ABUSE TRACKER

WICHITA, Kan. (KWCH) – The Catholic Diocese of Wichita on Monday, Nov. 1 announced that Bishop Carl Kemme placed a priest on administrative leave following allegations of sexual abuse of a minor.

The Wichita diocese identified that priest as Rev. Michael Schemm with Church of the Resurrection, in Bel Aire

“The bishop’s decision comes after an initial review by the Diocesan Review Board, which recommended administrative leave pending the completion of a full investigation,” the diocese said.

The Wichita diocese said it notified police and pending the investigation, “Father Schemm will maintain his faculties as a priest and the diocese will continue its support.”

“However, Father Schemm will be restricted from offering sacraments and preaching in the Catholic Diocese of Wichita until the investigation has been completed.” the diocese said.

The diocese addressed the severity of abuse allegations and in part of its statement released Monday, encouraged people to come…

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A Providence priest has been arrested and is facing several charges, including possession of child pornography.

Officers for the Rhode Island State Police Computer Crimes Unit and Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force arrested Father James Jackson over the weekend, according to a news release.

The 66-year-old priest, now formerly of St. Mary’s Church, is accused of possession of child pornography, transfer of child pornography and child erotica prohibited.

State Police say as part of a child pornography investigation, they identified the internet connection at the rectory at St. Mary’s to be connected in the sharing of child porn.

On Saturday, ICAC Task Force members executed a search warrant at the church and rectory and determined that Father Jackson was the owner of that media.

A spokesperson for the Diocese of Providence released a statement, reading in part, “A priest of the Priestly Fraternity of Saint Peter (FSSP), Rev….

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State Supreme Court agrees to hear second challenge to law

Placing limits on the money juries can award to lawsuit winners was “urgently needed to restore balance, fairness and predictability” into Ohio’s court system, the authors of 2005 “tort reform” legislation wrote.

The absence of such maximums, they said, would hold the door for open runaway juries demanding corporations pay outrageous sums in legal disputes. Ohio businesses would face a competitive disadvantage to foreign competition, stifling development.

In the 15 years since Ohio lawmakers passed the tort reform legislation, the law yielded an unexpected use: stripping child rape victims of millions of dollars in legal damages.

Jessica Simpkins was 15 when her priest, who Delaware Grace Brethren Church knew had twice engaged in inappropriate sexual behavior with young women, raped her twice.

She filed a lawsuit against the church, and a jury awarded her $3.65 million. However,…

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Catholics in France are angry and are demanding a change in Church governance that will give more authority to the laity, according to a new survey commissioned by “La Croix”

By Xavier Le Normand

Catholics in France have been shaken by the recently released report on sexual abuse in their Church over the past 70 years. The Independent Commission on Sexual Abuse in the Church (CIASE) – also known as the Sauvé Commission – published its report on October 5.

It revealed that the abuse was “systemic” and estimated that since the 1950s anywhere from 216,000 to 330,000 youngsters have been sexually abused by priests and even some laypeople.

Since the publication of the figures and the painful accounts of abused persons, the number of editorials and appeals throughout France has multiplied.

And as a consequence, the country’s bishops have come under fire from many quarters, a sting that they…

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CBC News, the Globe and Mail secure release of hundreds of pages of documents

WARNING: This story contains distressing details

A Saskatchewan judge has released files detailing the Roman Catholic Church’s controversial $79-million compensation deal for residential school survivors following a successful court application by CBC News and the Globe and Mail.

This cache of documents, along with other internal papers obtained by CBC News in recent weeks, illustrates how Catholic officials, aided by a team of veteran lawyers, successfully fought years of federal government efforts to make them pay the full amounts promised in the landmark 2005 Indian Residential Schools Settlement Agreement.

Advocates say they also add vital detail and context to the story of the Catholic Church’s broken promises.

“I think the result is a really important outcome for openness and transparency for our court system. It goes to that old maxim that justice not only must be…

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Vatican recently said pontiff has agreed to visit Canada to further reconciliation

The effort to bring Pope Francis to Canada for a long-awaited apology over the Catholic Church’s role in running residential schools can be traced back to a 2016 conversation between two seemingly homeless men on a downtown Saskatoon sidewalk.

Those men — one a bishop and the other a First Nations chief — had just spent the night in a park, struggling to stay warm in the unseasonably cool June air.

It was part of a 36-hour event organized by a local shelter for HIV-positive new mothers. Chief Felix Thomas of the Saskatoon Tribal Council was paired with Bishop of Saskatoon Donald Bolen. They were given used clothing and small sleeping bags, but they had to find food, identification, health care, washrooms and other essentials.

“We spent a lot of time together that weekend, became really good friends,” Thomas, now chief of the Kinistin Saulteaux Nation, said in an…

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