ABUSE TRACKER

WORCESTER (MA)
BishopAccountability.org

All are invited to a celebration of Kathy Shaw’s life

When

Tuesday, July 17, 2018
from 4:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m.

Where

Graham, Putnam & Mahoney Funeral Parlor
838 Main Street
Worcester MA 01610

Kathy’s Story

Our wonderful friend and colleague Kathy Shaw died on Sunday, June 24, 2018 at St. Vincent’s Hospital in Worcester MA after a long illness.

Kathy had been a distinguished and award-winning religion reporter at the Worcester Telegram & Gazette, as well as a mental health crisis counselor and a union activist. Beginning in 1992 and continuing through 2005, Kathy did groundbreaking reporting on the clergy abuse crisis in the Diocese of Worcester and beyond. In 2002, she started working on Abuse Tracker, the news blog about the clergy abuse crisis created in March 2002 by Bill Mitchell and the Poynter Institute. The byline “Posted by Kathy Shaw” first appeared on June 12, 2002, when the U.S. bishops were meeting in Dallas.

In the sixteen years since, Kathy posted tens of thousands of articles in Abuse Tracker, transforming the news blog into an indispensable resource and record, used by everyone who works on the clergy abuse crisis or cares about it. Thanks to Kathy and Abuse Tracker, every local development in the abuse crisis could be followed by people everywhere. Abuse Tracker was hosted by Poynter for a year, then by the National Catholic Reporter until 2006, and then by BishopAccountability.org, where it will continue.

Kathy Shaw was a steadfast friend, a tireless and generous colleague, an exuberant presence on social media, and a loving advocate for survivors everywhere.

• See Kathy’s obituaries in the New York Times and the Boston Globe, an appreciation by Bill Mitchell in the National Catholic Reporter, and a column by Clive MacFarland in Kathy’s paper, the Telegram & Gazette.

• Please view a brief video about Kathy.

• See also the bio that Kathy wrote when she and Abuse Tracker joined BishopAccountability.org.

Donations In Kathy’s Memory

The family asks that donations in memory of Kathy be made to BishopAccountability.org, which will continue to host Abuse Tracker and preserve Kathy’s legacy. Please visit BishopAccountability.org’s donations page to donate online or via snail mail.

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.

MECHANICSVILLE (PA)
PennLive

July 13, 2018

By Charles Thompson

Lawyers for at least 12 persons named in a forthcoming grand jury report on historic patterns of sexual abuse in six of Pennsylvania’s Roman Catholic dioceses have asked the state Supreme Court to give them an unprecedented chance to edit the report before its release.

In a common brief for all petitioners released in redacted form Friday afternoon, the attorneys said there are demonstrable errors of fact and interpretation in the report that, if left uncorrected, will deprive their clients of a state constitutional right to defend their reputation.

The lawyers are asking the court to send the report back to the grand jury’s supervising judge for, at minimum, a series of evidentiary hearings where the unnamed petitioners can present their cases.

That would be followed, where necessary, by redactions or corrections before the full report is released to the public.

Ordinarily, persons referred to critically in grand jury reports in Pennsylvania are given a chance to review those portions of the report that deal directly with them, and file a written response.

Those responses are released as an addendum to the report.

The petitioners in this case, however, have argued that the subject of matter of child sexual abuse is so horrific, that getting the opportunity to vent after the fact is meaningless.

Especially, they assert, when there are clear errors in the portions of the report that they have seen that can be relatively easily fixed.

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.

BUFFALO (NY)
WKBW

By Charlie Specht

July 14, 2018

Lifelong Catholic describes the personal toll

I had to break the news. But first I needed to make the call.

Seventy years of secrets were about to spill out in March when the Catholic Diocese of Buffalo finally relented, sending our newsroom a list of 42 priests believed to have committed the ultimate betrayal — the sexual abuse of a child.

I needed to go on TV and tell our viewers what it meant.

But first I needed to call my Mom.

She needed to hear it from me that Father Basil Ormsby, the priest who had witnessed my parents’ wedding and who played such a huge role in her family’s life, would forever be known as a pedophile.

My Nana was Father Ormsby’s parish secretary. She was a convert to Catholicism but she loved her faith and instilled it in her children. My parents passed it along to my brothers and it’s been the foundation of our lives.

I attended Catholic grade school, became an altar boy. I grew close with the Franciscan Friars at St. Bonaventure University and was married in the church. My daughter goes to Catholic school and loves attending Mass. I beam with pride when my wife, a lector, stands on the altar and reads the word of God.

Like many Catholics, the scandal in the Diocese of Buffalo has shaken me to the core. But I’ve had the opportunity — some would say the misfortune — of seeing the ugliness up close. Some of it is too graphic to put on TV.

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.

ALLENTOWN (PA)
The Morning Call

July 13, 2018

By Tim Darragh

The Allentown Diocese is mailing more than 80,000 Catholic households an update of its view on the state grand jury report that is looking into the sexual abuse of children by priests and a reiteration of its zero-tolerance policy.

The diocese sent the letter from Bishop Alfred Schlert to the news media Friday.

“The bishop thought it was important to communicate to the people of the diocese during this time when the grand jury report was expected,” said diocesan spokesman Matt Kerr.

In the letter, Schlert says he wants the report reviewing decades of sexual abuse in six dioceses — including Allentown — released as soon as possible.

A grand jury spent two years hearing testimony about abuse by priests and efforts to cover it up in the Allentown, Erie, Greensburg, Harrisburg, Pittsburth and Scranton dioceses. The report it generated is now being held up by a state Supreme Court order, after some unidentified priests argued it violates their due process rights.

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.

ALLENTOWN (PA)
Diocese of Allentown Website

July 13, 2018

By Bishop Alfred A. Schlert

My dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ:

As you know, there is a Statewide Grand Jury Report on clergy sexual abuse in six Catholic dioceses in Pennsylvania, including the Diocese of Allentown. The release of that Report has been held up because of legal challenges. No one knows how long the Report will be delayed, so I am writing today to provide you with some information on this important issue.

I would like you to know that the Diocese of Allentown has cooperated with the Grand Jury and the Attorney General, and has done absolutely nothing to delay or block the Report, or to support anyone who is trying to do so.

In fact, my sincere wish is that the Report is released as soon as possible. The information it contains will be difficult to hear. However, this information does need to be heard, and it needs to be used by all of us to accomplish our shared goal: the elimination of child abuse in the Church and wherever it occurs in society.

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.

VIRGINIA BEACH (VA)
CBN News

July 13, 2018

By George Thomas

Months after it was revealed that Chile’s Roman Catholic church was embroiled in a culture of abuse and coverups spanning decades, authorities have arrested a top priest for sexually abusing minors.

Oscar Munoz Toledo, once a prominient member of Santiago’s archdiocese, was taken into custody Thursday.

“The crimes he is accused of are of repeated sexual abuse and one case of a consenting relationship with an older minor,” Chilean prosecutor Emiliano Arias told reporters.

Toledo is among 14 other suspected priests accused of sexually abusing children. Police have charged Munoz with the abuse and statutory rape of seven minors.

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.

MUMBAI (INDIA)
Times of India

July 14, 2018

Kottayam – Fr Johnson V Mathew, a priest of Malankara Orthodox church accused in the rape and sexual abuse of a married woman belonging to the fold, was arrested by a crime branch team on Friday. Fr Johnson, a Kozhencherry native and third accused in the case, was arrested from his residence at 2pm. On Thursday, Fr Job Mathew, second accused in the case, had turned himself in to the police in Kollam.

Fr Johnson was questioned for around three hours. The accused was presented before Thiruvalla magistrate and was remanded for 14 days in judicial custody. Fr Johnson faces charges under Section 354 of IPC (molestation). Unlike the other three accused priests who were slapped with Sections 376 (rape) also along with 354, Fr Johnson who belongs to the Thumpamon diocese of the Orthodox church has not been charged with rape.

The accused told the probe team that though he knew the woman he had not sexually abused her. The priest and the victim had studied in the same college during the same period. The woman had shared her trauma of being sexually abused by the other priests using her confession as tool for blackmail. The victim had given a statement that it was after this that Fr Johnson had started sending her lewd messages. The Kerala HC was set to pronounce its verdict on the bail plea filed by Fr Johnson on Friday.

The remaining two accused Fr Abraham Varghese (Sony) and Fr Jaise K George are still at large. The probe team searched the house of Fr Abraham in Pathanamthitta district on Friday. The anticipatory bail plea of both these priests were rejected by the high court on Wednesday. The absconding priests are reportedly planning to approach the Supreme Court seeking anticipatory bail. Fr Jaise is suspected to be in Delhi and the probe team will be leaving for Delhi if he doesn’t surrender in two days.

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.

VATICAN CITY
Catholic News Service via National Catholic Reporter

July 13, 2018

By Junno Arocho Esteves

As the Catholic Church in Chile continues to reel from allegations of clerical sexual abuse and cover-ups, police arrested the former chancellor of the Archdiocese of Santiago on accusations he sexually abused minors.

Explore Pope Francis’ encyclical on the environment with this free guide.

Chilean prosecutor Emiliano Arias told journalists that authorities arrested Fr. Oscar Munoz Toledo, the former chancellor, July 12 following allegations that he abused seven minors in Santiago and Rancagua since 2002.

In late May, news first broke that Munoz was suspended after he reported himself to church authorities for abuse. The suspension occurred Jan. 2, a little over a week before Pope Francis visited the country.

Juan Carlos Cruz, a survivor of abuse, expressed shock and outrage at the revelation, given the fact that he had reported the abuse he suffered to the former chancellor.

“The insolence — to put it mildly — is astonishing. [Munoz] was the one who took our statements, and nothing happened,” Cruz tweeted May 24.

In a statement released the day of the arrest, the Archdiocese of Santiago also confirmed that Arias, accompanied by police, conducted a second search and seizure operation in connection with the charges against Munoz as well as several other pending investigations.

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.

ALLENTOWN (PA)
The Morning Call

July 13, 2018

By Tim Darragh

The Allentown Diocese is mailing more than 80,000 Catholic households an update of its view on the state grand jury report that is looking into the sexual abuse of children by priests and a reiteration of its zero-tolerance policy.

The diocese sent the letter from Bishop Alfred Schlert to the news media Friday.

“The bishop thought it was important to communicate to the people of the diocese during this time when the grand jury report was expected,” said diocesan spokesman Matt Kerr.

In the letter, Schlert says he wants the report reviewing decades of sexual abuse in six dioceses — including Allentown — released as soon as possible.

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.

HONOLULU (HAWAII)
Hawaii Public Radio

July 12, 2018

By Ku`Uwehi Hiraishi

A new law in Hawaiʻi now gives survivors of child sexual abuse more time to file claims against their abuser. Reforms to the state’s statute of limitations have been key in exposing the extent of child sexual abuse at various institutions, most notably the Catholic Diocese of Honolulu.

Nearly 60 priests associated with Hawaiʻi’s Roman Catholic Church have been accused of child sexual abuse. That’s according to a recent report by attorneys of abuse victims.

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.

BUFFALO (NY)
The Buffalo News

July 12, 2018

By Jay Tokasz

A Grand Island woman on Thursday accused a nun of sexually abusing her with a crucifix more than 60 years ago at a convent in Snyder.

J. Carroll Becker said the nun used the crucifix as punishment after Becker wet her pants at a classroom desk in 1955, when she was five years old.

“She told me it would cure me of defiling God’s property,” Becker said.

Becker, 68, told the story of the alleged abuse at a news conference on the sidewalk outside Christ the King School on Main Street in Snyder. She was accompanied by Robert Hoatson and James Faluszczak, former priests who now advocate on behalf of victims of clergy sexual abuse.

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.

AUSTRALIA
Australian Associated Press

July 13, 2018

The dark past of a man, thought to be a model citizen, has caught up to the 65-year-old and landed him a jail sentence for six child sex offences committed in the late 1980s.

