ABUSE TRACKER

[New abuse complaint lodged against priest Ramos Gordón]

MADRID (SPAIN)
El País

January 13, 2019

By Julio Núñez

Una supuesta víctima acusa al clérigo pederasta por hechos ocurridos en los años ochenta en el colegio Juan XXIII de Puebla de Sanabria, en Zamora

Una nueva víctima ha denunciado al sacerdote José Manuel Ramos Gordón por abusos sexuales entre 1979 y 1985, cuando el exalumno tenía entre 11 y 16 años. Los hechos tenían lugar en el colegio zamorano Juan XXIII de Puebla de Sanabria, de noche, cuando los niños ya estaban durmiendo. La acusación llegó a través de una carta certificada el pasado jueves al obispo de Astorga y presidente de la comisión antipederastia de la Conferencia Episcopal Española José Antonio Menéndez. Sin embargo, la diócesis todavía no ha hecho ninguna declaración al respecto.

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.

LITTLE ROCK (AR)
Bilgrimage

January 13, 2019

By William Lindsey

On the front page of today’s Charlotte Observer: a headline reading, “PRIESTS ACCUSED OF SEX ABUSE,” with a notice that the Catholic diocese of Charlotte, North Carolina, still has not released names of priests credibly accused of child sex abuse. The headline points readers to an article inside the front section of the paper that appeared several days ago in the online copy of the paper, but is being published in the print-media copy for the first time for today’s Sunday edition.

The article, entitled “Why hasn’t Charlotte Catholic diocese released list of priests accused of sex abuse?,” by Tim Funk, reports a series of evasive statements by diocesan spokesman David Hains, one of which is that survivors would be harmed by having this information in the public sphere. To which SNAP’s David Clohessy replies, in a word, “Baloney”:

As for Hains’ claim that releasing a list might “re-traumatize” victims, the former leader of a national group that represents the victims of clergy sex abuse had a one-word reaction: “Baloney.”
“The overwhelming majority of survivors WANT this info out there,” David Clohessy, who is still active in the St. Louis-based Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, or SNAP, wrote in an email to the Observer.

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.

[Pope meets with Chilean bishops for one hour]

CHILE
La Tercera

January 14, 2019

La representación estuvo encabezada por Ricardo Ezzati y el motivo era dar a conocer a Francisco “el caminar recorrido por la Iglesia en Chile” desde el encuentro que se tuvo en mayo de 2018.

En la ciudad del Vaticano, el Papa Francisco sostuvo una audiencia que duró cerca de una hora, con un grupo de integrantes de la Conferencia Episcopal de Chile, encabezados por el cardenal Ricardo Ezzati.

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.

[Today’s meeting between Pope and Chilean bishops generates split opinions among church observers]

SANTIAGO (CHILE)
Emol

January 13, 2019

By Pía Larrondo

La audiencia, que fue solicitada por los prelados en noviembre, será a puertas cerradas y se enmarcará dentro de la próxima cita que se va a realizar en febrero en Roma con los presidentes de las conferencias episcopales.

Hoy se reunirán los obispos chilenos que forman parte del comité permanente de la Conferencia Episcopal con el Papa Francisco en Roma. La finalidad de la cita, según los obispos, es “dar a conocer al pontífice el caminar recorrido por la Iglesia en Chile desde el encuentro que conferencia episcopal sostuvo con él en mayo, en el vaticano”.

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.

[Pope receives Chilean Church leaders, Ezzati and Silva arrive accused of cover up]

CHILE
BioBioChile

January 14, 2019

By Matías Vega and Patricia Mayorga

Este lunes los 5 obispos del Consejo Permanente de la Conferencia Episcopal (Cech), entre ellos el arzobispo de Santiago, Ricardo Ezzati, se reunieron de manera privada con el papa Francisco en el Vaticano. Dos de los religiosos llegaron a Roma en medio de casos en los que son imputados por encubrimiento, particularmente el presidente de la Conferencia Episcopal, Santiago Silva (quien declaró el 29 de octubre ante tribunales) y el mismo Ezzati (quien declaró el 3 de octubre). Junto a ellos llegaron también el vicepresidente René Rebolledo, el obispo de San Bernardo, Juan Ignacio González y el secretario general, Fernando Ramos.

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.

[James Hamilton: “Ezzati must, and probably, will be in jail”]

CHILE
La Tercera

January 13, 2019

El médico, víctima del sacerdote Fernando Karadima, indicó no tener muchas expectativas sobre la reunión de este lunes de los Obispos chilenos con el Papa Francisco.

Esta noche, en entrevista con CNN, el médico James Hamilton, víctima de abusos del sacerdote Fernando Karadima se refirió a la situación que atraviesa la Iglesia Católica chilena, a propósito de la reunión que sostendrán este lunes miembros del comité permanente de la Conferencia episcopal con el Papa Francisco. En este sentido, Hamilton señaló no tener demasiadas expectativas.

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.

LONDON (ENGLAND)
The Guardian

January 14, 2019

By Owen Bowcott and Rob Evans

A public inquiry has refused to publish evidence that could shed light on an allegation that Michael Gove intervened in a child sexual abuse investigation.

He has been accused of trying, during his time as education secretary, to find out about an investigation into a priest suspected of abusing a boy at a boarding school.

The accusation has been made by two witnesses who have testified to the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse (IICSA).

The environment secretary has denied the allegation, saying it was inconceivable that he would have done so. IICSA has looked at the allegation, but said there was insufficient evidence to come to a conclusion about its veracity.

The inquiry has refused a request from the Guardian to make public the evidence, such as witness statements that it had gathered about the allegation. It has published some of the evidence, but not all.

In a statement, IICSA said : “All witness statements and evidence relied upon by the panel were published on the inquiry’s website.” Asked why some witness statements were published, and others were not, the inquiry said: “Evidence which is not relevant is not used or published”.

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.

ST. ALBANS (VT)
Associated Press

January 13, 2019

Vermont’s Catholic Bishop is holding town hall meetings at churches throughout the state this month in an effort to increase transparency amid mounting pressure on the church to respond to sexual abuse claims around the country.

Bishop Christopher Coyne said the goal is to listen to people and to discuss how to regain trust among parishioners when attendance is declining.

“As many people that are leaving, it is going to take even longer to get them back,” Coyne said at the first meeting at St. Mary’s Church in St. Albans on Thursday.

The other meetings planned include on Jan. 22 at Holy Family Church in Essex Junction; Jan 23 at St. Theresa’s Church in Orleans; Jan 29 at Christ the King Church in Rutland; and Jan. 31 at St. John Vianney Church in South Burlington.

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.

ROME (ITALY)
Catholic News Agency

January 14, 2019

A former papal representative to the U.S. has written an open letter to Archbishop Theodore McCarrick that urges the archbishop to repent publicly of the sexual abuse and misconduct of which he stands accused.

“You, paradoxically, have at your disposal an immense offer of great hope for you from the Lord Jesus; you are in a position to do great good for the Church. In fact, you are now in a position to do something that has become more important for the Church than all of the good things you did for her throughout your entire life,” wrote Archbishop Carlo Vigano in a Jan. 13 letter to McCarrick.

“A public repentance on your part would bring a significant measure of healing to a gravely wounded and suffering Church. Are you willing to offer her that gift? Christ died for us all when we were still sinners (Rom. 5: 8). He only asks that we respond by repenting and doing the good that we are given to do.”

McCarrick, 88, has been accused in recent months of sexually abusing at least two adolescent boys, and of engaging for decades in coercive sexual behavior toward priests and seminarians. The allegations were first made public in June 2018, when the Archdiocese of New York reported that it deemed credible an allegation that McCarrick sexually abused a teenage boy in the 1970s, while serving as a New York priest.

In July 2018, Pope Francis accepted McCarrick’s resignation from the College of Cardinals.

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.

PHILADELPHIA (PA)
Philadelpphia Inquirer

January 13, 2019

By Juliana Feliciano Reyes

Two Philadelphia-area priests, the Rev. John F. Meyers and the Rev. Raymond W. Smart, have been found to be “not suitable for ministry” after church officials investigated claims that they had sexually abused a minor in the 1980s, the Philadelphia Archdiocese announced Sunday.

And a third priest, Msgr. Joseph L. Logrip, who had been cleared of sexual-abuse allegations in a high-profile investigation following a 2011 grand jury report, has been placed on administrative leave following a new claim that he, too, sexually abused a minor in the early 1980s. The archdiocese has referred that allegation to law enforcement.

The news comes six months after a damning Pennsylvania grand jury report found that Roman Catholic leaders in Pennsylvania had covered up decades of child sex abuse dating to the 1940s involving hundreds of priests and more than 1,000 victims. The U.S. Justice Department has launched its own investigation.

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.

CONCORD (NH)
Union Leader

Jan 13, 2019

By Kevin Landrigan

Nearly 10 years after a precedent-setting agreement with the Roman Catholic Diocese of Manchester ended, state prosecutors report few recent incidents of clergy sex abuse in New Hampshire.

“We have not seen a flood of complaints that other jurisdictions have seen since we had our own settlement agreements and the audits that went on,” said Deputy Attorney General Jane Young.

“This could be because we’ve already gone through this process before; it’s hard to know.”

The past year has been a devastating one for the Catholic Church in America, with a federal investigation and probes in at least 14 states and the District of Columbia.

Nearly all of this sprang from a grand jury in Pennsylvania last August that produced an 800-page report alleging 1,000 incidents of sexual molestation by more than 300 priests in six different dioceses.

Following those allegations, attorneys general in Arkansas, Delaware, Florida, Illinois, Kentucky, Maryland, Michigan, Missouri, Nebraska, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Vermont, Virginia and Washington, D.C., launched their own criminal investigations into the church.

At the dawn of 2019, Pope Francis issued a stern message to U.S. Catholic leaders while they were gathering for a spiritual retreat on the topic at the Mundelein Seminary in Illinois.

“The church’s credibility has been seriously undercut and diminished by these sins and crimes but even more by the efforts made to deny or conceal them,” Francis wrote in a letter that mixed compassionate encouragement and blunt criticism.

Pope Francis wrote that blame-shifting by church leaders had led to mistrust and pain among the church’s followers.

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.

GUAM
Pacific Daily News

January 14, 2019

By Haidee V Eugenio

The Holy See, or the Vatican, has been named as a defendant in a clergy sex abuse lawsuit filed on Monday in local court against Archbishop Anthony S. Apuron by his own nephew.

Mark Mafnas Apuron’s Jan. 14, 2019 lawsuit in the Superior Court of Guam is similar to the lawsuit he filed in federal court last year against his uncle.

Mark Apuron’s two lawsuits accuse Archbishop Apuron of raping him when he was a teen, about 15 or 16 years old, around 1989 or 1990, in the bathroom of the Archdiocese of Agana Chancery Office.

Previous lawsuits against the archbishop alleged that he raped or sexually abused minor altar boys when he was still the parish priest in Agat in the 1970s.

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.

ALBUQUERQUE (NM)
Albuquerque Journal

January 14, 2019

By Colleen Heild

Archbishop of Santa Fe John C. Wester agreed to open sealed state court lawsuits in priest child sexual abuse cases and pay therapy bills for survivors during an extraordinary public meeting with several victims whose claims are now intertwined with the archdiocese’s pending bankruptcy reorganization.

It was also revealed during the meeting last week that the Archdiocese of Santa Fe continues to pay thousands of dollars a year to assist two priests who have been credibly accused of molesting children.

Most of the questions posed by three members of the creditors’ committee at the meeting focused on shedding light on what has historically been a dark, secret legal reckoning of the child sexual abuse inflicted for decades by at least 79 current or former Catholic priests in the archdiocese.

Wester has said the archdiocese has paid millions of dollars in settlements to victims so far, but cannot sustain the financial impact of continued litigation.

The meeting Thursday in Albuquerque provided an initial forum for the U.S. Bankruptcy Trustee, abuse survivors on the creditors’ committee and a lawyer for the three dozen victims who have pending lawsuits against the diocese to ask about the archdiocese’s Chapter 11 petition filed Dec. 3.

Wester and two other top archdiocesan officials were questioned under oath for about three hours.

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.

