Search Results for: riley

 In a phone conversation between ABC7′s Jordan Litwiller and Charlotte County priest Leo Riley, he made it clear that the allegations against him are not true.

“Whenever you see a loved-one suffering, it’s painful,” said his brother Michael Riley.

Michael says these allegations don’t match up with the man he has known his whole life.

“He has a heart of gold, and he is probably one of the kindest people you can imagine,” Michael said.

Despite the five people who have claimed to be abused by Leo, Michael’s support for his brother is unwavering, saying, “People can say things, that doesn’t mean it’s true.”  

But sexual abuse victims advocate David Pooler from Baylor University says, in cases like this, it often times is.

“Generally, people don’t make up abuse stories because they themselves then have to go to court and have to testify, they have to be scrutinized by the public in various…

[See also a PDF of the Zinkula statement.]

On Wednesday afternoon of this week, we learned together that a former priest of the Archdiocese of
Dubuque, Father Leo Riley, has been charged with five (5) counts of 2nd Degree Sexual Abuse. The
charges arise out of allegations of abuse committed by Father Riley while he was in Dubuque during
the time-period of 1985 to 1986. These allegations were first brought forward in May of 2023. Under
our laws, Father Riley is given a presumption of innocence while the judicial process is completed. We
pray for all those involved in that process, with the intention that justice be well served.

Many people are understandably disheartened and hurt in reaction to this news. I want to address
these emotions and express my own, while also providing clarity about our efforts to seek justice
concerning the allegations against Father Riley.

Father Riley was ordained a priest of the Archdiocese…

A Florida man referred to as John Doe is one of 5 men who have come forward accusing Riley of sexual abuse.

A Florida man going by the name ‘John Doe’ says a priest from Dubuque sexually abused him as a child. Earlier this week, prosecutors charged Father Leo Riley with five counts of sex abuse in Dubuque.

Investigators say Riley sexually assaulted four altar boys while working as an associate pastor at Resurrection Parish in Dubuque in the 1980s. Doe said he was another victim of Riley’s in the early 2000s in a press conference in Sarasota on Friday. He claims Riley abused him while he was a child at St. Charles school in Port Charlotte, Florida.

“I never told anybody back then. He said that if I told he would do to my sister what he was doing to me. I buried these memories very…

[Note from BishopAccountability.org: To see image of Rev. Pates’ letter, click here.]

On 5 May 2023, an allegation of sexual abuse of a minor was made against Father Leo Riley, alleged to have taken place between 1985-1986, when he was assigned as an associate pastor at Resurrection Parish in Dubuque.

A letter about Father Riley was written to parishioners in February of 2015. That previous letter was in reference to a separate allegation of sexual abuse of a minor alleged to have also taken place during this time period at Resurrection Parish.

Retired Archbishop Jackels said of the 2015 investigation outcome, “The best information available does not support a reasonable belief that the allegation is true. Therefore, in the matter of the accusation made against Father Riley, unless additional evidence is presented, there is no need to pursue it any further.”

Father Riley was ordained a priest of the…

WALTHAM (MA)
Bishopaccountability.org

Summary of Case: Leo T. Riley was ordained in 1954 for the Congregation of the Sacred Stigmata (Stigmatines). For over then years he taught at Elm Bank, which was the Order’s minor seminary in Wellesley, MA, then assisted at a Milford, MA parish. There appears to be a gap in his assignments 1968-1970, after which he was assigned to parishes in Waltham and then Lynn, Milford and, finally, Agawam, MA, where he was the sole priest. He died in 1995. Per Riley’s obituary, “He was delegate in several provincial chapters. As a general councillor (1976-1979) he contributed much to insure the stability of the Thailand province.”

In 2002 a man informed the Stigmatines that Riley had sexually abused him over a four-year period when the man was a student at Elm Bank and Riley was a teacher. While still a student the man reported the alleged…

FLORIDA
Naples Daily News

Ryan Mills
Oct 14, 2015

NAPLES, Fla. – An East Naples priest who was cleared of wrongdoing in a sexual abuse investigation and reinstated during the summer has returned to his church following a leave of absence.