For the past 25 years, Gordon Lloyd Adams had appeared to be a pillar of his Queensland community.

A Gympie Salvation Army volunteer, he was also a supporter of the local rural fire service. Adams was even once the town’s nominee for Australian Senior Citizen of the Year.

But it was revealed in Brisbane District Court on Friday, that he was far from a model citizen, when he was sentenced to six-and-a-half years behind bars.

Adams pleaded guilty in May to the offences committed in Deception Bay, including the rape of a nine-year-old girl, after the victim came forward in 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.

ANCHORAGE (AK)
Anchorage Press

July 12, 2018

By Dennis Anderson

I’m a cradle Catholic. I typically avoid movies concerning the church. Hollywood doesn’t always portray Catholics and our faith in the best of lights. When the movie ‘Spotlight’ was released, I had zero interest in watching the film. ‘Spotlight’ tells the story behind the Boston Globe’s investigative journalism team’s efforts to uncover the widespread of child sex abuse by priests in the Boston area. Subsequently, they uncovered that the church not only knew about these priests, but made unbelievable efforts to conceal the epidemic.

All told, there were over 90 priests confirmed to have been involved. The Globe’s investigation revealed that the church, lawyers and some of the faithful went to great links to keep the accusations quiet. The team also exposed the fact that psychologists working with the church believed that these priests could be rehabilitated. Some were declared cured and sent back into parishes only to abuse again. One such priest was John J. Geoghan, and since the mid-1990’s, more than 130 people have come forward with horrific tales of his abuse, according to the original Boston Globe article released in January of 2002. Geoghan was the early focus of the team because the church successfully had the court documents attached to his case sealed.

Released in 2015, the movie was critically acclaimed. Those involved in the movie raked in the awards in 2016 including the Academy Award of Best Picture. I’ll typically search out movies that are this lauded. I just wouldn’t budge on this one. Another shot fired at the faithful, I reconciled in my mind. But I had no idea what the movie was about, other than a scandal that I was personally in denial about.

One evening, while searching through Netflix for something to watch, ‘Spotlight’ appeared in the recently added folder. I checked out the trailer and decided to acquiesce. The trailer had me intrigued because it portrayed that the movie was focused on the passionate efforts of the Spotlight team. So, I watched.

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.

AUSTRALIA
AAP

July 13, 2018

A former Perth priest, now 83, has been accused of further historical child sex offences after he was charged three months ago with indecently assaulting seven children.

Police charged the man again on Friday, alleging he indecently assaulted a seven-year-old girl in 1970 when he was a priest at a Carlisle church.

The same man was charged in April with a string of offences after he allegedly indecently assaulted seven boys and girls, aged between six and 12 at the time of the first offence, between 1979 and 1992 while he was a priest in Shenton Park.

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.

AUSTRALIA
Daily Mail Australia

July 11, 2018

By Alex Michael

Lisa Wilkinson and Waleed Aly have had a tense disagreement over the Royal Commission’s proposal to criminalise Catholic Church priests who fail to break the confessional seal to report admissions of child abuse.

The debate was sparked after the Victorian Government failed to introduce the recommendation on Wednesday, insisting it needed ‘further consideration.’

Lisa, 58, argued the changes were necessary to provide justice for victims of abuse, while Waleed, 39, insisted the proposal presents a catch-22 for priests.

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.

WILLIAMSTON (MI)
The Associated Press

July 11, 2018

A Lansing-area priest accused of embezzling more than $5 million from his church is trying to raise $300,000 for his defense just weeks before trial.

The Lansing State Journal says a group called Opus Bono has sent a letter on behalf of the Rev. Jonathan Wehrle. The letter says he’s in “dire need.”

Wehrle is charged with six counts of embezzling $100,000 or more from St. Martha Church in Okemos. He lived at a property worth more than $1 million in Williamston. Trial is scheduled for Aug. 13.

Joe Maher, Opus Bono’s president, says he doesn’t believe there was “criminal intent” by Wehrle. The priest’s attorney claims he had an agreement with a bishop to use church funds for a home.

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.

LANSING (MI)
Michigan Radio

July 10, 2018

By Maya Goldman

Catholic non-profit Opus Bono Sacerdotii has begun fundraising for Lansing-area priest Father Jonathan Wehrle’s legal and living expenses following last year’s allegations that Wehrle embezzled over $5,000,000 from his church.

According to the accusations, Wehrle—who founded St. Martha Parish in Okemos in 1988—used church money for personal expenses from 1991 to 2017. He now faces federal embezzlement charges, as well as a separate civil suit raised by an insurer for the Catholic Diocese of Lansing.

Wehrle’s legal fees are estimated to amount to $300,000. His assets have been frozen while he awaits trial.

Opus Bono president Joe Maher knows fundraising is not the response most organizations would have to a situation like this. But since 2002, when Maher’s own priest was accused (and later acquitted) of sexual abuse, he has supported thousands of priests all around the world through their legal and personal troubles.

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.

METAIRIE (LA)
ChurchMilitant.com

July 10, 2018

By Anita Carey

George Brignac could face new sex abuse allegations

A Louisiana parish was up till last month still allowing a former deacon accused of multiple counts of sex abuse to serve as lector — despite the archdiocese paying out a $500,000 settlement on his behalf.

In May, the archdiocese of New Orleans paid out half a million dollars to settle an abuse claim against George Brignac, a former deacon and teacher from Holy Rosary School. Brignac was accused of grooming and raping a young boy numerous times, starting in 1979 when the victim was 8 years old.

The lawsuit was only filed this year because the victim claimed he repressed the abuse until a chance meeting with Brignac and the boy’s mother in a grocery store last year.

Despite this settlement, Brignac was allowed to serve as a lector at St. Mary Magdalen in Metairie, Louisiana for “several years.” Church Militant contacted the parish but was told Fr. Chris DeLerno, the pastor, was on retreat and would not be available for a week.

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.

VATICAN CITY
The Associated Press

July 10, 2018

The Vatican is drafting guidelines to help Catholic dioceses find appropriate ways to decommission unneeded churches so they don’t end up as discos, gymnasiums or gelato shops.

The Vatican’s culture ministry is teaming up with Rome’s Jesuit-run Pontifical Gregorian University and the Italian bishops’ conference to host an international conference in November on managing the sale of churches and handling of their assets. The event already has a title: “Doesn’t God Dwell Here Anymore?”

Culture Minister Cardinal Gianfranco Ravasi told reporters on Tuesday that many dioceses in Europe, North America and Australia have more churches than they need or can maintain, thanks to an increasingly secularized society, fewer church-going Catholics and financial constraints.

The Vatican wants to ensure the buildings maintain some of the spiritual, cultural and social value they had as consecrated places of worship, Ravasi said.

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 ORLEANS (LA)
The New Orleans Advocate

July 9, 2018

By Matt Sledge

A Marrero pastor’s voice was barely audible as he pleaded guilty to a string of sex crimes in state court on Monday in exchange for a 20-year sentence.

Sherman Smith, 58, pleaded guilty to second-degree rape and eight other counts before Orleans Parish Criminal District Court Judge Karen Herman. She is set to formally sentence him under the terms of his agreement with prosecutors after hearing victim-impact statements on July 17.

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.

BHUBANESWAR (INDIA)
Reuters

July 10, 2018

By Jatindra Dash

Indian police arrested seven people on Tuesday, including a school principal and a teacher, on suspicion of raping and blackmailing a teenage girl over several months, the latest case of sexual abuse of minors.

Recent incidents of sexual violence have sparked protests in several Indian cities this year, echoing mass rallies over a fatal gang rape case in 2012, and putting pressure on Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who has promised action.

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.

SANTIAGO (CHILE)
The Associated Press

July 12, 2018

Authorities arrested a priest Thursday on accusations of sexually abusing minors, the latest turn in a scandal engulfing Chile’s Roman Catholic Church for having covered up abuses for decades.

Oscar Munoz Toledo, a priest who was once the chancellor of Santiago’s archbishopric, was arrested by police on the orders of prosecutor Emiliano Arias, who is investigating 14 other suspended priests in the southern diocese of Rancagua for allegedly participating in a network of abuse.

Munoz is accused of the abuse and statutory rape of seven minors, and Arias did not rule out that there were more victims. Munoz, who reported himself in January for a case of abuse, was scheduled to be taken to court Friday. Authorities are investigating whether he had accomplices.

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 DELHI (INDIA)
The Associated Press

July 12, 2018

Police on Thursday arrested one of the four church priests accused of raping a woman over years in southern India.

The accused surrendered to the police, who arrested him after questioning, the Press Trust of India news agency said. Police also were questioning another priest in Kollam, a city in Kerala state, and looking for two other accused.

They were denied pre-arrest bail by a court on Wednesday. Justice R. Vijayaraghavan said that the evidence indicates the priests acted as predators. “They appeared to have undertaken undue advantage of the position of the complainant,” the justice said.

The priests deny the accusation. There was no immediate comment by their Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church.

The complainant’s husband told reporters that he came to know about the abuse in February this year when he noticed a bank statement about a hotel transaction in his wife’s email inbox.

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.

CHILE
Reuters

July 12, 2018

By Fabian Cambero and Aislinn Laing

Chilean police have arrested a former Roman Catholic Church official after he confessed earlier this year to sexually abusing at least five children, a state prosecutor said on Thursday.

The arrest was the first since authorities launched a major investigation this year into cases of abuse within Chile’s Catholic Church, which Vatican officials accused in February of “grave negligence” and a cover-up in its handling of sex abuse allegations.

Oscar Muñoz, who served as chancellor of the archdiocese of Santiago, confessed in January to church authorities that he sexually abused at least five children, according to Prosecutor Emiliano Arias, who ordered his arrest in the capital on Thursday.

Ironically, Arias told reporters that Muñoz had been responsible for receiving allegations of abuse within the 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.

UNITED STATES
Yahoo Lifestyle

July 12, 2018

By Korin Miller

The #MeToo movement has called out and torpedoed the careers of several famous men. And now one in particular says he is scared to date because of it.

In a lengthy interview with GQ Australia, Henry Cavill opened up about how the #MeToo movement has had a direct impact on his love life. “There’s something wonderful about a man chasing a woman. There’s a traditional approach to that, which is nice. I think a woman should be wooed and chased, but maybe I’m old-fashioned for thinking that,” he said. But Cavill says it’s “very difficult” to pursue a woman that way “if there are certain rules in place.”

“Because then it’s like, ‘Well, I don’t want to go up and talk to her, because I’m going to be called a rapist or something,’” he continued. “So you’re like, ‘Forget it, I’m going to call an ex-girlfriend instead and then just go back to a relationship, which never really worked.’ But it’s way safer than casting myself into the fires of hell, because I’m someone in the public eye, and if I go and flirt with someone, then who knows what’s going to happen?”

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.

BOSTON (MA)
Boston Magazine

July 12, 2018

By Lisa Weidenfeld

An outside investigator looked into interactions between former Boston.com staffer Hilary Sargent and the Globe’s top editor Brian McGrory.

The Boston Globe has concluded its investigation into top editor Brian McGrory’s interactions with former Boston.com staffer Hilary Sargent. According to an email to staffers that was leaked to media analyst Dan Kennedy, although an outside investigator found “a series of exchanges and interactions between Mr. McGrory and Ms. Sargent that were of a personal nature, the investigator found that they were initiated by and reciprocated by both parties, and did not violate our anti-harassment policy.”

Sargent had originally implied in a series of tweets back in May that McGrory had behaved inappropriately towards her, sharing a screencap of a text conversation wherein someone (allegedly McGrory) responds to a question asking for writing advice with a question about what the writer is wearing.

The Globe’s response was swift—it took Sargent to court requesting an injunction to compel her to cooperate with their investigation into the timing of the texts. The Globe then dropped its efforts after Sargent “admitted that she does ‘not recall’ when the messages were sent and it is ‘more likely’ that they were sent after she worked at the Globe,” per their statement.