SAVANNAH (GA)
WSAV TV

January 13, 2019

By Kelly Antonacci

A Catholic priest says hundreds across Savannah believe he’s accused of sexually abusing children. Now Pastor Joseph Smith (Father Joe) — who serves at Saint Joseph’s Hospital — wants to set the record straight.

Pastor Joseph Smith was one of 16 clergymen named by the Bishop as someone with credible accusations against them. According to a release from November, the clergymen are accused of sexually abusing children.

The named Pastor Smith served in Savannah from 1924 until his death in 1952. It’s not the same Pastor Smith serving now.

“I was ready to retire. I was ready to hang it up,” said Father Joe in Savannah. “I’d rather be remembered for what I have done and not for what I haven’t.”

That’s why people gathered Sunday to remember Father Joe’s two decades of service and to take a picture, so you know his face is not a criminal one.

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.

HOUSTON (TX)
KHOU TV

January 13, 2019

By Jeremy Rogalski and Tina Macias

This story is part of KHOU 11 Investigates’ series “Unforgivable.” Parts may contain graphic descriptions of sexual assault. If you or a loved one have experienced sexual abuse, get help through the free and confidential National Sexual Assault Hotline (1-800-656-HOPE).

There was a time when Monica Deanda Baez was a little girl that she prayed to God to let her die.

In her family’s modest home in northeast Houston, she would climb on top of the toilet and scream out the bathroom window to God, to whomever — to whatever — would listen.

“I would beg God,” Baez said. “Please let me die, ‘cause I don’t want him to do this to me anymore.”

Baez, now 53, said for years she was sexually abused by her family’s priest. It was only later she learned that her older sister, Elodia Flores, and three of their siblings also said they suffered the same abuse by the same priest.

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.

BATAVIA (NY)
Daily News

January 13, 2019

By Bob Confer

The disclosure of sex abuse scandals that besieged the Buffalo Diocese and its parishioners for decades has dominated water cooler talk and reporting in Western New York for almost a year now.

The issue has hit home for a lot of people as the Diocese, under pressure, has released the names of 80 confirmed abusers and the press reports that the real number of accused priests and nuns is 111. With numbers that great, names that well-known, and abuses having taken place in communities large and small, everyone in WNY, it seems, has some sort of connection to an accuser, an accused, or a church where it happened.

There’s been a lot of handwringing over this. Everyone has wondered the following: How did the community not know this was happening? How could trusted and beloved people and churches hide, even allow, this? How does the Church attempt to make the abused whole again?

It’s been rare, though, that I’ve heard this question posed: How do we prevent this from happening again?

The scandals should be a wakeup call not only for the Catholic Church, but every Church and every organization that serves youth — as well the parents who entrust their sons and daughters to them. That would run the gamut from paid to volunteer, schools to day cares, little leagues to varsity sports teams, theme parks to summer camps, and music clubs to scout troops.

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.

TOPEKA (KS)
Capitol Journal

January 13, 2019

By Katie Moore

A Jefferson County family wants to introduce a bill during the 2019 legislative session, which begins Monday, making clergy mandated reporters of child abuse.

Lori Cook said she was called to action after learning her son had been sexually abused by two other boys. The abuse started in October 2017 and continued until her son, who is now 12, came forward about two months later.

“As a mother you don’t know how to prepare yourself to deal with a situation like this and to see the fear in my son’s eyes,” she said.

The Cook family alleges the abuse began at Eagle Rock Church in Lawrence and that they brought it to the church’s attention as soon as they found out.

“We decided our best course, because we trusted them, was to go to our pastor,” Cook said. “So we called him immediately and said we needed to come in.”

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.

HOUSTON (TX)
KHOU TV

January 13, 2019

By Jeremy Rogalski and Tina Macias

With the sun dipping below the trees on a late November afternoon, Carol LaBonte stood outside the black wrought-iron gates of Prince of Peace Catholic Church in Spring with a sign that read “Jesus Weeps.”

Although her seven children left the nest decades ago, she still finds herself protecting them. That’s what she was doing on this afternoon, joined by a group of others gathered outside the church with signs reading “Your pastor has secrets” and “Protect children not abusers.”

“It’s been all these years that the truth has not come out,” LaBonte said, now silver-haired and a cane resting by her side. “The pastor is still the pastor and abuser of my son.”

The priest, Rev. John Keller, has been at Prince of Peace for nearly 20 years. But there was a time in the mid-1980s he was the associate pastor at another church just a few miles away, Christ the Good Shepherd, where the LaBontes were parishioners and heavily involved in the church. LaBonte’s late husband, Stephen, was a deacon.

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.

PHILADELPHIA (PA)
WHYY Radio

January 13, 2019

A priest has been put on administrative leave after new allegations surfaced he sexually abused a minor in the early 1980s, the Philadelphia Archdiocese announced Sunday.

Church officials also announced that it had found two other priests unsuitable for ministry “based on substantiated allegations that they sexually abused minors in the early 1980s.”

The announcements come amid increased scrutiny of the Roman Catholic church’s handling of abuse allegations, after the release of a grand jury report in August 2018 detailing more than 1,000 cases of child sexual abuse at the hands of 301 clergy in six other Pennsylvania archdioceses. That grand jury report did not cover the Philadelphia Archdiocese.

The Rev. Msgr. Joseph Logrip, 73, was previously investigated by the archdiocese following a 2011 grand jury report. The allegations against him were never made public, and local prosecutors declined to press charges.

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.

IRONDALE (AL)
National Catholic Register

January 13, 2019

By Michael Warsaw

The U.S. bishops, having completed their weeklong retreat outside Chicago, now have some urgent business to attend to as they prepare for the meetings at the Vatican next month — meetings that will draw the heads of Catholic bishops’ conferences from around the world.

Our hope and prayer is that our Church leaders are now able to view the tumultuous events of 2018, which are sure to proceed to their next phase in 2019, with clarity, purpose and the determination to act decisively.

Justice demands it.

Pope Francis, in his letter of exhortation, and St. John Paul, in Pastores Gregis (The Bishop: Servant of the Gospel of Jesus Christ for the Hope of the World), have provided them a road map. Clarity and purpose are both vital to begin the renewal and purification of the Church.

I believe a great good can come from this tragic chapter in the Church’s history, as long as our leaders believe the Church is Christ’s visible instrument on earth and publicly acknowledge and repent of their own shortcomings. In this, they will stand tall as shepherds with a will and heart for guiding their flocks through these turbulent times.

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.

DUNDEE (SCOTLAND)
The Sunday Post

January 13, 2019

By Marion Scott and Stacey Mullen

ALLEGATIONS of abuse have been made 126 times against Catholic priests in Scotland over the last 70 years, according to church documents.

However, the vast majority were not reported to police for years and only a fraction of those cases have ever been prosecuted.

Now campaigners are calling on Catholic Church leaders to publicly name all those who have had allegations made against them following the lead of the church leaders in the United States.

They have spoken out as we reveal how a Catholic priest accused of abuse in Scotland, where he had been moved around five parishes, was sacked only to find a new post in Los Angeles where he was later accused again.

The allegations made against Joseph Dunne in Scotland in 1988 were only reported to police in 2013 – 25 years after he was sacked.

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.

PITTSBURGH (PA)
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

January 12, 2019

By Andrew Goldstein

In 1976, a priest in the Catholic Diocese of Pittsburgh took a 13-year-old boy on a trip to Super Bowl X in Miami.

Instead of enjoying a fun trip to watch the Steelers play the Cowboys for the NFL championship, the boy endured what he later described as a “week of hell.”

The priest, the Rev. Thomas M. O’Donnell, forced the boy, Martin Nasiadka, now 56, to share a bed with him and repeatedly sexually assaulted him over several days.

Mr. Nasiadka made those allegations against Father O’Donnell in one of two lawsuits filed Friday by attorney George Kontos in Allegheny County Common Pleas Court.

Both lawsuits name the Pittsburgh diocese, Bishop David Zubik and Cardinal Donald Wuerl, the former Pittsburgh bishop, as defendants, alleging that diocesan officials knew about predator priests and covered for them instead of protecting their victims. State law prohibits people from suing individual priests, the lawsuit says.

A spokesman for Cardinal Wuerl in Washington, D.C., said he could not comment “as we are not aware of the filings.” The Pittsburgh diocese did not respond to a request for comment.

Mr. Nasiadka met Father O’Donnell in 1975 at Annunciation Catholic School/Church in Perry South when he was 12 years old, according to the lawsuit

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.

LAFAYETTE (LA)
KLFY TV

January 12, 2019

By Rebeca Marroquin

The names of 14 priests accused of sexual misconduct involving children have been released by the Diocese of Houma-Thibodeaux.

News 10 spoke to local residents about what they think of this recently released list.

One person, who wished to remain anonymous, said they believe other dioceses should follow suit, “I think for the damage that’s been done to these people’s lives, you know, the church should cooperate as much as it can and release those names as well.”

Another resident, Adrian King, believes it’s the public’s right to know, “That’s something that should be a matter of public record. Especially for all of the Catholic parishioners to just be aware. I mean, we have a predator list for when someone non-clergy is convicted of a crime, then it’s published. So I think we have a right to know, just in general.”

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.

WASHINGTON COUNTY (PA)
Observer-Reporter

January 13, 2019

The grand jury report that was released last summer detailing decades of child sexual abuse by priests in six of Pennsylvania’s eight Roman Catholic dioceses was shocking, to be sure, but it was also a necessary spur for justice to be delivered to hundreds of victims around the commonwealth, and a victory for openness and transparency – one area where the hierarchy of the Catholic Church has decidedly fallen short for many years.

The grand jury investigation has been beneficial to Pennsylvania and, as a report earlier this month by the Associated Press found, it has had a salutary effect across the United States. In the five months since the grand jury findings came to light, 105 of the nation’s 187 dioceses have said that they will identify priests who have been accused of sexually abusing children. In addition, close to 20 civil or criminal investigations have been set in motion.

Alas, in some cases it is far too late for justice to be rendered. The AP found that more than 60 percent of the accused priests have died, and the statute of limitations has run out in many of the cases where priests are still alive. This largely repeats the state of play in Pennsylvania, where only two of the 301 priests identified have been charged, and some of the incidents that filled the grand jury report happened decades ago.

Still, victim advocates point to many positive outcomes, even if a guilty verdict against an abuser is not one of them. Dioceses either have set up compensation funds or will face increasing demands to do so. Priests who had been removed from the ministry but were allowed to take on other jobs where they could have contact with children could now lose those positions.

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.

PORTLAND (ME)
Press Herald

January 12, 2019

By Eric Russell

The Jesuit governing body that oversees the Northeast, including Maine, will release on Tuesday a list of priests who have been credibly accused of sexual abuse of a minor dating back to 1950.

The list from the USA Northeast Province of the Society of Jesus, a religious order of the Roman Catholic Church commonly referred to as the Jesuits, is likely to include names that already have been public, such as priests who have been criminally charged. But it also could include the names of priests who have never been named publicly.

“I think for a number of reasons, this province is going to have particular interest from many people because of the influence of the Jesuits on the East Coast, from New York up through New England,” said Robert Hoatson, a former priest who now runs a New Jersey-based nonprofit called Road to Recovery that advocates for church abuse victims.

Last month, the other four U.S. provinces released their own lists of credibly accused priests – defined as instances where a preponderance of evidence suggested that the allegation is more likely true than not. Those lists totaled 237 names and included information about whether the priests had one or multiple victims, where they were assigned when the alleged abuse occurred and where they are now. Many are deceased.

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.

CHICAGO (IL)
Sun Times

January 12, 2019

By David Struett

A longtime Chicago-area priest was removed from his Lake View church on Saturday after being accused of sexually abusing a minor nearly 40 years ago while serving at a south suburban parish.

Cardinal Blase Cupich asked the Rev. Patrick Lee, pastor of Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Parish, to “step aside” as authorities investigate the claim made against him this week, according to a statement from the Archdiocese of Chicago.

The alleged abuse happened in 1979 while Lee was assigned to St. Christopher Parish in Midlothian, Cupich said in the statement.

Church leaders have forwarded the complaint to the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services and the Cook County State’s Attorney’s office, Cupich said.

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.

