BATON ROUGE (LA)
The Advocate
September 20, 2018
By Elizabeth Crisp
Gov. John Bel Edwards said he does not know of any recent reports to state law enforcement regarding sex abuse in the Catholic church in Louisiana.
If such a complaint were to be lodged, “the state will do whatever it always does when it receives credible information that a crime has taken place — it will be investigated,” Edwards told reporters during a news conference Thursday.
A bombshell grand jury report that detailed the widespread abuse of more than 1,000 children over several decades in Pennsylvania has prompted other states to launch investigations into misconduct.
About one in four Louisiana residents is Catholic. The Advocate reported this week on abuse at Jesuit High School, where settlements were paid to abuse victims but were not publicly reported to the community. Earlier this month, The Advocate detailed abuse claims at another New Orleans school.
Edwards, a Democrat who is Catholic, holds authority over the Louisiana State Police, the statewide law enforcement arm.
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