The email sent to staff today reportedly came from Claudia Henderson, the Globe’s chief human resources officer, and Dan Krockmalnic, the Globe’s general counsel, and can be read in full at Kennedy’s site.

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.

ERIE (PA)
Bishopaccountability.org

Summary of Case: Donald J. Cooper was ordained for the Diocese of Erie in 1963. He taught his first year at Bradford Christian High School while residing in a Bradford parish, then assisted in Titusville and Erie parishes until 1975, when he was named pastor of St. Charles’ in New Bethlehem. In 1984 he was assigned as Administrator to Mt. Calvary in Erie, followed in 1987 by a leave of absence. During 1988-1989 Cooper was an assistant priest at a parish in Dubois, after which was the lone priest until 2002 in Force Elk, followed by the same role simultaneously in Houtzdale and Ramey parishes. Cooper was a member of several diocesan committees and the Presbyteral Council, as well as the board of directors for Christ the King Manor in Dubois. There is a gap in his assignment record 2005-2006. His status was ‘retired’ thereafter until his death in December 2011.

Cooper’s name was included on the Erie diocese’s list released April 6, 2018 of priests, lay employees and volunteers accused of sexually abusing minors. The list includes the notation after his name, ‘Forbidden to function as a priest.’

Born: January 27, 1936
Ordained: May 23, 1963
Died: December 16, 2011

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.

UNITED STATES
National Public Radio

July 12, 2018

By Bill Chappell

Sarah Hirshland is the new CEO of the U.S. Olympic Committee, taking control of the organization as it tries to repair the damage from a horrible sexual abuse scandal, in which hundreds of girls and young women were mistreated.

Before being named to the post, Hirshland served as the chief commercial officer for the U.S. Golf Association.

“The USOC is at a critical time in its history and requires an energetic, creative and inspiring leader who is capable of building on past success while making sure that the athletes we serve are protected, supported and empowered in every possible way,” USOC Chairman Larry Probst said in announcing the hire on Thursday.

Hirshland said she welcomed the chance to lead the U.S. efforts for the Olympics and Paralympics, calling it “an absolute dream come true.”

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.

EAST LANSING (MI)
The Associated Press

July 12, 2018

Michigan State University interim President John Engler will testify at a congressional hearing about changes since the Larry Nassar scandal.

Engler will appear before a Senate subcommittee on July 24. His spokeswoman, Emily Guerrant, says the hearing is titled, “Strengthening and Empowering U.S. Amateur Athletes: Moving Forward with Solutions.”

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.

UNITED STATES
The Huffington Post

July 12, 2018

By Jenna Amatulli

The “Man of Steel” star has since apologized for his remarks in a GQ Australia interview that led to backlash on social media.

Henry Cavill’s recent comments on the Me Too movement were met with significant backlash after the actor suggested that by going up to talk to a woman, he would risk being “called a rapist or something.”

He has since apologized for how his comments were received.

The “Man of Steel” star spoke with GQ Australia and, after parsing through his film career and how he deals with the paparazzi, he was asked about what he’s learned from the Me Too movement.

“I’ve been fortunate enough to not be around the kind of people who behave that way,” he said.

“To my memory there’s been no moments where I look back and think, ‘Ooh, OK, maybe someone shouldn’t have gone through that,’” he said. “I know there have been situations with people I’ve worked with being perhaps overfamiliar with some of the actresses. But, I’ve always walked up to them and said, ‘Hey, are you all right? That’s creepy.’”

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COLUMBUS (OH)
NBC News

July 9, 2018

By Corky Siemaszko

“I never had a physical like this before,” one of the former Ohio State wrestlers said in the video.

A video that was created to spur on the internal university investigation into a former Ohio State University wrestling doctor — and last week led to questions about what Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, a former coach, knew about the alleged abuse at the time — is an emotional recounting of what one former athlete has called a “cesspool of sexual deviance.”

The heavily edited 11-minute video, excerpted here, features wrenching descriptions of the alleged misconduct by Dr. Richard Strauss from two former wrestlers whom Jordan coached more than two decades ago, and from former head coach Russ Hellickson and a former Ohio State student who worked with Strauss at a clinic and who says he, too, was molested by the doctor.

Jordan, who was the assistant wrestling coach under Hellickson, is not mentioned by name nor referred to in the footage, which was obtained by NBC News from former Ohio State wrestler Mike DiSabato, the initial whistleblower. DiSabato says he created the video in June to collect accusations of abuse against Strauss and turned it over to Ohio State. The video received by NBC News did not include the unedited interviews.

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UNITED STATES
Yahoo Style UK

July 12, 2018

By Hope Schreiber

In August, Taylor Swift won her lawsuit against disc jockey David Mueller, but nearly a year later, he’s claiming that the singer ruined his life.

Mueller, who was found guilty of assault and battery for grabbing Taylor Swift’s bare butt during a 2013 meet and greet, continues to deny that he ever touched her inappropriately.

Swift, 28, claimed that Mueller, 56, grabbed her while she took a photo with him and his then girlfriend. The “Delicate” singer initially reported the incident to his radio station, Denver’s KYGO-FM, and after an investigation, the DJ was fired.

Mueller attempted to sue Swift for defamation in 2015. Swift countersued and won a symbolic $1 in damages. It was one of the first victories of the #MeToo movement and earned Swift inclusion in “The Silence Breakers” in the Time magazine Person of the Year issue in 2017.

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COLUMBUS (OH)
CBS/AP

July 12, 2018

It was no secret that a team doctor now being investigated for sexually abusing male athletes decades ago at Ohio State University liked to linger in the showers alongside those athletes. But he wasn’t the only one leering at young men inside the campus recreation center where many teams practiced and university employees exercised.

Wrestlers from that era remember men peeking at them over bathroom stalls and through a sauna window, a culture of voyeurism and “cruising” for sex not unheard of in gyms even today. Some say the same men began showering when team practices ended and would touch themselves while watching athletes.

“A gauntlet of sexual deviancy” is what one former wrestler said he and his teammates faced after practice. Another said Larkins Hall, which has since been demolished, was filled with “creepy people.”

Russ Hellickson, the wrestling coach who came to Ohio State in the mid-1980s, says he often caught men having sex in the team’s practice room and a nearby stairwell. His wrestlers complained about the men’s behavior, Hellickson said.

“It became a real problem because it affected the mental state of a lot of our wrestlers,” he said on a video distributed by one of his former team members. “There were times when the athletes themselves would confront people.”

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LOS ANGELES (CA)
Variety

July 12, 2018

By Erin Nyren

A number of sexual assault and harassment survivors, including Rose McGowan, Terry Crews, Patricia Arquette, Olivia Munn, and Mira Sorvino penned an op-ed in the Los Angeles Times defending vocal #MeToo participant and fellow assault survivor Asia Argento after she received backlash over the suicide of her boyfriend, Anthony Bourdain.

Since Bourdain’s death, the op-ed reads, Argento “has now found herself on the receiving end of vicious cyberbullying and repulsive slander at the hands of internet trolls who hold her responsible for Anthony’s death.”

“She has been accused of everything from causing her boyfriend’s suicide to trying to use her ‘survivor status’ and the #MeToo movement to advance her career,” the op-ed, titled “An open letter to anyone who loves Anthony Bourdain and what he stood for,” continues.

The op-ed explains that Bourdain was an active supporter of the #MeToo movement and women in general, and uses that framework to back the authors’ rejection of the “traditional narrative of blaming, vilifying and martyring courageous women” — Argento in particular. The signatories write that coming forward as a victim of sexual assault is “a highly difficult, sometimes traumatizing and humiliating experience,” and not “a badge of honor or career booster.”

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LOS ANGELES (CA)
Hollywood Life

July 13, 2018

By Courteney Larocca

Former ‘The Young and the Restless’ actor Corey Sligh has reportedly been found guilty of child molestation. Here are five things you need to know about him and his legal case.

A Georgia court convicted Corey Sligh of child molestation on June 28. If you’re now wondering, “Who is Corey Sligh?” we’ve got you covered. Here are five things that you should know about the former actor and his reported conviction:

1. He’s been found guilty of child molestation. Cherokee County court records obtained by the Atlanta Journal Constitution show that a jury convicted Sligh of one count of child molestation and cleared him of another on Thursday, June 28. He has not been sentenced.

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ERIE (PA)
Bishopaccountability.org

Summary of Case: Chester Gawronski was a priest of the Diocese of Erie, ordained in 1976. He assisted at parishes in Oil City, Bradford, Meadville, Sagertown and Erie.

In 1984 a youth told his parents that Gawronski had molested him in the late 1970s, when he was an 11-year-old altar boy St. Bernadette’s in Saegertown. He said that the abuse occurred on an overnight trip at a camping lodge in Oil City. The boy’s father contacted diocesan officials and was told in a letter that action that would “be helpful to Father Chet,” would be taken, to not pursue the matter further, and to keep it quiet. Gawronski was reportedly sent to Maryland for treatment, after which he was placed at St. Patrick’s (later St. Patrick’s/St. Hedwig/s) followed by St. Ann’s in Erie. Per the diocese, Gawronski’s ministry was restricted.

In February 2002 Gawronski was working as a chaplain at a facility for the elderly. He was removed the day after the father of the boy allegedly abused in the late 1970s contacted the diocese to inquire as to the priest’s status. Gawronski was removed the following day.

Gawronski was laicized in 1976.

Ordained: 1976
Laicized: 2006

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ALLENTOWN (PA)
The Morning Call

July 11, 2018

By Bill White

Pennsylvania grand jury, East Penn controversies all about secrets

“Three may keep a secret, if two of them are dead.” — Benjamin Franklin, Poor Richard’s Almanack

This is a column about secrets.

Secrets that the Catholic Church has kept from its parishioners and everyone else about the way some of its priests have preyed on children and the way church leaders covered it up.

Secrets their victims have kept, festering in some cases for decades because they were too frightened, embarrassed or confused to speak up.

Secrets parents try to keep from their children about sexual orientation and other uncomfortable subjects.

Secrets some schools try to keep from their parents.

Certainly there are times when secrecy makes sense. Loose lips sink ships and all that.

But far more often, it’s healthy, even liberating, to expose these secrets to the light of day so they can be addressed in the open.

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LONDON (ENGLAND)
The Guardian

By Luke Buckmaster

July 10, 2018

The blunt, unflinching, much-loved show turns inappropriate questions into heartwarming TV. So what’s the trick?

Is You Can’t Ask That the most diverse television program in Australian history? The show – directed and produced by Kirk Docker and Aaron Smith – is built on a simple but empowering premise: to give misunderstood and marginalised people the opportunity to speak for themselves, by responding to a range of blunt questions they read out from printed cards.

The third season, which premieres Wednesday night on ABC TV and will be available to binge watch on ABC iView, kicks off with an episode Smith recently described as “one of the most impactful, relevant and empowering episodes we’ve ever made”.

Focusing on survivors of sexual assault, it begins with an interviewee, Nicole, reading aloud the following question: “How did you get yourself into that situation?”

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ULTIMO (AUSTRALIA)
ABC

July 10, 2018

The ABC and the producers of You Can’t Ask That are saddened by the recent death of Dr Stuart Kidd, who was a key on-screen contributor to the episode featuring survivors of sexual assault, broadcast on 11 July. Stuart’s interview was filmed in November 2017, during which he shared deeply personal insights into the sustained trauma of repeated childhood sexual abuse. Tragically, Stuart took his own life in May 2018, aged 60.

This February, Stuart, a retired assistant orthopaedic surgeon, and his wife Janet viewed the episode before it went to air. Stuart then emailed the producers to thank the ABC for the opportunity to share his story, writing: “WOW! Gobsmacked. Speechless. Brilliant. A.MAZING!… Janet and I are both so very impressed and very grateful. WHAT a special ‘ministry’ you guys have of bringing these stories to everyday Aussies…Thank you.”