PITTSFIELD (MA)
The Berkshire Eagle

January 13, 2019

By Larry Parnass

The Rev. Richard J. Ahern isn’t on the Springfield diocese’s list of clergy who sexually abused young people. But the priest, who served in Pittsfield, died in 2001 with a stack of allegations against him.

A decade after Ahern ended his ministry in Berkshire County, the priest’s own religious order prohibited him from hearing confessions from children, sent him to weekly therapy sessions and barred him from the diocese that includes Pittsfield and is now overseen by The Most Rev. Mitchell T. Rozanski.

“This means, then, Dick — that you are not to visit the diocese of Springfield at all,” an official with the Stigmatine Fathers and Brothers wrote in a private letter to Ahern in May 1986.

But Ahern’s sexual assaults, further documented in court filings and media accounts, did not lead the Springfield diocese to publish his name as an abusive cleric on its website.

Though Ahern served churches in Pittsfield, Agawam, Feeding Hills and West Springfield, the diocese says that, technically, he wasn’t their priest.

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.

NEW YORK (NY)
Associated Press

January 12, 2019

By Nicole Winfield

The key accuser in the sex abuse case against ex-Cardinal Theodore McCarrick has met with New York City prosecutors, evidence that the scandal that has convulsed the papacy is now part of the broader U.S. law enforcement investigation into sex abuse and cover-up in the Catholic Church.

Recommended Video
James Grein gave testimony last month to Manhattan Assistant District Attorney Sara Sullivan, who is investigating a broad range of issues related to clergy abuse and the systematic cover-up by church superiors, Grein’s attorney, Patrick Noaker, told The Associated Press.

The development is significant, given that the Vatican investigation against McCarrick has already created a credibility crisis for the Catholic hierarchy including Pope Francis, since it was apparently an open secret that McCarrick slept with adult seminarians. Grein’s testimony, however, includes allegations that McCarrick, a former family friend, also groomed and abused him starting when he was 11.

The Manhattan District Attorney’s office launched a hotline last year and invited victims to report even decades-old sex abuse, saying it would pursue “any and all investigative leads” to ensure justice.

Grein met with Sullivan before Christmas after filing a compensation claim with the New York City archdiocese alleging that McCarrick, the retired archbishop of Washington, first exposed himself when Grein was 11 and continued abusing him for some two decades, including during confession, Noaker said. The church’s compensation procedures require that victims notify the district attorney of their allegations, which Grein did on Nov. 1.

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.

SANTA ROSA (CA)
NBC Bay Area

January 12, 2019

By Kiki Intarasuwan

Diocese of Santa Rosa Releases Names of Priests Accused of Sexual Abuse and Misconduct
The Diocese of Santa Rosa on Saturday released a list of priests and bishops who have been accused of sexual abuse and misconduct.

In a news release, Bishop Robert F. Vasa said he wants to express “sincere sorrow that so many have been subjected to the evil actions of priests and bishops.” His primary goal in releasing the names is to give victims of sexual abuse the assurance that they have been heard in the church, he said.

President Again Threatens to Withhold Calif. FEMA Funding Over Forest Management
“It is my deepest prayer and hope that this release of names in a consolidated fashion says to any of you who are victims, we have heard you, we believe you, we affirm you in your trauma and we want to help with a healing process,” Vasa said.

The majority of the accusations occured decades ago, the bishop said, but some incidents occured as late as 2006 and 2008.

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.

NEW YORK (NY)
National Review

January 12, 2019

By Nicholas Frankovich

Peter Steinfels at Commonweal has a long article that needed to be written. It’s 11,700 words (none are wasted) on the sex-abuse scandals in the Catholic Church — specifically, on the Pennsylvania grand-jury report released last summer. The heinousness of the sexual crimes and misconduct described therein has been amply noted by just about everyone who has commented on the report. It was noted by the authors of the report itself, and not just noted but drummed loudly, while they glossed over masses of detail that didn’t fit their story about Catholic bishops. The sum of the evidence in their 1,356-page document belies their broad-brush, monochromatic characterization of the problem, Steinfels contends:

I believe that the grand jury could have reached precise, accurate, informing, and hard-hitting findings about what different church leaders did and did not do, what was regularly done in some places and some decades and not in others. . . .

Instead the report chose a tack more suited to our hyperbolic, bumper-sticker, post-truth environment. . . . Imagine, at least for a moment, that a declamation like “Priests were raping little boys and girls, and the men of God who were responsible for them not only did nothing; they hid it all” came from one of our elected or televised demagogues. Would one really dismiss any fact-finding as uncalled for?

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.

LONDON (ENGLAND)
The Guardian

Jan 12, 2019

By Harriet Sherwood

The proportion of US Catholics who regard priests as honest and ethical has plummeted to a record low of fewer than one in three, according to a survey.

The fall of 18 percentage points between 2017 and 2018 is attributed to the last year’s scandals over clerical sexual abuse.

Fewer than half of the Catholics surveyed by Gallup said they had confidence in organised religion, a drop of eight percentage points over the period.

The poll was conducted four months after the publication of a scathing grand jury report into sexual abuse and its cover-up by Catholic priests and bishops in Pennsylvania.

An investigation found that at least 300 priests had abused about 1,000 children and vulnerable adults over 70 years, and that their superiors had either stood by or in some cases actively covered up criminal acts.

Since the publication of the Pennsylvania report, at least 13 US states have opened formal investigations and some senior Catholics, including the archbishop of Washington, have resigned.

Positive views about the honest and ethical standards of clergy have almost halved in a decade, from 61% to 31%, but the most recent figures show the largest annual fall.

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.

Get Religion

January 12, 2019

By Terry Mattingly

The body blows just keep coming.

That’s how many Catholics — on both left and right — have to feel right now, after the daily meteor shower of news about falling stars in their church. All of this was, logically enough, the backdrop to the very open-ended, wide-ranging discussions in this week’s “Crossroads” podcast” (click here to tune that in).

One minute, and it’s new revelations linked to the wide, wide world of ex-cardinal Theodore “Uncle Ted” McCarrick. In the latest chapter of this drama, there were revelations at the Catholic News Agency and in the Washington Post that — forget all of his previous denials — Washington, D.C., Cardinal Donald Wuerl did know about the rumors swirling around McCarrick and his abusive relationships with boys and seminarians.

Want to guess which of these newsrooms dared to note that this fact was a key element of the infamous expose letters released by the Vatican’s former U.S. ambassador, Archbishop Carlo Maria Vigano? You got it. It was a branch of the alternative Catholic press (must-read Clemente Lisi post here) connecting those controversial dots — again.

Then, on the other doctrinal side of the fence, there were the revelations about Father C.J. McCloskey, a popular conservative apologist from Opus Dei. Here’s how Phil Lawler of CatholicCulture.org opened a post entitled “A bad day’s lament.”

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.

LYON (FRANCE)
La Croix International

January 11, 2019

The trial of Cardinal Philippe Barbarin and five other senior Catholic officials ended in Lyon on Jan. 10 after four days that shook the French Church.“Thanks to Alexandre [Hezez] for having been the first to lodge a complaint, thanks for having freed the spoken word and for having allowed me to hear Christian [Burdet]. This was overwhelming for me. I am not the same man as I was before. Thanks for having shaken the Church. Changes must be made. This must not stop here.”These were the serious words spoken by Bishop Emmanuel Gobilliard as he looked into the eyes of François Devaux, a plaintiff and founder of La Parole Libérée (Freed Speech) association, during a break in proceedings.

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.

ITHACA (NY)
Ithaca Journal

Jan. 11, 2019

By Ann Sullivan

Congratulations and best wishes to Sen. Tom O’Mara as he begins his fifth term as state senator from the New York 58th. We wish him the very best for a successful and productive legislation session.

We also urge him to right a great wrong. Senator O’Mara must end his opposition against and vote for a Child Victims Act that would extend the statute of limitations for actions against child molesters to age 28 in criminal cases and age 50 for civil suits, including a one-year window for victims to sue for restitution for acts that have passed the statute of limitations. Under the current law, victims can press charges only up to the age of 23.

The sordid history of powerful institutions covering up the actions of child molesters is well known. In 2004, an official Catholic Church commission reported that 4,000 priests had sexually assaulted at least 10,000 children over five decades in the U.S. Bishop Salvatore Matano needs to release the names of pedophile priests who served in the Diocese of Rochester, which includes Elmira and Ithaca, but clergy in the Catholic Church are not the only authorities dealing with incidents of abuse. Over 30 now-adult victims of the Horace Mann School located in the Bronx reported incidents of molestation when they were enrolled at the elite private academy. Numerous other New York state institutions whose employees came into unlawful contact with children also need to come clean about any history of molestation.

To its credit, the NY state assembly has responded vigorously to the revelations. For the past several sessions, it has passed a version of the Child Victims Act. The Republican-led State Senate, however, bowed to the demands of the NY state Catholic Conference and refused to advance the bill in its house. In one debate, held in Ithaca in 2016, Senator O’Mara unapologetically stated that the Catholic Church’s position on the bill explained his opposition to it. https://ithacavoice.com/2016/10/state-senate-candidates-omara-danks-burke-debate-issues-ithaca/

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.

[“It’s good news:” Marists welcome Vatican involvement in abuse investigation]

SANTIAGO (CHILE)
Emol

January 12, 2019

By Tamara Cerna

Las autoridades de la Congregación en Roma solicitaron una reunión para tener más detalles del proceso y alcances de la decisión del Papa Francisco.

A través de un comunicado, la Congregación de los Hermanos Maristas valoró la decisión del Papa Francisco de intervenir en las indagatorias por abuso que llevaban adelante. Ayer, el vocero de la Conferencia Episcopal de Chile, Jaime Coiro, confirmó la decisión de Sumo Pontífice de promover un proceso penal en la Congregación para la Doctrina de la Fe en relación a las denuncias presentadas contra algunos religiosos.

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.

[Chile’s Episcopal Conference reveals what’s on the agenda for reserved appointment with the Pope]

CHILE
BioBioChile

January 11, 2019

By Matías Vega

La Conferencia Episcopal dio luces este viernes sobre los temas que serán tratados en la reunión que sostendrán los 5 obispos que conforman el comité permanente de dicha organización clerical y el papa Francisco.

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.

[Chilean bishops prepare for meeting with Pope and question the presence of two who are under investigation]

CHILE
BioBioChile

January 11, 2019

By María José Villarroel and Nicole Martínez

El lunes los obispos del Consejo Permanente de la Conferencia Episcopal (Cech) se reunirán -en un encuentro reservado- con el Papa Francisco, para entregar avances sobre el manejo de los casos de abusos sexuales. Primero, eso sí, el fin de semana llegarán a Portugal a la Fundación Acton, instancia para el estudio de la religión, la libertad y la economía donde realizarían un curso.

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.

[Marist Case: Pope Francisco informs Chilean whistleblowers that ecclesiastical criminal proceedings will be opened]

CHILE
La Tercera

January 11, 2019

By Angelica Baeza

Isaac Givovich, uno de los denunciantes en el caso, se mostró satisfecho y contento por la decisión adoptada por el Vaticano. La información fue confirmada por el portavoz de la Conferencia Episcopal.

La Congregación para la Doctrina de la Fe dispuso acompañar pastoralmente a las víctimas del llamado “Caso Maristas”, pero además, el mismo Papa Francisco dispuso que se promueva un proceso penal ante la Congregación para la Doctrina de la Fe, una vez terminadas las investigaciones generadas a partir de las denuncias por abuso sexual.

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.

[Netflix will premiere documentary series about abuses in the Spanish Church]

MADRID (SPAIN)
El País

January 10, 2019

El periodista Albert Solé es el creador de ‘Examen de conciencia’, disponible a partir del 25 de enero

Netflix estrenará el 25 de enero la serie documental de tres episodios Examen de conciencia, sobre los abusos en la Iglesia española. La serie está dirigida por el periodita Albert Solé, ganador de un premio Goya por el documental Bucarest, la memoria perdida. La serie explora a través de testimonios de víctimas, periodistas, expertos y religiosos, casos de abusos sexuales en instituciones de la Iglesia católica española.

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.

