DES MOINES (IA)
Radio Iowa
April 4, 2019
By O. Kay Henderson
The Des Moines Catholic Diocese released the names of nine priests with “substantiated allegations” that they had abused children while serving at parishes in the diocese.
The list includes the names of two priests who had not previously been made public. Both have died. Bishop Richard Pates today said victims and church members deserve a “full accounting” and Pates said he’s tried to be “a bulldog” on the issue.
“The behavior by some clerics and church leaders is a source of shame,” Pate said during a news conference late this morning.
Pates said the Des Moines Diocese established a child protection policy in 1988 and has had a zero tolerance policy when it comes to child sexual abuse for nearly two decades.
“Any priest who has been established he committed an act of sexual abuse against a minor is permanently removed from church ministry,” Pates said. “One strike and you’re out.”
Pates told reporters society, the medical community, law enforcement and the church did not fully understand the issue of child sexual abuse in the 1960s and ’70s.
“At that time, it was thought that clerical sexual abuse of children was a moral disorder, a sin. We now know it is more than a sin,” Pates said. “It’s a compulsion. It’s a crime.”
Pates estimates about two-thirds of the Catholic Dioceses in the country have released similar lists. Pates, who announced his retirement recently, said he wanted this list released before the pope names his replacement.
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.