Stuart was an advocate for all survivors of abuse and worked with the Survivors & Mates Support Network (SAMSN), a western Sydney-based peer support group for male survivors of childhood sexual abuse.

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TORONTO (ONTARIO, CANADA)
The Globe and Mail

July 12, 2018

By Gloria Galloway

The Vatican’s ambassador to Canada says Pope Francis is opening the door to an apology to the country’s Indigenous people for the abuse of children at Catholic-run Indian residential schools.

A papal apology was one of the calls to action issued by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, which spent years investigating the schools. And Canada’s Parliament has voted to ask Francis to visit this country and make the requested statement of regret.

At a private gathering for foreign dignitaries and Canadian politicians held late last month at his residence in Ottawa, Archbishop Luigi Bonazzi, the Papal Nuncio, said the request has prompted a “lively discussion” in civil society and the Catholic community.

“Through the media, opinions have circulated giving the impression that Pope Francis would not be available to listen to the request made by the Indigenous peoples” for an apology, Archbishop Bonazzi said in a speech to his guests, which was shared this week with The Globe and Mail.

“I can assure you that Pope Francis is not against a gesture of reconciliation,” he said, “and he is willing to seek together ways that can foster the desired process of healing and reconciliation with and among the Indigenous peoples in this country.”

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BUFFALO (NY)
WGRZ

July 12, 2018

The Buffalo Catholic Diocese is dealing with another sexual abuse accusation. This one is against a nun.

The Buffalo Catholic Diocese is dealing with another sexual abuse accusation. This one is against a nun.

Carroll Becker came forward with her attorney Thursday.

She says she was a student at Christ the King Elementary School in Amherst in 1955.

She says a Franciscan nun at the school punished her for wetting her pants when she was five-years-old by penetrating her with a cross.

Becker says she’s been shut down by those in the Diocese that she brought her story to first.

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SANTIAGO (CHILE)
The Santiago Times

July 12, 2018

Police in Chile’s capital city have arrested a former Roman Catholic Church official for sexually abusing children, according to a state prosecutor.

Oscar Muñoz, who served as chancellor of the archdiocese of Santiago, confessed in January to church authorities that he sexually abused at least five children, according to Prosecutor Emiliano Arias, who ordered his arrest in the capital on Thursday.

The arrest was the first since authorities launched a major investigation this year into cases of abuse within Chile’s Catholic Church, which Vatican officials accused in February of “grave negligence” and a cover-up in its handling of sex abuse allegations.

“The crimes he is accused of are of repeated sexual abuse and one case of a consenting relationship with an older minor,” Arias said, speaking outside Santiago’s cathedral. The prosecutor told reporters that Muñoz had been responsible for receiving allegations of abuse within the church.

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SONIPAT (HATYANA, INDIA)
Vision RI / DevDiscourse: Discourse on Development

July 13, 2018

The letters were written to Giambattista Diquttro, Apostolic Nuncio to India and the Catholic Bishops Conference of India Cardinal Oswald Gracias. They also requested Cardinal Gracias to advise bishops in India to publicise and create awareness about CBCI guidelines to deal with sexual harassment in workplace, 2017, and institute the structures and procedures described therein without delay.

A section of nuns, priests and laity of the Roman Catholic Church has written to the Vatican over the alleged rape of a nun in Kerala by a bishop, urging it “to do what is right” to provide justice to the women in the church.

The letters were written to Giambattista Diquttro, Apostolic Nuncio to India and the Catholic Bishops Conference of India Cardinal Oswald Gracias.

The church authorities were requested to “advise” Pope Francis to “relieve” Jalandhar bishop Franco Mulakkal “of his pastoral responsibilities so that the church is seen to actually practice the zero tolerance it professes to observe in abuse cases.”

Stating that they were concerned about the integrity of the Indian church, the letters stated that people’s faith in the credibility of the church to implement its policy of zero tolerance in abuse matters would continue to erode if the accused bishop remain in his position at Jalandhar diocese.

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PILBARA (AUSTRALIA)
The West Australian

By Alicia Perera

July 12, 2018

Victims and witnesses of a paedophile priest who worked in the parish of Wickham in the 1980s are being urged to come forward by an Australian law firm investigating the extent of his alleged abuse.

Late Catholic priest Denis McAlinden, who died in 2005, was found by a 2014 NSW Government inquiry to have been a serial abuser of girls aged 7-12 during five decades of work in various parts of Australia and the Pacific, often on loan from the Diocese of Maitland-Newcastle where superiors knew of his offending.

Canberra-based law firm Ken Cush and Associates are now investigating any offences committed by McAlinden in the Diocese of Geraldton, where he served as the Wickham parish priest from November 1981 to late 1983.

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LANCASTER (PA)
WGAL NBC 8

July 9, 2018

By Susan Shapiro

A Lancaster County man is joining the legal battle to release the grand jury report on sex abuse claims in the Catholic Church.

Todd Frey said he was abused in the 1980s, when he was 13, by a priest in the Harrisburg Diocese. The man Frey said abused him is no longer in the priesthood.

Frey is calling for the state Supreme Court to unseal the grand jury report, and he joins several news outlets and the Pennsylvania attorney general in the request.

A judge stopped the release of the report while he accepts arguments from current and former priests who object to being named in it.

“This report has to be made public, and most importantly, the victims need a voice in it,” said David Inscho, Frey’s attorney. “And where Mr. Frey came in is that he is a victim who wants to stand up and make sure this report becomes public and that these crimes no longer be kept secret.”

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TOLEDO (OH)
WTOL CBS 11

July 12, 2018

By Dick Berry

Sylvania OH – Nobody likes to admit they made a mistake, but that’s what Pope Francis has done.

Last month he accepted the resignations of Chilean bishops he robustly defended earlier this year despite claims of a cover-up of clergy sexual abuse.

It’s a move that later forced the pontiff into making a public apology.

“Francis is in so many ways a sign of hope, recognizes he made a mistake, made up for it, apologized and it looks like he will take some steps to improve the situation” according to Rev. James Bacik.

Bacik spoke Thursday night at Lourdes University about Pope Francis’ handling of the clergy sex scandal.

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BUFFALO (NY)
WKBW

By Charlie Specht

July 12, 2018

Victim was five years old at time of abuse

What happened to Carroll Becker at Christ the King School in Snyder more than 60 years ago scarred her for life.

The Grand Island woman said she was picked on in first grade, but not just by her classmates. She said she was also targeted by Sister Pauline Terese, OSF, a Franciscan nun.

“She’d get up in my face and make me stand up yell at me about being stupid and retarded and slow and I was so terrified, I didn’t know what was going on, I wet my pants,” Becker said Thursday at a news conference in front of her former school.

The first two times it happened, the nun sent Becker home to change her clothes. But the third time, Becker said, the nun took her next door to her room at the convent at Christ the King.

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DUBLIN (IRELAND)
RTÉ

July 13, 2018

Prominent Chilean Catholic priest, Oscar Munoz, who held senior positions in the archdiocese of Santiago, has been detained over allegations that he sexually abused seven children.

The alleged abuse by Fr Munoz, 56, took place from 2002 in the capital Santiago and the southern city of Rancagua, prosecutor Emiliano Arias said.

Fr Munoz was vice-chancellor and then chancellor in the archdiocese of Santiago from 2011, before he was removed two months ago after admitting in January, days before Pope Francis’ visit to Chile, that he had abused a minor.

He was initially investigated by the Chilean church, which then referred the case to the Vatican.

The abuse was uncovered by Chilean prosecutors when the church’s case file was seized during a June operation.

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AUSTRALIA
News.com.au

July 12, 2018

By Nick Bond

A SEX abuse survivor who shared horrific details of his story on last night’s episode of You Can’t Ask That died before the show made it to air. WARNING: Confronting.

WARNING: Confronting

A CHILD sexual abuse survivor who shared his story on last night’s episode of the ABC program You Can’t Ask That took his own life before the episode made it to the air.

Dr Stuart Kidd featured heavily in this week’s sexual assault-themed episode of the popular interview-based show, which sees members of the public submit themselves to answer difficult questions on taboo topics.

A statement released by the ABC yesterday explained that Kidd’s interview was filmed in November 2017 — and tragically, he then took his own life in May of this year, aged 60.

The ABC statement included correspondence from Kidd, showing he was happy with how the episode had turned out.

“This February, Stuart, a retired assistant orthopaedic surgeon, and his wife Janet viewed the episode before it went to air. Stuart then emailed the producers to thank the ABC for the opportunity to share his story, writing: ‘WOW! Gobsmacked. Speechless. Brilliant. A. MAZING! … Janet and I are both so very impressed and very grateful. WHAT a special ‘ministry’ you guys have of bringing these stories to everyday Aussies … Thank you,’” the statement read.

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COLUMBUS (OH)
The Associated Press

July 12, 2018

By Mark Gillispe, John Seewer and Mitch Stacy

It was no secret that a team doctor now being investigated for sexually abusing male athletes decades ago at Ohio State University liked to linger in the showers alongside those athletes. But he wasn’t the only one leering at young men inside the campus recreation center where many teams practiced and university employees exercised.

Wrestlers from that era remember men peeking at them over bathroom stalls and through a sauna window, a culture of voyeurism and “cruising” for sex not unheard of in gyms even today. Some say the same men began showering when team practices ended and would touch themselves while watching athletes.

“A gauntlet of sexual deviancy” is what one former wrestler said he and his teammates faced after practice. Another said Larkins Hall, which has since been demolished, was filled with “creepy people.”

Russ Hellickson, the wrestling coach who came to Ohio State in the mid-1980s, says he often caught men having sex in the team’s practice room and a nearby stairwell. His wrestlers complained about the men’s behavior, Hellickson said.

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COLUMBUS (OH)
The Huffington Post

July 11, 2018

By David Moye

“How can you ever trust such #fakenews?” the Republican congressman tweeted.

Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) is facing claims that he failed to take action against alleged serial sexual abuse involving an Ohio State University athletic doctor and scores of student athletes. This week, as he attempted to defend himself, he took a page from President Donald Trump’s playbook: attacking the media.

On Wednesday, Jordan claimed in a tweet that CNN is contacting more than 100 “of our former staff and interns” looking for “dirt” on him.

“How can you ever trust such #fakenews?” the congressman wrote.

Although Jordan’s slam attracted some support from followers, many Twitter users decided to exercise their First Amendment rights and school the congressman on how journalism actually works.

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HONOLULU (HI)
KITV

July 12, 2018

By Moanike’ala Nabarro

Shame and secrecy: experts say that’s what sex abuse victims who survived molestation as children carry for years. A new law hopes to put an end to that.

“I was having a lot of dreams flashbacks. Yet I was a mom, I am a mom. I had to be healthy to take care of my own daughters,” June Johnson Cleghorn, child sex abuse survivor said.

It took Cleghorn 15 years to speak out about what happened to her during her days at Hawaii Preparatory Academy. Cleghorn says she was just 12 years old when her teacher started abusing her and it continued through her senior year in high school.

“It’s a long road that will be with me forever and that’s the most important thing I had to learn, was how to deal with that and not have it be in control of my life,” Cleghorn said.

A new law now gives survivors like June up until April of 2020 to consider filing a case in court. Hawaii’s courts have led the nation in permitting victims that remained silent for years a chance to come forward.

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HONOLULU (HI)
Hawaii News Now

July 11, 2018

By Lynn Kawano

Adults who were victims of sex abuse as children have another chance to come forward and make claims under a new, two-year window for civil lawsuits.

Similar openings ended with dozens of pedophiles being exposed.

It also revealed “cover-ups” by multiple schools, churches, and non profits.

That’s exactly what a new Hawaii report released Wednesday seeks to spotlight, describing in detail 58 men of the cloth recently accused even though the alleged abuse happened decades ago.

Some have died and some are still in the community.

