ABUSE TRACKER

A digest of links to media coverage of clergy abuse. For recent coverage listed in this blog, read the full article in the newspaper or other media source by clicking “Read original article.” For earlier coverage, click the title to read the original article.

October 29, 2020

Former Youngstown priest sues diocese for unsubstantiated abuse claims

LIVONIA (MI)
Mahoning Matters

October 29, 2020

By Justin Dennis

William Smaltz, who served St. Edward Parish decades ago, claims the diocese never interviewed him on the abuse allegations the diocese linked to him in 2018. The diocese removed his name from a list of credibly accused clergy more than a year later.

Youngstown – The Catholic Diocese of Youngstown is facing another defamation suit from a former Youngstown priest.

The diocese in October 2018 published former St. Edward Parish priest William Smaltz’ name in a list of diocesan clergy who have been accused of sexually abusing a minor.

The diocese in May removed Smaltz’ name from the list, after it received new information and followed up on the claims against him, and found them to be unsubstantiated.

But Smaltz’ lawsuit, filed Friday in Mahoning County Common Pleas Court, claims the damage to his reputation had already been done.

According to the suit, the diocese did not interview Smaltz on the abuse allegations, which the suit calls “inconsistent and vague.”

“A different priest who was serving at the same parish as Mr. Smaltz has been charged on multiple accounts of sexual abuse/misconduct whose identity the accuser most likely confused with Mr. Smaltz,” reads the suit. “Despite inconsistencies and lack of investigation, the [diocese] claimed that the witness’ statements were credible.”

The suit does not identify the “different 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.

Former Youngstown priest sues diocese for unsubstantiated abuse claims

LIVONIA (MI)
Mahoning Matters

October 29, 2020

By Justin Dennis

William Smaltz, who served St. Edward Parish decades ago, claims the diocese never interviewed him on the abuse allegations the diocese linked to him in 2018. The diocese removed his name from a list of credibly accused clergy more than a year later.

Youngstown – The Catholic Diocese of Youngstown is facing another defamation suit from a former Youngstown priest.

The diocese in October 2018 published former St. Edward Parish priest William Smaltz’ name in a list of diocesan clergy who have been accused of sexually abusing a minor.

The diocese in May removed Smaltz’ name from the list, after it received new information and followed up on the claims against him, and found them to be unsubstantiated.

But Smaltz’ lawsuit, filed Friday in Mahoning County Common Pleas Court, claims the damage to his reputation had already been done.

According to the suit, the diocese did not interview Smaltz on the abuse allegations, which the suit calls “inconsistent and vague.”

“A different priest who was serving at the same parish as Mr. Smaltz has been charged on multiple accounts of sexual abuse/misconduct whose identity the accuser most likely confused with Mr. Smaltz,” reads the suit. “Despite inconsistencies and lack of investigation, the [diocese] claimed that the witness’ statements were credible.”

The suit does not identify the “different 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.

Former Youngstown priest sues Diocese for defamation

YOUNGSTOWN (OH)
WKBN

October 28, 2020

A former priest in the Youngstown Diocese, who was removed from a list of accused sex offenders, has now filed a defamation lawsuit.

William Smaltz claims his name was added to the offender list without a proper investigation.

The suit claims Smaltz has suffered emotional distress since the diocese released the list almost two years ago.

Smaltz was ordained as a priest in 1956 and served the Church for 18 years.

In court documents, Smaltz said he was never interviewed as part of the investigation into the sexual abuse allegations. He maintains that the accuser “likely” confused him with another priest who was serving at the same parish as Smaltz.

On Oct. 30, 2018, the Youngstown Diocese released a list of names to the media that they deemed to be “credibly accused of sexually abusing minors.” Smaltz’s name appeared on that list but was later removed.

Smaltz says even though his name was taken off the list the damage was already done, saying it damaged his character and reputation, according to court documents.

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.

Former Youngstown priest sues Diocese for defamation

YOUNGSTOWN (OH)
WKBN

October 28, 2020

A former priest in the Youngstown Diocese, who was removed from a list of accused sex offenders, has now filed a defamation lawsuit.

William Smaltz claims his name was added to the offender list without a proper investigation.

The suit claims Smaltz has suffered emotional distress since the diocese released the list almost two years ago.

Smaltz was ordained as a priest in 1956 and served the Church for 18 years.

In court documents, Smaltz said he was never interviewed as part of the investigation into the sexual abuse allegations. He maintains that the accuser “likely” confused him with another priest who was serving at the same parish as Smaltz.

On Oct. 30, 2018, the Youngstown Diocese released a list of names to the media that they deemed to be “credibly accused of sexually abusing minors.” Smaltz’s name appeared on that list but was later removed.

Smaltz says even though his name was taken off the list the damage was already done, saying it damaged his character and reputation, according to court documents.

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.

October 28, 2020

Reviled by Catholic leaders, this NJ activist has helped many victims of clergy sex abuse

NEWTON (NJ)
New Jersey Herald

October 28, 2020

By Deena Yellin

As an advocate for survivors of clergy sex abuse and a watchdog of the Catholic Church, Robert Hoatson is accustomed to provoking the wrath of Catholic leaders.

He’s also no stranger to the consequences of his nearly five decades of activism, including being fired from his job, suspended from the priesthood and treated with disdain by church colleagues.

So when Hoatson was recently informed that he’s receiving an accolade for his crusade from a Catholic institution, he was shocked.

“They called me out of the blue and said they now realize I was right and my work is crucial and they’re giving me this honor,” said Hoatson in disbelief.

The West Orange resident will be inducted next month into the Essex Catholic High School Hall of Fame, alongside a roster of some 200 Catholics who were honored for professional achievements and service to their communities.

Hoatson, a 1970 graduate of the school, will join ex-Yankees catcher Rick Cerone (class of 1972) and Martin Liquori (class of 1967), a record-setting runner who competed in the 1968 Olympics.

The Newark-based school, which was sponsored by the Archdiocese of Newark and operated by the Irish Christian Brothers, closed in 2003 but maintains an active alumni group.

“He’s a very courageous person to take on the juggernaut of the Catholic church,” said William Vantuono, one of several alumni who nominated Hoatson for the honor. Vantuono noted that Hoatson protested outside the venue of the school’s alumni dinner to raise awareness of inappropriate conduct by ex-Cardinal Theodore McCarrick, whose name was subsequently removed from the hall of fame.

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.

Reviled by Catholic leaders, this NJ activist has helped many victims of clergy sex abuse

NEWTON (NJ)
New Jersey Herald

October 28, 2020

By Deena Yellin

As an advocate for survivors of clergy sex abuse and a watchdog of the Catholic Church, Robert Hoatson is accustomed to provoking the wrath of Catholic leaders.

He’s also no stranger to the consequences of his nearly five decades of activism, including being fired from his job, suspended from the priesthood and treated with disdain by church colleagues.

So when Hoatson was recently informed that he’s receiving an accolade for his crusade from a Catholic institution, he was shocked.

“They called me out of the blue and said they now realize I was right and my work is crucial and they’re giving me this honor,” said Hoatson in disbelief.

The West Orange resident will be inducted next month into the Essex Catholic High School Hall of Fame, alongside a roster of some 200 Catholics who were honored for professional achievements and service to their communities.

Hoatson, a 1970 graduate of the school, will join ex-Yankees catcher Rick Cerone (class of 1972) and Martin Liquori (class of 1967), a record-setting runner who competed in the 1968 Olympics.

The Newark-based school, which was sponsored by the Archdiocese of Newark and operated by the Irish Christian Brothers, closed in 2003 but maintains an active alumni group.

“He’s a very courageous person to take on the juggernaut of the Catholic church,” said William Vantuono, one of several alumni who nominated Hoatson for the honor. Vantuono noted that Hoatson protested outside the venue of the school’s alumni dinner to raise awareness of inappropriate conduct by ex-Cardinal Theodore McCarrick, whose name was subsequently removed from the hall of fame.

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.

Former priest files defamation suit

WARREN (OH)
The Vindicator

October 28, 2020

By Ed Runyan

Youngstown – Former priest William B. Smaltz of Youngstown and his wife, Noreen, filed suit against the Diocese of Youngstown on Tuesday alleging defamation after the Diocese included Smaltz’s name on a list of priests it called “credibly accused of sexually abusing minors.”

The Diocese released the list to the public Oct. 30, 2018, and various news outlets published articles on it.

In May, however, the Diocese said it was removing Smaltz’s name from the list after further investigation and additional information indicated that the earlier allegations against Smaltz are “no longer deemed to be credible,” according to Vindicator files.

The suit was filed in Mahoning County Common Pleas Court and is assigned to Judge Anthony D’Apolito.

Over his time as priest, Smaltz was assigned to St. Edward Parish in Youngstown, St. Mary Parish in Massillon, Our Lady of Lourdes in East Palestine and St. Mary Parish in Conneaut, the Diocese has said.

The suit states that Smaltz was ordained a priest in 1956 and served in the Catholic Church 18 years. He received dispensation to leave the priesthood and got married. He and his wife had four children, the suit states.

The Diocese conducted an investigation of claims regarding priests sexually abusing minors but failed to interview Smaltz when the accuser “made inconsistent and vague claims concerning him,” the suit states.

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.

Former priest files defamation suit

WARREN (OH)
The Vindicator

October 28, 2020

By Ed Runyan

Youngstown – Former priest William B. Smaltz of Youngstown and his wife, Noreen, filed suit against the Diocese of Youngstown on Tuesday alleging defamation after the Diocese included Smaltz’s name on a list of priests it called “credibly accused of sexually abusing minors.”

The Diocese released the list to the public Oct. 30, 2018, and various news outlets published articles on it.

In May, however, the Diocese said it was removing Smaltz’s name from the list after further investigation and additional information indicated that the earlier allegations against Smaltz are “no longer deemed to be credible,” according to Vindicator files.

The suit was filed in Mahoning County Common Pleas Court and is assigned to Judge Anthony D’Apolito.

Over his time as priest, Smaltz was assigned to St. Edward Parish in Youngstown, St. Mary Parish in Massillon, Our Lady of Lourdes in East Palestine and St. Mary Parish in Conneaut, the Diocese has said.

The suit states that Smaltz was ordained a priest in 1956 and served in the Catholic Church 18 years. He received dispensation to leave the priesthood and got married. He and his wife had four children, the suit states.

The Diocese conducted an investigation of claims regarding priests sexually abusing minors but failed to interview Smaltz when the accuser “made inconsistent and vague claims concerning him,” the suit states.

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.

Former priest who downloaded child abuse imagery jailed

DUBLIN (IRELAND)
Irish Times

October 27, 2020

By Darren Skelton

Oliver O’Grady sentenced to 22 months for viewing video of girl on loaned computer

Defrocked priest Oliver O’Grady was sentenced to 22 months in prison at Waterford Circuit Court on Tuesday after being found guilty by a jury earlier this month of possessing child abuse imagery.

O’Grady had been accused of using a computer that had been loaned to him by a housemate at 21 Otteran Place, South Parade, Waterford, to download a video showing an underage girl being abused.

O’Grady denied the charge, but admitted that the computer was used to search for images and videos of “young boys in underwear”. O’Grady’s main defence had been that he shared the house with many other people and the computer was used in a “common area”. He denied ever downloading or seeing the video.

The prosecution highlighted O’Grady’s activities on the computer to link him to the video. His email account, which was verified with his phone number, had been used to download the video.

He had been searching for items of a religious nature, such as the lyrics to O Holy Night and the Catholic Magnificat at the same time as he was searching for images of “young boys in underwear”.

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.

Former priest who downloaded child abuse imagery jailed

DUBLIN (IRELAND)
Irish Times

October 27, 2020

By Darren Skelton

Oliver O’Grady sentenced to 22 months for viewing video of girl on loaned computer

Defrocked priest Oliver O’Grady was sentenced to 22 months in prison at Waterford Circuit Court on Tuesday after being found guilty by a jury earlier this month of possessing child abuse imagery.

O’Grady had been accused of using a computer that had been loaned to him by a housemate at 21 Otteran Place, South Parade, Waterford, to download a video showing an underage girl being abused.

O’Grady denied the charge, but admitted that the computer was used to search for images and videos of “young boys in underwear”. O’Grady’s main defence had been that he shared the house with many other people and the computer was used in a “common area”. He denied ever downloading or seeing the video.

The prosecution highlighted O’Grady’s activities on the computer to link him to the video. His email account, which was verified with his phone number, had been used to download the video.

He had been searching for items of a religious nature, such as the lyrics to O Holy Night and the Catholic Magnificat at the same time as he was searching for images of “young boys in underwear”.

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.

Derry man who says priest abused him hits out at church probe

BELFAST (NORTHERN IRELAND)
Belfast Telegraph

October 28, 2020

By Donna Deeney

Bishop found there was ‘insufficient evidence’ to support claims dating back 28 years

A man who alleges he was abused by a priest in Londonderry 28 years ago has criticised the Catholic Church’s investigation.

Denis Cairns was just 13 years old when he claims he was abused by a priest attached to the Nottingham diocese.

He has now received a letter from the Bishop of Nottingham, Patrick McKinney, in which the Bishop said he was “unable to reach the required moral certainty” demanded of him after considering the evidence from Mr Cairns and the priest at the centre of his allegation.

Bishop McKinney said: “It is the case that it was impossible to discern the degree of proof that is required, therefore I have decreed that due to insufficient or conflicting evidence no penalty can be applied to (named priest).”

Mr Cairns reported his alleged abuse to the then RUC in 1997, when a file was sent to the PPS. It did not pursue a prosecution on the grounds that it was Mr Cairns’ word against that of the priest he alleged abused him.

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.

Derry man who says priest abused him hits out at church probe

BELFAST (NORTHERN IRELAND)
Belfast Telegraph

October 28, 2020

By Donna Deeney

Bishop found there was ‘insufficient evidence’ to support claims dating back 28 years

A man who alleges he was abused by a priest in Londonderry 28 years ago has criticised the Catholic Church’s investigation.

Denis Cairns was just 13 years old when he claims he was abused by a priest attached to the Nottingham diocese.

He has now received a letter from the Bishop of Nottingham, Patrick McKinney, in which the Bishop said he was “unable to reach the required moral certainty” demanded of him after considering the evidence from Mr Cairns and the priest at the centre of his allegation.

Bishop McKinney said: “It is the case that it was impossible to discern the degree of proof that is required, therefore I have decreed that due to insufficient or conflicting evidence no penalty can be applied to (named priest).”

Mr Cairns reported his alleged abuse to the then RUC in 1997, when a file was sent to the PPS. It did not pursue a prosecution on the grounds that it was Mr Cairns’ word against that of the priest he alleged abused him.

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 abuse trial: Victim petitions to sue pre-seminary and religious group

DENVER (CO)
Catholic News Agency

October 27, 2020

By Hannah Brockhaus

Vatican City – At a hearing Tuesday of an ongoing abuse and cover-up trial against two Italian priests, the Vatican court accepted a request from the victim’s lawyer to sue the institution where the alleged abuse took place, as well as the group which oversees it.

The Oct. 27 hearing was the second in the trial against defendants Fr. Gabriele Martinelli, 28, and Fr. Enrico Radice, 72. Martinelli was charged earlier this month with using violence and his authority to commit sexual abuse over a number of years, and Radice was charged with impeding investigations into the abuse.

The defendants, who have not publicly addressed the accusations against them, were present, together with their lawyers, at the hearing, which lasted three-quarters of an hour.

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 abuse trial: Victim petitions to sue pre-seminary and religious group

DENVER (CO)
Catholic News Agency

October 27, 2020

By Hannah Brockhaus

Vatican City – At a hearing Tuesday of an ongoing abuse and cover-up trial against two Italian priests, the Vatican court accepted a request from the victim’s lawyer to sue the institution where the alleged abuse took place, as well as the group which oversees it.

The Oct. 27 hearing was the second in the trial against defendants Fr. Gabriele Martinelli, 28, and Fr. Enrico Radice, 72. Martinelli was charged earlier this month with using violence and his authority to commit sexual abuse over a number of years, and Radice was charged with impeding investigations into the abuse.

The defendants, who have not publicly addressed the accusations against them, were present, together with their lawyers, at the hearing, which lasted three-quarters of an hour.

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.

Sexual abuse allegations against priest, employee, Vancouver archdiocese

VANCOUVER (BRITISH COLUMBIA, CANADA)
Vancouver Courier

October 27, 2020

By Jeremy Hainsworth

“Culture of entrenched clericalism that enabled perpetrators of sexual abuse:” suit

An unnamed man who alleges sexual abuse by two Roman Catholic priests is suing the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Vancouver (RCAV), a Corporation Sole, the Catholic Independent Schools of Vancouver (CISVA) and the estates of two men.

The John Doe alleges in documents filed in B.C. Supreme Court Oct. 23 that North Vancouver Holy Trinity Parish pastor Father John Kilty, now dead, committed multiple acts of sexual assault and battery on him when he was six.

He further alleges Raymond Clavin, whose status is unknown, committed similar acts. The suit said Clavin was a former Christian Brothers pupil and coach, teacher or employee of CISVA.