[Film will recount how clergy abuse victims came together in France]

LYON (FRANCE)
El País

January 11, 2019

By Silvia Ayuso

Una película contará próximamente la historia de esta organización que ha sentado a un cardenal en el banquillo

“Me decía mon garçon, mi niño, esto es un secreto, no hay que contárselo a nadie. Luego me quitaba el pantalón y me acariciaba”. “Me decía que le siguiera al último piso. Cada vez, yo iba dócilmente. Sentía su respiración jadeante. En mi cerebro de niño, el interruptor se apagaba. Duró tres años”. Los testimonios de los tocamientos, felaciones o masturbaciones a los que les sometió el cura Bernard Preynat desde finales de los años 70 hasta 1990, cuando eran chavales de 10 o 12 años que pertenecían al grupo scout de ese sacerdote, enmudecieron a la abarrotada sala del tribunal de Lyon donde ocho de sus víctimas declararon en un juicio con el que reclaman responsabilidades a la Iglesia que protegió a ese religioso durante décadas.

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.

SEDALIA (MO)
Sedalia Democrat

January 12, 2019

By David Clohessy

This is a heartfelt appeal to Sedalia area Catholics and citizens who have information or suspicions about a priest who was expelled by mid-Missouri church officials and accused of sexually inappropriate actions with a girl.

While his church supervisors claim he’s no threat to kids, we are highly skeptical.

Following a familiar pattern in these cases, since the allegations against Fr. Deusdedit Mulokozi (or Fr. Deo, as he’s known) were reported to Sedalia law enforcement, he’s been moved three times.

First, he was sent to Kansas City, then to a Catholic treatment center in Texas and then to Tanzania where he is now working among the even more vulnerable people: unsuspecting Catholics in a developing nation with a less vigorous criminal system and an even more secretive church hierarchy.

To be fair, in our criminal justice system, everyone’s entitled to be presumed innocent. But to be honest and prudent, reasonable people should not assume Fr. Deo is innocent.

First, even Catholic officials admit that very few allegations of sexual misconduct against priests are false. A Boston-based research and archive group, BishopAccountability, says that fewer than 2 percent of sexual abuse allegations appear to be false. And a report commissioned by U.S. bishops and conducted by the John Jay College of Criminal Justice concluded that 2.5 percent are false.

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.

PITTSBURGH (PA)
Post-Gazette

January 11, 2019

By Peter Smith

A 14-year-old document in the archives of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Pittsburgh contradicts Cardinal Donald Wuerl’s claim to have known nothing until last year of rumored sexual misconduct claims against former Cardinal Theodore McCarrick — the man he would replace as archbishop of Washington.

In fact, then-Bishop Wuerl knew of more than rumors.

In November 2004, a former priest came to Pittsburgh from New Jersey and presented a formal statement to the independent review board that handles accusations against the diocese’s priests. In it, he identified then-Cardinal McCarrick as having committed sexual misconduct against him as an adult.

Then-Bishop Wuerl learned about the allegation immediately and, within days, reported it directly to the Vatican ambassador to the United States, the Diocese of Pittsburgh has confirmed.

The former priest, Robert Ciolek, said by phone Friday that when he saw the 2004 Wuerl memo in a December 2018 review of his case file at the Pittsburgh diocese, his first reaction was: “My God, he actually did share this with the papal nuncio. He did the right thing.”

But Mr. Ciolek said Cardinal Wuerl is undercutting that record by “lying” since then about what he knew and when.

“All that is diminished by the fact that he spent the last five months denying any knowledge” of allegations against Archbishop McCarrick, he said.

Mr. Ciolek also questioned whether Cardinal Wuerl, after becoming Washington archbishop in 2006, ever followed up with the Vatican about the status of any investigation, or took any steps to safeguard other seminarians in the proximity of his predecessor.

“Now that we know you knew, what did you do about it?” Mr. Ciolek asked rhetorically.

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.

BELFAST (IRELAND)
Belfast Telegram

January 12, 2019

By Alf McCreary

Donal McKeown (68) grew up in Randalstown. He has a brother, James, and sisters Mary and Teresa. As children, they played with neighbours from other Churches.

His first 11 years were spent in a house with a water pump in the yard, and there was no electricity until he was 10.

His father, James, was a watchmaker, and his mother, Rose, a primary school teacher, though she could not work always, because she was married and had four small children.

There was a strong sense of community and of being part of a large family network – his father was one of 13 children and his mother was one of eight. As a young man, Donal McKeown played Gaelic football and hurling with Creggan Kickhams, near Randalstown.

He has run a number of marathons, one in 1982 as part of a 48-strong parish team raising funds for a new church building, and another in 2001 to raise money for a new minibus for St Malachy’s College, where he had been principal in Belfast. He also took part in the Belfast-Dublin Maracycle in 1996.

“My studies at Queen’s University in German and Italian gave me a chance to travel in Germany from 1970 to 71. In my last two years at Queen’s, I was the Belfast correspondent for a German news agency,” he says.

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.

MUMBAI (INDIA)
Crux

January 12, 2019

By Nirmala Carvalho

In a “dynamic and fast-changing” society, the Church in India must embrace “flexibility” in pastoral ministry, according to one bishop in the country.

“Evangelization demands creativity and innovation. God is ever new and ancient,” said Bishop Thomas Dabre of Poona at the beginning of this week’s plenary meeting of the Conference of Catholic Bishops of India (CCBI).

(The CCBI is the National Episcopal Conference for the Latin rite Catholics, while the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of India, or CBCI, is the national conference including all the country’s bishops, including those belonging to the Syro-Malabar and Syro-Malankara eastern rites.)

The theme of the Jan. 7-14 meeting in Chennai is “The Joy of the Gospel” based on Pope Francis’s 2013 Apostolic Exhortation Evangelii Gaudium. They have been looking at developing action plans to revitalize the outreach of the Church in India at the diocesan and parish level.

Although considered one of the most religious countries in the world, Dabre said the same secularizing tendency which has affected Western countries is also happening in India.

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.

BREMERTON (WA)
Kitsap Sun

January 11, 2019

By Ed Palm

Readers may recall that I wrote a couple columns in 2018 about the Catholic Church’s sex abuse scandal. As a Catholic school survivor of the late 1950s and early 1960s, I wasn’t surprised to learn that most of the abuses occurred between 1960 and 1980. I suspect that many — if not most — of the priests and bishops involved in these scandals came up through the largely-discarded high-school seminary system of the past.

Thinking they had — or may have had — a vocation, these 13- or 14-year-old boys agreed to be semi-cloistered at a time when many young boys are still unsure about their sexuality. Some may have thought that their disinterest in the opposite sex, or disinterest in sex in general, was a sign of their election — an indication that they had been called to the celibate life. Others probably overestimated their ability to suppress the sex drive as they matured. And some, as we now know, later realized they were sexually attracted to children. The high-school seminaries were schools for scandal, and I am still waiting for an enterprising investigative journalist to determine how many of the abusers did begin to prepare for the priesthood at high-school seminaries.

What brought this to mind was an AP report reprinted recently in the Sun (Jan. 2) about how the Vatican stepped in at the 11th hour to stop the U.S. Conference of American Bishops from voting at their November meeting on a “code of conduct for bishops” and on the creation of a lay-led sex-abuse commission. Cardinal Marc Ouellet, a Vatican official, ordered the American bishops to await the guidance that will presumably come out of a “global summit” Pope Francis intends to hold next month on “preventing sex abuse by priests.”

I can understand why the Vatican would not want American bishops to preempt the Pope on this issue. I can further understand that the Church needs to formulate a set of consistent and coherent policies regarding sex abuse. And for better or worse, as the article reminded readers, “The Holy See alone has exclusive authority to investigate and discipline problem bishops.” But, aside from disregarding abuse survivors’ demands for decisive and swift action, what bothers me about the Vatican’s delay is something that has bothered me from my earliest experience with the Church — the tendency to couch controversial decisions, doctrines, and dogmas in grandiloquent language.

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.

CHARLOTTE (NC)
Associated Press

January 11, 2019

As dozens of Catholic dioceses across the country have released lists of priests who have been credibly accused of child sex abuse, the Charlotte diocese remains undecided about whether to join what its spokesman calls the “stampede.”

But North Carolina Attorney General Josh Stein tells The Charlotte Observer the Charlotte diocese should follow the lead of others, for transparency’s sake. The Raleigh diocese published its list in October.

Charlotte diocese spokesman David Hains says publishing a list might further harm victims. David Clohessy with the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests called that claim “baloney.”

Stein doesn’t have the same powers as attorney generals in states like Pennsylvania where investigations of the Catholic Church are underway. He hopes to convince the legislature to broaden the investigative grand jury statute.

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.

LOUISVILLE (KY)
WAVE TV

January 11, 2019

By Sara Rivest

A former Louisville priest found guilty of sexual abuse has been denied an appeal.

In 2016, Father Joseph Hemmerle was convicted in Meade County on one count of inappropriate touching. He was sentenced to seven years in prison.

The charge comes from an incident in 1973 where Hemmerle molested a 10-year-old boy at the summer camp he was attending, Camp Tall Tree.

Hemmerle was the camp’s director. According to the appeal, Hemmerle routinely treated campers with poison ivy reactions.

The victim, Michael Norris, testified at Hemmerle’s trial that he was exposed to poison ivy when playing in the woods. He developed an extensive skin rash and sought treatment from Hemmerle.

“I’m now 56 so I live with this every single day, it’s something that never goes away,” Norris said. “Child sexual abuse is a horrible thing but at the hands of the clergy it’s even worse.”

Hemmerle allegedly demanded Norris undress inside his private cabin. He was accused of molesting and performing oral sex on the victim.

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.

NEW ORLEANS (LA)
WVUE TV

January 11, 2019

By Amanda Roberts

Houma-Thibodeaux is the third diocese across South Louisiana to release a list of priests credibly accused of child sex abuse. Bishop Shelton Fabre released the list with 14 names on Jan. 11.

In the Houma-Thibodaux area, Allyce Himel said there was always rumors running throughout the Catholic schools about inappropriate behavior.

“There was a lot of talk about it, but nothing really was done,” she said.

She says now that there’s a list of 14 names released to the public of priests credibly accused of child sex abuse, she’s glad the truth is getting out there.

“It’s horrible. It’s horrible, and like we were saying glad their names are out because it should be known,” said Himel.

Of the 14 names, none are currently in ministry. Eight are still alive: Lawrence Cavell, Alexander Francisco, Etienne LeBlanc, Gerald Prinz, Gerard Kinane, Ramon Luce and Daniel Poche. The eighth living priest, Patrick Kujawa, is incarcerated.

The whereabouts of two other priests, Dac Nguyen and Carlos Melendez, are unknown.

FOX 8 tried to reach those on the list, either by phone or in person, but was unsuccessful.

Gerald Prinz is not a new name. He was also included on the Archdiocese of New Orleans’ list of credibly accused released in November. According to our partners at NOLA.com | The Times Picayune, an anonymous plaintiff sued Prinz in 1995, claiming the priest abused him in the 1970s at St. Gregory Barbarigo Parish in Houma and St. Louis Parish in Bayou Blue.

When reached at his home, a man who identified himself as Prinz’s brother answered the door.

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.

NEW ORLEANS (LA)
The Advocate

January 11, 2019

By Ramon Antonio Vargas, John Simerman and Della Hasselle

The Catholic Diocese of Houma-Thibodaux on Friday identified 14 priests who have admitted or are suspected by church officials of a wide range of sexual misconduct with minors, from possession of child pornography to rape.

Bishop Shelton Fabre’s disclosure marked the third time in as many months that a diocese or religious order has published what amounts to an official church roster of alleged abusers in Louisiana ministries.

The Archdiocese of New Orleans released a similar list of 57 disgraced clergymen in early November, while the Jesuit order that oversees priests and other order members in Louisiana released its own list of 42 names last month, including 19 who worked in the New Orleans area.

The disclosures are part of a nationwide reckoning by Catholic leaders attempting to restore trust with parishioners whose faith in the church has been strained by a sexual abuse scandal well into its second decade.

The latest wave of the scandal hit the U.S. with the July release of a Pennsylvania grand jury report that identified hundreds of credibly accused Catholic priests and thousands of victims there — revealing a problem many times larger in scope than previously documented.

