
Frankfurter Rundschau

HALLE/MAGDEBURG –
Die Staatsanwaltschaft ermittelt gegen einen katholischen Pfarrer aus Sachsen-Anhalt wegen Kinderpornos. Der 66-Jährige aus Braunsbedra (Saalekreis) soll sich umfangreich kinderpornografische Dateien beschafft haben, wie die in Halle erscheinende «Mitteldeutsche Zeitung» (Mittwochsausgabe) berichtete. Im Pfarrhaus seien Computertechnik und Mobiltelefone sichergestellt worden, sagte ein Sprecher der Staatsanwaltschaft der Zeitung. Die Auswertung werde wegen des Datenumfangs «einige Zeit in Anspruch nehmen».

Das Bistum Magdeburg hat den Pfarrer Sprecher Thomas Lazar zufolge bereits beurlaubt und von seinen seelsorgerlichen Pflichten entbunden. Der Geistliche soll Braunsbedra verlassen haben. Der seit 2008 in dem Ort tätige Pfarrer galt der Zeitung zufolge als beliebt und hat sich unter anderem für die Integration vom Flüchtlingen eingesetzt. Der entscheidende Tipp an die deutschen Ermittlungsbehörden kam laut Bericht von der US-Bundespolizei FBI. (epd)

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Hinweis von US-Bundespolizei FBI Kinderporno-Verdacht gegen Pfarrer aus Braunsbedra

DEUTSCHLAND
MZ

[A German priest was suspended on suspicion of having child pornography after German police received a tip from the FBI of the United States.]

Von Dirk Skrzypczak und Diana Dünschel

Halle (Saale) –
Am Dienstagmittag sind sowohl die Kirche als auch das nebenstehende Pfarrhaus im Braunsbedraer Ortsteil Neumark verwaist. Alle Türen und Fenster sind geschlossen. Auf das Klingeln an der Tür reagiert niemand, ebenso auf Anrufe. Der Pfarrer ist untergetaucht. Wo, weiß keiner.

Kinderporno-Verdacht gegen Pfarrer

Die Staatsanwaltschaft Halle führt gegen den 66-Jährigen ein Ermittlungsverfahren. Der Geistliche steht laut Staatsanwalt Dennis Cernota im Verdacht, sich kinderpornografische Dateien besorgt und sie auch besessen zu haben. Den Tipp bekamen die deutschen Ermittlungsbehörden von der amerikanischen Bundespolizei FBI.

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Assignment Record– Rev. Bernard W. Bissonnette (Bissonette)

UNITED STATES
BishopAccountability.org

Summary of Case: Bernard “Fr. Barney” Bissonnette was ordained in 1958 for the Diocese of Norwich CT. It wasn’t long before he was first transferred out of a parish due to allegations of child sexual abuse, in 1959. He cycled through four parishes in the Norwich diocese, removed each time due to allegations, then was sent in 1963 to to the Servants of the Paraclete’s Via Coeli in Jemez Springs NM for treatment. His Norwich bishop would not allow him to return to the diocese due to his “notoriety,” but continued to support him financially. Bissonnette went to the Duluth MN diocese for a short time 1965-66, spending time at parish and in treatment at another Servants of the Paraclete facility. He returned to NM, where he worked in parishes until 1992; he also was chaplain of a correctional facility for boys until his removal in 1978, due to allegations he sexually abused “inmates.” Bissonnette has been the subject of a number of lawsuits. One accuser said Bissonnette’s abuse in the early 1960s included his forcing the boy to perform sex acts on other children.

In 1993 three CT brothers of a Bissonnette victim, who took his own life in 1991, traveled to NM to confront the priest. Their father had reported the brother’s abuse to the Norwich diocese in 1963, after which Bissonnette was sent to NM. Bissonnette admitted the abuse to the victim’s brothers when confronted, while minimizing the extent. The brothers found that Bissonnette was living at the time with a Belen NM family which included small children. The family ignored their warnings about the priest; the brothers reported the situation to the diocese and state police. Bissonnette was laicized in 2005. He died in NM in 2008.

Born: October 1931
Ordained: May 15, 1958
Laicized: May 20, 2005
Died: December 24, 2008

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Church driver accused of sexual abuse, suspect is a convicted sex offender

OHIO
Fox 19

[with video]

By Michael Baldwin, Reporter

FRANKLIN, OH (FOX19) –
A Franklin church volunteer bus driver is accused of sexual abuse against two boys under the age of 10.

A joint investigation done by the FBI Task Force Officer and Hamilton County Sheriff’s office allege Jory Leedy committed an act of “aggravated sexual abuse” against two elementary school kids. The ages of the victims are nine and 10-years-old.

Documents obtained by FOX19 NOW show he met the children in 2012, while he was a volunteer bus driver for Target Ministries of Dayton. There, he would drive the kids to church.

Eventually, the documents read he convinced the parents to allow him to take them to Crossroads Church in Cincinnati. He is reportedly a member there.

Court records also show he also convinced the parents to allow the boys to stay at hotels with him on Saturdays in the Cincinnati area for about two years. He allegedly told the parents it would be easier to get them to the church.