“At all times material to the abuse, the RCAV and/or the CISVA were complicit in a culture of entrenched clericalism that enabled perpetrators of sexual abuse to continue to commit their grievous crimes, and wherein witnesses, complainants and whistleblowers were silenced,” the suit 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.

Sexual abuse allegations against priest, employee, Vancouver archdiocese

VANCOUVER (BRITISH COLUMBIA, CANADA)
Vancouver Courier

October 27, 2020

By Jeremy Hainsworth

“Culture of entrenched clericalism that enabled perpetrators of sexual abuse:” suit

An unnamed man who alleges sexual abuse by two Roman Catholic priests is suing the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Vancouver (RCAV), a Corporation Sole, the Catholic Independent Schools of Vancouver (CISVA) and the estates of two men.

The John Doe alleges in documents filed in B.C. Supreme Court Oct. 23 that North Vancouver Holy Trinity Parish pastor Father John Kilty, now dead, committed multiple acts of sexual assault and battery on him when he was six.

He further alleges Raymond Clavin, whose status is unknown, committed similar acts. The suit said Clavin was a former Christian Brothers pupil and coach, teacher or employee of CISVA.

“At all times material to the abuse, the RCAV and/or the CISVA were complicit in a culture of entrenched clericalism that enabled perpetrators of sexual abuse to continue to commit their grievous crimes, and wherein witnesses, complainants and whistleblowers were silenced,” the suit 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.

New Orleans archdiocese seeks laicization for all clergy credibly accused of sex abuse

DENVER (CO)
Catholic News Agency

October 27, 2020

By Kevin Jones

While allegations against two New Orleans-area priests have again raised questions about the Church’s response to clergy misconduct, the Archdiocese of New Orleans has confirmed that for the past two years it has been seeking to laicize clergy who have been removed from ministry for credible reports of sexual abuse.

“In the Archdiocese of New Orleans, very soon after the publication of the 2018 Clergy Abuse Report, conversations began in an effort to seek the laicization of those living clergy that had been removed from ministry for abuse of a minor and this is in process,” Sarah McDonald, communications director at the New Orleans archdiocese, told CNA Oct. 26.

“This is a highly technical canonical process and clergy have canonical rights that must be respected.”

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 archdiocese seeks laicization for all clergy credibly accused of sex abuse

DENVER (CO)
Catholic News Agency

October 27, 2020

By Kevin Jones

While allegations against two New Orleans-area priests have again raised questions about the Church’s response to clergy misconduct, the Archdiocese of New Orleans has confirmed that for the past two years it has been seeking to laicize clergy who have been removed from ministry for credible reports of sexual abuse.

“In the Archdiocese of New Orleans, very soon after the publication of the 2018 Clergy Abuse Report, conversations began in an effort to seek the laicization of those living clergy that had been removed from ministry for abuse of a minor and this is in process,” Sarah McDonald, communications director at the New Orleans archdiocese, told CNA Oct. 26.

“This is a highly technical canonical process and clergy have canonical rights that must be respected.”

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 names new bishop for Roman Catholic Diocese of Springfield

AMHERST (MA)
Amherst Bulletin

October 27, 2020

By Michael Connors

Springfield – The Rev. William D. Byrne, a priest of the Archdiocese of Washington, D.C., was named by Pope Francis on Wednesday as the 10th bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Springfield.

A native of Washington, D.C., Byrne, 56, will replace Bishop Mitchell T. Rozanski, who after six years of leading the diocese was tapped this summer to become the archbishop of St. Louis. The announcement of Byrne’s new position was made in Washington by Archbishop Christophe Pierre, U.S. papal nuncio.

At a news conference Wednesday, Byrne said that when he received the call informing him of his appointment, he realized it was “a profound gift of not just being a bishop, but being a bishop here in western Massachusetts.” Byrne was ordained as a priest in 1994 and has most recently served as pastor of the Our Lady of Mercy parish in Potomac, Maryland.

“And at that moment, I prayed for the people and the clergy, the priests of this diocese, and have continued to do so each and every day as I prepare myself to join you in our new home,” Byrne said. “I prayed also for myself — I prayed that I may be a gift to this local church.”

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 names new bishop for Roman Catholic Diocese of Springfield

AMHERST (MA)
Amherst Bulletin

October 27, 2020

By Michael Connors

Springfield – The Rev. William D. Byrne, a priest of the Archdiocese of Washington, D.C., was named by Pope Francis on Wednesday as the 10th bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Springfield.

A native of Washington, D.C., Byrne, 56, will replace Bishop Mitchell T. Rozanski, who after six years of leading the diocese was tapped this summer to become the archbishop of St. Louis. The announcement of Byrne’s new position was made in Washington by Archbishop Christophe Pierre, U.S. papal nuncio.

At a news conference Wednesday, Byrne said that when he received the call informing him of his appointment, he realized it was “a profound gift of not just being a bishop, but being a bishop here in western Massachusetts.” Byrne was ordained as a priest in 1994 and has most recently served as pastor of the Our Lady of Mercy parish in Potomac, Maryland.

“And at that moment, I prayed for the people and the clergy, the priests of this diocese, and have continued to do so each and every day as I prepare myself to join you in our new home,” Byrne said. “I prayed also for myself — I prayed that I may be a gift to this local church.”

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.

October 27, 2020

Vatican Court Hears Unprecedented Sexual Abuse Criminal Trial

WASHINGTON (DC)
National Public Radio

October 26, 2020

By Sylvia Poggioli

[With audio that is somewhat different from the printed text.]

An unprecedented trial is underway this month at the Vatican, the result of a whistleblower going public.

A young priest is charged with sexually abusing an altar boy over a five-year period inside Vatican City walls. An older priest is charged with covering up the abuse.

It’s the first criminal trial for sexual abuse to take place in the Vatican court.

The first hearing of the trial, held earlier this month, lasted just eight minutes — enough for the Vatican court to hear graphic descriptions of the charges. The alleged victim, identified by his initials, LG, was forced “to undergo carnal acts, acts of sodomy and masturbation at different times and in different places inside Vatican City,” according to charges read out by the court clerk.

The alleged abuse took place from 2007, when the victim was 13, until 2012.

The crime scene is the closed world of the St. Pius X youth seminary, whose residents — some as young as 11 — are known as the “pope’s altar boys.” They serve Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica and are considering becoming priests.

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.

Rosmini College sex abuse: Brother William Jackson groped boys during music lessons

AUCKLAND (NEW ZEALAND)
New Zealand Herald

October 26, 2020

By Elizabeth Binning

An Auckland lawyer and former politician has come out in support of Rosmini sex abuse victim, saying he too was groped by brother William Jackson.

And, the school itself has been contacted by another former student who said they had a similar experience with Jackson, a music teacher at the Catholic school in Auckland during the late 1960s and early 1970s.

The Herald today revealed Jackson, who went on to become a priest but was later stripped of his title, doesn’t remember sexually abusing young boys but apologised for it anyway, saying he believes their accounts of what happened during private music lessons.

But, despite the apology and a police investigation, the 78-year-old who went on to become a priest won’t be held to account in New Zealand because he’s living in England and deemed too old.

One of Jackson’s victims, a man called Tim who received an apology and compensation from the Church, has gone public with his experience in the hope others who suffered in silence for several decades would be encouraged to come forward too.

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.

Slidell priest Patrick Wattigny in St. Tammany jail after molestation arrest in Georgia

NEW ORLEANS (LA)
WWL 4 CBS

October 26, 2020

By David Hammer

https://www.wwltv.com/article/news/investigations/david-hammer/slidell-priest-patrick-wattigny-in-st-tammany-jail-after-molestation-arrest-in-georgia/289-b4f320e8-5186-4e9d-91e2-9159d728e229

The Archdiocese of New Orleans said Wattigny self-reported Oct. 1 that he had abused a teen in December 2013.

A long-time Slidell priest accused of molesting an underage boy between five and seven years ago has been extradited from Georgia to the St. Tammany Parish jail.

Patrick Wattigny arrived Monday evening at the jail in Covington wearing an Archbishop Rummel t-shirt and a mask around 5:40 p.m. after a five-hour drive from the Troup County jail in western Georgia, where he was arrested Thursday as a fugitive from St. Tammany Parish Sheriff’s deputies, who had issued a warrant for his arrest on four counts of molestation of a juvenile.

Wattigny was the pastor at St. Luke the Evangelist Catholic Church in Slidell since 2013 and also served as chaplain at Pope John Paul II High School until he was removed this summer for sending inappropriate texts to a current student.

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.

Ex priest escapes justice: Rosmini College sex abuse investigation – William Jackson admits conduct

AUCKLAND (NEW ZEALAND)
New Zealand Herald

October 26, 2020

By Elizabeth Binning

https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/ex-priest-escapes-justice-rosmini-college-sex-abuse-investigation-william-jackson-admits-conduct/ADC4HCZJYBEAMF2FAPE5KOPDJM/

A former Catholic priest who has apologised for sexually abusing young boys at Rosmini College won’t be charged due to his age and the fact he now lives in England.

William Jackson was questioned by police in 2018 following allegations he abused four boys during his time at the Auckland Catholic boys’ school in the late 1960s and early 1970s.

The former music and religious studies teacher, who was known as Brother Jackson then and went on to become Father Jackson, was sent to New Zealand in 1968 — despite having abused a young boy at a school in Tanzania two years earlier.

The 78-year-old has told police and the Kiwi victims he doesn’t remember touching anyone — but apologised for the “ugly events” anyway.

“I personally have no clear recollection of what happened but I do believe your account of my sexual abuse in your regard,” he said in a letter to one victim last year.

“I feel terrible that you remember me as the cause of your suffering.

“There is little I can do to heal your painful memories, except to deeply apologise for what I did …”

The Church has also apologised for the harm caused by Jackson and paid one victim $30,000 in compensation for his “terrible experience”.

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New lawsuit alleges Catholic priest and teacher raped 6-year-old B.C. boy in the 70s

OTTAWA (CANADA)
CBC News

October 27, 2020

By Bethany Lindsay

A B.C. man who says he was sexually assaulted by a Catholic priest and a Catholic school teacher when he was a boy in the 1970s is the latest to file suit against church authorities in Vancouver.

The alleged victim, who filed a claim in B.C. Supreme Court last week under the pseudonym John Doe, says he was just six years old when he was abused by Father John Kilty and Raymond Clavin in North Vancouver.

In a written statement, Doe alleges the abuse he suffered “included the full spectrum of violations from sexual touching to full blown rape.” He says it has taken him more than 40 years to feel comfortable making these allegations public.

“I cannot find the right words to explain how the sexual abuse that I endured at age six has impacted my life,” Doe said.

“When the most intimate moment of one’s young life is simultaneously the most horrifying and disgusting, there is a suffocation of every authentic experience from that moment onward. The stain of these traumatic events has, and continues to, permeate all facets of my life experience.”

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Revealed: ex-members of Amy Coney Barrett faith group tell of trauma and sexual abuse

LONDON (ENGLAND)
The Guardian

October 21, 2020

By Stephanie Kirchgaessner

[See also Inside the People of Praise, the Tight-Knit Faith Community of Amy Coney Barrett, by Ruth Graham and Sharon LaFraniere, New York Times (October 8, 2020).]

People of Praise hire lawyers to investigate historical sexual abuse allegations as former members speak of ‘emotional torment’

Amy Coney Barrett’s nomination to the supreme court has prompted former members of her secretive faith group, the People of Praise, to come forward and share stories about emotional trauma and – in at least one case – sexual abuse they claim to have suffered at the hands of members of the Christian group.

In the wake of the allegations, the Guardian has learned that the charismatic Christian organization, which is based in Indiana, has hired the law firm of Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan to conduct an “independent investigation” into sexual abuse claims on behalf of People of Praise.

The historic sexual abuse allegations and claims of emotional trauma do not pertain specifically to Barrett, who has been a lifelong member of the charismatic group, or her family.

But some former members who spoke to the Guardian said they were deeply concerned that too little was understood about the “community” of People of Praise ahead of Barrett’s expected confirmation by the Senate next week, after which she will hold the seat formerly held by the late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

Two people familiar with the matter say that more than two dozen former members of the faith group, many of whom say they felt “triggered” by Barrett’s nomination, are participating in a support group to discuss how the faith group affected their lives.

“The basic premise of everything at the People of Praise was that the devil controlled everything outside of the community, and you were ‘walking out from under the umbrella of protection’ if you ever left,” said one former member who called herself Esther, who had to join the group as a child but then left the organization. “I was OK with it being in a tiny little corner of Indiana, because a lot of weird stuff happens in tiny little corners in this country. But it’s just unfathomable to me – I can’t even explain just how unfathomable it is – that you would have a supreme court justice who is a card-carrying member of this community.”

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October 26, 2020

Catholic church needs to continue apology to Indigenous people

SAN RAFAEL (CA)
Marin Independent Journal

October 25, 2020

By Frank Lindh

As a lifelong Catholic and an active parishioner at Saint Raphael Church in San Rafael, I believe it is fundamentally wrong for the civil authorities – or the church authorities – to characterize the pulling down of a Father Junipero Serra statue as a “hate crime” during an otherwise peaceful demonstration on Indigenous Peoples Day.

I am disappointed to read that’s exactly what San Rafael Police Department officials are aiming to do.

In 2006, then-retired Roman Catholic Bishop Frank Quinn celebrated Mass at St. Raphael’s in order to commemorate the founding of Mission San Rafael. During his homily, he offered an apology for the mistreatment of the Miwok people by the Franciscan friars.

Later, Quinn recalled the event. “I’ve studied the Miwoks and I regret that they were treated unfairly,” he told the Catholic News Service in an interview quoted online. “They didn’t expect an apology, so some of the Indians even wept. I looked upon it as a time of reconciliation.”

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Ohio Priest Accused of Sex Trafficking Played Father Figure To Victims, Enabled Drug Addiction

NEW YORK (NY)
International Business Times

October 26, 2020

By Suneeta Sunny

Michael Zacharias, 53, former Ohio priest who was arrested in August 2020, is facing a 10-count indictment with charges that include sex trafficking of minor, sex trafficking of an adult by fraud, and coercion. He has also been accused of sexually exploiting the minors by enabling their drug addiction.

A Federal Grand Jury in Cleveland on Friday handed down Michael, a 10- count indictment. Michael was arrested on Aug. 18, 2020 and has remained in Federal Custody since then. Michael has been accused of engaging in sexual acts and grooming of minors since late 1990s when he was enrolled as a seminarian.

According to the court documents, he continued to abuse victims while he served as a priest at various religious institutions in the Northern District of Ohio and elsewhere.

“This defendant is accused of using his status and position as a religious and community leader to seek out troubled minors and exploit their personal challenges for his own satisfaction,” U.S. Attorney Justin Herdman said in the indictment. He added that the indictment is a step towards serving justice for the victims, families and community harmed by the defendant and his alleged acts.

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Diocese appears for Chapter 11 First Day motions

CAMDEN (NJ)
Catholic Star Herald

October 22, 2020

By Michael Walsh

With the Oct. 1 announcement of filing for Chapter 11 reorganization under the U.S. Bankruptcy Code, the Diocese of Camden appeared for the First Day motions on Oct. 7 at the United States Bankruptcy Court, District of New Jersey, federal court building in Camden in front of Judge Jerrold N. Poslusny Jr.

In court that day were Bishop Dennis Sullivan, Father Robert Hughes, Vicar General of the Diocese, Laura Montgomery, Director of Temporal Services and head of the diocesan Finance Department and attorneys for the Diocese, including those from the law firm of McManimon, Scotland & Baumann, LLC who are representing the Diocese in the reorganization. Also in attendance, in person and via telephone, were attorneys representing sex abuse victims with lawsuits against the diocese.

First Day motions, usually conducted one week after the initial filing, are utilized by organizations seeking financial relief on an expedited basis and typically include, but are not limited to, requests to: maintain existing banking accounts and cash management systems; maintain and set adequate assurance for utility companies; pay prepetition payroll; etc., with admissible evidence to support the request. In the case of the Diocese, the First Day motions were done for just these reasons. All motions and accompanying documents can be found on the PrimeClerk link on the diocesan website: www.camdendiocese.org/reorganization.

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‘People don’t want to talk about it,’ but reports of children being exploited online have spiked substantially

NEW BEDFORD (MA)
South Coast Today

October 24, 2020

By Dustin Racioppi

https://www.southcoasttoday.com/news/20201024/people-dont-want-to-talk-about-it-but-reports-of-children-being-exploited-online-have-spiked-substantially

Trenton NJ – As New Jersey started locking down in the COVID-19 pandemic, a convicted rapist and registered sex offender from Oklahoma named Aaron Craiger stepped off a Greyhound bus in Atlantic City. He had a phone with child sexual abuse materials on it and graphic plans to carry out his sexual fantasies with two 11- and 12-year-old girls.

Instead, Craiger was met on March 18 by undercover law enforcement in a four-month sting that led to the arrests of 19 men, one woman and one juvenile male accused of sexually exploiting children online.

