FAIRFAX (VA)
Courtroom News Service
August 2, 2019
By Joan Hennessy
As the Catholic Church digs itself out of a global sex abuse scandal, some priests are heading to court to contend they were wrongfully accused of misconduct and defamed when the church published their names on lists of “credibly accused” clergy members.
Seventeen years have passed since The Boston Globe documented widespread abuse by Catholic clergy. In the years that followed, victims all over the country sued the church and 19 dioceses and religious orders filed for bankruptcy protection, according to the National Catholic Reporter.
The church’s legal troubles reignited a year ago when a Pennsylvania grand jury report detailed abuse by priests in six state dioceses. The same month, a Pennsylvania bishop released a list of clergy accused of abuse. Other dioceses have done the same.
In February, when the Richmond diocese published its list of clergy members accused of sexual misconduct, Oliver Joseph Smalls, Jr.’s name was on it.
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