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HALIFAX (NOVA SCOTIA, CANADA)
The Canadian Press

July 11, 2018

By Brett Bundale

International Buddhist leader Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche is apologizing for the “pain, confusion and anger” sweeping through the Shambhala community amid sexual misconduct allegations against the Nova Scotia-based spiritual leader.

Mipham, who has stepped back from his duties pending the outcome of a third-party investigation, said in a letter Tuesday that he takes responsibility for the pain the Buddhist community is experiencing.

“In a state of complete heartbreak, I write to you, humble, embarrassed, and thoroughly apologetic for disappointing you,” the 55-year-old guru said.

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WASHINGTON (DC)
Think Progress

July 11, 2018

By Joshua Eaton

The group’s senior leadership reportedly knew about the incident and did nothing.

Sakyong Mipham, a prominent Buddhist teacher who has appeared on stage with the Dalai Lama and Queen Noor of Jordan, allegedly locked a woman in a bathroom and forcibly groped her during a drunken party in Santiago, Chile, in 2002, according to a report published Wednesday by the advocacy group Buddhist Project Sunshine.

Mipham heads a global network of more than 200 Buddhist centers called Shambhala International. The report alleges members of its board of directors knew about the incident in Chile as early as 2002.

“I found this woman very credible,” the report’s author, retired employment lawyer Carol Merchasin, wrote. “She reached out immediately after the incident to others, telling them the same story; her contemporaneous account to the Corroborating Witness further strengthens her credibility.”

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WASHINGTON (DC)
Think Progress

July 6, 2018

By Joshua Eaton

Stories of drunken parties and sexual misconduct are emerging from his inner circle.

A senior official in the Buddhist group Shambhala International admitted Monday that its head, prominent Buddhist teacher and author Sakyong Mipham, had coercive sexual relationships with his female students, according to meeting notes obtained by ThinkProgress.

The notes come from a private video call Monday between ground-level Shambhala leaders and its governing body, called the Kalapa Council. They reveal a crisis of leadership, with members calling for Mipham, the council, or both to step down in the wake of a sex scandal that has rocked the organization.

“There is no one holding this body accountable right now,” one person told the council during a question-and-answer session. “That’s not ok [sic]. I want to see some accountability. I want to see members step down.”

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LANSING (MI)
Lansing State Journal

July 12, 2018

By Justin A. Hinkley

Thirty health care professionals were disciplined by Michigan licensing boards for sexual assault or misconduct in the last year, a State Journal investigation found.

The Michigan Department of Licensing & Regulatory Affairs received 238 allegations of sexual misconduct by health professionals between 2011 and 2016, state reports show.

One of the offenders was Larry Nassar, the now infamous former Michigan State University doctor imprisoned after pleading guilty to sexually assaulting patients.

Other offenders include an athletic trainer who assaulted high school students and videotaped them in the nude, a massage therapist who inappropriately touched multiple clients over several years and an occupational therapist who tried to put his hand down the pants of a patient with a traumatic brain injury, according to the State Journal’s review of disciplinary reports from May 2017 through May 2018.

The list of perpetrators includes men and women who committed crimes against patients and family members ranging from inappropriate relationships to rape.

The list shows Nassar was far from the fluke some defenders of MSU and USAG have said he was.

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LOS ANGELES (CA)
The Associated Press

July 10, 2018

An employee of the Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services has been charged with possessing and distributing child pornography online.

County prosecutors charged 54-year-old Carlos Enrique Castillo with five counts of sending or receiving obscene matter for sale and a felony count of possessing more than 600 images of child or youth pornography.

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AUSTRALIA
Australian Broadcasting Corporation

July 10, 2018

By Danny Tran and Richard Willingham

Admissions of child abuse will continue to be protected by the seal of the confessional in the state of Victoria, after the Andrews Government stopped short of adopting one of the key recommendations made by the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse.

The State Government has indicated it needs more time to consider the proposal from the royal commission, which has called for the sanctity of the confessional to be tossed aside and replaced with powerful new mandatory reporting laws.

The laws would force members of the religious clergy to report any suspicions or explicit confessions of child abuse to police, but their implementation has been met with powerful resistance from the Catholic Church.

The Government has previously agreed to work towards a national approach to the confessional.

The Attorney-General, Martin Pakula, said privilege on religious confessions was set out in Victorian law.

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BOSTON (MA)
Mass Live

July 11, 2018

By Shira Schoenberg

Attorneys for former Senate President Stan Rosenberg and his husband, Bryon Hefner, argued in court Wednesday that allowing one of Hefner’s alleged victims to shield his identity does not allow for a level playing field.

John Doe is a legislative aide who accused Hefner of sexually assaulting him three separate times in 2015 and 2016. Doe says Rosenberg knew about Hefner’s behavior and still gave Hefner access to his political contacts. Doe sued Rosenberg and Hefner for civil damages. Hefner is also facing criminal charges.

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FRANCE
La Croix (with AFP)

July 11, 2018

A summons addressed to the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith prefect failed to be delivered in time

Already postponed twice, the trial of Cardinal Philippe Barbarin of Lyon (France) risks being delayed yet again. The cardinal has been accused by former scouts of having failed to report pedophile assaults in his archdiocese,.

The trial was initially scheduled in the Lyon criminal court for April 4-6, but legal complications have caused it to be postponed.

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WASHINGTON (DC)
The Catholic World Report

July 5, 2018

By Christopher R. Altieri

The shock and sadness expressed over the allegations Cardinal McCarrick violated the Charter are no more than a red herring.

Over the past sixteen years, there has been much praise of the reform efforts the Church’s hierarchical leaders in the United States have undertaken in the wake of the clerical sexual abuse scandal that erupted in 2002. Much of that praise has come from the bishops, themselves. From the very start, however, there has been ample reason to take a grim view of the thing, and I confess I have never been too terribly sanguine regarding the prospects for successful reform.

When I have heard it said that the US bishops have made the part of the Catholic Church in their charge the safest place in the world for children, I have inwardly – sometimes privately, but never before now publicly – quipped, “Someone needs to tell them that’s not a selling point.” At best, it’s only a little better than saying: The Catholic Church – Now abusing fewer children.

We have heard little about those successes over the past few weeks, especially since several major sees have been caught up in another abuse scandal – this one dating back more than four decades and involving a man, who in the years intervening became a prominent figure in the US Church: the Archbishop-emeritus of Washington, DC, Cardinal Theodore Edgar McCarrick.

Cardinal McCarrick is accused of abusing a minor this time – hence Church authorities have taken action – though his reputation for license with priests and seminarians, many of whom were his subordinates, has been the stuff of black legend for decades.

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HARRISBURG (PA)
The Inquirer

July 11, 2018

By Liz Navratil and Angela Couloumbis

The law firms and individual lawyers waging a fierce fight over a secret grand jury report detailing sexual abuse by Catholic clergy across the state have together donated more than $180,000 to the campaigns of the Supreme Court justices now weighing whether to release the report, records show.

Justice Debra Todd was the first to publicly disclose her contributions in court. In a filing late Tuesday, she acknowledged more than $23,000 was given to her campaign last year by attorneys, firms, or lawyers tied to them. Todd said she would consider recusing herself from the high-profile case if asked to do so.

Most of her colleagues on the high court have not done the same, despite also having accepted donations from lawyers now arguing before them, according to an analysis of campaign finance records from the Inquirer and Daily News and the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. (Justice Sallie Updyke Mundy filed a similar disclosure Wednesday, after the newspapers asked about her donations and those to the other justices.)

Legal experts say the justices’ actions are not a surprise. They are not required to disclose the donations in court filings, as each is already recorded in campaign records. And if history is a guide, the money they took in is unlikely to prompt any to step aside.

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KERALA (INDIA)
NDTV

July 11, 2018

By Sneha Mary Koshy and Anindita Sanyal

At least 13 priests have been arrested in Kerala over the last 18 months following allegations of sexual abuse.

Thiruvananthapuram – A third woman has accused a priest in Kerala of sexual abuse, adding to the growing scandal that has rocked the state’s significant chunk of Christian population. Over the last 18 months, at least 12 priests have been arrested from different churches in Kerala for allegedly sexually abusing and raping minors and women. Last week, a nun and another woman made allegations of sexual abuse which, they said, went on for years. They also alleged that the Church, instead of impartially investigating the incidents, have been trying to cover up the matter.

The 48-year-old nun, a Roman Catholic, alleged that her complaint against Fr Franco Mullickal, the Bishop of Jalandhar, made in January last year drew a blank.

The church officials, she said, had promised action by June 30 this year. Instead, Fr Mullickal filed a complaint against her and five others, accusing them of threatening him. It was after that, on June 27, the nun filed a complaint with the police, alleging that the priest had sexually abused 13 times between 2014 and 2016.

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LONDON (ENGLAND)
The Guardian

July 11, 2018

By Melissa Davey

The Victorian government has been criticised for delaying its decision on whether to abolish the seal of confessional for disclosures of child sexual abuse, in its response to the recommendations of the royal commission.

On Wednesday the state government issued its response to the royal commission’s 409 recommendations, 317 of which apply to Victoria. The state’s attorney general, Martin Pakula, said the government had accepted 128 recommendations, accepted 165 recommendations in principle, and would need to further consider another 24.

Abolishing the seal of confessional for any disclosures of child sexual abuse was one of those recommendations still under consideration, Pakula told ABC radio.

Melbourne archbishop says he’d rather go to jail than report child abuse heard in confession

“It needs a degree of national agreement,” he said.

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HONOLULU (HI)
Jeff Anderson & Associates

July 11, 2018

By Jeff Anderson et al.

[Includes a list of accused, several documents, and assignment histories. See also a chart of diocesan officials and a map of origination.]

In 2012, the Hawaii legislature opened a two-year, retroactive window for survivors of child sexual abuse to file civil claims against their perpetrator and the institution that covered up the sexual abuse. In 2014, the legislature extended this window through April 24, 2016. As a result, dozens of survivors came forward to file claims. On July 10, 2018, the Hawaii legislature opened another retroactive window for survivors of sexual abuse in Hawaii. Survivors have until April 24, 2020 to come forward and file a claim.

This report contains the names of clergy associated with the Diocese of Honolulu who have been accused of sexually abusing children. While lawsuits were filed involving many of these alleged perpetrators, the vast majority of the claims against these individuals have been settled or have not been fully evaluated in a civil court. Accordingly, the allegations should be considered just allegations and should not be considered proved or substantiated in a court of law. All individuals should be considered innocent until proven guilty. In some situations, the statute of limitations has expired preventing the cases from being heard in a court of law.

It is believed that the Diocese of Honolulu does not make available to the public the full history, knowledge and context of the sexually abusive clerics. This report is an attempt to compile information already available to the public from various sources in the public media; bishopaccountability.org; and other sources that have attempted to chronicle this information for public use. This report is intended to raise awareness about the important issue of clerical sexual abuse, provide the public with vital information including assignment histories, and provide awareness to survivors. Assignment histories are approximations and were compiled from the Official Catholic Directory, bishopaccountability.org and media reports.

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NEW YORK (NY)
New York Times

July 11, 2018

By Andy Newman

In a shrine on the sixth floor of a Manhattan office building, a photo of a man in golden robes hangs above an altar. Another photo of him sits upon a throne.

He is the head of one of the largest Buddhist organizations in the West, Shambhala International, a network of more than 200 outposts in over 30 countries where thousands come for training in meditation and mindfulness and some delve into deeper mysteries.

The man is Mipham Rinpoche. He is known as the Sakyong, a Tibetan word that translates roughly as king, and his students take vows to follow him that are binding across lifetimes. These days, they are feeling sad, confused, angry and betrayed.

Late last month, a former Shambhala teacher released a report alleging that the Sakyong had sexually abused and exploited some of his most devoted female followers for years. Women quoted in the report wrote of drunken groping and forcefully extracted sexual favors. The report said that senior leaders at Shambhala — an organization whose motto is “Making Enlightened Society Possible” — knew of the Sakyong’s misconduct and covered it up.