While the world has battled the health and economic effects of the coronavirus, another global issue has raged in tandem with little notice — and without the additional money and resources needed to effectively battle it, experts said. Online child abuse and exploitation, already one of the biggest and growing crime challenges nationally, has spiked as COVID-19 has forced more people indoors with abusers and children spending more time on the internet.

The increase in reports tracks in the United States and abroad during the pandemic, experts said. Tips to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, the clearinghouse for such information in the United States, nearly doubled from 6.3 million in the first half of 2019 to 12 million through June of this year. Reports of online enticement similarly spiked during that timeframe, from 6,863 to 13,268.

“Online child exploitation right now is probably one of the biggest problems, from a crime perspective, in our country,” Pizzuro said.

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Survivor group slams Fresno Catholic churches for withholding names of accused priests

FRESNO (CA)
Fresno Bee

October 26, 2020

By Yesenia Amaro

It remains unknown when the Roman Catholic Diocese of Fresno may release its list of credibly accused priests of sexual misconduct two years after it began to ponder what to release to the public.

An advocacy organization says the diocese is stalling the release of names of accused priests because it doesn’t want to encourage more lawsuits from victims. The diocese would not comment on that claim.

Almost all dioceses in California released their lists, naming credibly accused priests, in 2018 and 2019, but the Diocese of Fresno has yet to share that information with the public. The Archdiocese of San Francisco is the only other entity that has not released that information.

In September 2018, former Bishop Armando X. Ochoa began to work with a review board to determine what information the Diocese of Fresno would make public. In February 2019, officials announced the diocese had hired Kinsale Management Consulting to review records going back to the 1950s — as other dioceses in the state did — before it could release any information.

At the time, a diocese official said the names of priests accused of sex crimes would be released within a year, which would have been in early 2020.

Cheryl Sarkisian, chancellor at the Diocese of Fresno, last week said the investigation “is a work in progress.” She would not say how much longer the investigation is expected to take to be completed or what is delaying it.

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Beyond ‘Moviegate,’ deep questions remain on Vatican’s China gamble

DENVER (CO)
Crux

October 25, 2020

By John L. Allen Jr.

Rome – Almost 75 years ago, Arnold Toynbee described what historians are trying to find as they scour the past in his book Civilization on Trial:

The things that make good headlines are on the surface of the stream of life, and they distract us from the slower, impalpable, imponderable movements that work below the surface and penetrate to the depths. But it’s really these deeper, slower movements that make history, and it is they that stand out huge in retrospect, when the sensational passing events have dwindled, in perspective, to their true proportions.

If ever there was a week on the Vatican beat to perfectly capture that contrast, this has been it. Two storylines are fighting it out to dominate Vatican coverage, and so far it’s no contest: A media frenzy over manipulation and censorship of a few seconds of papal verbiage on civil unions in a new documentary has overwhelmed the Vatican and China renewing their deal on the appointment of bishops for another two years.

Care to guess, 100 years from now, which of those two developments will seem a “sensational passing event” and which a “deeper, slower movement that makes history”? And the kicker is that arguably, both stories reflect the same defining instinct of Pope Francis.

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Archbishop Wilton Gregory, who slammed Trump, to become first African American cardinal

McLEAN (VA)
USA Today

October 25, 2020

By John Bacon

The Washington, D.C., archbishop who slammed President Donald Trump’s visit to a Roman Catholic shrine in the city will become the first African American cardinal, the Vatican announced Sunday.

Archbishop Wilton Daniel Gregory, 72, is one of 13 men who will assume the rank of cardinal in ceremonies Nov. 28. Cardinals rank only behind the pope in church hierarchy, and together they vote to elect popes. Cardinals wear red to signify their willingness to shed blood in service of the church.

“With a very grateful and humble heart, I thank Pope Francis for this appointment which will allow me to work more closely with him in caring for Christ’s Church,” Gregory said in a statement.

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Pope Francis Appoints First African-American Cardinal

NEW YORK (NY)
New York Times

October 25, 2020

By Elizabeth Dias and Jason Horowitz

Wilton Gregory, the archbishop of Washington, was among 13 new cardinals named on Sunday.

Washington – Pope Francis on Sunday named Wilton Gregory, the archbishop of Washington, a cardinal, elevating the first African-American to the Catholic church’s highest governing body, a groundbreaking act in a year when demands for racial justice have consumed the country.

The rise of Archbishop Gregory, who is also the first American named to the College of Cardinals since 2016, comes as debates over how to address the legacy of slavery and racism have extended to the Catholic church, which for centuries excluded African Americans from positions of power.

“By naming Archbishop Wilton Gregory as a Cardinal, Pope Francis is sending a powerful message of hope and inclusion to the Church in the United States,” Archbishop José H. Gomez, the president of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, said in a statement.

The move is the latest sign that, seven years into his papacy, Pope Francis continues to redirect the church toward greater acceptance of those on the margins. He has worked to diversify the College of Cardinals, center the poor and migrants and warned of the threat of climate change. Last week Pope Francis expressed support for same-sex civil unions, staking out new ground for the church’s recognition of gay people.

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The Rise of Wilton Gregory, the First African-American Cardinal

NEW YORK (NY)
New York Times

October 25, 2020

By Christina Morales

Archbishop Gregory led the U.S. Roman Catholic Church’s response to its sexual abuse crisis and more recently has pushed for better race relations in the church. Here is what we know about him.

Wilton Gregory, the archbishop of Washington, D.C., and a leader of the U.S. Roman Catholic Church’s response to its sexual abuse crisis, was among 13 new cardinals that Pope Francis announced on Sunday. The move positions Archbishop Gregory, 72, to become the first African-American cardinal next month.

He has been a national figure since 2002, when, as president of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, he presided over the adoption of a zero-tolerance policy toward priests guilty of sexual abuse. He was elevated from his position as the bishop of Belleville, Ill., to lead the Archdiocese of Atlanta in 2005 before Francis installed him in Washington last year.

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Black D.C. archbishop’s rise marks a historic moment

WASHINGTON (DC)
Associated Press

October 26, 2020

By Elana Schor

Washington D.C. Archbishop Wilton Gregory is set to become the first Black U.S. prelate to assume the rank of cardinal in the Catholic Church, a historic appointment that comes months after nationwide demonstrations against racial injustice.

Gregory’s ascension, announced on Sunday by Pope Francis alongside 12 other newly named cardinals, elevates a leader who has drawn praise for his handling of the sexual abuse scandal that has roiled the church. The Washington-area archbishop also has spoken out in recent days about the importance of Catholic leaders working to combat the sin of racial discrimination.

The 72-year-old Gregory, ordained in his native Chicago in 1973, took over leadership of the capital’s archdiocese last year after serving as archbishop of Atlanta since 2005. The ceremony making his elevation official is slated for Nov. 28.

“With a very grateful and humble heart, I thank Pope Francis for this appointment which will allow me to work more closely with him in caring for Christ’s Church,” Gregory said in a statement issued by the archdiocese.

Gregory helped shape the church’s “zero tolerance” response to the sexual abuse scandal while serving as president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops from 2001 to 2004. During that period, the bishops adopted a charter designed to govern its treatment of sexual abuse allegations made by minor children against priests. The church’s efforts since 2004 have helped achieve a sharp reduction in child-sex abuse cases. But some abuse continues to occur, and the church’s procedures for addressing abuse continue to incur criticism from those who feel there’s a lack of consistency and transparency.

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October 25, 2020

Australian police not investigating Vatican money transfer

CANBERRA (AUSTRALIA)
Associated Press

October 22, 2020

By Rod McGuirk

Australian state police said Friday they’re not investigating the transfer of money from the Vatican to Australia, throwing doubt on Italian media speculation that it might be linked to the overturned convictions of Cardinal George Pell for child sex abuse.

Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera speculated in recent weeks that Vatican investigators were looking into whether Pell’s nemesis at the Holy See, ousted Cardinal Angelo Becciu, wired 700,000 euros ($823,000) in Vatican money to a bank account in Australia, and whether that money was tied to Pell’s sex abuse trial.

Victoria Police, which in 2017 charged Pell with child sex abuse, said the Australian intelligence agency responsible for detecting international financial crime, AUSTRAC, had confirmed that Vatican money had been wired to Australia.

But AUSTRAC had “not advised Victoria Police of any suspicious activity related to these transactions,” the police department said.

“In the absence of any other evidence or intelligence, Victoria Police has noted the advice from AUSTRAC. We are not at this time conducting any further investigation,” a police statement said.

But it does not rule out criminality or corruption in the money transfers.

Australian Federal Police said Wednesday it was “undertaking a review of the relevant information” provided by AUSTRAC. A review of evidence is a preliminary step toward an official criminal investigation.

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French cases lead Focolare to promise investigation of handling abuse claims

WASHINGTON (DC)
Caholic News Service via National Catholic Reporter

October 22, 2020

By Cindy Wooden

The president of Focolare has accepted the resignations of the lay movement’s top leaders in France and announced the group will ask an independent committee to investigate how allegations of the sexual abuse of minors have been handled.

“The task of this body will be to listen to the presumed victims and to gather further testimonies, as well as investigating eventual omissions, cover-ups or silence on the part of those responsible for the movement,” said a statement released Oct. 22 by the Focolare movement, which is headquartered outside of Rome.

“In the interest of the completeness of the investigation and to guarantee full transparency,” the statement said, Maria Voce, president of Focolare, accepted the resignations Oct. 21 of Bernard Brechet and Claude Goffinet, co-leaders of the Focolare movement in France, and of Henri-Louis Roche, leader of the movement’s Western Europe region.

In 2016, the Focolare movement dismissed a consecrated member of the group, identified only as JMM.

A young woman had alleged in 1994 that JMM had raped and sexually molested her in 1981 and 1982 when she was 15 and 16. The Focolare movement said they relieved JMM of his “responsibilities regarding young people” when the allegations were made.

In 1998, in a civil court case, he admitted to molesting her and was ordered to pay damages. He did not admit to raping her.

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Pope announces a consistory for the creation of 13 new cardinals

VATICAN CITY
Vatican News

October 25, 2020

On 28 November, there will be 13 new additions to the College of Cardinals: 9 are under 80 years of age, among them is the Guardian of Sacro Convento in Assisi, Father Mauro Gambetti.

The Church will have thirteen new Cardinals. Nine of them are younger than 80 and therefore, have the right to participate in a future conclave. Four others are older than 80 years of age. Pope Francis’s announcement came as a surprise, after the recitation of the Angelus of Sunday, 25 October. He communicated the news regarding the creation of the new cardinals to the faithful present in St Peter’s Square as well as to those connected throughout the world.

Two of the new Cardinals work in the Roman Curia: the Secretary General of the Synod of Bishops, Maltese Mario Grech and the Italian Marcello Semeraro, former Bishop of Albano and the new Prefect for the Congregation of the Causes of Saints.

Six other pastors in the Church throughout the world are joining them: the Archbishop of Kilgali, Rwanda, Antoine Kambanda; the Archbishop of Washington, United States, Wilton Gregory; the Archbishop of Capiz, in the Philippines, Jose Fuerte Advincula; the Archbishop of Santiago, Chile, Celestino Aós Braco; the Apostolic Vicar of Brunei, Cornelius Sim; the Archbishop of Siena, Italia, Augusto Paolo Lojudice.

In addition, the Pope has also appointed the current Guardian of the Franciscan Sacro Convento in Assisi, Mauro Gambetti.

To these Cardinals who are younger than 80 years of age, Pope Francis has also added four other Cardinals who are older than 80. They are: Felipe Arizmendi Esquivel, Archbishop Emeritus of San Cristóbal de Las Casas (Mexico); former Apostolic Nuncio Silvano Tomasi, former permanent observer at the United Nations in Geneva who then worked in the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development; Capuchin Father Raniero Cantalamessa, preacher of the Papal Household; and the pastor of the Shrine of Divine Love, Father Enrico Feroci.

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Francis names 13 new cardinals, including Washington’s Archbishop Gregory

KANSAS CITY (MO)
National Catholic Reporter

October 25, 2020

By Joshua J. McElwee

Rome – Pope Francis named 13 new Catholic cardinals Oct. 25, including two Vatican officials; archbishops in Rwanda, the Philippines and Chile; and Washington, D.C. Archbishop Wilton Gregory.

In an unexpected announcement at the end of the pontiff’s traditional Angelus prayer, the pontiff said he would install the new cardinals during a consistory at the Vatican Nov. 28 — setting the stage for an unusual and possibly unprecedented ceremony, held during the midst of a continuing global pandemic.

Gregory, who has served as the archbishop of Washington since May 2019, will be the fourth American cardinal created by Francis, following Chicago’s Blase Cupich, Newark’s Joseph Tobin and Kevin Farrell, the prefect of the Vatican’s Dicastery for Laity, Family and Life.

Five of the other new cardinals named lead global dioceses: Kigali, Rwanda Archbishop Antoine Kambanda; Capiz, Philippines Archbishop Jose Advincula; Santiago, Chile Archbishop Celestino Aos Braco; Brunei Apostolic Vicar Bishop Cornelius Sim; and Siena, Italy Archbishop Augusto Paolo Lojudice.

The two Vatican officials named cardinals were Bishop Mario Grech, the new head of the Vatican’s office for the Synod of Bishops; and Bishop Marcello Semeraro, who has replaced the disgraced Cardinal Angelo Becciu as the head of the Vatican’s sainthood office.

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Findlay priest faces 10-count indictment, including sex trafficking of a minor

TOLEDO (OH)
WTOL

October 23, 2020

By Jenson Strock

Michael Zacharias, 53, is accused of exploiting the drug addiction of minor victims by paying for their habits in exchange for alleged sex acts.

Fndlay OH – A former Findlay priest is the subject of a 10-count indictment, facing charges that include sex trafficking of minor, sex trafficking of an adult and minor by force, fraud and coercion.

The indictment was handed down by a federal grand jury in Cleveland on Friday against Michael J. Zacharias, 53. He was arrested on Aug. 18 and has since remained in federal custody.

“This defendant is accused of using his status and position as a religious and community leader to seek out troubled minors and exploit their personal challenges for his own satisfaction,” U.S. Attorney Justin Herdman said. “This indictment is a step toward finding justice for the victims, families and community harmed by the defendant and his alleged acts.”

According to court documents, from approximately 1999 to July 2020, Zacharias is accused of sex trafficking of a minor victim and using force, fraud or coercion to sexually traffic other minors and adults.

During this time, he was enrolled as a seminarian and served as a priest at various religious institutions in the Northern District of Ohio.

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Findlay Priest, Zacharias Indicted for Sex Trafficking

JACKSON TOWNSHIP (NJ)
Shore News

October 24, 2020

Findlay OH – U.S. Attorney Justin Herdman announced today that a federal grand jury sitting in Cleveland has returned a 10-count indictment charging Michael J. Zacharias, age 53, with sex trafficking of a minor and sex trafficking of an adult and minor by force, fraud, or coercion. The defendant was arrested on August 18, 2020, and has remained in federal custody since that time.

“This defendant is accused of using his status and position as a religious and community leader to seek out troubled minors and exploit their personal challenges for his own satisfaction,” said U.S. Attorney Justin Herdman. “This indictment is a step towards finding justice for the victims, families and community harmed by the defendant and his alleged acts.”

“Michael Zacharias used his respected position to prey on and take advantage of youth and adults for his own sexual gratification,” said FBI Special Agent in Charge. “We must hold accountable to the fullest extent of the law those who violate their sacred trust to molest and harm our children.

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Clergy abuse

SALINA (KS)
Diocese of Salina

October 21, 2019

It recently has come to our attention that a priest, Fr. Ed Prather (deceased – date of death: November 26, 1996), from the Archdiocese of Oklahoma City, had several credible allegations of sexual misconduct with minors. Fr. Prather did not have ministerial faculties to participate in ministry in the Diocese of Salina. However, he did reside in the parish rectory at St. Edward Parish in Belleville, Kansas for approximately one (1) year and Immaculate Heart of Mary Parish in Hays, Kansas for one (1) summer. Although Fr. Prather is currently on the Archdiocese of Oklahoma City’s “list of priests with credible accusations” there have been no allegations received while he resided in the Diocese of Salina.

If anyone has any information concerning inappropriate sexual behavior concerning Fr. Prather while he resided in the Diocese of Salina, please contact the Kansas Protection Report Center at 1-800-922-5330 and/or the KBI Crime Hotline at 1-800-572-7463 and/or the Office of Safety and Security for the Diocese of Salina on the Diocese of Salina’s website by either submitting an abuse report online or call the diocesan report abuse hotline (785) 825-0865 or email your abuse report to – reportabuse@salinadiocese.org. All reports received by the Office of Safety and Security for the Diocese of Salina concerning abuse of minors are immediately reported to law enforcement and the Department of Children and Families.