Rev. Leo Riley, 59, returned to St. Peter the Apostle Catholic Church on Rattlesnake Hammock Road and has been celebrating mass there since Oct. 1, said Susan Laielli, a spokeswoman for the Diocese of Venice.

Riley received a standing ovation from the parish upon his return, said Pat Campagne, a member of St. Peter.

“He’s back and we all got hugs from him,” she said. “He’s a wonderful priest. And he has a great, great way of delivering a homily. We feel blessed to have him.”

FLORIDA
Naples Daily News

Ryan Mills
Jul 22, 2015

NAPLES, Fla. – An East Naples priest who placed on leave earlier this year while the church conducted an investigation into sexual abuse allegations against him has been reinstated after the church cleared him recently of wrongdoing.

Diocese of Venice Bishop Frank Dewane reinstated Rev. Leo Riley on the advice of a review board, said Bob Reddy, a diocese spokesman. Before the investigation, Riley, 60, had served at St. Peter the Apostle Catholic Church on Rattlesnake Hammock Road since 2013.

“Father Riley asked for a leave of absence. He’s going to take some time off to reflect on what he wants to do next, what he wants to do as a priest,” Reddy said. “He may come back at St. Peters. He may come back somewhere else. He just wanted some time off to get over the trauma of…

FLORIDA
Catholic League

Bill Donohue comments on another questionable accusation against a priest:

I do not know Father Leo Riley but I trust him when he says he is innocent of charges recently made against him: the Floridian priest, who is assigned to a parish in East Naples, is being accused of sexually abusing someone when he worked in an Iowan parish. Why might I be inclined to believe him and not his accuser?

First, the accusation extends back 30 years. If someone were violated, why would it take three decades to come forward? Not for a moment do I believe the much-discredited notion of “repressed memory.” The psychological evidence conclusively shows that the more serious the experience the less likely it is for the victim to “forget” it, even temporarily.

Second, Father Riley has never had an accusation made against him, until now. Abusers typically have a track…

UNITED STATES
Post-Traumatic Church Syndrome

September 16, 2014 by Reba Riley

If there’s one thing I know the power of, it’s a name.

For the better part of a decade I suffered from a chronic mystery illness that was attacking me from the inside out. Countless doctors and specialists couldn’t diagnose me, couldn’t give me a name for what was happening. They told me it was all in my head — that I could pull myself out of it if I just tried harder.

I believed them.

Debilitating fatigue and pain became a way of life. My physical distress was second only to the mental torture that went like this, “I am doing this to myself. I do not have an actual medical condition. These symptoms are not real. There is nothing wrong with me.”

But there was something wrong with me. After eight years of sickness, a doctor…

AUSTRALIA
NEWS.com.au

CHILD sex abuse is not a secret priests should keep, prominent Catholics say.

Sydney priest Father Chris Riley, founder of Youth Off The Streets, says he refuses to take confessions because he could not listen to a child sex abuser without reporting them to police.

Melbourne priest and radio host Father Bob Maguire says if a pedophile confessed his sins he’d tell him he would report him. And controversial NSW married priest Father Kevin Lee says he would convince an offender to seek outside help.

Australia’s most powerful Catholic, Cardinal George Pell, is looking increasingly at odds with the Catholic community with his strident defence of the seal of Confession, which means that child sex abusers can confess their sins to a priest and not be reported to police.

A priest who was arrested in Florida last month after he was accused of sexually abusing boys appeared in an Iowa court on Monday.

Father Leo Riley‘s arrest in Florida is tied to alleged abuse in Iowa in the 1980s. He’s charged with five counts of sexual abuse.

Riley appeared in court in Dubuque, Iowa, and was given a $500,000 bond, according to NBC affiliate KWWL. Riley’s attorney, Guy Cook, said that bond amount is too high, and planned to challenge it.

“Father Leo Riley is, to those people who know him well, a person of upstanding moral character, an honest man, and a person who would not commit these kinds of acts,” Cook said.

If Riley posts bond, he would remain in Department of Corrections custody and would have to stay at a halfway house, according to KWWL.

Riley served…

A $500,000 bond has been set for Charlotte County priest Leo Riley, following his initial appearance at the Dubuque County Courthouse on Monday. Father Leo Riley spent the night in jail while his attorney filed paperwork to have his bond significantly reduced.