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BOSTON (MA)
Boston Globe

July 12, 2018

By Matt Stout

A Superior Court judge will decide whether to publicly identify the man who sued Bryon Hefner and his husband, former Senate President Stanley C. Rosenberg, after their attorneys argued Wednesday that publicly unmasking Hefner’s accuser would create a “fair playing field.”

Hefner and Rosenberg’s moves drew a stiff rebuke from the man’s attorneys, who told Judge Robert N. Tochka that they’ve never before had a defendant challenge their request to seal an alleged sexual assault victim’s name from public view.

Hefner already faces multiple criminal counts of sexual assault. The man — identified as John Doe in court papers — is one of the “complainants” whose allegations helped prosecutors build their criminal case, according to his attorney, William H. Gordon.

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BOSTON (MA)
Boston Herald

July 12, 2018

By Brian Dowling

Ex-Senate President Stanley C. Rosenberg and his estranged husband, Bryon Hefner, want to “level the playing field” by publicly naming the John Doe suing them over sex abuse claims — a rare demand the alleged victim’s attorneys say could lead to disastrous ends.

“If his identity is out there, he may suffer irreparable harm,” said Mitchell Garabedian, the lawyer for Doe who accused Hefner of sexually assaulting the man twice in Rosenberg’s presence, and once at the couple’s North End condo.

Garabedian — who has represented more than 1,000 sex abuse victims — told Suffolk Superior Court Judge Robert N. Tochka that, for some victims, going to the courts for justice opened long-healed wounds and proved too much.

“Some — during proceedings, during the action, during the settlement program — commit suicide,” Garabedian said. “It’s a real concern.”

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LONDON (ENGLAND)
Daily Mail

July 11, 2018

By Charlie Moore

– The Victorian Government is considering fining priests who don’t report abuse
– Lisa Wilkinson, aged 58, argued the changes would provide justice for victims
– Waleed Aly, 39, suggested law would be unenforceable and therefore pointless
– Priests say the law is overreaching of the state and violates religious freedom

Sydney – Lisa Wilkinson last night claimed that altar boys were ‘prey’ for paedophile Catholic priests.

Supporting a proposal to fine priests who fail to report abuse, she said: ‘If altar boys in particular are seen as prey for priests then we have to step in, and in a major way.’

‘The church has been a rule unto itself, and we’ve had generation after generation of damaged humans,’ she continued.

Mrs Wilkinson made the comments in a heated discussion with co-presenter Waleed Aly on Channel Ten’s The Project.

The Victorian Government is considering fining priests $10,000 if they fail to break the seal of confession to report penitents’ admissions of child abuse.

Mrs Wilkinson, 58, argued the changes were necessary to provide justice for victims.

Mr Aly, 39, suggested the law would be unenforceable and therefore pointless.

South Australia, Tasmania, the ACT and Western Australia have announced plans to introduce the law but the Victorian Government said on Wednesday it needed ‘further consideration’.

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SHARON (PA)
The Sharon Herald and CNHI

By John Finnerty

Harrisburg – The state Supreme Court continues to weigh whether or how to release a grand jury report detailing allegations of widespread sex abuse by priests in six of Pennsylvania’s Catholic dioceses.

As arguments come in from both sides, the head of a watchdog group that tracks efforts to hold the Catholic Church accountable for covering up sex abuse by priests said he’s unaware of any previous case where an appeals court intervened to consider whether individuals should be named in such court documents.

“This precise situation hasn’t happened before,” said Terence McKiernan, president of Bishop Accountability, a Massachusetts-based group. “There’s a strong case that can be made that we can expect bad stuff,” McKiernan said. “It doesn’t surprise me that people don’t want it released.”

An undisclosed number of people, including current and former members of the clergy, have asked the court to either redact or bar the release of the grand jury report, which deals with allegations in the dioceses in Allentown, Erie, Greensburg, Harrisburg, Pittsburgh and Scranton. This report follows a 2016 grand jury report detailing decades of sex abuse cover-ups in the Altoona-Johnstown Catholic Diocese.

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HONOLULU (HAWAII)
KHON 2

By Brigette Namata

July 11, 2018

[See also the report.]

Allegations of Hawaii priests sexually assaulting children date as far back as the 1950s.

A detailed report compiled by law firm Jeff Anderson and Associates PA and the Law Office of Mark Gallagher reveal 58 men associated with the Diocese of Honolulu who have been accused of sexually abusing children.

The report also shows a letter written by a priest with Maryknoll Fathers, dated November 6, 1959, to another priest on the mainland. In the letter, the priest admits Hawaii was considered a “dumping ground” for troubled clerics from the mainland and the Philippines and Guam. He warned against transferring two troubled priests to the islands, adding “these two men might be most dangerous out here.”

The letter went on to continue: “If you decide to send them out, I would ask that it is made plain that we will not stand for any nonsense out here.”

Lawmakers have now extended the window for survivors of sexual abuse. Victims have until April 24,2020 to come forward and file a civil claim.

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BRONX (NY)
Fordham Observer

July 11, 2018

By Jordan Meltzer

Fordham University’s Board of Trustees has voted to rescind alumnus Cardinal Theodore McCarrick’s honorary degree and “other honors” given to him by the university, according to a statement from University President Rev. Joseph M. McShane, S.J. The former archbishop had recently been removed from the public ministry following allegations that he sexually abused a teenager during his time as a priest, the Archdiocese of Washington said in a statement last June.

McCarrick, a graduate of Fordham College at Rose Hill’s class of 1954, served as the Archbishop of Washington from 2000 to 2006.

This is the third time Fordham has revoked an honor it had already bestowed on someone. Last December, Fordham rescinded Charlie Rose’s eponymous award for excellence in broadcast journalism following accusations from eight women that he sexually assaulted them. Similarly, in 2015, Fordham revoked Bill Cosby’s honorary degree from the university. In adding Cardinal McCarrick’s case to this blacklist, all three decisions cite sexual assault or abuse as the reason for action.

The sexual misconduct incidents, which the Associated Press describes as the fondling of an altar boy, allegedly occurred at two Christmas masses in 1971 and in 1972. The Archdiocese of New York, led by Cardinal Timothy Dolan and a review board, found that the allegations were “credible and substantiated.” On this basis, Vatican Secretary of State Pietro Parolin has ordered McCarrick not to conduct any further ministry or other public activity. However, Pope Francis and the Holy See have yet to make a “definite decision” about a permanent action, according to the Archdiocese of Washington. McCarrick has accepted the decision, but he maintains his innocence.

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KANSAS CITY (MO)
National Catholic Reporter

July 11, 2018

By Brian Roewe

Juan Carlos Cruz recounts pope’s apology in address at SNAP event

Chicago – On a snowy Saturday in April, Juan Carlos Cruz was at his Philadelphia-area home enjoying a quiet morning in bed, watching Netflix and eating Honey Nut Cheerios, when his cellphone rang with a call from the Vatican.

The person on the other end of the line said he was contacting Cruz on behalf of Pope Francis, who wished to apologize in person to him and other abuse survivors. Three months earlier during his visit to Chile, Francis had accused them of “calumny” regarding accusations the survivors had raised against Osorno, Chile, Bishop Juan Barros Madrid of covering up and even witnessing sexual abuse of minors by Fr. Fernando Karadima.

The Barros controversy had dominated Francis’ January trip to Chile and followed the pope back to Rome. In the months since, intense worldwide criticism spurred a Vatican investigation into the Chilean abuse crisis, which in turn resulted in the resignations of nearly all of Chile’s 34 bishops. So far, the pope has accepted five of them, including Barros’.

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AUCKLAND (NEW ZEALAND)
NZ Catholic, Newspaper of the Diocese of Auckland

July 12, 2018

By Rowena Orejana

Given the sexual abuse crisis in which the Church is embroiled, theologians need to rethink a faith-based response to sexual violence.

Systematic theology lecturer at Good Shepherd College Dr Rocio Figueroa said theologians “are conscious that theology cannot be the same following the severe crisis of sexual abuse that has happened in our Church”.

“We must rethink a lot of topics. We must rethink our Christology. We must rethink how we see power and many other issues, pastoral topics,” she said.

Dr Figueroa and Otago University Professor David Tombs (Centre for Theology and Public Issues) organised an April 28 symposium called “The Abused Christ: Theologians Respond to Sexual Abuse”. This was part of a wider project they are collaborating on called “When did I see you naked?”

Sixteen theologians from Otago University, Auckland University, St John’s Theological College, Trinity Methodist College and Good Shepherd College participated in the symposium held at Holy Cross Seminary in Ponsonby, Auckland.

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CASPER (WY)
Casper Star-Tribune via Wyoming News Exchange

July 11, 2018

By Seth Klamann

In a statement read at all Catholic Masses on Sunday in Wyoming, the state’s highest clergyman apologized to victims of priest abuse and provided details to his statewide flock about the allegations facing one of his predecessors.

“The abuse crisis in the Church has been devastating,” Bishop Steven Biegler wrote in his letter, which was also placed in all bulletins Sunday. “As a Diocese, we have made a commitment to protect and heal: to protect the vulnerable from sexual abuse and to heal victims and their families.”

The statement came less than a week after the Diocese of Cheyenne announced that an independent investigation had concluded that former Bishop Joseph Hart had sexually abused two Wyoming boys. He first faced allegations here in 2002, the year after he retired. In an investigation that same year, the Natrona County District Attorney’s Office said that allegation had no merit.

The diocese became aware of Hart’s second alleged victim sometime after December 2017, when it hired a private investigator to look into the allegations. That investigator “acquired new substantial evidence,” according to the diocese’s statement. Last week, a church official declined to elaborate on what evidence that investigator had gathered.

Hart had previously faced allegations in Kansas City, Missouri, where he was a priest for 20 years before moving to Casper in 1976. He served for two years here before moving to Cheyenne — where he currently resides in retirement — and becoming bishop. Hart has denied all allegations, both in Missouri and Wyoming. He did so again last week.

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HARRISBURG (PA)
WGAL News 8

July 10, 2018

By Susan Shapiro

A district attorney said Pennsylvania’s grand jury process is under assault as the state Supreme Court holds up the release of a report on claims of sex abuse in the Catholic Church.

Northampton County District Attorney John Morganelli has joined the legal fight calling for the immediate release of the findings of a grand jury investigation at six dioceses, including Harrisburg.

Morganelli said the court’s decision to first allow current and former priests who object to being named in the report to submit written arguments could undermine the entire grand jury process.

“I am concerned about the larger issues,” said Morganelli. “Not necessarily the specifics of this report because I’m not privy to the facts of whether it was a preponderance of evidence. What I am concerned about is the overall attack on the whole grand jury statute.”

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KOTTAYAM (KERALA, INDIA)
NDTV

July 11, 2018

By Sneha Mary Koshy

Her horrifying story was exposed last month when an audio clip of her husband complaining to a church official was circulated online

Three of the four Kerala priests accused of raping a woman for years failed to get protection from arrest today with the high court observing that the priests appeared to have “acted as predators”. The judge said there was no reason for the court to ignore the version of the 34-year-old woman who had given a graphic description of how he was threatened and forced to succumb to the priests.
The four priests, based at the Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church in Kottayam, are on the run.

The three priests had filed the petition to seek the shield against arrest as soon as the police registered a case against them.

“Since then, our focus has been on collecting preliminary evidence to challenge their bail petition in court,” a senior police officer told NDTV.

Her horrifying story was exposed last month when an audio clip of her husband complaining to a church official was circulated online.

The woman, who also impleaded in the case, said her religious beliefs were misused by the church. The woman’s husband said that she was caught in a vicious cycle of sexual exploitation and blackmail.