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The Pope and Pell: ‘One of the most fascinating relationships in Rome’

LONDON (ENGLAND)
The Guardian

October 24, 2020

By Andrew West

The Pope is understood to have believed in Cardinal George Pell’s innocence of child sexual abuse charges. But their different visions of the Catholic church puts a limit of their alliance

Suddenly, it seems, George Pell is everywhere. Freed from a Melbourne jail in April after the high court unanimously quashed his conviction for child sexual abuse, the cardinal joined the rest of the country in house-bound isolation as the first wave of Covid-19 hit.

But by July the man who was once No 3 in the Vatican hierarchy was dining with the former prime minister Tony Abbott in a Sydney club. And in late September, he returned to Rome, three years after taking leave from his job as the head of Vatican finances to answer the charges in Melbourne.

On 12 October, Pell had a reportedly friendly, half-hour meeting with Pope Francis, and last weekend he celebrated mass on the 10th anniversary of the canonisation of Australia’s first saint, Mary McKillop. Abbott was in the front pew.

Close by was a former speaker of the US House of Representatives, Newt Gingrich, whose wife is ambassador to the Holy See. The presence of the Gingrich couple is significant because they represent Catholics in the US who have long considered Pell a champion of their orthodox style and theology.

Do not be surprised at more photographs from Rome of Pell presiding at mass, perhaps meeting old Vatican colleagues – basically doing what one might expect of a cardinal in semi-retirement.

But Pell has returned to a Rome gripped by an extraordinary conspiracy theory. A former Vatican official and Pell adversary, Cardinal Angelo Becciu, allegedly funnelled money – a reported $1.1m – to sources in Australia in an attempt to secure Pell’s conviction.

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Fr Frank’s Homily

PARRAMATTA (NEW SOUTH WALES, AUSTRALIA)
Catholic Outlook – Diocese of Parramatta

October 24, 2020

By Fr Frank Brennan SJ

Today is the National Day of Sorrow and Promise, when we hold the victims of child sexual abuse in our church front and centre acknowledging our sin, weeping in the name of our Church, and begging forgiveness for the wrong we have done. We hope to sow seeds of peace walking alongside those wanting to invite us to accompany them on their journey of truth, justice and healing. Understanding those who would not want us to accompany them on such a journey, we hold them silently in prayer.

What can any priest say on such a day, seeking to break open the word of today’s Gospel where Jesus makes love of God and love of neighbour inseparable, telling us that “on these two commandments hang the whole law, and the Prophets also?” In Matthew’s Gospel, Jesus constantly returns to this idea of the law and the Prophets being fulfilled in one. During the Sermon on the Mount, he had said, “So always treat others as you would like them to treat you; that is the meaning of the Law and the Prophets.” (7:12) What can any of us who lived an ideal childhood oblivious to any abuse happening in our church or society say or do, seeking to treat those who have suffered abuse as we would like them to treat us?

First, we must listen. And even though we’ve now had years of revelations with commissions of inquiry and raised public awareness, there’s still a lot of listening we need to do, particularly when it comes to the spiritual violence and hurt caused by a priest violating a child, when the child has nowhere to turn, thinking that parents would find even the suggestion of violation an impossible abomination. Much has changed and for the better, hopefully reducing the prospect of future abuse. But the pain, suffering, destruction and spiritual desolation of past abuse remains.

Recently, a survivor, Wendy Holder reached out to me. One of her brothers is an alumnus of Newman College. Wendy suffered the most appalling abuse by not one, but two priests – first when she was aged 12, having moved interstate at a time of great vulnerability and need for pastoral care after the death of her brother, and then when she was transitioning to university. She is a psychologist. She is on a journey beginning “to understand the impact of child sexual abuse by religious people on a child’s spiritual development, and the resultant damage to their adult spiritual formation.” She found sanctuary at Mary MacKillop Place during Easter 2018 and then a couple of times at the Benedictine Abbey at Jamberoo the following year. Thank God for such sanctuaries where religious women can provide a haven amidst the wonders of creation. Wendy published her reflections of her visits to MacKillop Place and the Jamberoo Abbey: Poetry of a Survivor.

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Scouts’ abuse claims may become largest case against a single national organization

McLEAN (VA)
USA Today

October 23, 2020

By Rachel Axon and Cara Kelly

As a Nov. 16 deadline looms for abuse survivors to come forward to make claims in the Boy Scouts of America bankruptcy, a judge’s ruling could allow the case to become the largest-ever child sexual abuse case against a single national organization.

Late last week, U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Laurie Selber Silverstein allowed the Coalition of Abused Scouts for Justice to join mediation discussions, giving a group representing 28,000 clients a say in any future settlement agreement.

So far, 7,300 victims represented by the 10 law firms in the coalition have signed consent forms allowing the attorneys to negotiate on their behalf. More are expected to sign before the November deadline to file proof of their allegations.

That means tens of thousands of victims, who are considered creditors in the bankruptcy proceeding, could vote on any future settlement with the Boy Scouts.

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Thousands file sexual abuse claims against Boy Scouts as deadline in bankruptcy looms

LOS ANGELES (CA)
Los Angeles Times

October 22, 2020

By Kim Christensen

Faced with a looming deadline next month, thousands of accusers have submitted sexual abuse claims against the Boy Scouts of America in a bankruptcy that could cost the youth organization and its insurers hundreds of millions of dollars — or more.

The Scouts, which filed for Chapter 11 protection in February amid declining membership and an onslaught of new abuse lawsuits, will not say how many claims have been submitted to the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Delaware.

But some plaintiffs’ lawyers say claims continue to pour in, predicting that tens of thousands will meet the Nov. 16 deadline. The massive response, they say, suggests a far broader abuse problem in Scouting than has been previously recognized and could drastically reshape the 110-year-old youth group.

“When this bankruptcy is finally resolved, the Boy Scouts will not be the same Boy Scouts of America,” said Paul Mones, a Los Angeles attorney who sits on a committee in the bankruptcy proceedings that represents victims.

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Pope appoints America’s first African American cardinal, D.C.’s Wilton Gregory

WASHINGTON (DC)
Washington Post

October 25, 2020

By Chico Harlan

Rome – Pope Francis announced on Sunday that he would name Washington’s archbishop, Wilton Gregory, a cardinal next month, making him the first African American to earn such a title.

Gregory will be one of the 13 cardinals in the new class, a promotion that comes at a time when he is also trying to rebuild trust in an archdiocese rocked by sexual abuse cases.

The move was widely anticipated, as Washington archbishops are typically named as cardinals after their appointments. But it is nonetheless symbolically significant in the U.S. Catholic Church, where Blacks have been underrepresented among the leadership.

Gregory was appointed as Washington’s archbishop last year, taking over for Cardinal Donald Wuerl, who had been accused of mishandling clerical abuse cases.

Gregory, 72, will be eligible to vote for the next pope until he reaches the cutoff age of 80. Francis announced the names of his new cardinals while speaking from a window overlooking St. Peter’s Square, where he delivers his Sunday Angelus. The Vatican said the ceremony to name the new cardinals would take place Nov. 28, though it is unclear if tightening coronavirus restrictions in Italy might interfere.

Among the other new cardinals, four are already over the age of 80, according to the Vatican. The new cardinals include Marcello Semeraro, an Italian who was recently appointed as the head of the church’s saint-making body, and the archbishop of Kigali, Rwanda, Antoine Kambanda.

Gregory has long been among the foremost Catholic leaders in the United States, having lead the national conference of Catholic bishops in the early-2000s, when it was making its first attempt to draw up anti-abuse guidelines. Gregory had been the archbishop of Atlanta before coming to Washington.

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Pope names 13 new cardinals, includes WDC Archbishop Gregory

VATICAN CITY
Associated Press

October 25, 2020

By Frances D’Emilio

Pope Francis on Sunday named 13 new cardinals, including Washington D.C. Archbishop Wilton Gregory, who would become the first Black U.S. prelate to earn the coveted red hat.

In a surprise announcement from his studio window to faithful standing below in St. Peter’s Square, Francis said the churchmen would be elevated to a cardinal’s rank in a ceremony on Nov. 28.

Other new cardinals include an Italian who is the long-time papal preacher at the Vatican, the Rev. Raniero Cantalamessa, a Franciscan friar; the Kigali, Rwanda, Archbishop Antoine Kambanda; the Capiz, Philippines, Archbishop Jose Feurte Advincula, and the Santiago, Chile, Archbishop Celestino Aos.

Another Franciscan who was tapped is Friar Mauro Gambetti, in charge of the Sacred Convent in Assisi. The pope, when elected in 2013, chose St. Francis of Assisi as his namesake saint, and earlier this month, the pontiff journeyed to that hill town in Umbria to sign an encyclical, or important church teaching document, about brotherhood.

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The Catholics Who Hate Joe Biden—And Pope Francis

WASHINGTON (DC)
The Atlantic

October 21, 2020

By Tish Durkin

Some of Trump’s most committed Catholic supporters have leveled dark charges against Biden as they battle to sway the vote in crucial swing states. And wait until you hear what they think of the pope.

Joe Biden or Donald Trump: Who’s the better Catholic? If this seems like an odd question to raise in the context of a race for the highest secular office in America—and a race in which one of the two candidates is Protestant—never mind. Both campaigns, and their surrogates, are hotly contesting the answer.

The ex–Notre Dame football coach Lou Holtz slammed Biden as a “Catholic in name only” in his appearance at the Republican National Convention.

“President Trump is ignoring Catholic teachings on care for the Earth, feeding the hungry, welcoming the immigrant,” Sister Simone Campbell, a social-justice activist who led a prayer at the Democratic convention, fired back in an interview with me not long after.

*

There is no reason to assume that strident doctrinal appeals, harnessed to baroque conspiracy theories, will attract most Catholic voters; in fact, the most recent polling data, which show Biden gaining on Trump among white Catholics, strongly suggest that they won’t. On the whole, American Catholics don’t, for example, just accept the concept of birth control; they use it. A majority favors at least some degree of legal abortion—and even those who don’t would probably balk at the idea of Francis as Lucifer’s wingman. To the degree that Catholics are also Americans who admire the Founders of this country—particularly Thomas Jefferson and Benjamin Franklin—they might feel the urge to back away slowly from avowed enemies of the Enlightenment.

And yet, a lot has happened, in the Church and in the world, since Obama won a second term. The revival of the sexual-abuse crisis in 2018 unquestionably led all kinds of Catholics to turn fresh rage on the Church hierarchy. The internet, which was still in its baby stage when the previous sexual-abuse crisis hit in 2002, has provided multiple platforms to amplify that anger, and repurpose it. Meanwhile, the Trump phenomenon has made conspiracy-based extremism the stuff of politics, and virtually everything the stuff of political polarization, including Francis himself. In 2014, the pontiff was rated equally favorably by American Catholics in both political parties, according to a Pew Research Center survey. Four years later, he was 10 points more popular among Democrats than among Republicans. Given these developments, it’s certainly conceivable that at least some Catholics have taken a sharp right turn since 2012, or might, if particular messaging were to hit them.

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At least 454 priests accused: Michigan reveals ‘startling’ clergy abuse report

DETROIT (MI)
Detroit Free Press

October 23, 2020

By Tresa Baldas

The scope of clergy abuse in Michigan is much worse than what Catholic officials have been reporting as state investigators have now identified more than 400 accused priests and 800 victims after reviewing thousands of paper documents seized during 2018 raids, according to state records and the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests.

Moreover, SNAP says, Michigan may have a bigger clergy abuse problem than Pennsylvania, where an explosive 2018 abuse scandal involving hundreds of priests and more than 1,000 children continues to haunt the Catholic Church.

That same year, Michigan launched its own investigation, which SNAP says is producing similar startling numbers.

According to a report issued this week by Attorney General Dana Nessel, 454 accused priests and 811 victims have been identified so far in an ongoing two-year priest abuse investigation involving seven dioceses across the state. Her office notes the number could change as the investigation continues.

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October 24, 2020

Handling of abuse allegations divides AG candidates

SHARON (PA)
The Herald

October 24, 2020

Harrisburg – Heather Heidelbaugh, Republican candidate for Attorney General, said current attorney general Josh Shapiro should not have publicized the names of priests who weren’t charged but were accused of molesting children in a grand jury report detailing the abuse of at least 1,000 children across the state over decades.

Hardly any of the priests named in the report were charged because the crimes occurred so long ago that the state’s statute of limitations had expired. Efforts to open a window to allow survivors of child sex crimes to sue despite the statute of limitations have stalled, though the General Assembly could vote next year to put a Constitutional amendment question about opening a window for lawsuits on the ballot.

With those statutes of limitations in place, the attorney general shouldn’t have named the priests accused of crimes because they didn’t have the opportunity to clear their names in any meaningful way, Heidelbaugh said.

Heidelbaugh is facing Shapiro, the Democratic incumbent, in the November election.

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Priest Sex Trafficked Teen Drug Addicts for Decades: DOJ

NEW YORK (NY)
Daily Beast

October 23 2020

By Blake Montgomery

At least one of the victims said he was afraid to report the alleged abuse because of the optics of a young drug addict making allegations against a respected priest.

An Ohio priest respected as a “religious and community leader” has been sex trafficking vulnerable minors and adults for more than two decades, the Department of Justice announced in an indictment unsealed Friday.

A grand jury has charged Rev. Michael J. Zacharias, age 53, with sex trafficking minors and sex trafficking both minors and adults by force, 10 counts in all. Federal authorities arrested Zacharias on August 18 and have kept him in custody since. He taught at St. Michael’s Parish in Findlay, Ohio.

“Michael Zacharias used his respected position to prey on and take advantage of youth and adults for his own sexual gratification,” said Brian Russ, the FBI special agent in charge of the investigation.

One victim, whose identity was not disclosed, said Zacharias began grooming him while still a seminarian in 1999, according to court documents. The victim was then 12, still in the sixth grade, and Zacharias allegedly abused him throughout his teen and adult years. Zacharias allegedly paid the victim for oral sex, and the victim returned to the priest many times to feed a dependency on painkillers. The victim said his drug addiction stemmed in part from feelings of self-loathing and questions about his sexuality brought on by the abuse he suffered at Zacharias’ hands.

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Priest found guilty of sexual assault defrocked by Montreal archdiocese

OTTAWA (CANADA)
CBC News

October 23, 2020

By Leah Hendry

In 2019, Brian Boucher was found guilty of sexually abusing 2 boys between 1995-2011

Montreal – Brian Boucher is no longer a priest.

Boucher was sentenced to eight years in prison last March for sexually abusing two boys when he worked as a priest in LaSalle in the 1990s and the Town of Mount Royal, around 2010.

The news of Boucher’s laicization came as a great relief to parishioner Kurt Reckziegel, who attends Our Lady of the Annunciation church in TMR.

“I’m glad to see it’s happened,” said Reckziegel. “It doesn’t help the victims of the past, but maybe it will save some young people in the future.”

Montreal Archbishop Christian Lépine formally dismissed Boucher from the clerical state last year, but the decision was subject to appeal. No appeal was filed this summer, so the decision stands.

Erika Jacinto, a spokesperson for the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Montreal, said from the moment of Boucher’s dismissal, all financial support to him stopped.

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Rev. Pat Wattigny, Louisiana priest accused of sexual abuse, arrested in Georgia

NEW ORLEANS (LA)
Times-Picayune and Advocate

October 23, 2020

By Ramon Antonio Vargas and David Hammer

Police in Georgia have arrested Roman Catholic priest Patrick Wattigny on a St. Tammany Parish warrant accusing him of sexually abusing a minor while he was leading a Slidell church, authorities said Friday.

Wattigny’s arrest comes a little more than three weeks after he allegedly admitted to the Archdiocese of New Orleans that he had started sexually abusing a teenage boy in 2013. He faces four counts of molestation of a juvenile, all stemming from the same victim, the St. Tammany Parish Sheriff’s Office said.

According to the Sheriff’s Office, the priest started grooming the victim when the boy was 15. It began with conversation that led to telephone calls, text messages and then private visits, investigators said. Wattigny, now 53, is accused of molesting the teen at least four times between Christmas Eve 2013 and New Year’s Eve 2015, including some occasions in a church rectory.

At the time, Wattigny was the pastor of St. Luke the Evangelist near Slidell.

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Man sues Catholic Church in Vancouver alleging he was drugged and sexually abused by priest

VANCOUVER (BRITISH COLUMBIA, CANADA)
Vancouver Sun

October 24, 2020

By Keith Fraser

Man alleges he was drugged, sexually abused by priest while he attended Catholic school in North Van in ’70s.

A man is suing the Roman Catholic Archbishop of Vancouver over allegations that a former priest and a former teacher sexually abused him in the mid-1970s.

The man, who is only identified as John Doe in the lawsuit, says that Father John Kilty, an ordained priest of the Vancouver Archdiocese who served as pastor of Holy Trinity Parish in North Vancouver from 1956-1982, targeted him while he was a six-year-old student at Holy Trinity Elementary around 1974 and ’75.

He claims that Raymond Clavin, a former pupil of the Christian Brothers who was employed as a teacher, also committed multiple acts of sexual assault and battery on him.

The abuse allegedly included the full spectrum of violations from sexual touching to full-blown rape with Kilty allegedly drugging the plaintiff against his will.

