BALTIMORE (MD)
WJLA-TV (ABC) [Arlington VA]
August 22, 2023
By Winston Rogers
A redacted report that detailed child sexual abuse claims within the Archdiocese of Baltimore will be re-released in September following a recent court order to remove most of its redactions, according to an official statement from the Maryland Office of the Attorney General.
In a sealed order from the Circuit Court for Baltimore City back on August 16, state leaders have been approved to release a revised, and “substantially unredacted” report on child sexual abuse cases from within the Archdiocese, revealing more information from the April 2023 report.
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As part of the order, 43 names and the details related to them will be unredacted, according to the Maryland Crime Victim’s Resource Center in a statement. Officials say many of these names were redacted to shield their identities as they had not been publicly accused, while five ranking officials within the Archdiocese were also redacted.
“The court’s order enables my office to continue to lift the veil of secrecy over decades of horrifying abuse suffered by the survivors,” said Attorney General Brown in a statement from his office.
That new document is set to be released on September 26, according to the Attorney General’s office.
MCVRC which filed a motion to release the redacted names on behalf of two victims, released a statement Tuesday morning applauding the court’s decision.
“We are proud to have joined with the survivors of clergy abuse to deny one more opportunity for hiding the truth from the public,” MCVRC said in a statement.
Officials confirm however that the report is not a criminal charging document or a finding of guilt.
Back in April, the Attorney General’s office released a 483-page document outlining roughly 600 cases of child sexual abuse from members of the Archdiocese of Baltimore, with some documents reviewed by the state dating back to the 1940s.
The original document reports that 100+ people were allegedly involved with the abuse or involved with covering up the abuse of children, many of whom served as altar servers and choir members. The report goes on to add that many of those victims were transferred to another church without explanation.
Many of those named in the April document are dead at the time of the reports release.