PROVIDENCE (RI)
ABC 6 News
July 2, 2019
By Daniel Keith
One day after the Diocese of Providence released its bombshell report naming 50 priests and deacons credibly accused of abuse against minors, reaction is pouring in from lawmakers, lawyers, and even former priests.
The investigations were conducted by a former State Police detective who was able to investigate each account independently, according to the Diocese website.
After the report was released, Bishop Tobin said the church is being as transparent as possible, but some believe the church is hiding something.
Robert Hoatson is a former priest and now president of the New Jersey-based victim advocacy group Road to Recovery. As a victim of clergy abuse himself, and with knowledge of the workings of the church, he claims that Bishop Tobin is hiding some crucial information from the public.
He calls this information “the secret files”, claiming that each Bishop has access to complete files related to claims of abuse, in accordance with church law, Hoatson said.
“Bishop Tobin did not publish any of the information that we need. The files, the details, the names and information of each and every priest named in that list [Monday] is crucial,” Hoatson said, as he donned signs outside the Diocese. “We are not satisfied with the list that was published [Monday].”
The report names 50 priests and deacons, with 17 that are still alive. But in court documents from 2007, the church said they were aware of 125 allegations of priests within the jurisdiction.
The list was released just hours before Gov. Raimondo signed a bill into law that extends the statute of limitations for victims.
That law’s sponsor is Carol Hagan McEntee (D-Narragansett, South Kingstown) who said that the report does not say how many victims each priest had, as well as leaving out information that she calls a safety issue.
“Unless they’re dead, it really doesn’t tell you where they [live] now. So I think that’s important information, especially for parents to have,” McEntee said.
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