In a statement released by his lawyer, Sandra Kovacs, John Doe says that he was invited by other children and Father Kilty into Kilty’s home for a can of pop, a home that was vibrant with kids going in and out freely.

Kilty, who is no longer alive according to the suit, was kind to him at a time when he needed support and kindness, and he did not realize that his friendly gestures were techniques to groom an “unsuspecting and wide-open little boy” for sexual abuse, says the plaintiff.

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October 23, 2020

La Iglesia salteña admite que el cura Aguilera abusó de seis menores

(ARGENTINA)
Prensa Obrera [Buenos Aires, Argentina]

October 23, 2020

By Gabriela Cerrano

Read original article

Redoblemos la campaña para que la Corte de Justicia provincial rechace la prescripción de las causas.

El arzobispado salteño dio a conocer, con un comunicado, que un tribunal eclesiástico halló culpable al cura José Carlos Aguilera de abusar de seis menores de edad entre los años 1995 y 1998, y que resolvieron quitarle las funciones sacerdotales.

Los abusos cometidos por quien fuera sacerdote por muchos años en la localidad de Campo Santo, y capellán de la Universidad Católica, fueron denunciados ante la curia y también en la justicia ordinaria. El año pasado, el tribunal de impugnación número 2, a cargo del juez Adolfo Figueroa, hizo lugar al pedido de prescripción; el magistrado consideró que la causa está extinta por el tiempo transcurrido. Las víctimas apelaron la resolución y es la Corte salteña la que tiene que decidir si hace lugar a la prescripción o no.

Quitarle la función sacerdotal es una medida interna de la iglesia que incluso puede ser revertida. Eso es lo que ocurrió con el cura Emilio Lamas, quien también fue apartado de su función sacerdotal, apeló y otro tribunal eclesiástico lo volvió a sus funciones.

En el caso de Gustavo Zanchetta, ex obispo de Orán, la protección no contó con ningún disimulo: se fue de Salta antes de que tomen estado público las denuncias de abuso, y fue nombrado en un cargo en el Vaticano. Incluso vive en Santa Marta, mismo lugar de residencia del Papa. Cuando tiene que venir a declarar a Salta, viene con dos abogados puestos por el Vaticano.

El abogado del cura Aguilera dice que apelará, y aduce que hay una interna que quiere perjudicar a su defendido. Parece que Aguilera reclama públicamente al Papa que le dé la misma protección que a Zanchetta.

Obviamente el máximo absolvedor de la iglesia es el Papa Francisco, que el último 12 de octubre se reunió, muy cordialmente, con el ex cardenal George Pell, ex número 3 del Vaticano, que fue condenado por pederastia en Australia por abusos acometidos en los ’90 y luego absuelto por una Corte superior (también haciendo lugar a una prescripción por el tiempo transcurrido).

La existencia de los tribunales eclesiásticos, es decir de un fuero especial para juzgar la conducta de los curas, ha funcionado, a partir del llamado “secreto pontificio” al que deben prestar conformidad los denunciantes, como una forma de otorgarles impunidad en la justicia penal, o mejor dicho, como forma de que los casos nunca lleguen a ella. La Iglesia se ha negado sistemáticamente a proveer de sus archivos a los juzgados penales. Es lo que ocurrió con el caso del cura Lamas, en donde la justicia debió allanar la curia sin encontrar las evidencias que buscaba (se las habían llevado al Vaticano).

Es decir que entendemos este fallo como una tentativa de echar lastre de una Iglesia ampliamente cuestionada por sus propios adeptos por dar impunidad a los abusadores. Exigimos que el clero entregue las pruebas de los abusos de Aguilera y de todos los curas abusadores; y si no lo hace, que la justicia ordinaria los obtenga mediante allanamiento.

Redoblemos la campaña para que la Corte de Justicia rechace la prescripción de las causas, porque un fallo adverso a las víctimas consagraría la impunidad para todos los curas imputados. En nuestro país ya hay jurisprudencia en la que no se hizo lugar a la prescripción, por tratarse de crímenes aberrantes cometidos contra niños.

Hay que terminar con el coloniaje que tiene la Iglesia sobre la Justicia, y la única manera es separando a la Iglesia del Estado.

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Explosive findings: Archdiocese clergy protected priest who allegedly stole $1M for sex, vacations

WOODLAND PARK (NJ)
The Record

October 20, 2020

By Abbott Koloff and Deena Yellin

A church investigation conducted last year — which has yet to be made public by the Catholic Archdiocese of New York — revealed that a priest who allegedly stole $1 million from two parishes to pay for sex, lavish vacations and a New Jersey shore home was protected for years by clergy at the archdiocese headquarters and avoided criminal prosecution despite significant evidence the archdiocese itself recently found.

After the investigation concluded, the case was sent to Rome and the archdiocese promised parishioners of St. Frances de Chantal in the Bronx and St. Frances Xavier Cabrini on Roosevelt Island that the priest, Peter Miqueli, would be laicized. The parishioners were also promised that the findings would be made public.

But the promise to release the findings has not been kept.

Rev. Peter Miqueli resigned Saturday after a lawsuit against him accused him of stealing church money and paying a male prostitute.

Over the summer, Miqueli’s body was found at his Brick Township home, where he had used stolen money to pay a man for bondage, discipline and sadomasochistic sessions, according to a lawsuit filed several years ago.

Days after his body was found, the archdiocese’s judicial vicar and lead investigator in the case, Father Richard Welch, was transferred to Rome. In a recent email, the New York Archdiocese said the priest’s death put an end to the case, and “no judgment was ever passed.”

“I think the cover-up continues,” Jack Lynch, a St. Frances de Chantal parishioner, said in a recent interview. “He told me he had overwhelming evidence,” he said of Welch.

Parishioners say they are still waiting to be briefed on the findings from the archdiocese’s investigation of Miqueli — and that the findings remain relevant. Linda Heimer, a parishioner of the Roosevelt Island parish, said Welch’s investigation appeared to be “the last chance to do something about this,” and that she had been hoping there would be some restitution for her parish, where the bulk of the money was allegedly stolen. She said that her church should receive proceeds from the sale of Miqueli’s Brick home, which was purchased in 2009 while Miqueli was her parish pastor.

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Bishop of Beverley faces ban for telling abuse victim to ‘move on’

LONDON (ENGLAND)
The Times

October 22, 2020

By Kaya Burgess

A Church of England bishop could face a life ban from office after being accused of telling the victim of a paedophile bishop to “forget it and move on”.

The Bishop of Beverley, the Right Rev Glyn Webster, 69, has been criticised in a report for allegedly failing to investigate reports that the late Victor Whitsey, a former Bishop of Chester, had repeatedly sexually abused a boy in the 1970s, starting when he was 14.

An independent review commissioned by the church found today that Whitsey, who died in 1987, was a prolific paedophile who groomed and abused a “large number” of children and young people over 15 years.

It published details of “appalling” assaults against at least 18 victims …

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Patton priest placed on leave after accusation

ALTOONA (PA)
Altoona Mirror

October 23, 2020

Allegation made of inappropriate conduct involving minors

The Rev. Ananias Buccicone, OSB, pastor of Queen of Peace Parish in Patton, has been placed on leave from public ministry after an accusation of recent inappropriate conduct involving minors.

The allegation was reported to authorities, and law enforcement is investigating, according to Tony DeGol, director of communications for the Diocese of Altoona-Johnstown.

Father Buccicone, 58, was ordained a priest in the Benedictine Community of St. Vincent Archabbey in Latrobe in 1993. A native of Tarentum, he served in various roles outside of the Diocese of Altoona-Johnstown before being appointed pastor of Queen of Peace in 2002.

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Four more sex abuse suits filed against Delbarton School Catholic order, 16 cases now pending

PARSIPPANY (NJ)
Daily Record

October 22, 2020

By Abbott Koloff

The Catholic order that runs the Delbarton School in Morris Township now faces 16 sexual abuse lawsuits in state court after four more were filed Thursday naming Timothy Brennan, a priest and former teacher who died late last year and who has been the focus of at least 20 complaints since the 1980s.

St. Mary’s Abbey and the Order of St. Benedict New Jersey, which runs Delbarton, has settled at least 10 complaints involving Brennan over the years. Brennan is also named in 10 of the pending lawsuits. All but one of the pending cases have been filed since Dec. 1, 2019, when the state loosened restrictions on filing sex abuse lawsuits, suspending the civil statute of limitations for two years.

Brennan was sentenced to probation in 1987 after pleading guilty to aggravated sexual contact with a 15-year-old Delbarton student. The religious order later settled a complaint by the student’s family by paying more than $1 million.

At least nine order clerics and one Delbarton lay teacher have been accused of sexual abuse in 30 lawsuits over the past two decades. The order has settled 14 of those complaints since 2006. One order priest accused of abuse still had voicemail at the abbey this year. The priest, Benedict Worry, has been named in two lawsuits, one settled by the abbey and the other pending.

The lawsuits filed Thursday allege abuse in the 1970s and 1980s at the Delbarton School and at St. Elizabeth of Hungary parish in Linden, where the Order of St. Benedict ran a school. In addition to the order, the Linden parish and the Newark Archdiocese were named as defendants in two of the complaints.

One plaintiff was an 11-year-old parishioner at the Linden church in 1974 when he allegedly was abused by Brennan. The other three plaintiffs were Delbarton students, according to court papers. One of them was allegedly abused in the 1970s while Brennan lived at the Linden parish, their attorney said. The other two were allegedly abused in the mid-1980s, according to court papers.

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‘VeraCity: Unrepentant’ investigating abuse in the Canadian Catholic Church

TORONTO (ONTARIO, CANADA)
CityNewsToronto

October 21, 2020

By Adran Ghobrial

[45 minute documentary]

‘VeraCity: Unrepentant’ is a Citytv original documentary uncovering the secret history of child sexual assaults that was kept silent by an order of Canadian Catholic priests. Taking the hunt for accountability all the way to Vatican City.

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Survivor calls on Canadian Catholic Church to release names of priests accused of assault

TORONTO (ONTARIO, CANADA)
CityNewsToronto

October 22, 2020

By Jessica Bruno

An Ontario man who survived abuse at the hands of a now-convicted Catholic priest has taken his 111-week protest to the doorstep of Toronto’s Catholic Church.

William O’Sullivan says was inspired to travel from Niagara to Toronto by the CityTV documentary, “Veracity: Unrepentant,” which uncovers how an order of priests known as the Basilian Fathers shuffled perpetrators through schools and communities.

“This is yet another example of how priests were involved in systemic predation of children not just in Niagara, but all over Canada. That’s why we need a public inquiry,” he says in a statement. “How did they get away with it so long? How much did it cost Canadian communities all these years in mental health, addiction and social services dealing with all these broken adults? Not to mention the heartbreaking human costs to victims and families.”

This winter, O’Sullivan plans to walk from Niagara to Ottawa to raise public awareness and support for an inquiry. A House of Commons petition he started with the support of Niagara Centre Member of Parliament Vince Badawey has garnered more than 1,200 names. It closes at the end of November.

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Michigan’s clergy abuse probe identifies 454 accused priests, 811 victims

LANSING (MI)
MichiganLive

October 21, 2020

By Justine Lofton

[With 5-minute video statement by AG Nessel.]

A two-year investigation into sexual abuse in Michigan’s Catholic churches has, so far, identified 454 accused priests and 811 victims, and led to charges against 11 clergymen.

Of the 11 charged, two have been convicted thus far. Their sentences were for 60 and 45 days in jail.

“We are committed to ensuring that every case of sexual abuse and assault is thoroughly reviewed and that whenever we are able to pursue justice for a victim, we do so aggressively and relentlessly,” said Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel. “We must all commit to breaking down the walls of silence that so often surround sexual assault and abuse. In the end, we hope this investigation provides a voice to those who have suffered in silence for so long and shines a light on those offenders who have escaped punishment for their crimes by hiding in shadows.”

Authorities executed search warrants in October 2018 on all seven of Michigan’s Catholic dioceses. Two-hundred and twenty boxes of paper documents and more than 3.5 million digital documents were seized for review by the Michigan Attorney General’s Office’s Clergy Abuse Investigative Team.

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October 22, 2020

¡A rezar a la cárcel! Vinculan de nuevo a sacerdote acusado de pederastia en Mexicali

TIJUANA (MEXICO)
Cultura Colectiva [Ciudad de México, Mexico]

October 22, 2020

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El sacerdote habría amenazado a la víctima con hacerle daño a sus padres si lo delataba.

El sacerdote Ismael “N”., suma un nuevo proceso judicial en su contra, ahora por el delito delito de pederastia agravada en perjuicio de una menor de 10 años de edad en Mexicali, Baja California. 

De acuerdo con la agencia de noticias católicas ACN y el diario La Voz de la Frontera, se suma un nuevo proceso por el delito de pederastia. Recordemos que el religioso fue detenido el pasado mes de marzo. 

Según medios locales, el sacerdote amenazó a una menor de edad de hacerle daño a sus padres si la víctima lo delataba por el abuso sexual. 

La niña realizó su catecismo y acudía a confesarse en la iglesia Nuestra Señora del Perpetuo Socorro de Ciudad Morelos, en el Valle de Mexicali, mismo lugar donde su madre trabajaba en la casa parroquial. 

Ante la jueza del sistema oral acusatorio, Sandra Sofía Rubio Díaz, la agente del ministerio público narró que en agosto de 2019, la menor confesó su situación a otro sacerdote de una parroquia cercana, quien a su vez notificó a otro cura que funge como Vicario Judicial del Tribunal Elesíastico de la Diócesis de Mexicali. 

El 9 de septiembre de 2019, la madre de la víctima presentó una denuncia ante la Fiscalía General del Estado. 

Ahora, el sacerdote enfrenta un nuevo proceso judicial. Con datos de prueba por parte de agentes del Ministerio Público adscritos a la Fiscalía Especializada en Delitos contra Mujeres por Razón de Género fueron presentados ante el juez logrando el auto de vinculación. 

Además de esto en audiencia el Juez de Control determinó la prisión preventiva como medida cautelar, fijando un plazo de investigación de tres meses. 

El imputado enfrenta ahora dos procesos desde su detención el pasado mes de marzo. 

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Un tribunal eclesiástico encontró culpable de abuso sexual al cura Aguilera

SALTA (ARGENTINA)
La hora de Salta [Salta, Argentina]

October 22, 2020

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Mediante un comunicado emitido en el día de ayer por el Arzobispado de Salta, un tribunal eclesiástico consideró culpable de abuso sexual al cura José Carlos Aguilera.

El comunicado reza:

Una vez más hemos de dirigirnos al Pueblo de Dios que peregrina en Salta y a la sociedad entera para comunicar con dolor y vergüenza que el Pbro. José Carlos Jorge Aguilera Tassin ha sido considerado culpable por el tribunal colegiado conformado por orden de la Congregación para la Doctrina de la Fe y compuesto por tres sacerdotes de fuera de la Arquidiócesis, que entendió este proceso y sentenció sobre los cargos siguientes:

1° CONSTA el delito contra el sexto mandamiento del Decálogo contemplado en el m.p. SST art. 6 §1. 1° cometido por José Carlos Jorge AGUILERA TASSIN en la persona de N.N., menor de edad, en oportunidades reiteradas, de abuso sexual consistente en caricias lascivas y acceso carnal.

2 – CONSTA el delito contra el sexto mandamiento del Decálogo contemplado en el m.p.SST art.6 § 1. 1° cometido por José Carlos Jorge AGUILERA TASSIN en la persona de N.N., menor de edad, en oportunidades reiteradas, de abuso sexual consistentes en caricias lascivas y acceso carnal.

3 – CONSTA el delito contra el sexto mandamiento del Decálogo contemplado en el m.p.SST art.6 § 1. 1° cometido por José Carlos Jorge AGUILERA TASSIN en la persona de N.N., menor de edad, en oportunidades reiteradas, de abuso sexual consistentes en caricias lascivas y acceso carnal.

4 – CONSTA el delito externo contra el sexto mandamiento del Decálogo contemplado en el Canon 1395 § 1 cometido por José Carlos Jorge AGUILERA TASSIN en la persona de N.N., consistente en caricias lascivas y actos obscenos.

5 – CONSTA el delito externo contra el sexto mandamiento del Decálogo contemplado en el Canon 1395 § 2 cometido por José Carlos Jorge AGUILERA TASSIN en la persona de N.N., consistente en caricias lascivas y actos obscenos.

6 – CONSTA el delito externo contra el sexto mandamiento del Decálogo contemplado en el Canon 1395 § 2 cometido por José Carlos Jorge AGUILERA TASSIN en la persona de N.N. consistente en caricias lascivas y actos obscenos.

7 – CONSTA el delito crimine falsi (Canon 1390 § 2) cometido por José Carlos Jorge AGUILERA TASSIN, afectando la credibilidad de los Sres. N.N. y N.N., y de los Pbros. José María Lix – Klett, Alejandro Pezet y Loyola Pinto y de Sancristóval.