Four of the names revealed Friday by the Houma-Thibodaux diocese had previously appeared on the list published by the Archdiocese of New Orleans. Several other priests named on Friday’s list were subjects of earlier news accounts about their alleged crimes against children and teens.

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.

ALBANY (NY)
New York Daily News

By Kenneth Lovett

Finally, child victims of pedophile priests, rabbis and scoutmasters will be allowed to seek justice.

Gov. Cuomo announced Friday he will for the second year in a row include language to create the Child Victims Act in the state budget he will propose on Tuesday.

But unlike last year, the Republicans are no longer in control of the Senate to block the measure and the Democrats in each chamber have made the issue a top priority.

“There has been a degradation of justice for childhood sexual assault survivors who have suffered for decades by the authority figures they trusted most,” Cuomo said. “That ends this year with the enactment of the Child Victims Act to provide survivors with a long-overdue path to justice.”

Legislative bill sponsors, including in the Assembly, which passed similar bills the past two years, say it could be taken up by the Legislature even before the budget is finalized in the spring.

“It’s not a matter of if we pass the Child Victims Act, it’s when we pass the Child Victims Act, said Senate bill sponsor Brad Hoylman (D-Manhattan). “It’s possible the Legislature could act before the budget.”

Assembly bill sponsor Linda Rosenthal agrees, noting the budget isn’t due to be adopted until the end of March.

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.

NEW YORK (NY)
Irish Central

January 11, 2019

By James O’Shea

Former Irish president Mary McAleese has revealed how Pope John Paul refused to shake her hand when they met and shook her husband’s hand, instead, asking him “would you not prefer to be the president of Ireland instead of your wife?”

McAleese recalled she quickly interjected: “You would never have done that to a male president. I’m the elected president of Ireland whether you like it or not.”

McAleese was speaking at an event hosted by the Irish American Partnership in Boston.

Disgraced Cardinal Bernard Law also tried to intimidate her stating, “I’m sorry for Catholic Ireland to have you as president,” she recalled when they met.

Law brought her to a room where a female right-wing lawyer and theologian Mary Ann Glendon was waiting and tried to brief her on why only men should have positions of power in the Catholic Church.

Read more: Former Irish president Mary McAleese brands Catholic Church “empire of misogyny”

Pope Benedict XVI meets U.S. Ambassador to the Holy See Mary Ann Glendon during a private audience at the Vatican on February 29, 2008. (OSSERVATORE ROMANO/AFP/Getty Images)4
Pope Benedict XVI meets U.S. Ambassador to the Holy See Mary Ann Glendon during a private audience at the Vatican on February 29, 2008. (OSSERVATORE ROMANO/AFP/Getty Images)

She said: “His remarks were utterly inappropriate and unwelcome.

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.

COLLINGSWOOD (NJ)
Philadelphia Inquirer

January 8, 2019

By Jeremy Roebuck

A priest at a Catholic parish in Collingswood, Camden County, abruptly announced his retirement this week and revealed that he had asked to be removed from ministry due to an accusation of sexual abuse — one that a diocesan review board deemed to be credible more than 15 years ago.

The Rev. John D. Bohrer’s decision to resign as administrator of St. Teresa of Calcutta Parish appears to have been prompted by the Camden Diocese’s plan to release a list this year of all its priests who have ever been credibly accused of abuse.

But questions remained as to how Bohrer, 74, had retained his post for years after his accusers’ claims were substantiated in a diocese that has a zero-tolerance policy for clergy misconduct.

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.

HOUSTON (TX)
KUHT Public Radio

January 11, 2019

By Abner Fletcher

Next month, more than a hundred Catholic bishops are expected to meet in Rome for a gathering dedicated to the sexual abuse crisis. In a letter released by the Vatican from the conference’s steering committee, bishops were urged to meet with survivors of abuse. Committee members say the Church’s credibility is at stake.

The upcoming conference comes as the Catholic Church continues to grapple with the fallout of the crisis.

Some bishops have released names of priests in their dioceses who’ve been credibly accused of child abuse. Dr. Anastasiya Zavyalova says it’s a small step in the right direction. She’s an expert on reputation management from Rice University and has been studying allegations against the Archdiocese of Philadelphia for more than a decade.

In 2005, a grand jury issued a report finding leaders concealed sexual abuse by priests there for four decades. Zavayalova has been examining how parishioners reacted to the archdiocese releasing names of the priests involved.

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.

SEATTLE (WA)
Seattle Post Intelligencer

January 11, 2019

By Joel Connelly

The Episcopal Church, lifting a statute of limitations on reporting sexual abuse by clerics, has created a three-year window when any allegation of misconduct at any time can be brought forward to church authorities.

“In short, you do not have to wonder if the allegation comes from long ago,” the Rt. Rev. Greg Rickel, Episcopal Bishop of Olympia, has written in a pastoral letter to be read in parishes and missions across Western Washington.

The General Convention of the church, meeting in Austin, Texas, last summer, passed a resolution amending church canons (laws) and suspending the statute of limitations on reporting misconduct. It created a three-year period, starting Jan. 1, 2019 and lasting through Dec. 31, 2021.

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.

BROOKVILLE (PA)
GoErie.com

January 11, 2019

By Madeleine O’Neill

“You used your position as a man of the cloth to deceive young boys,” victim says of Rev. David Poulson, sentenced in Jefferson County Court.

Rev. David L. Poulson, a former priest in the Catholic Diocese of Erie who pleaded guilty to sexually abusing two boys, was ordered to spend up to 14 years in state prison Friday at his sentencing in Jefferson County Court.

Poulson, 65, received the sentence of two and one half to 14 years of incarceration from Jefferson County President Judge John H. Foradora. The sentence was more than what the prosecution requested.

“These were children who trusted you,” Foradora told Poulson. “These were faithful parents who thought their children would be safe with a priest.”

Foradora quoted from Mark 10:13-16, in which Jesus says the kingdom of God belongs “to the little children.” Fordora also quoted from the Gospel verses in which Jesus said that anyone who would cause a child to stumble would be better off being thrown into the sea with a millstone around his neck.

Fordora also criticized retired Erie Catholic Bishop Donald W. Trautman, whom the judge said left Poulson in ministry. Poulson was forced to resign in February under Bishop Lawrence Persico, who took over as bishop of the 13-county diocese in October 2012.

“I just can’t figure out how anyone in a position of authority would have done that,” Foradora said. “The public was potentially at risk for eight years because of the bishop’s actions.”

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.

Patheos blog

January 11, 2019

By Jane the Actuary

Oh, man, I started the day with the firm resolve to figure out the liability and asset reconciliations in the 2009 Chicago Municipal Employees’ pension report which were defeating me yesterday. (Yes, I spent December writing about multiemployer plans and am spending January with Chicago pension plans and wish there was profit somewhere in it but in the short term figure that as a silver lining I won’t be at risk of having my credibility questioned by being deemed a tool for some interest group or another.) But then I end up writing about the shut-down and immigration, and then came to the conclusions that I really will get back to the original project for the day as soon as I finish up this older draft article that feels newly relevant with the latest news, that is, that Cardinal Wuerl KNEW about McCarrick, or, rather, that his knowledge, that we all pretty much suspected to be the case, is now documented, as reported by the Catholic News Agency yesterday.

And it’s infuriating, as is much of the news about the topic, though I don’t want to recite it all right now; one certainly has the feeling that the upcoming February meeting that’s supposed to formulate a response will be more a matter of defensiveness and bishop/pope-protection and spin than genuine efforts at a solution.

But I’ve tried to slow myself down.

I still gripe about it, yes. I have also come to the conclusion that a meaningful next step I can take at the parish level is either finding a booklet on the existing policies and make efforts to promote it, or else put together such a booklet myself, as an equivalent to what the BSA does, because it seems to me that this should be the norm.

But as to the rest? This is where I hesitate.

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.

WASHINGTON (DC)
WAMU Radio

January 11, 2019

By Natalie Delgadillo

The Archdiocese of Washington has confirmed that Cardinal Donald Wuerl was aware of allegations of abuse and improper conduct by his predecessor, former Washington Archbishop Theodore McCarrick, as early as 2004, despite Wuerl’s public denials that he knew about the accusations.

The Washington Post first reported on the discrepancy from Weurl’s past statements. Robert Ciolek, one of McCarrick’s alleged victims, told the Post that he has reviewed documents that showed Wuerl knew about his allegations of improper conduct and took them to the Vatican in 2004. But after the allegations came to light in 2018, Wuerl publicly said he “had not heard” about them during his years in Washington or “even before that.”

Wuerl was pressured over the summer to step down from his position as Archbishop of Washington after a Pennsylvania grand jury report revealed that he had sometimes worked to reassign alleged abusers in the clergy to different parishes during his time as Bishop of Pittsburgh. The Vatican accepted his resignation, but asked him to remain on the job until his successor is appointed.

The Vatican suspended McCarrick from his position as a cardinal last June after receiving a credible allegation that he had abused a 16-year-old altar boy in New York in 1971 and 1972. McCarrick was the archbishop of Washington—popular, well-respected, and well-liked in the region—from 2001 to 2006. Several new allegations arose against McCarrick in the weeks following, both from men who were minors and adult seminarians when the alleged abuse or harassment took place. One of those men was Ciolek, a former priest himself, who said McCarrick forced him and other young seminarians to sleep in the same bed with him and to exchange backrubs, according to the Post.

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.

YORK (PA)
York Daily Record

January 11, 2019

By Candy Woodall

Harrisburg Bishop Ronald Gainer stood in front of an altar still decorated for Christmas and apologized to priest abuse survivors, and other parishioners, for the Catholic church’s sins of the past.

The abuses and cover-ups that have been publicly reported extend from about 1940 through last year, but the diocese’s safety plans raise questions about whether there are enough protections in place today to ensure children are never sexually abused again.

Gainer spoke Thursday night to about 250 people at Saint Catherine Laboure Parish in Swatara Township near Harrisburg, leading the first of nine listening sessions that will be held throughout the diocese. The final session is the only one that will be held in York County, and it will take place at 7 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 26 at St. Rose of Lima Parish, 950 West Market Street.

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.

BROOKVILLE (PA)
Associated Press

January 11, 2019

A Roman Catholic priest who pleaded guilty to sexually abusing two boys and making one of them say confession after the assaults is set to be sentenced in Pennsylvania court.

David Lee Poulson is one of two priests charged as a result of a damning Pennsylvania grand jury report that named almost 300 predator priests accused of abusing more than 1,000 victims in six of the state’s dioceses.

Court records show 65-year-old Poulson is scheduled to be sentenced at 1 p.m. Friday after pleading guilty in October to corruption of minors and child endangerment.

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.

NEW ORLEANS (LA)
Religion News Service

January 11, 2019

By Mark Silk

Jason Berry is sipping an Old Fashioned in La Petite Grocery, talking about City of a Million Dreams, the splendid soup-to-nuts history that he’s written to mark the 300th birthday of his beloved home town. The deep theme of the book, he says, is “spirit versus law,” and it’s a theme exemplified nowhere more than in the religion of the place.

Take Padre Antonio de Sedella, the Spanish Capuchin known as Père Antoine to the French speakers who dominated La Nouvelle-Orléans in its first century. He arrived as an agent of the Spanish Inquisition and ended up as the city’s leading advocate for the poor and enslaved. Kicked out of the city by the powers-that-be, he returned to the city in triumph, becoming rector of St. Louis Cathedral and running off any bishop who got in his way.

“He was a megalomanic who wanted to be loved by the people at the margins,” Berry says.

Then there was Mother Catherine Seal, a spiritualist healer whose beliefs harked back to the Great Mother cults of prehistory and whose followers came from every race and class. In the 1920s, she established a sprawling complex in the Lower Ninth Ward that took in unwed mothers, abused women.

And Sister Gertrude Morgan, a mystic who believed herself to be both bride of Christ and bride of God the Father. After World War II, she became one of the city’s celebrated folk artists.

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.

[Ezzati and key bishops of the Chilean Episcopal Conference head to Rome to meet with Pope Francis]

CHILE
La Tercera

January 11, 2019

By Carla Pía Ruiz

Desde el Vaticano confirmaron a La Tercera PM el encuentro, que, según informó este viernes la CECh, se realizará este lunes 14.

