ALBANY (NY)
Albany Times Union
August 14, 2019
By Lauren Stanforth
Former Albany bishop believed some pedophiles could be rehabilitated
On the 10th anniversary of Howard Hubbard’s 1977 installation as the bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Albany, the conversation about his leadership revolved around the topics of the day — from his hard-line stance against abortion to Hubbard’s more progressive views on the death penalty and enhancing the role of laypeople in the church.
But only five years later, scandals involving clerical sexual abuse began to rock the Catholic church nationwide — and Hubbard started a journey that eventually saw him arguing that abusive priests could be rehabilitated. Hubbard was also forced to defend himself against accusations that he had been involved in sexual relationships with men, including a claims that he had paid for sex with a teenage boy.
A 2004 investigation paid for by the Albany diocese exonerated Hubbard. But a lawsuit filed Wednesday under the state’s Child Victims Act alleges Hubbard and a Ballston Spa priest groomed and repeatedly sexually abused a 16-year-old boy in the 1990s. Hubbard’s attorney denied the new allegations.
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