Por la gravedad de los mismos se ha sentenciado la pena máxima, que es la dimisión del estado clerical.
La sentencia de este Tribunal de primera instancia puede ser apelada en los 30 días posteriores a la comunicación de la misma al Reo.

El compromiso de esta Arquidiócesis por conseguir ambientes sanos para nuestros niños, adolescentes, jóvenes y personas vulnerables es irrenunciable.

Mientras agradecemos su valentía, tenacidad y coraje, acompañamos a las víctimas en su dolor buscando su sanación completa.

Les pedimos su oración por la santidad de nuestros sacerdotes. Los delitos de unos pocos no pueden esconder el servicio diario a la comunidad de tantos y tantos.

Nos encomendamos a la protección del Señor y de la Virgen del Milagro.

Pbro. Lic. Loyola Pinto y de Sancristóval
Vicario Judicial

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La iglesia salteña expulsó del estado clerical a Juan Carlos Aguilera, acusado de abusos

SALTA (ARGENTINA)
Página/12 [Buenos Aires, Argentina]

October 22, 2020

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José Carlos Aguilera, que también tiene una causa en la Justicia provincial, fue condenado por un tribunal eclesiástico que lo sentenció a la dimisión de su estado clerical, tras ser encontrado culpable por delitos de abuso sexual, informó el Arzobispado salteño.

Por la “gravedad” de los cargos que pesan sobre Aguilera, se lo “ha sentenciado a la pena máxima, que es la dimisión del estado clerical” se informó a través de un comunicado publicado en las redes sociales de la Iglesia salteña, un fallo que da cuenta de los cambios que se producen dentro de la Iglesia.

La sentencia “de este Tribunal de primera instancia puede ser apelada en los 30 días posteriores a la comunicación de la misma al reo”, agrega el comunicado firmado por el vicario judicial, presbítero Loyola Pinto y de Sancristóval.

Asimismo, en la justicia salteña, Aguilera fue acusado por abuso sexual gravemente ultrajante, agravado por ser ministro de culto, en perjuicio de uno de los denunciantes, y por delitos similares en perjuicio de otro denunciante. El 3 de julio de 2019, fue sobreseído por el juez Adolfo Figueroa por “prescripción” de los delitos juzgados, que habrían sido cometidos entre 1995 y 1998. 

Ante el tribunal eclesiástico se presentaron cinco denunciantes, dos de ellos hermanos, que denunciaron haber sido abusados por Aguilera cuando fue invitado a la parroquia de Rosario de Lerma, encabezada en ese momento por Emilio Lamas, también denunciado por abusos, cuyo juicio, programado para mayo de este año, fuera suspendido por la pandemia. De todas maneras, en virtud de las pruebas en su contra, el Vaticano lo expulsó de la condición sacerdotal el 28 de agosto.

En febrero del año pasado, Loyola Pinto informó que Aguilera había comenzado a ser sometido a un proceso canónico, luego de ser denunciado por supuestos hechos de abuso sexual.

Aguilera integra la lista de sacerdotes denunciados por el delito de abuso sexual en Salta, entre los que se encuentran Emilio Lamas y Agustín Rosas, ambos con causas en la justicia, además de Nicolás Parma, Néstor Aramayo, Abel Balbi y el ex obispo de Orán, Gustavo Zanchetta.

Para el tribunal colegiado conformado por orden de la Congregación para la Doctrina de la Fe y compuesto por tres sacerdotes de fuera de la Arquidiócesis, Aguilera “es culpable”, por lo que comunicaron la resolución “con dolor y vergüenza”.

Los sacerdotes analizaron seis casos por denuncias por abuso sexual que llegaron a la Iglesia salteña, según el comunicado que destaca “el compromiso de esta arquidiócesis por conseguir ambientes sanos para nuestros niños, adolescentes, jóvenes y personas vulnerables es irrenunciable”.

A la vez, desde el Arzobispado se agradeció la “valentía, tenacidad y coraje” de las víctimas, a las que aseguran que acompañan “en su dolor buscando su sanación completa”.

“Les pedimos su oración por la santidad de nuestros sacerdotes. Los delitos de unos pocos no pueden esconder el servicio diario a la comunidad de tantos y tantos”, señala el comunicado.

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ABUSOS ECLESIÁSTICOS. La Iglesia de Salta echó al cura abusador Aguilera, sobreseído por el Poder Judicial

(ARGENTINA)
La Izquierda Diario [Buenos Aires, Argentina]

October 22, 2020

By Corresponsal Salta

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El tribunal eclesiástico del Arzobispado de Salta halló culpable a José Carlos Aguilera por los delitos de abuso sexual con acceso carnal. Sentenciándolo “a la pena máxima, que es la dimisión del estado clerical”, según comunicó el Vicario Judicial del Arzobispado de Salta.

Según el comunicado oficial del Arzobispado, el ex capellán de la Universidad Católica de Salta por más de veinte años, José Carlos Aguilera, fue hallado culpable de haber cometido en reiteradas ocasiones abuso sexual con acceso carnal en perjuicio de 3 menores y otras 3 personas denunciantes.

La condena máxima que se le confirió es la quita del estado clerical, es decir que deja de ser sacerdote. El ex sacerdote cuenta con 30 días para apelar. Su defensor, el abogado Juan Casabella, declaró en medios locales que llevarán la apelación al Vaticano porque “sabemos que en Roma ya hay un incidente de nulidad con este fallo”.

El poder judicial de Salta había dado por prescripta la causa en junio del 2019. En ese momento el juez Adolfo Figueroa fue quien dictó el sobreseimiento por prescripción de la acción penal del delito de “abuso sexual gravemente ultrajante por las circunstancias de su realización, agravado por ser Ministro de Culto”, y “abuso sexual simple agravado por ser Ministro de Culto, en concurso real”, ordenando su inmediata libertad. La fiscalía en su momento había apelado sin éxito.

Si bien a través de este comunicado la Iglesia encabezada por el arzobispo Mario Cargnello reconoce los abusos perpetrados en sus propias entrañas, no hay que olvidar que es el mismo Cargnello el que negó el acceso a documentación valiosa requerida por la Justicia, para avanzar en otros casos trascendentales de la provincia, los del excura Lamas, el exobispo Zanchetta y el sacerdote Rosa Torino.

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Clergy abuse investigation reaches two-year mark

MARQUETTE (MI)
The Mining Journal

October 22, 2020

Lansing – Millions of documents have been reviewed and 11 men have been or are being prosecuted by Attorney General Dana Nessel’s office since authorities executed search warrants two years ago on all seven of Michigan’s Catholic dioceses as part of the state’s investigation into clergy abuse.

According to the Michigan Attorney General’s office, 42 Michigan State Police troopers, five officers from other law enforcement agencies and 15 special agents from the Attorney General’s office executed search warrants on Oct. 3, 2018, at Michigan’s seven dioceses. In that effort, they seized 220 boxes of paper documents and more than 3.5 million digital documents.

Due to a slowdown in court operations as a result of COVID-19, no charged cases have been resolved through plea deals or trial since late 2019. However, the review of documents has continued along with other steps to further the investigation. To date, the department has:

• Completed the paper document review of the Gaylord, Grand Rapids, Kalamazoo, Lansing and Marquette dioceses. Of the 220 boxes of paper documents seized, about 78 boxes remain;

• Completed the electronic document review of the Gaylord, Grand Rapids, Kalamazoo and Marquette dioceses;

• Hired and trained a full-time victim advocate to support the hundreds of victims identified in the course of the investigation;

• Continued to refer the completed criminal investigations back to the respective dioceses; and

• Followed up with victims who have not been interviewed with a trauma-informed interviewer, including those whose cases are barred by the statute of limitations, where the accused priest has died or any other reason that makes criminal prosecution impossible.

Through the department’s review of paper documents alone, 454 accused priests and 811 reported victims have been identified. That number may change as investigatory efforts continue.

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Pope Francis, in Shift for Church, Voices Support for Same-Sex Civil Unions

NEW YORK (NY)
New York Times

October 21, 2020

By Jason Horowitz

The comments, shown in a new documentary, are the strongest yet from a pontificate that has taken a more tolerant and inclusive tone.

Rome – Pope Francis expressed support for same-sex civil unions in remarks revealed in a documentary film that premiered on Wednesday, a significant break from his predecessors that staked out new ground for the church in its recognition of gay people.

The remarks, coming from the leader of the Roman Catholic Church, had the potential to shift debates about the legal status of same-sex couples in nations around the globe and unsettle bishops worried that the unions threaten what the church considers traditional marriage — between one man and one woman.

“What we have to create is a civil union law. That way they are legally covered,” Francis said in the documentary, “Francesco,” which debuted at the Rome Film Festival, reiterating his view that gay people are children of God. “I stood up for that.”

Many gay Catholics and their allies outside the church welcomed the pope’s remarks, though Francis’ opposition to gay marriage within the church remained absolute.

His conservative critics within the church hierarchy, and especially in the conservative wing of the church in the United States, who have for years accused him of diluting church doctrine, saw the remarks as a reversal of church teaching.

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Archbishop Aymond asking all diocesan priests credibly accused of child sex abuse to leave the clergy entirely

NEW ORLEANS (LA)
Times-Picayune and Advocate

October 21, 2020

By David Hammer and Ramon Antonio Vargas

He is considering requesting two possible church trials for priests who were implicated in separate sex scandals this month

In his most aggressive action to date while managing the fallout of an ongoing clerical molestation scandal, New Orleans Archbishop Gregory Aymond is asking all diocesan priests on his list of religious men credibly accused of molesting children to leave the Catholic clergy entirely.

Aymond is also considering more aggressive action, including possible church trials in Rome, to force out Patrick Wattigny and Travis Clark, two priests who were implicated in separate sex scandals this month.

Wattigny allegedly admitted to the archdiocese on Oct. 1 that he sexually abused a minor in 2013. He is now being investigated by the St. Tammany Parish Sheriff’s Office. That same day, police in Pearl River booked Clark with obscenity after he was discovered taping himself engaged in three-way sex with two dominatrices — including one who is an avowed Satanist — on the altar at Sts. Peter and Paul Parish.

Since 2018, Aymond has been privately asking credibly accused clergy to voluntarily leave the priesthood and return to the laity through a process called “laicization,” according to archdiocesan officials. The late Dino Cinel, who was acquitted of child pornography-related charges in the 1990s, voluntarily underwent that process in 2010, Aymond’s second year as New Orleans’ archbishop.

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Leave now: Aymond tells priests on abuse list to leave clergy

NEW ORLEANS (LA)
WWL

October 21, 2020

Considering church trials for two priests accused of recent sexual misconduct

New Orleans Archdiocese Archbishop Gregory Aymond reportedly has told priests credibly accused of sexual misconduct to permanently separate themselves from the clergy.

The Times-Picayune/New Orleans Advocate reports Aymond is going as far as have two priests, one who admitted to misconduct and another caught in sexual acts on the altar of their church, to face church trials in Rome.

The two in question are Patrick Wattigny and Travis Clark.

Wattigny, caught texting with a minor by the Vatican’s electronic security unit, underwent a retreat to address his issue and then came clean to the Archbishop about his alleged abusing of a child a number of years ago.

Meanwhile, Clark was in the act of taping sexual acts with two prostitutes on the Altar of Sts. Peter and Paul Church in Pearl River.

Aymond is asking those who have wound up on church’s black list to leave the clergy and return to laity of the church through “laicization.”

But, Aymond reserving the right to force out such priests who do not heed his request and in the activities of Wattigny and Clark, it appears he’s ready to make examples of them.

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OpDocs: The Spiritual Exercises

NEW YORK (NY)
New York Times

October 20, 2020

By Lloyd Kramer and Scott Chestnut

[An 18-minute film.]

A Priest Who Left the Church for Love: They wanted to marry. But he’d taken a vow of celibacy.

Terence Netter and Therese Franzese fell in love in New York City in the 1960s. She was an assistant to Rudolf Bing, general manager of the Metropolitan Opera. He was an accomplished painter and Jesuit priest. They sought to marry and dreamed the Catholic Church would embrace a married priesthood.

There was reason for them to be hopeful. At the time there was a robust dialogue happening around optional celibacy for priests. And so they were deeply disappointed when in 1967, Pope Paul VI reaffirmed the rule of celibacy for priesthood. Netter left the ministry, and the couple built a life together. In the short documentary above, we see their love story unfold as they grew their faith in each other and in God.

Transcript: He was Jewish, and she was Roman Catholic, but we were brought up totally Roman Catholic. The whole family went to Mass on Sunday, including my father. But I took to it right from the beginning, and being an altar boy, it just came naturally. I was also always, even as a little boy, interested in art. But I wasn’t at all interested in becoming a priest until my last year at Georgetown Prep. And more and more, it became clear to me that I belonged in the Jesuits …

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October 21, 2020

Tribunal eclesiástico expulsa del sacerdocio a culpable de abusos sexuales

(ARGENTINA)
ACI Prensa [Lima, Peru]

October 21, 2020

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El Arzobispado de Salta (Argentina) comunicó este 21 de octubre la sentencia de la dimisión del estado clerical de José Carlos Jorge Aguilera Tassin, culpable de abusos sexuales.

La resolución fue notificada por el tribunal colegiado conformado por orden de la Congregación para la Doctrina de la Fe y compuesto por tres sacerdotes de fuera de la Arquidiócesis.

La resolución del tribunal es en referencia a tres casos de abusos sexual contra menores y otros tres casos de abuso sexual contra mayores de edad.

Además falló sobre el delito de “crimen de falsedad” contemplado en el canon 1390 del Código de Derecho Canónico, cometido por el exsacerdote Aguilera “afectando la credibilidad” de dos civiles y de los sacerdotes P. José María Lix- Klett, P. Alejandro P

“Mientras agradecemos su valentía, tenacidad y coraje, acompañamos a las víctimas en su dolor buscando su sanación completa”, expresó.

“Les pedimos su oración por la santidad de nuestros sacerdotes. Los delitos de unos pocos no pueden esconder el servicio diario a la comunidad de tantos y tantos”, concluyó.

ezet y el Vicario Judicial, P. Loyola Pinto y de Sancristóval.

La sentencia del tribunal de primera instancia “puede ser apelada en los 30 días posteriores a la comunicación de la misma al reo”, precisó el comunicado firmado por el Vicario Judicial.

El Arzobispado comunicó la sentencia con “dolor y vergüenza” y reiteró su compromiso “por conseguir ambientes sanos para nuestros niños, adolescentes, jóvenes y personas vulnerables es irrenunciable”.

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Se acumulan acusaciones de violación contra sacerdote de Mexicali

TIJUANA (MEXICO)
Cadena Noticias [Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico]

October 21, 2020

By Cadena Noticias

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Nuevamente el sacerdote Ismael “N” es acusado de violación, y es vinculado a un proceso penal por la fiscalía especializada en delitos contra la mujer por razón de género.

El sacerdote ya está en prisión por otro caso de violación en marzo del presente año, por lo que la fiscalía solicitó la orden de aprensión en su contra, por el delito de pederastia agravada en contra de una niña de 10 años de edad.

Esta vez los hechos ocurrieron cuando el sacerdote Ismael “N” era el párroco de una iglesia católica Perpetuo Socorro en el poblado Ciudad Morelos en el Valle de Mexicali.

Presuntamente el sacerdote Ismael “N”, se aprovechó la relación de confianza que tenía con la madre de la menor víctima, quien realizaba funciones de catequista en la iglesia mencionada y el sacerdote, buscaba encuentros a solas con la menor, en las que agredía sexualmente a la menor de 10 años.

Por lo que este Martes fue vinculado a proceso nuevamente,

Además de estos dos casos existe una tercera investigación por otra denuncia de abuso sexual que ocurrió mientras el sacerdote Ismael “N” era el párroco de una iglesia en San Luis Río Colorado, Sonora, por el cual se le está integrando una investigación.

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La Iglesia salteña le quitó el estado clerical al cura Aguilera

SALTA (ARGENTINA)
FM Profesional 89.9  [Salta, Argentina]

October 21, 2020

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Un tribunal compuesto por tres sacerdotes dio por probado que abusó sexualmente de tres menores de edad con acceso carnal, entre otros abusos.

La Iglesia Católica de Salta decidió ayer quitarle el estado clerical al sacerdote José Carlos Aguilera, que desde hoy no podrá ejercer ese ministerio religioso. Pese a ello, el condenado dispone de 30 días para apelar la decisión, que fue tomada por un tribunal colegiado conformado por tres sacerdotes de fuera de la Arquidiócesis local.

De acuerdo al comunicado difundido esta mañana, ese tribunal encontró al cura Aguilera culpable de haber cometido en forma reiterada abuso sexual consistente en caricias lascivas y acceso carnal contra tres menores de edad. En otros tres casos, se encontró al ahora ex sacerdote culpable caricias lascivas y actos obscenos. En esos casos no se detalló si también se trataba de menores de edad.

Por otra parte, el comunicado advierte que Aguilera también acusó falsamente a dos civiles y a los sacerdotes José María Lix – Klett, Alejandro Pezet y Loyola Pinto y de Sancristóval; por lo que también fue condenado.