Riley is facing five counts of sexual abuse allegedly committed during his time as a priest in Iowa. Last month, a local victim came forward saying he was abused by Riley in Charlotte County.

Father Leo Riley has not been charged in Charlotte County, but is back in Dubuque to answer to five counts of capital sexual battery related to reports in the 1980s.

Riley was a past priest at the Resurrection Church in Dubuque, Iowa. In Charlotte County, he was a Priest at Saint Charles Borromeo in Port Charlotte in the early 2000′s, and is currently assigned to San Antonio Catholic Church, also in Port Charlotte.

Following…

A $500,000 bond has been set for Charlotte County priest Leo Riley, following his initial appearance at the Dubuque County Courthouse on Monday. As of Monday night, he is still behind bars.

He is facing five counts of sexual abuse allegedly committed during his time as a priest in Iowa. Last month, a local victim came forward saying he was abused by Riley in Charlotte County.

“I buried these memories very deep but I couldn’t keep them buried forever,” said an alleged victim going by John Doe.

Father Leo Riley has not been charged in Charlotte County, but is back in Dubuque to answer to five counts of capital sexual battery related to reports in the 1980s.

Riley was a past priest at the Resurrection Church in Dubuque, Iowa. In Charlotte County, he was a Priest at Saint Charles Borromeo in Port Charlotte in the early 2000′s, and is currently…

A $500,000 bond has been set for a former Dubuque priest accused of sexually abusing multiple boys in the 1980s.

The Rev. Leo P. Riley, 68, of Port Charlotte, Fla., is charged in Iowa District Court of Dubuque County with five counts of second-degree sexual abuse. He made his initial appearance in court Monday morning after being arrested in Florida last month.

In addition to setting the cash-only bond, Iowa District Associate Judge Robert Richter determined Riley will not be allowed to leave Iowa while court proceedings continue.

Richter ordered Riley to wear an ankle monitor and be subject to pretrial supervision by the Iowa Department of Corrections. Richter also imposed a no-contact order for each of the alleged victims and witnesses and barred Riley from having any contact with minors.

Court documents state that four people have said they were sexually abused by Riley from 1985 to 1986, while…

The priest accused of sexually abusing boys at a Dubuque school in the 1980s appeared in an Iowa courtroom for the first time, KCRG reports.

Father Leo Riley made his initial appearance in a Dubuque County Courtroom Monday morning. Riley said little, only to acknowledge the charges against him and to confirm he had legal representation. Riley is charged with five counts of sexual abuse, as prosecutors say he molested multiple altar boys while he served at Resurrection School in Dubuque from 1984-86.

The judge ordered Riley to be held on $500,000 cash-only bond. If he is able to post that bond, the judge ordered he must remain in Iowa and wear an ankle monitor. He is also not to have any contact with the alleged victims.

Riley was arrested last month in Florida where he is serving at a Catholic Church. Riley is facing…

The former Dubuque priest charged with the sexual abuse of three victims from his time at a local parish will appear in court in Iowa on Monday, May 13th.

Leo Riley was arrested back in April in Florida after charges were filed in Iowa.

He faces five charges, all connected to allegations dating back to the 1980s when he was at Resurrection Church in Dubuque.

A criminal complaint alleges that Riley forced altar boys to perform sex acts on him and to each other.

He bonded out of jail in Florida on the condition that he’d return to Iowa to face his charges.

A former Port Charlotte priest, accused of five counts of sexual abuse to the second degree, is expected to appear in court on Monday.

Father Leo Riley, 68, is expected to make his initial court appearance in Dubuque, Iowa, on Monday at 10:30 a.m.

Riley was arrested on multiple counts of capital sexual battery in connection to his previous role at a church in Dubuque on April 24.

Before his arrest, several individuals came forward with allegations against him, which he denies.

According to the documents, Riley was ordained in 1982 and was assigned to approximately 17 different parishes in the Archdiocese of Dubuque until 2002. He served as Associate Pastor at Ressurection Parish from 1984 to 1986.

In 2002, he requested to transfer to the Diocese of Venice and was appointed at St Charles Borromeo Parish in Port Charlotte.

While the Diocese of…

A criminal complaint provided disturbing new information about a priest accused of sexually abusing multiple children.