Será una reunión en el Vaticano a un año exacto de que Francisco visitara tierra chilena. Un grupo de obispos clave de la Conferencia Episcopal chilena (CECh) se reunirá el lunes 14 de enero con el Papa en Roma.

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.

[Chillán diocese extends investigation against priest accused of sexually abusing a minor]

CHILE
La Tercera

January 9, 2019

By Carlos Reyes

El religioso ya enfrentaba una indagatoria por presuntas “conductas impropias al sexto mandamiento”. La diócesis local determinó aplicar las medidas cautelares de “prohibición del ejercicio de todo ministerio público por parte del sacerdote, además de la fijación de domicilio. Asimismo, se le ha apartado de su rol de párroco de Cobquecura”. Además, la información fue remitida a la Fiscalía Nacional.

El obispado de Chillán informó que decidió ampliar la investigación previa que existe contra el sacerdote Jaime San Martín Solís a raíz de una denuncia por presunto abuso sexual contra una menor de edad.

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.

[Exclusive: Vatican opens criminal process in Marists’ case]

CHILE
The Clinic

January 11, 2019

By Alejandra Carmona López

Una vez terminada la primera etapa de la investigación previa, que concluyó en septiembre, los “hermanos” debieron mandar la información al encargado provincial y después tomar una decisión frente a los numerosos testimonios recibidos sobre abusos sexuales cometidos por miembros de la congregación. Sin embargo, aun no hay sanciones. En una fuerte señal desde Roma, que fue notificada ayer a los Maristas, el Papa ordenó promover un proceso penal ante la Congregación para la Doctrina de la Fe.

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.

[Marist Abel Pérez confesses to sexually touching 20 – 30 children in different schools]

CHILE
The Clinic

December 6, 2018

By Jonah Romero Sánchez

En su declaración ante la justicia canónica, el religioso Abel Pérez reveló que las más altas autoridades maristas sabían de su “problemática”, que por años recibió terapia sicológica y que nunca quiso ser religioso. The Clinic accedió al informe canónico –especie de “investigación previa”- que busca acreditar la verosimilitud de las denuncias en contra de éste, el primer religioso marista en ser denunciado en Chile. El informe -que recoge la voz de sobrevivientes, testigos, y la del propio acusado- entrega pistas sobre la formación de una de las redes de pederastía infantil más grandes en la historia del país.

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.

NEW ORLEANS (LA)
The Advocate

January 11, 2019

By Ramon Antonio Vargas

The Diocese of Houma-Thibodaux on Friday named six Catholic priests who admitted or were convicted of sexual misconduct with children as well as three others who faced civil litigation credibly accusing them of molesting minors.

Another five were credibly accused outside of a court setting of “serious and unacceptable conduct with minors, ranging from inappropriate physical contact … to molestation,” bringing the total number of names on Friday’s list to 14, officials said.

The Bishop of Houma-Thibodaux, Shelton Fabre, has sent parishioners a letter offering an apology “for the egregious sins that have taken place.”

“Let me be clear: the abuse of a child by anyone is sinful, abhorrent and evil, particularly when perpetrated by one vested with the sacred trust of God’s children,” Fabre’s letter read. “Furthermore, any attempt to cover up these sins is even more disturbing. I apologize to all who have been harmed. It is with deep respect and profound reverence that I humbly extend this apology.”

Priests Alexander Francisco and Carlos Melendez admitted to inappropriate physical contact with a minor, and Robert Melancon was convicted of raping a child, the diocese said.

Dale Guidry and Lawrence Cavell solicited children for sex, while Guidry was also accused of molesting a minor. Patrick Kujawa was convicted of child pornography possession.

Three other priests were sued over sexual abuse allegations that the church deemed credible: Etienne LeBlanc, Gerald Prinz and Bernard Schmaltz.

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.

WASHINGTON (DC)
Gallup

January 11, 2019

By Megan Brenan

Amid turmoil in the Roman Catholic Church in the ongoing fallout from priest sex abuse scandals, a record-low 31% of U.S. Catholics rate the honesty and ethical standards of the clergy as “very high” or “high.” This marks an 18-percentage-point drop between 2017 and 2018, when more sexual abuse allegations against priests surfaced and questions arose about the Vatican’s response.

Gallup has measured the public’s views about the clergy’s ethical standards since 1977 as part of its broader “honesty and ethics of professions” poll. Initially high ratings of the clergy have been declining steadily among all adults since 2012.

The latest findings, from a Dec. 3-12 Gallup poll, come after a Pennsylvania Grand Jury report in August detailed accusations of sexual abuse involving more than 300 Catholic priests over 70 years. The report indicated that Catholic bishops and other high-ranking church leaders covered up these incidents.

The latest drop in Catholics’ positive views of the clergy’s ethics, from 49% to 31%, is the second double-digit drop since 2004. Both declines were clearly associated with scandals in the Catholic Church even though the question about clergy does not specify a denomination.

Between 2004 and 2014, a majority of Catholics rated the clergy’s ethics highly, but opinions fell sharply between 2014 and 2015. That 13-point drop from 57% to 44% followed the release of a study by the Catholic Church that found more than 4,000 priests had faced sexual abuse accusations in the prior 50 years.

Although Protestants’ ratings of the clergy have dropped since 2004, the decline has not been as sharp, and the latest 48% positive rating of the clergy is much higher than Catholics’. Still, it is the first reading that falls below the majority level among Protestants.

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.

HOUSTON (TX)
Houston Chronicle

January 10, 2019

By Nicole Hensley

The criminal probe into a Houston-area priest is on pace to go to trial, which could become the region’s highest-profile clergy sex abuse case in more than two decades.

The priest’s lawyer, Wendell Odom, made the prediction Thursday afternoon after his client, Manuel La Rosa-Lopez, was rushed out of the Montgomery County courthouse through a back door after a status hearing.

“This is such a high-publicity case, in all probability, I think this case is going to go to trial,” Odom said.

The clergy investigation, which expanded last fall with a fourth search warrant at the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston headquarters in downtown Houston, has produced a hefty load of evidence for authorities to examine. The three prior searches happened at the Shalom Center in Splendora, Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Conroe and La Rosa-Lopez’s most recent assignment at St. John Fisher Church in Richmond.

La Rosa-Lopez last appeared in court in October. He was arrested Sept. 11 on four counts of indecency with a child for claims that he molested a boy and a girl at the Conroe parish from 1998 to 2000.

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.

HARRISBURG (PA)
Patriot News

January 11, 2019

By Christine Vendel

About 250 people attended a town-hall style meeting at a Harrisburg Catholic parish night to hear what their church was doing differently after revelations that thousands of children were molested by priests over decades.

Parishioners asked tough questions at the 7 p.m. meeting at the Saint Catherine Laboure Parish at 4000 Derry Street. It was the first in a series of planned “listening sessions” by Bishop Ronald W. Gainer across the Harrisburg Diocese, which covers 89 parishes.

The Harrisburg Diocese last year was one of six at the center of a grand jury investigation led by Attorney General Josh Shapiro that unearthed widespread clergy sex abuse spanning seven decades, as bishops and church officials turned a blind eye to the crimes.

Some parishioners said they planned to withhold their financial offerings to the church until they felt more trust and saw more transparency from the diocese, said Carolyn Fortney, one of five sisters who were sexually abused as children by the same priest in Dauphin County. All five sisters attended the two-hour meeting.

Patty Fortney-Julius said she thought Gainer spoke from his heart at the meeting but that he remained “disconnected” and still “doesn’t get it.”

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.

WASHINGTON (DC)
NBC Channel 4

January 10, 2019

By Gina Cook

According to new reports, Cardinal Donald Wuerl knew of sexual abuse allegations against ex-cardinal Theodore McCarrick more than a decade ago — despite Wuerl’s statement last summer that he had no knowledge of the allegations.

The Washington Post reports Wuerl reported an allegation of misconduct by McCarrick to the Vatican in 2004.

Robert Ciolek, a former priest who reached a settlement with the church in 2005 for alleged abuse involving McCarrick and other clerics, told the Post the Pittsburgh Diocese has a file that shows Wuerl brought his complaint to a Vatican ambassador.

In a statement to NBC News, the Archdiocese of Washington confirmed that Ciolek “was allowed to review the file regarding his Pittsburgh complaint” and that the “Diocese of Pittsburgh and then-Bishop Wuerl acted appropriately in addressing his complaints.”

“Cardinal Wuerl has attempted to be accurate in addressing questions about Archbishop McCarrick. His statements previously referred to claims of sexual abuse of a minor by Archbishop McCarrick, as well as rumors of such behavior,” the archdiocese said. “The Cardinal stands by those statements, which were not intended to be imprecise.”

Wuerl resigned as archbishop in October amid a storm of criticism after a Pennsylvania grand jury report said he allowed priests accused of sexually abusing children to be reassigned or reinstated when he was the bishop of Pittsburgh.

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.

KANSAS CITY (MO)
National Catholic Reporter

January 11, 2019

by Tom Roberts

Editor’s note: The text of the talks delivered by Capuchin Fr. Raniero Cantalamessa, preacher of the papal household, to the U.S. bishops during their Jan. 2-8 retreat at Mundelein Seminary, outside of Chicago, are available at this link.

Texts of the 11 talks delivered to the U.S. bishops who gathered for a week’s retreat at Mundelein Seminary outside of Chicago show a heavy emphasis on traditional themes, a robust defense of celibacy, a severe criticism of attachment to money and an endorsement of new lay movements as a replacement for declining numbers of clerics.

Franciscan Fr. Daniel P. Horan writes about politics, culture and theology in his new column, Faith Seeking Understanding.

NCR obtained the texts, 84 single-spaced pages, and they can be seen in their entirety here. They were delivered during the Jan. 2-8 retreat by Capuchin Fr. Raniero Cantalamessa, preacher of the papal household.

The talks contain only passing reference to the sex abuse scandal that was the reason behind the unusual retreat, suggested by Pope Francis, and the omission was intentional.

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.

DALLAS (TX)
Dallas Morning News

January 11, 2019

David Tarrant

Dallas police detective David Clark has spent eight years investigating the horrors of child exploitation — a job that still motivates him because he gets to catch abusers, even if it takes years.

“What really gets me is somebody is living their life and thinking they got away with something,” he said.

Now, Clark’s full-time focus at the Dallas Police Department is on investigating sex-abuse allegations — including many that are decades-old — by Catholic clergy members.

The Catholic Church worldwide has been rocked by the latest spate of sex-abuse scandals, prompting dioceses to take new transparency measures. Victims’ advocates, however, still don’t trust the church, and say outside law enforcement officers, like Clark, need to take the lead on the cases.

Clark — the son of a 41-year veteran Dallas officer and detective who retired in 2012 — joined the department in 1998 after graduating from the University of North Texas. His supervisor, Sgt. Rene Sigala, said Clark is “relentless,” and “will not stop until he solves the cases assigned to him.”

Clark said he’s driven to help adults who have survived child abuse.

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.

LYON (FRANCE)
Associated Press

January 10, 2019

A court trying a French cardinal on charges he covered up the sexual abuse of minors by one of his priests will render its verdict on March 7, the judge in the case said yesterday.

Lawyers representing nine adult plaintiffs — former boy scouts allegedly abused by Bernard Preynat, a 73-year-old priest — led the charge against the archbishop, since prosecutors declined to press charges because of the statute of limitations.

The abuse relates to acts committed before 1991.

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.

BALTIMORE (MD)
Associated Press

January 10, 2019

By David McFadden

Maryland’s top law enforcement official on Thursday announced a phone hotline for victims to report child sex abuse associated with a place of worship or school across the U.S. state, which is steeped in Catholicism like few others.

Attorney General Brian Frosh announced the creation of the hotline in Baltimore, home to the country’s first bishop, first cathedral, first diocese and first archdiocese. Unlike counterparts in other states that have formally announced probes into clergy sex abuse, Frosh’s office has only publicly called for victims of abusers linked to schools or places of worship to come forward.