El comunicado oficial destaca el “dolor y vergüenza” de la Iglesia por los hechos cometidos por José Carlos Aguilera y advierte que “por la gravedad de los mismos se ha sentenciado la pena máxima, que es la dimisión del estado clerical”, es decir, que dejará de ser sacerdote. Señala sin embargo que la sentencia podrá ser apelada en los próximos 30 días.

Finalmente el escrito resalta que “el compromiso de esta Arquidiócesis por conseguir ambientes sanos para nuestros niños, adolescentes, jóvenes y personas vulnerables es irrenunciable. Mientras agradecemos su valentía, tenacidad y coraje, acompañamos a las víctimas en su dolor buscando su sanación completa. Les pedimos su oración por la santidad de nuestros sacerdotes. Los delitos de unos pocos no pueden esconder el servicio diario a la comunidad de tantos y tantos. Nos encomendamos a la protección del Señor y de la Virgen del Milagro”.

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La iglesia se sacó de encima al cura Carlos Aguilera

SALTA (ARGENTINA)
Cuarto Poder Salta [Salta, Argentina]

October 21, 2020

By Unknown

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El Tribunal Colegiado de la Arquidiócesis halló culpable al sacerdote, acusado de

abuso sexual.

Al final el sistema de justicia de la Iglesia funcionó mejor que el de la provincia: mientras

en un vergonzoso accionar, un juez decidió que ya no se podía juzgar al cura José Carlos

Jorge Aguilera Tassin, hoy el Arzobispado de la provincia comunicó que el tribunal

eclesiástico lo halló culpable, y por lo tanto fue condenado a dejar de ser sacerdote.

“Una vez más hemos de dirigirnos al Pueblo de Dios que peregrina en Salta y a la sociedad

entera para comunicar con dolor y vergüenza que el Pbro. José Carlos Jorge Aguilera Tassin

ha sido considerado culpable por el tribunal colegiado conformado por orden de la

Congregación para la Doctrina de la Fe y compuesto por tres sacerdotes de fuera de la

Arquidiócesis”, señala el comunicado.

Y concluye el comunicado: “El compromiso de esta Arquidiócesis por conseguir ambientes

sanos para nuestros niños, adolescentes, jóvenes y personas vulnerables es irrenunciable.

Mientras agradecemos su valentía, tenacidad y coraje, acompañamos a las víctimas en su

dolor buscando su sanación completa. Les pedimos su oración por la santidad de nuestros

sacerdotes. Los delitos de unos pocos no pueden esconder el servicio diario a la comunidad

de tantos y tantos. Nos encomendamos a la protección del Señor y de la Virgen del

Milagro.”

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La iglesia católica reconoció abusos por parte del cura Aguilera y ya no podrá ejercer

SALTA (ARGENTINA)
Salta 4400 [Salta, Argentina]

October 21, 2020

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El tribunal aprobó la quita del estado clerical al cura Aguilera tras confirmarse tres abusos de menores.

SALTA (Redacción) – En medio de la pandemia de Coronavirus, múltiples debates volvieron a salir a la luz dejando expuestas las falencias históricas y recurrentes del sistema en su dimensión social, política, económica y ahora religiosa. Precisamente, un tribunal compuesto por tres sacerdotes de la iglesia católica decidieron que el cura Aguilera dejara de ejercer por abusos probados.

Tal y como informa el Arzobispado de Salta, la Iglesia Católica de Salta decidió ayer quitarle el estado clerical al sacerdote José Carlos Aguilera, que desde hoy no podrá ejercer ese ministerio religioso. Pese a ello, el condenado dispone de 30 días para apelar la decisión. Cabe señalar que la misma fue tomada por un tribunal colegiado conformado por tres sacerdotes de fuera de la Arquidiócesis local.

Los cargos que pesan sobre Aguilera

De acuerdo al comunicado difundido esta mañana, ese tribunal encontró al cura Aguilera culpable de haber cometido en forma reiterada abuso sexual consistente en caricias lascivas y acceso carnal contra tres menores de edad. En otros tres casos, se encontró al ahora ex sacerdote culpable caricias lascivas y actos obscenos. En esos casos no se detalló si también se trataba de menores de edad.

Por otra parte, el comunicado advierte que Aguilera también acusó falsamente a dos civiles y a los sacerdotes José María Lix – Klett, Alejandro Pezet y Loyola Pinto y de Sancristóval; por lo que también fue condenado. Considerando este panorama, el comunicado oficial destaca el “dolor y vergüenza” de la Iglesia por los hechos cometidos por José Carlos Aguilera.

El comunicado de la Iglesia hacia la gente

En este sentido, advierte que “por la gravedad de los mismos se ha sentenciado la pena máxima, que es la dimisión del estado clerical”. Al respecto, esto significa que dejará de ser sacerdote. Sin embargo, el comunicado señala  que la sentencia podrá ser apelada en los próximos 30 días. Finalmente el escrito resalta “el compromiso de esta Arquidiócesis por conseguir ambientes sanos para nuestros niños, adolescentes, jóvenes y personas vulnerables es irrenunciable”.

Paralelamente, agradecieron la  valentía, tenacidad y coraje de los mismos, al tiempo que aseguraron acompañar a las víctimas en su dolor buscando su sanación completa. “Les pedimos su oración por la santidad de nuestros sacerdotes. Los delitos de unos pocos no pueden esconder el servicio diario a la comunidad de tantos y tantos. Nos encomendamos a la protección del Señor y de la Virgen del Milagro”, concluyeron.

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El Arzobispado de Salta le quitó el “estado clerical” a José Carlos Aguilera por abuso sexual

SALTA (ARGENTINA)
Informate Salta [Salta, Argentina]

October 21, 2020

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A través de un comunicado oficial se confirmó la sentencia del Tribunal Eclesiástico por reiteradas denuncias por abuso sexual a niños y actos obscenos. Aguilera podrá apelar la sentencia en los próximos 30 días.

El sacerdote José Carlos Aguilera dejará de serlo por decisión del Arzobispado de Salta al encontrarlo culpable de abuso sexual con menores de edad y cometer actos obscenos.  “Por la gravedad de los mismos se ha sentenciado la pena máxima, que es la dimisión del estado clerical” indicó el vicario judicial Loyola Pinto a través de un comunicado oficial.

Aguilera era investigado por el tribunal colegiado conformado por orden de la Congregación para la Doctrina de la Fe, que está compuesto por tres sacerdotes externos de la Arquidiócesis de Salta. Se le investigaban 6 denuncias vinculadas a abuso sexual y por calumniar a los denunciantes y a los sacerdotes José María Lix – Klett, Alejandro Pezet y Loyola Pinto y de Sancristóval.  Cabe recordar que las denuncias también fueron evaluadas a nivel judicial, pero el sacerdote logró el sobreseimiento, la cual fue apelada pero aún sin respuesta. 

Tres de las denuncias son por abuso sexual a menores de edad en reiteradas ocasiones consistentes en caricias lascivas y acceso carnal. Mientras que otras tres son por caricias lascivas y actos obscenos.

“La sentencia de este Tribunal de primera instancia puede ser apelada en los 30 díasposteriores a la comunicación de la misma al Reo” agregó Loyola Pinto en su comunicado. Al tiempo que indicó que el compromiso de la Arquidiócesis conseguir ambientes sanos para los niños, adolescentes, jóvenes y personas vulnerables, es irrenunciable. Agradeció la valentía y el coraje de las víctimas  para realizar las denuncias

“Les pedimos su oración por la santidad de nuestros sacerdotes. Los delitos de unos pocos no pueden esconder el servicio diario a la comunidad de tantos y tantos” concluyó Loyola Pinto.

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Le quitaron el estado clerical a José Carlos Aguilera por abuso sexual

SALTA (ARGENTINA)
FM CAPITAL 97.7 [Salta, Argentina]

October 21, 2020

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A través de un comunicado oficial se confirmó la sentencia del Tribunal Eclesiástico por reiteradas denuncias por abuso sexual a niños y actos obscenos.

El sacerdote José Carlos Aguilera dejará de serlo por decisión del Arzobispado de Salta al encontrarlo culpable de abuso sexual con menores de edad y cometer actos obscenos.  “Por la gravedad de los mismos se ha sentenciado la pena máxima, que es la dimisión del estado clerical” indicó el vicario judicial Loyola Pinto a través de un comunicado oficial.

Aguilera era investigado por el tribunal colegiado conformado por orden de la Congregación para la Doctrina de la Fe, que está compuesto por tres sacerdotes externos de la Arquidiócesis de Salta. Se le investigaban 6 denuncias vinculadas a abuso sexual y por calumniar a los denunciantes y a los sacerdotes José María Lix – Klett, Alejandro Pezet y Loyola Pinto y de Sancristóval.  Cabe recordar que las denuncias también fueron evaluadas a nivel judicial, pero el sacerdote logró el sobreseimiento, la cual fue apelada pero aún sin respuesta. 

Tres de las denuncias son por abuso sexual a menores de edad en reiteradas ocasiones consistentes en caricias lascivas y acceso carnal. Mientras que otras tres son por caricias lascivas y actos obscenos.

“La sentencia de este Tribunal de primera instancia puede ser apelada en los 30 días posteriores a la comunicación de la misma al Reo” agregó Loyola Pinto en su comunicado. Al tiempo que indicó que el compromiso de la Arquidiócesis conseguir ambientes sanos para los niños, adolescentes, jóvenes y personas vulnerables, es irrenunciable. Agradeció la valentía y el coraje de las víctimas  para realizar las denuncias

“Les pedimos su oración por la santidad de nuestros sacerdotes. Los delitos de unos pocos no pueden esconder el servicio diario a la comunidad de tantos y tantos” concluyó Loyola Pinto.

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No guilt or innocence able to be established: Priest returned to ministry with strict limitations, officials say

MARQUETTE (MI)
The Mining Journal

October 21, 2020

https://www.miningjournal.net/news/front-page-news/2020/10/no-guilt-or-innocence-able-to-be-established-priest-returned-to-ministry-with-strict-limitations-officials-say/

A church tribunal has determined an accusation of sexual misconduct with a minor in the early 1970s against Father Frank M. Lenz is inconclusive, the Diocese of Marquette has reported.

A canonical law process authorized by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith was unable to establish guilt or innocence to the standard of moral certainty in the case.

The accusation was received by the Diocese of Marquette in early 2018. At the time, Lenz, a senior (retired) priest of the diocese, was put on administrative leave effective immediately. In accord with diocesan policy, the allegation was reported to the Marquette County prosecutor.

Following review of the accusation by civil authorities, the case was forwarded to the CDF, which authorized the bishop of Marquette to establish a special tribunal to adjudicate the case. Canon lawyers from outside the diocese heard the case.

Lenz has continued to deny the allegation.

From the time of the accusation, Lenz was removed from all public ministry and prohibited from presenting himself as a priest in accordance with the Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People.

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One N.J. Catholic diocese has filed for bankruptcy. Will the other 4 follow?

NEWARK (NJ)
Star-Ledger / NJ.com

October 20, 2020

By Kelly Heyboer

The debt began overwhelming the Diocese of Camden late last year.

Faced with a flood of priest abuse victims applying to the New Jersey Independent Victims Compensation Program, the Catholic diocese had to borrow $8 million to pay out-of-court settlements.

Then, the diocese was slammed with another 55 lawsuits from other alleged abuse victims in state court after New Jersey changed its state law Dec. 1 to allow victims to sue the Catholic Church.

But the final blow came when the coronavirus pandemic hit last March and the Diocese of Camden’s 62 parishes were forced to shut their doors for months. Without regular Masses for the diocese’s 486,000 Catholics in South Jersey, weekly collections nearly disappeared and other donations dwindled even as churches slowly reopened.

On Oct. 1, the Diocese of Camden announced the inevitable: It had filed for bankruptcy.

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Ousted priest writes new book: Ordained by a Predator

ROCKY MOUNT (VA)
Franklin News-Post

October 21, 2020

By Bill Wyatt

Marinsville – The next chapter of Father Mark White’s story has been written, quite literally, by White himself.

White, who was ousted as priest of St. Joseph’s Catholic Church in Martinsville and St. Francis of Assisi in Rocky Mount because of a dispute with his bishop, spoke to a group of approximately 40 socially distanced attendees Sunday afternoon at the Grand Fiesta Venue in Ridgeway about a book that he says should be finished in the next two weeks.

“I’ve missed you,” White said. “This is a difficult time — to contend with this virus and this blow to our faith at the same time is a great challenge.”

White referred to the news last week of the Catholic Diocese of Richmond’s agreeing to pay $6.3 million to 51 people who as children were sexually abused by clergy members.

“One of the victims was on TV,” White said. “She was grateful for the money, but she longed for justice, which she called ‘the free exchange of information,’ sharing of information by authorities — and that has not occurred to this day.”

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Church tribunal finds accusation of sexual misconduct by Marquette priest ‘inconclusive’

NEGAUNEE (MI)
WLUC

October 20, 2020

A church tribunal determined accusation of sexual misconduct with a minor in the early 1970s against Father Frank M. Lenz is inconclusive.

Marquette – A Church tribunal has determined an accusation of sexual misconduct with a minor in the early 1970s against Father Frank M. Lenz is inconclusive. A canonical (Church law) process authorized by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith (CDF) was unable to establish guilt or innocence to the standard of moral certainty in the case.

The accusation was received by the Diocese of Marquette in early 2018. At the time, Father Lenz, a senior (retired) priest of the diocese was put on administrative leave effective immediately. In accord with diocesan policy, the allegation was reported to the Marquette County Prosecutor.

Following review of the accusation by civil authorities, the case was forwarded to the CDF, which authorized the bishop of Marquette to establish a special tribunal to adjudicate the case. Canon lawyers from outside the diocese heard the case.

Father Lenz has continued to deny the allegation.

From the time of the accusation, Father Lenz was removed from all public ministry and prohibited from presenting himself as a priest in accordance with the Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People.

In light of the tribunal’s decision, Father Lenz is returned to ministry with strict limitations in place by Bishop John Doerfler, which include prohibiting him from priestly ministry in parishes and schools.

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AG charges former Farmington priest with sexual assault of minor

WARREN (MI)
C&G Newspapers

October 20, 2020

By: Jonathan Shead

Farmington – A former Farmington priest has been charged with one count of second-degree criminal sexual conduct, a charge that carries a possible 15-year prison sentence, by Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel.

Nessel brought charges against Gary Berthiaume, 78, who is charged with sexually assaulting a minor in 1977 at the rectory of Our Lady of Sorrows Catholic Church, 23815 Power Road, while he was a priest of the Archdiocese of Detroit. The victim reported being 14 years old at the time the alleged sexual actions took place.

The presumptive charges came forward as part of Nessel’s continued investigation into sexual abuse within the seven Catholic dioceses across Michigan.

Berthiaume was arrested at his home in Warrendale, Illinois, Sept. 29, and faces extradition to Farmington, where charges were authorized. Oakland County court records indicate attorney James Lawson, of Illinois, will represent Berthiaume. Oakland County Prosecutor Jessica Cooper will serve as the plaintiff.

Lawson could not be reached for comment by press time.

These charges are not the first Berthiaume has faced. The priest was arrested in 1977 for sexual assault on two other minors in Michigan.

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Justices review priest abuse lawsuit’s ruling on time limits

HARRISBURG (PA)
Associated Press

October 20, 2020

By Mark Scolforo

Pennsylvania’s highest court on Tuesday grappled with whether a woman’s lawsuit on claims of sexual abuse by a priest decades ago should be allowed to proceed — a lower-court ruling that has launched many other lawsuits since it was issued a year ago.

In oral argument, the justices focused questions on whether the plaintiff, Renee Rice, waited too long to sue the Roman Catholic Diocese of Altoona-Johnstown.

Rice has argued that a 2016 grand jury report alerted her to allegations that church officials’ silence about a priest who she says molested her amounted to fraudulent concealment.

The 2016 report in Altoona-Johnstown preceded the wider 2018 report that found decades of sexual attacks on children by priest in other Pennsylvania dioceses.

Eric Anderson, lawyer for the diocese and two now-deceased bishops, but not the Rev. Charles F. Bodziak, the priest Rice says abused her, told the justices that Rice had a duty to pursue the matter once she realized she had been harmed, was aware of who did it and knew where he worked.

“Once she knows those salient elements or facts, then she has to make the effort to conduct the investigation,” and possibly sue, Anderson argued. “Then she can explore all claims she has against potential defendants. And there’s no evidence she did anything like that.”

Rice’s lawyer, Alan Perer, said there is disagreement about what Rice knew and whether she responded properly, a dispute that he argued a jury should sort out.

“She alleges she did not know and it was not reasonably knowable that the diocese was the cause of her injury until she read the 2016 report,” Perer said.

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October 20, 2020

Cayó un sacerdote: está acusado por abusar sexualmente en dos oportunidades

SALTA (ARGENTINA)
NOVA Salta  [Salta, Argentina]

October 20, 2020

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Un sacerdote salteño fue detenido y acusado de los delitos de abuso sexual gravemente ultrajante agravado y abuso sexual con acceso carnal agravado, tras ser denunciado en dos oportunidades, informaron fuentes judiciales.