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KERAL (INDIA)
India Times

July 10, 2018

By Bobins Abraham

Two sex scandals in a matter of just a few days, first in the Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church and the second one in the Syro-Malabar Church, two powerful Catholic sects in Kerala have opened a can of worms with, many from the community demanding answers from their leaders.

In the first case, five priests of the Orthodox Church were accused of blackmailing sexually abusing a married woman for years. Based on her complaint all the five priests were suspended and the police have booked four of them under various sections. But no arrests have been made in the case so far.

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NORFOLK (VA)
The Virginian- Pilot

July 11, 2018

By Peter Coutu

A highly decorated retired Marine entered an Alford plea on Tuesday morning to three assault misdemeanors in exchange for prosecutors dropping or reducing several felony charges of child sex abuse.

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SWITZERLAND
Newsweek

July 11, 2018

By Jason Lemon

A former Swiss priest will go to rehab after losing more than $1 million to gambling debts, including money loaned to him by some 50 parishioners.

The man, whose name wasn’t disclosed, was forced to resign from his religious duties under Switzerland’s Diocese of Chur, accused of abusing his position as a priest to secure loans from unsuspecting churchgoers to fund his addiction. According to German broadcaster Deutsche Welle, the disgraced vicar’s debts amounted to 1.4 million Swiss francs ($1.1 million).

Although church authorities were long aware of the former priest’s gambling problem, they did not warn parishioners about the issue. Instead, the diocese offered him help to address the addiction before it got out of hand. Swiss media have reported that several church members are considering pressing charges as a result, but until now, no cases have been filed.

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SAN FRANCISCO (CA)
The Register

July 11, 2018

By Iain Thomson

US, Russian, Ukrainians make big bank with pre-public info

Two former investment bankers, one of whom is also a priest, have been found guilty of an elaborate scam – hacking newswires to read press releases prior to publication, and trade millions using this insider information.

Vitaly Korchevsky, formerly a veep at Morgan Stanley and a pastor at the Slavic Evangelical Baptist Church in Philadelphia, USA, and ex-broker Vladislav Khalupsky were this month found guilty of securities fraud by a jury in New York, and are facing 20 years in the slammer.

According to court documents, the two colluded with a Ukrainian hacking gang and investors in the US, Russia, France, and Cyprus to realized more than $100m in illicit profits. America’s financial watchdog, the Securities and Exchange Commission, said it has since recovered $53m of the haul.

The scam, carried out between 2010 and 2015 involved Ukrainian hackers getting into the servers of two unnamed newswire services, one in New York and the other in Canada. The miscreants searched for embargoed press releases on companies’ quarterly financial figures, which are typically privately submitted to a newswire a couple of days before they are published, and accessed more than 100,000 of them before being caught.

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WILMINGTON (DE)
STL News

July 11, 2018

By Rizwan Afzal

A Delaware judge on Wednesday approved a revised plan for the sale of the Weinstein Co., the studio forced into bankruptcy by the sexual misconduct scandal that brought down Hollywood mogul Harvey Weinstein.

The revised plan calls for Dallas-based private equity firm Lantern Capital to pay $289 million for the Weinstein Co.’s assets, down from an initial sale price of $310 million.

Attorneys negotiated the $21 million price reduction after disputes threatened to torpedo the deal. Among those concerns was who would be responsible for paying potentially tens of millions of dollars owed on certain contracts that may be assigned to Lantern.

As part of the settlement, Lantern agreed to pay at least $8.75 million to satisfy certain contractual claims and pay for the Weinstein Co.’s operating expenses since June 29 in exchange for a lower purchase price.

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KANSAS CITY (MO)
National Catholic Reporter

July 11, 2018

By Brian Roewe

Real estate sales largely will cover archdiocese’s $23.5 million portion of $210 million settlement

The St. Paul-Minneapolis Archdiocese will pay roughly $23.5 million as part of its $210 million bankruptcy settlement, court documents filed in late June show.

On June 28, the archdiocese and the unsecured creditors’ committee, which represents 450 survivors of clergy sexual abuse, filed in U.S. Bankruptcy Court their joint plan for reorganization along with a disclosure statement of the archdiocese’s finances, including a breakdown of the settlement’s funding sources.

The filing represented the next step toward bankruptcy resolution for the archdiocese after it was announced May 31 it had reached a settlement with its creditors totaling $210,290,724 — the largest payout via bankruptcy proceedings in the Catholic Church’s clergy sex abuse scandal.

According to the disclosure statement, the archdiocese’s portion of the settlement is $23,475,000. More than two-thirds of the funds come from the sale of real estate, including its chancery and Hayden Center administrative building, and of other assets, as well as $6 million from the general insurance fund.

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HARRISBURG (PA)
The Associated Press

July 2, 2018

By Mark Scolforo

Two sisters asked a judge Monday to invalidate broad confidentiality agreements other family members made with a Pennsylvania Roman Catholic diocese so they can speak publicly about sexual abuse at the hands of a parish priest more than two decades ago.

The lawsuit in county court in Harrisburg by two adult women said their silence was required in settlements made with the Harrisburg Diocese over sexual abuse of two other sisters in the same family by the Rev. Augustine Michael Giella.

New Jersey court records indicate Giella confessed to fondling one of the girls and taking photos of her unclothed. Giella was facing sexual assault, child endangerment and child pornography charges in Ocean County, New Jersey, when he died in 1993 at about age 72.

A spokesman for the Harrisburg Diocese, Mike Barley, said it no longer enforces nondisclosure agreements in priest abuse settlements.

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Road to Recovery, Inc. – P.O. Box 279, Livingston, New Jersey 07039 – 862-368-2800

A courageous victim/survivor of childhood sexual abuse by a religious sister (nun) will speak publicly for the first time about the sexual abuse she experienced and the re-victimization she was subject to during a recent meeting with the abusive sister’s religious order

A Buffalo-area woman will speak publicly for the first time about the sexual abuse she experienced as an elementary school student at an Amherst, NY, Catholic parish school and convent by a religious sister (nun)

“Jane Doe” will reveal her identity and the two-part story of childhood sexual abuse in a Catholic elementary school and convent AND her re-victimization by the religious order which supervised the abusive religious sister (nun)

What

A press conference by a female childhood sexual abuse victim/survivor of a religious sister (nun) when she was a student at Christ the King Elementary School in Amherst (Snyder), NY. Recently, the victim/survivor met with a representative of the religious order of sisters in a Buffalo-area parish meeting room and was re-victimized by the encounter. The childhood sexual abuse and the subsequent encounter with the religious order will be described in detail.

When

Thursday, July 12, 2018 at 11:30 am

Where

On the public sidewalk outside Christ the King Parish, 30 Lamarck Drive at Main Street, Amherst, NY 14226

Who

“Jane Doe,” a courageous victim/survivor of childhood sexual abuse who will reveal her identity; and, Robert M. Hoatson, Ph.D., co-founder and President of Road to Recovery, Inc., a non-profit charity based in New Jersey and advocate for “Jane Doe”

Why

“Jane Doe” was a minor child when she attended Christ the King Elementary School in Amherst, NY. One of her teachers, a religious sister (nun), sexually abused her on the school and parish campus. She was seriously harmed by the sexual abuse. Recently, “Jane Doe” met with a representative of the religious order that supervised the alleged abusive nun and “Jane Doe” was re-victimized by the encounter. She and her supporters will demand that the religious order of sisters treat “Jane Doe” with compassion and justice and that the Diocese of Buffalo intervene in the matter by conducting a thorough investigation of the religious order of sisters and sexual abuse at Christ the King School.

(OUT OF RESPECT FOR THE VICTIM/SURVIVOR, THERE WILL BE NO PRE-INTERVIEWS)

Contact

Robert M. Hoatson, Ph.D., Road to Recovery, Inc., 862-368-2800 – roberthoatson@gmail.com

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LONDON (ENGLAND)
The Guardian

July 11, 2018

By Melissa Davey

Critics say Victorian government is ‘still putting the church ahead of children’

The Victorian government has been criticised for delaying its decision on whether to abolish the seal of confessional for disclosures of child sexual abuse, in its response to the recommendations of the royal commission.

On Wednesday the state government issued its response to the royal commission’s 409 recommendations, 317 of which apply to Victoria. The state’s attorney general, Martin Pakula, said the government had accepted 128 recommendations, accepted 165 recommendations in principle, and would need to further consider another 24.

Abolishing the seal of confessional for any disclosures of child sexual abuse was one of those recommendations still under consideration, Pakula told ABC radio.

“It needs a degree of national agreement,” he said.

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DEDEDO (GUAM)
KUAM News

July 11, 2018

Another clergy sexual lawsuit is filed this week. 65-year-old J.V.C. alleges he was molested by Father Antonio Cruz as a teen boy.

Cruz, who passed away over thirty years ago, was a priest at Our Lady of Peace and Safe Journey Catholic Church in Chalan Pago at the time.

Only identified by his initials to protect his privacy, J.V.C. alleges Cruz asked him to bring him a coconut. When he returned, the priest was allegedly naked and masturbating and performed sexual acts on the teen boy.

J.V.C. is represented by attorney David Lujan.

He is suing for $5 million.

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PHILADELPHIA (PA)
The Inquirer

July 10, 2018

By Nathaniel Lash and Craig R. McCoy

New filings in a suit to stop the release of a Pennsylvania attorney general’s report on clergy sex abuse offer a window into who is seeking to keep the report secret and why.

The documents were made public Friday by the state Supreme Court, which blocked the release of the grand jury report until the appeals could be heard.

The filings list 14 individuals, identified only by initials, and the reasons they are opposing the release of the report. In some cases, they provide details of the abuse allegations made against the unnamed individuals in the report.

For instance, a church official identified as D.D. objected to the charge that he should have informed a school district that a priest was previously the subject of an “abuse or sexual misconduct investigation” involving children. The filing in D.D.’s case said the grand jury’s criticism was based on misreading of the relevant law.

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WAYNESVILLE (NC)
The Mountaineer

July 11, 2018

By Kyle Perrotti

A former priest currently being held at the Haywood County Detention Center has been charged with eight more felonies relating to the alleged sexual abuse of children.

Howard White, 76, was charged with the felonies Monday afternoon following an indictment by a Haywood County Grand Jury. According to court documents, the charges relate to two alleged victims, one who claims he was abused in 1984 and the other who claims he was abused in 2004.

Prior to his most recent indictment involving two more Haywood victims, White was facing charges of first-degree forcible sex offense, two counts of indecent liberties with a child, first-degree forcible rape, four counts second-degree forcible sex offense, and second-degree forcible rape.

With the latest round of indictments, he is facing five more counts of indecent liberties with a child, one more count of second-degree sex offense, and two more counts of second-degree forcible sex offense.

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NEW ORLEANS (LA)
Fox 8 WVUE

July 10 2018

By Rob Masson

A local attorney said the Archdiocese of New Orleans avoided a lot of bad publicity by reportedly settling a case involving a Loyola priest accused of raping a 5-year-old girl over several years.

The dismissal comes shortly after the Archdiocese paid out a $500,000 sex abuse settlement involving a former deacon and an altar boy.

Two years ago a woman identified as Jane Doe sued the Archdiocese of New Orleans, Loyola University and the Jesuit governing organization, claiming priest Ben Wren sexually abused for her seven years.

Court documents obtained by FOX 8 allege that Jane Doe’s grandmother, a Loyola staff member, trusted Wren, since he was a Jesuit priest and a university professor.

The lawsuit, dismissed last week, said that “Jane Doe would frequently be called on by Father Wren to assist him on errands,” and that “the sexual abuse began slowly with light touching and caressing.” The suit alleged “the sexual abuse continued for the next several years…and included forcible sexual intercourse when Jane Doe reached the age of 9 or 10 years old.”