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Bronx man, 50, remembers high school principal sexually abusing him, says N.Y. statute of limitations is ‘very unfair’

NEW YORK
New York Daily News

BY EDGAR SANDOVAL, LARRY MCSHANE NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
Tuesday, April 12, 2016

The nightmares still surface in the darkness, leaving Mark Taylor awake and alone with his horrific memories of high school.

The Bronx man remembers his predatory principal sexually abusing him for three soul-crushing years, starting when he was a 14-year-old sophomore.

And though Irwin Goldberg confessed on videotape to sodomizing Taylor, New York State’s statute of limitations allowed the principal to dodge criminal charges and a $10 million lawsuit. Victims abused as children have until their 23rd birthday to seek criminal or civil penalties.

“It’s very unfair,” said Taylor, 50. “It’s very important that they change the law. I still have anxiety attacks and PTSD. And I can’t get nothing — disability, Social Security, not even a sleeping pill.”

State Senate Democrats plan to introduce a bill that would eliminate the statute of limitation for criminal or civil cases. The bill, sponsored by Senate Minority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins (D-Yonkers) and Sen. Brad Hoylman (D-Manhattan), would also remove the 90-day window required to file a notice of claim — the first step in a lawsuit — against a public or government entity. The Catholic Church has long argued that the 90-day requirement for public entities was unfair to private institutions.

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Hughes Inquiry tapes at issue in Mount Cashel civil trial

CANADA
The Telegram

Barb Sweet
Published on April 12, 2016

It was uncertain Tuesday whether the Mount Cashel civil trial will include evidence entered from videotapes of some witnesses who testified at the Hughes Inquiry nearly 30 years ago.

Lawyer Mark Frederick, who represents the Roman Catholic Episcopal Corp. of St. John’s, on Tuesday argued against an application made by lawyer Geoff Budden, who represents former orphanage residents.

Newfoundland Supreme Court Justice Alphonsus Faour did not rule on the matter as of the end of the court day Tuesday.

Faour is presiding over a civil trial to determine whether the church is liable for the physical and sexual abuse of boys by certain Christian Brothers at the orphanage during the late 1940s to early 1960s.

The church contends it did not run the orphanage, and therefore is not legally responsible.

Budden wants the court to see some tapes from the Hughes Inquiry — regarding some testimony of a former resident, the inquiry investigator, an RCMP officer and an archdiocese official. All are deceased.

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Lawsuits allege child sex abuse by official St. John’s Abbey had cleared

MINNESOTA
Pioneer Press

By RICHARD CHIN | rchin@pioneerpress.com
April 12, 2016

Two lawsuits against St. John’s Abbey — accusing a former prior of child sexual abuse decades ago — have been filed in Stearns County, a St. Paul law firm announced Tuesday.

The lawsuits allege that St. John’s Abbey former prior and No. 2 leader, the Rev. Tom Andert, abused Todd Belrose, then a 14-year-old student at St. John’s Preparatory School in Collegeville, in 1979 or 1980.

The lawsuits also accuse Allen Tarlton, a monk at St. John’s Abbey, of abusing Belrose in about 1979 or 1980. Tarlton died in January.

Another plaintiff, identified as Doe 324, accused Andert of sexual abuse in 1970 to 1971 when Doe 324 was a 14-year-old student at St. John’s Prep. Doe 324’s lawsuit also says he was molested at the same time by Bruce Wollmering, a St. John’s Abbey priest and monk who is now dead.

Belrose’s lawyer, Jeff Anderson, said Belrose originally wrote a letter to St. John’s Abbey accusing Andert of abuse in July 2015.

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Victim of child abuse seeks civil recourse after alleged abusers’ death

MASSACHUSETTS
WWLP

Andy Metzger
Published: April 12, 2016

BOSTON (STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE) – A man who said he was sexually abused by a now-deceased priest, and a former priest, who said he was fired for speaking out about sex abuse in the church asked lawmakers Tuesday to eliminate the civil statute of limitations for child abuse allegations against the dead so that victims can seek damages from their estates.

Bassam Haddad, who said he is 43 and married with two boys, told members of the Judiciary Committee he was abused as a teenager by a priest at St. Joseph’s in Lawrence who was then transferred to Lebanon, where he died in recent years.

“We can’t do anything now,” Haddad told the committee. He said, “We’re trying to get this law moved so we can go after their estate.”

Robert Hoatson, a former priest and co-founder of Road to Recovery for survivors of sexual abuse, joined Haddad, and said the church had fired him after he testified about sexual abuse to New York lawmakers. Hoatson, who said he worked at Catholic Memorial High School and raised alarms about Monsignor Fred Ryan around 1982, said he was at the hearing to support Haddad.

Hoatson said he was fired from a position directing schools in Newark, N.J. in 2003 after testifying before lawmakers in New York.

Mitchell Garabedian, the high-profile attorney who helped bring to light the practice of shielding predator priests within the Catholic Church, said a judgement against an alleged pedophile “provides validation” and “a degree of dignity” for their victims.

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