But last year, Baltimore Archbishop William Lori wrote priests and deacons in the archdiocese advising them that Frosh’s office was delving into church records as part of an investigation into child sex abuse. He has pledged full cooperation throughout the process.

Zach Hiner, executive director of the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, or SNAP, praised the launch of the hotline, saying it gives abuse victims a “new avenue to come forward” and name their abusers.

But he said Frosh and Maryland lawmakers needed to do more. Attorneys general have launched investigations in states including New Jersey, New York, Nebraska, Florida and Delaware, and in cities where local prosecutors are looking into individual priests. Frosh’s office does not confirm or deny the existence of any investigations.

“We hope that this hotline will not only lead to more survivors coming forward, but also provide an impetus for the attorney general to open a full investigation and for Maryland’s state legislature to begin reforming their statutes of limitations and opening civil windows for old cases to be brought forward,” Hiner said Thursday.

Liz McCloskey, part of a coalition of Catholics called the 5 Theses movement that has posted its proposals for reform on church doors in Baltimore and other cities, said “allowing the full scope of the sex abuse scandal in the Catholic Church to come to light in every diocese in every state will make room for a measure of healing for its survivors.”

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.

WASHINGTON (DC)
Catholic News Service

January. 10, 2019

By Carol Glatz

By summoning leaders of the world’s bishops’ conferences and top representatives of religious orders to the Vatican in February to address the abuse crisis and the protection of minors, Pope Francis is sending the message that the need for safeguarding is a global issue.

Even though media attention and public fallout for the Church’s failings have focused on a small group of nations, abuse experts and victims know that does not mean the rest of the world is immune from the scandal of abuse or can delay taking action to ensure the safety of all its members.

While Catholic leaders in some countries might not recognize it as a global issue, Vatican offices that receive abuse allegations have a “clear idea about what is the situation now because allegations come from all parts of the world,” said Jesuit Father Hans Zollner, a member of the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors, president of the Center for the Protection of Minors at the Pontifical Gregorian University and a member of the organizing committee for the February meeting.

Because the Catholic Church mandates that all credible allegations of the sexual abuse of minors by clergy must be sent to the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith at the Vatican, “we have one office that has to deal with all of this so, for the time being, we know what are the allegations that come from different parts of the world,” he said.

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.

DUNEDIN (NEW ZEALAND)
Otago Daily Times

January 10, 2019

By Chris Morris

The Catholic Bishop of Dunedin is still not ready to decide on a name change for Kavanagh College, but insists he is ‘‘working quite hard’’ on the issue.

Bishop Michael Dooley was commenting as ODT Insight yesterday asked him for updates on the issues of historic abuse being tackled within the Dunedin diocese and nationally.

Among those issues was a push by survivors, their supporters and a group of former Kavanagh College pupils to rename the Dunedin Catholic college.

Bishop Dooley had delayed a decision in November, despite months of revelations about historic abuse within the Dunedin diocese — much of it under then-Bishop John Kavanagh — a public meeting and a petition.

Instead, he would only say at the time he was ‘‘seriously’’ considering a name change, without giving a timeline.

He declined to give a time-line again yesterday, saying he was still listening to arguments on both sides.

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.

ST. PAUL (MN)
Pioneer Press

January 10, 2019

By Sarah Horner

The Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis continues to meet terms of the settlement agreement it reached with the Ramsey County Attorney’s Office over its handling of clergy sex-abuse, according to court findings.

Ramsey County District Judge Teresa Warner Thursday signed off on the findings of the second of three court-ordered independent audits to monitor the archdiocese’s adherence with the agreement.

The audit, conducted by Stonebridge Business Partners, found the archdiocese to be in “substantial compliance” with the terms of the deal, according to the report released Thursday.

The audit covered the archdiocese’s conduct between July of 2017 and June 30 of last year. The archdiocese was also found in substantial compliance in its first audit report, which was released early last year.

During a court hearing on the second report Thursday, Warner asked the archdiocese’s director of ministerial standards, Timothy O’Malley, if the archdiocese was pushing itself beyond the court’s orders and truly working toward a change in culture.

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.

CHARLOTTE (NC)
Charlotte Observer

January 10, 2019

By Tim Funk

Dozens of Catholic dioceses and religious orders across the country have, in recent months, released lists of priests who have been credibly accused of child sex abuse over the years.

In North Carolina, the 54-county Raleigh diocese published its list in October. But the Charlotte diocese, which includes the rest of the state, hasn’t yet.

The state’s attorney general, Josh Stein, says the Charlotte diocese should follow the lead of the others. “I believe that transparency is important,” Stein told the Observer, “not only for families that came into contact with the named priest, but to restore confidence in the institution itself.”

The Charlotte diocese remains undecided about whether to join that “stampede,” as its spokesman called the big increase in such lists since August. That’s when a Pennsylvania grand jury report shocked many Catholics by identifying nearly 300 “predator priests” in that state going back decades.

Why no list so far from Charlotte?

For starters, said David Hains, who speaks for Charlotte Bishop Peter Jugis, there’s concern that a list might further hurt victims.

“There is no empirical evidence that publishing a list brings comfort or aid to a victim,” he said. “(Some Catholic priests) have obviously done a lot to harm victims. We don’t want to pile on and do more.”

The diocese is also torn about what should and should not be on such a list. “There is no standardized approach,” said Hains.

Should the list include, for example, any deceased priest who was accused after he died? “There’s no way that he can defend himself,” Hains said.

But about 60 percent of the 1,000-plus priests named in lists released since August are dead, according to an examination by the Associated Press.

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.

TRENTON (NJ)
InsideNJ

January 7, 2019

By Tom Barrett

“The trouble is, you think you have time.” -Buddha

In a basketball game if you’re still holding the ball when the shot clock expires, the most jarring noise in the arena, the buzzer, sounds off loud and clear. Known as a turnover, the ball goes over to the other team.

The Catholic Church in New Jersey is losing their match with the faithful. They’ve had more than ample time, decades actually, to do what is right for victims of sexual abuse. Having failed to police itself, the Church must know their time on the shot clock is about to expire.

Otherwise, there is little recourse other than to send in the cops. The same can be said of the New Jersey Legislature.

The New Jersey Attorney General has formed a task force to investigate allegations of sexual abuse by clergy members as well as alleged efforts by church leaders to cover up. To aid their efforts, the abuse cases should be well documented both by the church and the local prosecutors.

The credit for the task force, however, belongs to the Governor, not the Legislature. Legislative leaders, like the Church hierarchy, have had more than ample time to do what’s right.

But, due to the glacial pace of bureaucracies, investigative agencies and legislative bodies the need for justice wears thin.

While it’s now known that New Jersey’s five Catholic dioceses have shelled out more than $50 million dollars in the last ten years to settle abuse cases, that figure doesn’t tell the whole story. That huge sum does not accurately reflect the large amount of money spent by the Church on lawyers and lobbyists to stall legislation and thwart remedies for the abused.

It bears repeating that for the Church it’s no longer about protecting children because that responsibility they clearly know can be ceded to the courts. As for protecting priests, they are now pointing fingers at each other.

The justifiable and high profile case of former Cardinal Theodore McCarrick is a classic example of directing attention to one case while ignoring hundreds of other circumstances of priests and Church leaders gone rogue.

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.

MINNEAPOLIS (MN)
The Catholic Spirit

January 9, 2019

By Maria Wiering

Frank Meuers and Tim O’Malley meet every month or so, often for breakfast, to talk about the Church and clergy sex abuse. Meuers is the southwest Minnesota chapter director of the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, aka SNAP, and O’Malley directs the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis’ Office of Ministerial Standards and Safe Environment.

Since its founding, SNAP has often positioned itself as an adversary of the institutional Church, which is why these meetings — and the men’s resulting collegiality — is so extraordinary. Meuers said he knows of no other SNAP leader with a similar relationship to a Church official.

Meuers, 79, is one of more than a dozen clergy sexual abuse survivors in regular — sometimes daily — contact with O’Malley and his office. O’Malley looks to them for advice and insight into improving and expanding the archdiocese’s outreach to survivors, and he expects that collaboration will broaden and deepen now that the archdiocese’s Chapter 11 bankruptcy case is complete.

During the bankruptcy proceedings, more than 450 survivors filed abuse claims against the archdiocese. While some of those claimants worked with O’Malley’s office during the four-year reorganization process, he had heard that others might be newly open to connecting with the archdiocese after the end of litigation.

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.

ST. LOUIS (MO)
Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests

January 10, 2019

The highest ranking Catholic prelates in New York and Boston are in an apparent rift over clergy sex abuse and cover ups, according to a Catholic news source. We are encouraged by this dispute and hope other bishops will emulate the Boston Cardinal.

Boston Cardinal Seán O’Malley wrote the Vatican’s US nuncio to the US about a credibly accused abusive cleric who was kept on the job in New York for years despite a large settlement paid to one of his victims. In reality, Cardinal O’Malley was really pointing out the misconduct of New York’s Cardinal Timothy Dolan.

The accused cleric in question, Fr. Donald Timone, taught for years at John Paul the Great University in California. Officials there had never been told about the allegations against Fr. Timone in New York, but had been deceptively reassured by the Archdiocese of New York that the priest was “suitable” for ministry.

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.

PARIS
VOA News

January 7, 2019

By Lisa Bryant

Lyon’s archbishop, Cardinal Philippe Barbarin and five other figures are on trial on charges of failing to act against sexual abuse allegations targeting a priest in his diocese. This is the latest pedophilia scandal rocking the Roman Catholic Church before a key Vatican conference on sexual abuse.

The sexual abuse allegations date back to the 1980s and 1990s. They involve Father Bernard Preynat, a priest in France’s Lyon diocese, who has admitted to wrongdoing and is due to go on trial later this year.

But one of country’s most prominent clerics, Lyon’s archbishop Cardinal Philippe Barbarin, is accused of covering up the abuse. If found guilty, he faces up to three years in jail and a $54,000 fine.

Barbarin denies the charges. He says he took action as soon as he found out about the sexual abuse allegations — many years later.

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.

POLAND
Reuters Videos

January 6, 2019

Poland’s rural east is one of the most devoutly Catholic regions in Europe. When the Church’s global sexual abuse crisis struck clergy here, it divided towns into camps of denial, fury, and loathing. Marcin Goclowski reports.

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.

WASHINGTON (DC)
The Washington Post

December 26, 2018

By Michelle Boorstein

In response to recent Catholic Church clergy sex abuse scandals, lawmakers in the District and Virginia say they will soon propose legislation that adds clergy to the list of people mandated by law to report child abuse or neglect.

Both efforts hit at the hot-button intersection of child protection and religious liberty, but lawmakers are expected to give them an open reception at a time when recent sexual abuse scandals in churches and others involving athletes have prompted conversation about broadening legal responsibility to extend beyond positions such as teachers and doctors.

The ideas under consideration by D.C. Attorney General Karl Racine include not exempting confidential conversations for any mandatory reporters, possibly including those that occur in the Catholic Church’s confessional. Texas, West Virginia and a few other states do not exclude the confessional in mandatory reporting laws, but it has been a stumbling block in many other places.

Under D.C. law, anyone 18 or over who knows or has reason to believe that a child under 16 is a victim of sexual abuse is required to report it to civil officials. But the requirements of mandated reporters are more extensive, and Racine is considering taking them much further.

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.

FRANCE
La Croix International

January 8, 2019

By Gauthier Vaillant

Maverick priest Pierre Vignon strongly criticizes the Church hierarchy but praises the pope’s desire for reform

After years spent investigating sexual abuse cases in the Catholic Church, Father Pierre Vignon of Vercors in the Diocese of Valence made headlines across France last August by launching a petition calling for the resignation of Cardinal Philippe Barbarin of Lyon.

Clearly, it was no accident that his new book, Plus jamais ça! (Never again!), co-authored by journalist François Jourdain, was published on Jan. 2, less than a week before the start of Cardinal Barbarin’s trial in Lyon on Jan. 7.

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.

ALBANY (NY)
Times Union

January 3, 2019

By Joseph Dalton

In April 2016, the management and board of the Woodstock Chamber Orchestra were unable to reach their music director, Nathan Madsen. The ensemble, which was renamed the Woodstock Symphony Orchestra last fall, plays just four concerts a year and its final appearance of the season was coming up in May at the Quimby Theater on the campus of SUNY Ulster in Stone Ridge.