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LOS ANGELES (CA)
Gustavo Arellano’s Weekly

July 8, 2018

By Gustavo Arelllano

Greetings from Chicago, where the temperature is not triple digits like my Southern California homeland – in fact, it’s a little bit chilly. I’ve been in hotel conference rooms most of yesterday and today, talking about the most important work of my career, work most of you don’t even know about: the Catholic Church sex-abuse scandal in Orange County.

I never presume to know why people read my articles, but I’m confident in saying most people – if they even know who I am – know me best for my work about tacos, my former Mexican column, or my time as editor of OC Weekly.

But the real Gs know that 15 years ago, I was essentially a one-man Spotlight as I covered all the pedophile priests that the Diocese of Orange County tried to cover up for decades.

That part of my career is largely forgotten now. But one group remembers: sex-abuse survivors.

That’s why it’s an honor for me to be in Chicago, to be a speaker on the opening night of the annual conference for SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests. This is their 30th anniversary of them being #metoo before #metoo, and doing it in an era when few dared to tell their stories because the rest of the world dismissed them as lunatics, whores, or just spat upon them.

But SNAP did.

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PAGOSA SPRINGS (CO)
Youtube/Tara Mandala

July 4, 2018 (first recorded on July 1, 2018)

Jetsunma Tenzin Palmo & Lama Tsultrim Allione discuss the allegations of sexual abuse by Shambhala head Sakyong Mipham. Recorded at Tara Mandala, July 1, 2018.

Length: 12:34

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UNITED STATES
Kelly.con

July 9, 2018

By Kelly Conheeney

How did you get to be a professional athlete? It’s a question I am asked often. By parents, coaches, fans, etc. It’s a common question for any professional athlete… “Tell me how you got here….”

My mind shoots to my 10-year-old self kicking a ball against a wall over and over and over again. I was the little girl who slept with a soccer ball next to her pillow at night, under her Mia Hamm poster and US Women’s National Team Calendar hanging on the wall, praying to whatever god was out there, to give me the ability to one day play like these women. It probably went something like, “Hey God, it’s me Kelly. PLEASE let me be Mia Hamm one day.” Just praying to someone I was told would make all my dreams come true. Soccer was life. It’s still life. and sometimes I wonder how I got through it all to get to where I am today. Everyone has a “how they got there” story.

It was my first love and my life’s work from an early age. It’s a beautiful yet unforgiving love; I learned the hard way that playing the game won’t last forever. I endured a head injury in college that put a hold on my career for 3 and a half years and during that time I kept asking myself, “who am I without a ball at my feet?” For a while I didn’t know who that person was. Those days were some of the hardest of my life. I felt like a prisoner in my own body, unable to do the things I once did so freely. Contained to a dark room and isolated from the world around me. It felt like a part of me died in some ways. I had a hard time coping with the loss of something that meant everything to me and at the time defined who I was. Losing the game forced me to take a step back and look in the mirror. It forced me to face a part of me that was buried deep in the darkest pit of my soul. The part where my heart starts racing and my palms start sweating when someone asks me the “How’d you get there?” question.

All I can think of is my youth coach who taught me how to play the game. His name was Keith. He started coaching me when I was 10. “Recruited” me to come play for his team after watching me play every position on the field during a game where his team beat mine 5-0. I guess he saw something in me. Versatility? Nah, a little Tasmanian devil that never stopped working. He was Brazilian and every practice was about getting maximum touches on the ball. I absolutely loved training with him, learning new things and making him proud. You know how you are when you’re 10; When you do something good and your coach praises you, you thrive off of it. I would do anything to make him proud of me. He worked with me everyday and made me feel like I’d be the best to play the game if I stuck around him. He worked his way into my family as the years went on.

At an incredibly influential age, a time when curiosity and a hunger to learn drive you towards a passion, you trust that everyone wants the best for you. You trust the people around you to protect you and help you achieve your dreams. Especially the person who is giving you the tools to succeed. You just trust people at that age, you don’t put up walls. Well, some 10 year olds know what walls are… I didn’t. I don’t remember the specific moment Keith started abusing the power he had. But when I look back on it now, I realize he had been grooming me from the very beginning. He worked with me individually on skills, until I’d master them, and then he would take me to his camps to be the demo girl to show others how to do it. He brought me to play with the older girls he trained, and took me to practice with boys to show them there was a girl out there better than them. And I was, I was fucking good. I was also good at being his puppet. His praise fueled me. Soccer quickly became the single most important thing in my world. It was like nothing else mattered.

By age 13 he had gained control of most areas of my life. Sometimes I thought, maybe it was my fault, because I always did what he said. But thats how it was in America growing up. You do what coach says, so from the outside there wasn’t anything unusual about the way he was treating me. Before I knew it I was getting stripped of all the things I called my own until I didn’t recognize who I was anymore.

I remember when I would have a bad game and he would tell me I played like shit. Instead of giving constructive feedback as a good coach would have done, he put me down. I always took what he said to heart, because his opinion really mattered to me. It taught me to believe that a good or bad game decided my worth as a human being. He was the one who got to decide my worth.

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WASHINGTON (DC)
Think Progress

July 6, 2018

By Joshua Eaton

The news comes after the leadership of his organization resigned Friday.

UPDATE (7/6/2018, 9:20 p.m. ET): Prominent Buddhist teacher and author Sakyong Mipham, the leader of Shambhala International, announced in a letter Friday night that he is temporarily stepping down from teaching and administration pending the outcome of an investigation by law firm Wickwire Holm into charges he coerced and sexually assaulted several female students.

The move leaves Shambhala with no clear leadership structure following the announcement Friday afternoon that its main governing body, the Kalapa Council, will also step aside.

“The Sakyong fully supports a third-party investigation and wishes to provide the time and space for it to properly occur,” said the letter, which referred to Mipham by his religious title. “He will use this time to enter a period of self-reflection.”

ThinkProgress’ original story about the Kalapa Council’s announcement is below.

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COLUMBUS (OH)
Salon

July 9, 2018

By Mary Elizabeth Williams

We need to break down the wall of silence and shaming that surrounds the abuse and harassment of boys and men

Why does Jim Jordan have a job today? Why is working? Why aren’t his colleagues demanding he answer accusations that he was aware of alleged sexual abuse at Ohio State University when he worked there as an assistant coach from 1986 to 1994? And where, at a groundswell period in history where individuals who claim they’ve been abused and assaulted are more united and mobilized than ever, are the claims of boys and men still given only secondary consideration? Why is the male component of #MeToo still so neglected?

Ohio Rep. and founding member of the conservative Freedom Caucus Jim Jordan is considered a rising star in the Republican party. A solid supporter of the current administration who’s sponsored an Ultrasound Informed Consent Act and believes in “traditional marriage,” he’s been viewed as a potential front runner to replace Paul Ryan as Speaker if the House remains red in November. But a potential torpedo to his plans first began to emerge in April, when Ohio State announced it was investigating claims of “sexual misconduct” involving former wrestling team doctor Richard Strauss. Strauss, who was the team physician for over twenty years, died by suicide in 2005.

Then early last week, three former team members told NBC News that “It would have been impossible for Jordan to be unaware” that Strauss “showered regularly with the students and inappropriately touched them during appointments.”

Ex-student Mike DiSabato said, “I considered Jim Jordan a friend. But at the end of the day, he is absolutely lying if he says he doesn’t know what was going on.”

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HALIFAX (NOVA SCOTIA)
Halifax Examiner

July 10, 2018

By Tim Bousquet

1. Shambhala

In a letter published Friday, the entire Kalapa Council, the highest leadership body in the Shambhala Buddhist community, resigned their positions. The letter reads:

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NEW YORK (NY)
Tricycle

July 9, 2018

By Matthew Abrahams

Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche stops teaching as the governing Kalapa Council resigns

Shambhala International’s leader, Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche, has announced that he will step aside amid an investigation into his alleged sexual abuse of students, and the organization’s governing body, the Kalapa Council, said that all nine of its members will resign—leaving the community with an uncertain future.

The Sakyong will stop teaching and step away from his administrative duties until an investigation is completed, he said in a statement released on July 6. He has also resigned from the board of trustees at Naropa University and as the Naropa Lineage Holder, according to a statement from the university released a day earlier.

The Kalapa Council, meanwhile, is planning a “phased departure” as they hand over their responsibilities to new leadership, who have yet to be determined.

“We recognize that parts of our system are broken, and need to dissolve in order to make room for real change,” they said in a July 6 statement.

The change in leadership was spurred by a series of sexual abuse allegations against Shambhala teachers over the past few months. The accusations were contained in two reports created by Project Sunshine, a group that Shambhalian and abuse survivor Andrea Winn started over a year ago, initially as a support network for other survivors. The first report, which was released in February, described five accounts of misconduct that included childhood sexual abuse, betrayal by senior leaders, and a male sangha member exposing himself on retreat. “Phase two” of Project Sunshine, released in late June, revealed allegations against the Sakyong himself. Two women described being abused by him during boozy private parties. (He preempted the report with a statement three days before its publication that apologized for harmful “relationships.”)

Winn told Tricycle on Monday that she was encouraged by Shambhala’s leadership shake-up.

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WEST CHESTER (PA)
Daily Local News

July 10, 2018

By Christine Flowers

In this #Metoo era, reputations have been devalued to the point that even if you have one to protect, the avenging angels of society (prosecutors, investigative journalists, tweeting A-List actresses) will run roughshod over it. Now that we’ve decided that pretty much every accusation ever made against a film producer, a CEO of a Fortune 500 company or a Catholic priest must be true, our collective concern for avoiding slanderous accusations against someone who cannot defend themselves has pretty much evaporated.

Raymond J. Donovan, Secretary of Labor under President Reagan once famously said, after he was acquitted of corruption charges, “Which office do I go to, to get my reputation back?” It was a rhetorical question that was once considered legitimate, but that today is mocked. Who cares about the reputation of the wrongly accused if we can advance a political agenda that comforts the afflicted and afflicts the comfortable, right? Who cares if that film producer never laid a hand on that starlet, enough of them did so let’s not worry about the details of a particular case. Why worry about that Fortune 500 CEO since his accuser makes about a tenth in her entire lifetime what he makes in a month? And that Catholic priest? We know he did something, and if he didn’t, so many of them did that it’s a literal sin to obsess over Father Expendable.

I’ve heard a lot about cover-ups these past few weeks, as the Pennsylvania Supreme Court blocked the release of one in a continuing series of grand jury reports that detail alleged abuse in several Catholic dioceses across the Commonwealth. The high court refused to release the report immediately because of a concern that the interests of many people mentioned in that report could not be adequately protected. The interest, obviously, is what Shakespeare called “the eternal part of myself,” a person’s reputation.

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UNITED STATES
Refinery29

July 9, 2018

By Sage Lazzaro

The employees of the popular clothing company Feminist Apparel thought they were creating tools for the resistance. The online store’s viral shirts and accessories — which feature sayings like “Cats against catcalls” and “Trans rights are human rights” — became staples at events like the Women’s March and Pride. The brand amassed over 360k followers on Instagram and Facebook and was behind viral moments like the “No Catcall Zone” signs that took over NYC. Plus every item sold helped support an independent artist, and in many cases, a partnering organization that would receive part of the proceeds.

It all came to a grinding halt in June of 2018 when Feminist Apparel staff discovered that the brand’s founder and CEO Alan Martofel had an admitted history of sexually abusing women. In fact, he claims it’s the reason why he started the company in the first place. After asking for his resignation, all nine employees were fired without notice or severance. (Only Martfel and an outside consultant remained.)

“This is the patriarchy and toxic masculinity at its fucking finest,” says Rebecca Green, the company’s now-former art director. “I feel righteous and angry. I feel supported by my coworkers and friends. I also feel tired. I feel incredibly sorry knowing that there are survivors in this office who were led to believe that their contributions to this company were directly going to creating a safe space and platform for survivors, feminists, and marginalized identities. As an artist myself creating work based on my own experiences with the patriarchy, toxic masculinity, and harassment for this company — and by extension this man — I feel used and willfully mislead.”

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