Se trata del sacerdote Horacio Chauque Perales, quien fue detenido en el marco de un allanamiento ordenado por la jueza interina de Garantías 5, María Edith Rodríguez.

El hombre está acusado de los delitos de abuso sexual gravemente ultrajante por las circunstancias de su realización y duración, agravado por ser el imputado un ministro del culto católico en dos hechos.

Asimismo, está acusado por abuso sexual con acceso carnal continuado agravado por ser el imputado ministro del culto católico, y la investigación comenzó a partir de la radicación de dos denuncias en su contra.

La jueza ordenó que Chauque Perales sea alojado en la Alcaidía y este martes a la mañana, por videoconferencia, se concretó la audiencia de control de legalidad de la detención. En tanto, la audiencia de imputación se realizará en forma presencial, a pedido de la fiscalía interviniente.

Los voceros detallaron que la causa se encuentra en reserva, debido a las medidas que se están produciendo.

Chauque Perales se suma a la lista de sacerdotes denunciados por el delito de abuso sexual en Salta, entre los que se encuentran José Carlos Aguilera, que perdió su estado clerical la semana pasada, Emilio Lamas y Agustín Rosas, con causas en la justicia, además de Nicolás ParmaNéstor AramayoAbel Balbi y el exobispo de Orán Gustavo Zanchetta.

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‘Loophole’ in child abuse reporting in historic cases: advocates

TORONTO (ONTARIO, CANADA)
CityNews

October 20, 2020

By Adrian Ghobrial and Jessica Bruno

If a child told you they’d been sexually assaulted by an adult what would you do? Would you call police? Would you report the allegations to a children’s aid society? Or would you do neither?

For most of us, the moral choice is clear. So why has the obligation to report often been ignored by many who claim to be doing God’s work?

Sister Nuala Kenny is a pediatrician who has spent decades examining the sexual assault scandal rocking the religious institution she’s given her life to. As a nun, she calls the Catholic Church’s response to the abuse of children “a contradiction to what we’ve been called to be as Christians.”

A CityNews investigation has uncovered several child sexual assault claims against an order of Catholic priests based in Toronto. Dating back decades, the Basilian Fathers were made aware of abuse allegations against their own priests, but historically, cases were never reported to police or a children’s aid society. Instead, allegations were dealt with internally, resulting in alleged predator priests continuing to work in schools and churches.

“If the Church had reacted more effectively and properly, we would not have the catastrophe that we have today.”

It’s a scenario lawyer Rob Talach has seen again and again.

“This is the repetitive story in the Catholic cases, these priests are often reported and moved. I term it ‘the silent shuffle,’” he says. “If the Church had reacted more effectively and properly, we would not have the catastrophe that we have today.”

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Archdiocese of Chicago removes retired pastor Daniel McCarthy from Norwood Park parish following allegation of sexual abuse

CHICAGO (IL)
Chicago Tribune

October 19, 2020

By Kelli Smith

https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/breaking/ct-retired-chicago-priest-abuse-allegation-20201019-gex5v4ddujasbcscuu24rtkd7a-story.html

The Archdiocese of Chicago over the weekend removed the Rev. Daniel McCarthy from St. Elizabeth of the Trinity, a parish in Norwood Park where he was pastor emeritus, after an allegation surfaced that he sexually abused a minor about 50 years ago at a Far North Side orphanage, according to the archdiocese.

McCarthy, a chaplain since 2012 at Notre Dame College Prep, a Roman Catholic school in Niles, was alleged to have committed the abuse while he was assigned to the now-closed Angel Guardian Orphanage in Chicago’s West Ridge neighborhood, according to a letter Cardinal Blase Cupich sent Saturday to the St. Elizabeth of Trinity community.

McCarthy was at the orphanage from 1967 to 1974, according to a letter written to the Notre Dame College Prep community by the school’s president, Shay Boyle, and principal, Daniel Tully. The orphanage closed in 1974 and was replaced by Misericordia, a home for people with disabilities, which is operated by the Archdiocese of Chicago.

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Pope accepts resignation of bishop accused of failing to act on abuse

WASHINGTON (DC)
Catholic News Service via Catholic Philly

October 19, 2020

By Junno Arocho Esteves

Vatican City – Pope Francis accepted the resignation of a Polish bishop accused of negligence after a documentary claimed he repeatedly transferred a priest accused of sexually abusing children.

The Vatican announced Oct. 17 that the pope accepted the resignation of 68-year-old Bishop Edward Janiak of Kalisz and named Archbishop Grzegorz Rys of Lodz as apostolic administrator “sede vacante.”

In June, the Vatican had appointed Archbishop Rys as apostolic administrator “sede plena,” indicating that the see was not vacant.

Bishop Janiak’s failure to act when told about allegations of abuse perpetrated by a diocesan priest drew a public outcry following the May 16 release of the documentary, “Hide and Seek,” produced by Polish filmmakers Marek and Tomasz Sekielski.

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Churches knew of allegations against notorious paedophile priests, royal commission says

LONDON (ENGLAND)
The Guardian

October 20, 2020

By Melissa Davey

The Anglican and Catholic churches missed crucial opportunities to stop them abusing other children, unredacted reports find

The Anglican and Catholic churches knew about allegations against notorious paedophile priests years before they were convicted and jailed for child sexual abuse, missing crucial opportunities to stop them from abusing other children.

The findings were outlined in two unredacted and one previously unreleased report published by the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse on Tuesday. The findings were previously redacted so as not to prejudice ongoing legal proceedings against the two abusers: the former Anglican dean of Newcastle Graeme Lawrence and the former Catholic priest Vincent Gerard Ryan.

Lawrence is the most senior Anglican church figure found guilty of child sexual abuse, after being convicted in July 2019 of sexually assaulting a 15-year-old boy in 1991 at his home at Christ Church Cathedral in Newcastle, New South Wales. He was sentenced to eight years in jail.

The commission’s report on case study 42, which examined the response of the Anglican diocese of Newcastle to child sexual abuse allegations, found the allegations that Lawrence was sexually abusing children were made on three separate occasions to the then Bishop Roger Herft.

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Alleged abuse, coverups and years of trauma: Inside the legacy of the Basilian Fathers

KITCHENER (ONTARIO, CANADA)
Kitchener Today

October 20, 2020

Interview with survivors and Adrian Ghobrial of CityNewsToronto [25 minutes]

For almost two years an investigative team has been digging into into claims of child sexual assault by priests who belong to a Canadian Catholic order known as the Basilian Fathers. The results of their work form Unrepentant.

For almost two years an investigative team has been digging into into claims of child sexual assault by priests who belong to a Canadian Catholic order known as the Basilian Fathers. The results of their work form Unrepentant, a film that includes firsthand accounts from victims of abuse, the near-murder of an accused pedophile, the mystery death of a priest after he is exposed, secret church files that show a pattern of shuffling around known abusers and a victim’s journey to Vatican City to confront church leaders…and more. The project’s lead reporter joins us for a look at how it came together.

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October 19, 2020

Twin hit of abuse claims and pandemic could push NJ Catholic dioceses toward bankruptcy

WOODLAND PARK (NJ)
The Record

October 19, 2020

By Deena Yellin

For Catholic churches around the country, it has become a familiar refrain: After shelling out millions of dollars in settlements to survivors of clergy abuse, a diocese says it’s broke and declares bankruptcy.

The Diocese of Camden, representing a half-million Catholics in 62 South Jersey parishes, became the latest to file for bankruptcy protection on Oct. 1 — 10 months after a new state law waived the statute of limitations on decades-old abuse claims.

It’s unlikely to be the last. If history is any guide, bankruptcy experts say, when one diocese in a state files for Chapter 11, others often follow. In North Jersey, the dioceses of Newark and Paterson, representing some 1.7 million worshippers, are caught in the same vise of legal attacks and COVID-19 financial strains, said Charles Zech, a professor emeritus at the Villanova School of Business in Pennsylvania.

“Given the uncertainty associated with the statute-of-limitations window in New Jersey, I suspect that every diocese in the state is in danger,” he said.

To parishioners, the legal maneuvers may have little visible impact on the ground. A Camden diocese spokesman said there are no plans to cut churches, staff or programs. But the filings have angered victims’ advocates and plaintiffs attorneys, who say bankruptcy is a ploy by the church to dodge legal accountability for past crimes.

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Colorado Catholic dioceses pay $6.68M to sex abuse survivors

DENVER (CO)
Associated Press

October 18, 2020

Colorado’s three Catholic dioceses paid $6.68 million to 73 survivors of sexual abuse by priests, a new report said.

The state’s Independent Reconciliation and Reparations Program issued an update Friday of how much money each survivor should be given by the church, The Colorado Sun reported.

The program fielded claims from survivors and determined their credibility and compensation eligibility.

Eight claims were rejected by the program. Another eight claims are pending because the survivors are waiting to receive payments, have not received compensation offers or must first report abuse to law enforcement before the cases can move forward.

“Of the 81 eligible claimants, some were previously unknown abuse survivors, demonstrating success in reaching survivors previously unwilling or unable to come forward and receive help,” spokeswoman Amy Weiss said in a statement on behalf of an independent oversight committee overseeing reparations.

Survivors must have been abused when they were children to be eligible for compensation.

“I know that money cannot fully heal the wounds you suffered but hope that those of you who came forward felt heard, acknowledged — and that the reparations offer a measure of justice and access to resources,” Denver Archbishop Samuel J. Aquila wrote in a letter to his archdiocese Friday.

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Diocese of Erie seeks stay in federal abuse suit as Pa. Supreme Court takes up big appeal

ERIE (PA)
Erie Times-News

October 13, 2020

By Ed Palattella

The Catholic Diocese of Erie, with administrative offices at St. Mark Catholic Center in Erie, is facing a number of lawsuits claiming cover-ups of clergy sexual abuse.
The Pennsylvania Supreme Court on Oct. 20 will hear arguments in a clergy sex abuse case whose outcome will greatly affect abuse lawsuits and Roman Catholic dioceses statewide, including the Catholic Diocese of Erie.

The case, which claims a cover-up, is so significant that the Catholic Diocese of Erie wants a federal judge to stay a similar abuse suit against the diocese until the state Supreme Court issues a ruling in the other case in several months.

A decision in the Supreme Court case, which involves the Diocese of Altoona-Johnstown, will either allow or prohibit hundreds of plaintiffs from pursuing fraud-related suits in court over claims that the dioceses covered up abuse. The financial ramifications of the decision will be enormous for the plaintiffs and the Catholic Diocese of Erie and the other dioceses.

Waiting for the state Supreme Court to rule makes the most sense, the Catholic Diocese of Erie said in a filing on Friday. The diocese asked U.S. District Judge Susan Paradise Baxter to grant a stay in the abuse case filed against the diocese in U.S. District Court in Erie.

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Quick Hits: Cardinal Farrell’s new post, a priest’s belated vindication

WASHINGTON (DC)
Catholic Culture / Trinity Communications

October 14, 2020

By Phil Lawler

At Catholic World Report, J. D. Flynn offers some perceptive observations about the appointment of Cardinal Kevin Farrell to head a new committee charged with supervising financial transactions that involve Vatican secrets. Cardinal Farrell, Flynn reminds readers, is already the camerlengo, the official responsible for handling the material properties of the Holy See during a papal interregnum. So he has been given quite a bit of control over the Vatican’s financial affairs—which, I hardly need remind you—are currently in an uproar. “Information is currency in Rome,” Flynn remarks, “and Cardinal Farrell’s new position makes him uniquely informed, and therefore among the most powerful figures in Vatican leadership.”

Cardinal Farrell’s full-time assignment, as prefect of the dicastery for Laity, Family, and Life—offers no suggestion of financial expertise. The Irish-born prelate’s track record gives absolutely no indication that he is the right man to crack down on questionable behavior. Cardinal Farrell, remember, was close to the late Father Marcial Maciel, the disgraced founder of the Legionaires of Christ. But Cardinal Farrell says that he knew nothing about Maciel’s disgraceful behavior. Later he was an auxiliary bishop in Washington, DC, where he worked closely with, and shared a home with, former cardinal Ted McCarrick. Cardinal Farrell says that he knew nothing about McCarrick’s disgraceful behavior. At a time when the Vatican is struggling to regain public confidence about its financial probity, cynics might wonder whether he was chosen for these sensitive posts because he is likely to crack down on any signs of financial impropriety, or because he can be relied upon not to notice them.

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Clergy shortage grows to more than 3k Catholics for every priest, Vatican data shows

WASHINGTON (DC)
Religion News Service

October 16, 2020

By Claire Giangravé

The reasons for the steady hemorrhage of Catholic clergy worldwide are varied, from secularization to the church’s ongoing sexual and financial scandals. And the COVID-19 pandemic has brought its own challenges.

Vatican City – Catholic missions are struggling amid dwindling vocations and the COVID-19 pandemic, according to data released by the Vatican ahead of the World Mission Day this Sunday (Oct. 18).

The number of priests and ordained leaders has dropped significantly, especially in Europe and America, according to the report issued on Friday by the Vatican Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples, charged with distributing clergy and coordinating missions around the world.

The total number of priests in the world decreased to 414,065 in 2018, with Europe registering a drop of 2,675 priests compared to 2017. The report also reveals a slight decrease in the number of Catholic faithful in America, Europe and Oceania. Meanwhile, Africa and Asia continue to show signs of growth, according to the data.

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Victims of convicted pedophile priest continue to search for accountability

TORONTO (ONTARIO, CANADA)
CityNews 660

October 18, 2020

By Adrian Ghobrial and Jessica Bruno

When Jerry Boyle was in high school, he used to walk Windsor’s Ambassador Bridge and drop rocks into the Detroit River. He would count the seconds it took for the stones to hit the water.

“It could end that quick if I wanted it to. Wouldn’t have to look at him again.”

Thirty years later, Patrick McMahon would walk the very same bridge to the very same spot and contemplate the very same thing. Both were sexually assaulted by Father William Hod Marshall, decades apart.

Marshall was a Catholic priest and educator who worked at Catholic high schools across Canada, starting in the 1950s. At the time, the institutions were run or staffed by the Basilian Fathers, a group of priests whose calling is to teach. Their world headquarters is in Toronto.

In a recorded civil deposition, Marshall admitted to sexually assaulting boys at nearly every posting he had.

Marshall pled guilty in 2011 and was convicted of assaulting 17 children at Ontario schools. He was also separately convicted of assaulting two boys in Saskatchewan. Victims and their lawyers believe the actual number of children he preyed on is much higher.

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Woman who claims she was abused by Basilian priest now heads victim support network

TORONTO (ONTARIO, CANADA)
CityNewsToronto

October 19, 2020

By Adrian Ghobrial and Jessica Bruno

To this day, Brenda Brunelle can’t breathe when she tilts her head back in the shower to wash her hair. It’s the lifelong result of the sexual assault she claims she endured as a young girl at the hands of a Catholic priest.

Brunelle grew up in a devout Catholic family in Windsor. In the late 1970s, she went to St. Vincent de Paul, a Catholic elementary school, and was an altar server at the church.

“My father sold tickets to have that Church built. We were pioneers of St. Vincent De Paul Church and we were proud of that,” she says.

As a 12-year-old, she alleges she caught the eye of associate pastor Father Michael Fallona.

Fr. Fallona is a member of the Basilian Fathers, an order of Catholic priests who to this day have a hand in operating schools in North America.

Brunelle claims it all started with Fr. Fallona paying too much attention to her at school. She says she felt uncomfortable about the way he over-praised her for small tasks and gave her long hugs.

“I know that he loved the smell of my hair and the color of it,” she tells CityNews. “He would stand behind me and fondle me. Smell my hair. Literally eating it, is how I would describe the experience.”

She alleges he would ask her to come to the church to help with chores. She says Fr. Fallona asked her to come change a lightbulb and claims that’s the first time the priest groped her.

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Landmark sexual abuse case a ‘beacon of hope’ for other victims

TORONTO (ONTARIO, CANADA)
CityNewsToronto

October 17, 2020

By Adrian Ghobrial and Jessica Bruno

A sexual assault survivor’s Supreme Court win against the Catholic church has established an expensive deterrent against covering up abuse.

After an eight-year legal battle, Canada’s top court dismissed a request to appeal from the Basilian Fathers of Toronto earlier this year. The decision put an end to the religious order’s quest to reduce a landmark civil jury award that punished the Church for its role in facilitating abuse.

Survivor Rod MacLeod says as the years went on, his motivation never changed.

“It was about putting an end to childhood sexual abuse, especially by huge powerful rich organizations … moving the abuser from place to place, keeping them safe and allowing them to continue to do what they do,” he says.

MacLeod was sexually assaulted by Basilian priest William ‘Hod’ Marshall in the 1960s while he was a student at St. Charles Catholic High School in Sudbury, where Marshall was a teacher. The abuse occurred throughout MacLeod’s high school career.

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