When Madsen was hired for the part-time position in 2012, he was working as assistant conductor of the Lubbock Symphony Orchestra in Texas. In 2014 he relocated to Florida, where he was a visiting professor of music and doctoral candidate at the University of Tampa.

Soon enough the Woodstock orchestra leadership found out why they’d lost touch with Madsen. In March 2016 in Tampa, he was arrested on charges of child trafficking and child pornography.

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.

PHILADELPHIA (PA)
Philadelphia Weekly

January 10, 2019

By Andrea Cantor

Pope Francis chastised American Bishops in a complete mishandling of sex abuse by the clergy in a letter penned earlier this month.

“The Church’s credibility has been seriously undercut and diminished by these sins and crimes, but even more by the efforts made to deny or conceal them,” Francis wrote. “This has led to a growing sense of uncertainty, distrust and vulnerability among the faithful.”

Many outlets and critics were quick to note Pope Francis excluded any mention of punishment for those guilty of molestation, including the 301 members of the clergy in Pennsylvania an explosive court filing cited for more than 1,000 incidences of child abuse. Instead, the pope urged the church to internally strengthen and repair itself.

“Let us try to break the vicious circle of recrimination, undercutting and discrediting, by avoiding gossip and slander in the pursuit of a path of prayerful and contrite acceptance of our limitations and sins,” Francis wrote.

One of the people not buying into the words from the pope is Arthur Baselice Jr. He is a father who speaks on behalf of his son, Arthur III, silenced by a fatal heroin overdose in 2006 after years of mental anguish stemming from repeated clergy abuse.

In the mid-1990s, Arthur III was sexually abused by two Franciscan clergyman at Archbishop Ryan High School in Northeast Philadelphia. The perpetrators included the principal Rev. Charles Newman and Brother Regis Howitz, then a maintenance worker at the school.

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.

MONTEREY COUNTY (CA)
KION

January 2, 2019

By Brandon Castillo and Drew Andre

The Diocese of Monterey has released the names of 30 Clergymen who have been credibly accused of sexual misconduct with a child.

According to the Diocese, the assaults go back to the 1950’s.

There have been two allegations received since the Charter for Protection of Children and Young People was put into effect in 2002 and implemented in the Diocese of Monterey in 2003.

The Diocese hired an outside law firm, Paul Gaspari of Weintraub Tobin, to review allegations against church workers.

“The Monterey diocese wants to ensure their people, there is no priest actively administrating in the diocese against whom there is a credible allegation of child abuse,” lawyer Paul Gaspari said.

None of the Clergymen on the list are currently with the Diocese.

The Diocese of Monterey said there have been no credible sexual misconduct allegations raised against a Clergyman since 2009.

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.

MONTEREY (CA)
Salinas Californian

January 2, 2019

By Joe Szydlowski

The Catholic Diocese of Monterey has identified 30 priests and other church officials accused of sexual misconduct with children, including a dozen previously undisclosed names.

The diocese has listed the names of its “priests, deacons, religious men and candidates for ordination (seminarians)” accused since the 1950s in a report on its website to “promote transparency and trust.”

The report notes that the number of allegations fell from six in the 1990s to two in the 2000s. The most recent alleged abuse occurred 10 years ago, the report says.

It points to the Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People — a new set of procedures implemented in 2003 to prevent abuse, improve the investigation process and help victims — for that drop.

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.

Get Religion

January 10, 2019

By Terry Mattingly

The tragic (viewed from the right) and spectacular (viewed from the left) fall of Father C. John McCloskey, a popular Catholic apologist, from Opus Dei, continues to get quite a bit of ink.

Let me stress: As it should.

Before I get to a fascinating update at The Washington Post, let me pause and make an observation, or two.

No. 1: Consider this question: Looking at the American Catholic church over the past two or three decades (and at Catholic life in Washington, D.C., in particular), who was the more powerful and significant player — Father McCloskey or former cardinal Theodore McCarrick?

That’s a bit of a slam dunk, isn’t it?

Now, in terms of doing basic journalism, it appears that it has been easier to crack into the heart of the McCloskey case than it has the McCarrick case. Why is that? Is it accurate to state that Catholic officials linked to the McCloskey case have been a bit more forthcoming than those in the powerful networks linked to the former cardinal? Hold that thought.

No. 2: Over and over, people ask me why clergy sexual abuse stories in Protestant settings — evangelical flocks, in particular — receive so much less mainstream ink than Catholic scandals. There are several reasons for this:

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.

LYON (FRANCE)
La Croix International

January 8, 2019

By Béatrice Bouniol and Céline Hoyeau

Victims of French priest’s sexual abuse accuse six defendants of failing to report him to authorities

On one side of the courtroom, the victims’ faces are lit up by the lights of the cameras. On the other side, Cardinal Philippe Barbarin and his entourage painfully await, shoulders bent, the start of a trial that has attracted the attention of the world’s media.

The confrontation with Diocese of Lyon officials had been long awaited by victims of Father Bernard Preynat, the former scout almoner of Sainte-Foy-Lès-Lyon (Rhône) accused of abusing at least 70 children in the 1970s and 1980s and kept on in his post until 2015. They made it happen through a rare procedure of private prosecution.

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.

VATICAN CITY
La Croix International

January 7, 2019

Prelate involved in managing Vatican property faces diocesan investigation

Allegations of sexual abuse against a bishop from Argentina involved in managing Vatican property and investments are to be handed over to a special commission if credible evidence is uncovered by a preliminary diocesan investigation.

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.

FRANCE
La Croix

January 7, 2019

By Béatrice Bouniol and Céline Hoyeau

Civil plaintiffs aim to prove that the archbishop and his entourage failed in their obligation to report a priest’s sexual abuse

Cardinal Philippe Barbarin and five others will appear before the criminal court of Lyon from Jan. 7.

Over and above the case against Cardinal Barbarin, the victims of Father Bernard Preynat, accused of having abused at least 70 boy scouts from 1970-80, are hoping to advance the debate on the reporting of the sexual abuse of minors.

Archbishop of Lyon since 20002, Cardinal Barbarin is the third bishop in France to answer to the charge of “failure to report the sexual abuse of minors” before a court. Found guilty of the same charges in 2001 and 2018, Cardinal Pierre Pican and Cardinal André Fort were given suspended prison sentences of three and eight months respectively.

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.

CHILE
Reuters

January 2, 2019

By Aislinn Laing

Two victims of sexual abuse by a Roman Catholic Church priest in Chile launched a fresh attack on the country’s bishops on Wednesday, accusing them of failing to reform or learn from the crisis.

Juan Carlos Cruz and Jose Andres Murillo, two prominent victims of the abuse who gave evidence of their ordeal to Pope Francis in Rome, said the pontiff had also acted to slowly in handling the crisis.

Cruz said the Chilean church’s leaders, several of whom face criminal investigation for their roles in allegedly covering up abuse, had failed to follow through on their promises to institute reform.

“What we have in Chile is a veritable band of criminal bishops,” he said. “After visiting the pope, after everything that’s happened, that is happening with civil justice, they have learned nothing.”

Church officials declined to comment.

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.

VATICAN CITY
Reuters

January 3, 2019

By Crispian Balmer

Pope Francis accused U.S. bishops on Thursday of failing to show unity in the face of a sexual abuse crisis, saying internal bickering had to end over a scandal that has shredded the Church’s credibility.

In a long and highly unusual letter sent to U.S. bishops as they embarked on a week-long retreat, Francis said the handling of the scandal showed the urgent need for a new approach to management and mindset within the Roman Catholic Church.

“God’s faithful people and the Church’s mission continue to suffer greatly as a result of abuses of power and conscience and sexual abuse, and the poor way that they were handled,” the pope wrote, adding that bishops had “concentrated more on pointing fingers than on seeking paths of reconciliation”.

Pope Francis has summoned the heads of some 110 national Catholic bishops’ conferences and dozens of experts and leaders of religious orders to the Vatican on Feb. 21-24 for an extraordinary gathering dedicated to the now global crisis.

Victims of clergy sexual abuse are hoping that the meeting will finally come up with a clear policy to make bishops themselves accountable for the mishandling of abuse cases.

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.

UNITED STATES
CBS NEWS

January 2, 2019

Catholic bishops from across the U.S. are gathering Wednesday for a weeklong retreat on the clergy sex abuse crisis at a seminary near Chicago. Organizers said the retreat, which was requested by Pope Francis, will focus on prayer and spiritual reflection and not policy-making.

The gathering comes as CBS News has also learned of several cases involving nuns accused of sexual misconduct. The Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests – or SNAP – said it doesn’t keep count of sexual abuse allegations, but CBS News’ Nikki Battiste has spoken with several women who recently reported misconduct, ranging from forceful kissing to molestation, all carried out by nuns.

When Trish Cahill was 15 years old she said she confided in Sister Eileen Shaw at a convent in New Jersey. Cahill said she told Shaw things she’d never revealed to anyone about her now-deceased uncle – a priest – whom she claims sexually abused her, starting at age five.

“I would have done anything for her. I would have died for her,” Cahill said. “She gave me everything that was lacking that I didn’t even know I was lacking. I was so broken. She filled in all those pieces.”

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.

KURAVILANGAD (INDIA)
The Associated Press

January 2, 2019

By Tim Sullivan

The stories spill out in the sitting rooms of Catholic convents, where portraits of Jesus keep watch and fans spin quietly overhead. They spill out in church meeting halls bathed in fluorescent lights, and over cups of cheap instant coffee in convent kitchens. Always, the stories come haltingly, quietly. Sometimes, the nuns speak at little more than a whisper.

Across India, the nuns talk of priests who pushed into their bedrooms and of priests who pressured them to turn close friendships into sex. They talk about being groped and kissed, of hands pressed against them by men they were raised to believe were representatives of Jesus Christ.

“He was drunk,” said one nun, beginning her story. “You don’t know how to say no,” said another.

At its most grim, the nuns speak of repeated rapes, and of a Catholic hierarchy that did little to protect them.

The Vatican has long been aware of nuns sexually abused by priests and bishops in Asia, Europe, South America and Africa, but it has done very little to stop it, The Associated Press reported last year.

Now, the AP has investigated the situation in a single country — India — and uncovered a decades-long history of nuns enduring sexual abuse from within the church. Nuns described in detail the sexual pressure they endured from priests, and nearly two dozen other people — nuns, former nuns and priests, and others — said they had direct knowledge of such incidents.

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.

BRONX (NY)
New York Daily News

January 9, 2019

By Marco Poggio and Larry McShane

Two Bronx sisters accused a high-ranking Catholic Church official of sexually assaulting them across five years after he was welcomed into their neighborhood as a parish priest.

The allegations were made public Wednesday outside St. Patrick’s Cathedral by Robert Hoatson, president of Road to Recovery, a charity assisting abuse victims and their families.

The older girl was in her early teens and her kid sister just age 7 when the abuse by Msgr. Charles McDonagh began in their home in 1972, according to Hoatson.

McDonagh had just arrived at Our Lady of Refuge, a heavily Irish parish in the Bronx. The priest, who died in 1999, was later promoted to serve as secretary to Terence Cardinal Cooke and his successor John Cardinal O’Connor, spending about six years in the position.

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.

ST. LOUIS (MO)
Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests

January 10, 2019

Earlier this week we learned that Catholic officials in New York and Chicago quietly moved an abusive priest and let him keep working around unsuspecting and vulnerable parishioners, even after paying nearly a million dollars to one of his victims. Making matters worse, those same officials had promised the victim that her abuser, Father C. John McCloskey would be kept away from others.

Yet the Washington Post reports today that, according to the Archdiocese of Chicago, “McCloskey was in fact allowed to minister with no restrictions for years afterward.” In this way, church officials both lied to the victim who they promised to help and then put others in harms way.

For almost 15 years, virtually no one was warned about Fr. McCloskey and the Church lied to at least one of his victims. Apologies are not enough. If these cover ups are to be stopped, complicit clerics must be held accountable. That should start with Fr. Peter Armenio, the man who was responsible for vouching for Fr. McCloskey after settling his abuse claim.

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.