Father Leo Riley served in the Diocese of Venice and was recently assigned to a parish in Port Charlotte. Authorities said his arrest stems from his time in Iowa in the 1980s.

A newly released criminal complaint details the alleged abuse, and also reveals why some of Riley’s alleged victims, who served as altar boys at the church, may never see justice.

The explicit details are disturbing. The complaint outlines when and where at least four underage altar boys were molested, sexually assaulted, and abused at Riley’s hands.

According to the complaint, a parent reported the alleged abuse to the principal and “a couple weeks later, Riley was transferred to another parish.”

Riley was ordained a priest in 1982. He was assigned to 17 different parishes within the Archdiocese of Dubuque until 2002.

At…

DUBUQUE, Iowa (KWWL) — A former Dubuque priest charged with 5 counts of second-degree sexual abuse is expected to make his initial appearance in court in Dubuque next week.

[Play Video]

Leo Riley was arrested in Florida and was charged with 5 counts of sex abuse.

Father Leo Riley is accused of sexually abusing young boys in the mid-1980s during his time with the Archdiocese of Dubuque. Riley moved to Florida in 2002.

Last month, Riley was taken into custody in Florida. He bonded out of the Charlotte County Jail on the condition that he face the charges in Iowa.

He’s expected to make his first court appearance in Dubuque on Monday, May 13.

A new criminal complaint details the alleged abuse from Riley from multiple victims who have come forward. The complaint is embedded below. Some of the accounts may be disturbing to some readers.

[See the

Father Leo P. Riley, a priest working with the Diocese of Venice is facing capital sexual battery charges.

The charges stem from alleged incidents in Iowa, where he previously worked in the 1980s.

According to the Archdiocese of Dubuque, Riley was ordained a priest in 1982 in Iowa. In 2002, he requested to transfer to Florida to be closer to his parents. He moved to Venice in 2005.

Riley was a priest at Saint Charles Borromeo in Port Charlotte in the early 2000s. He is currently assigned to San Antonio Catholic Church, which is also in Port Charlotte.

Archbishop Thomas Zinkula of the Archdiocese of Dubuque in a statement said the first allegation of abuse committed by Father Riley was made in December 2014. The claim dated back to 1985.

In 2014, Riley was in Florida and the Archdiocese reported it to the Dubuque County Attorney’s Office.

“It is the…

Allegations that a Charlotte County priest sexually abused children during his time in Dubuque, Iowa have dominated conversation in the Suncoast.

Leo P. Riley is facing charges in Iowa and last week a former St. Charles Borromeo student came forward. “John Doe” accused Father Riley of abuse when he was attending the Port Charlotte Catholic school in the early 2000s.

Baylor professor Dr. David K. Pooler, sat down with ABC7 to talk about the effects of sexual abuse in the church and how to prevent it and recognize it. Dr. Pooler is the Director, Adult Clergy Sexual Abuse: Advocacy & Research Collaborative at Baylor’s college of Social Work.

Michael Riley is defending his brother Leo Riley, a former Dubuque priest charged in sexual abuse cases dating back to the 1980s.

Last week, Father Leo Riley, who served in the Dubuque Diocese from 1984 to 1986, was charged with five counts of second-degree sexual abuse for incidents that the victims allege happened during that time.

Leo Riley is accused by four Iowa men, who say the abuse happened back in the 1980s when they were altar boys, as well as one man in Florida. This fifth man alleges abuse happened after Riley transferred to the state in the early 2000s.

The first allegation of abuse didn’t surface until 2014. The Catholic Church’s investigation at the time found the allegation was likely not true. The Dubuque County Attorney’s Office didn’t charge Riley then because the statute of limitations had expired by then.

In 2021,…

Port Charlotte priest was recently arrested in Florida after being placed on administrative leave one year ago with the Diocese of Venice. Father Leo Patrick Riley, 68, worked in at least 16 parishes in his home Diocese in Dubuque, Iowa, and in 2002, when predator priests began to be under great scrutiny, he moved to Florida and later began working in the Venice diocese. Floridians might have learned this much sooner, but Venice Bishop Frank Dewane is one of several US bishops who refuse to disclose the names of the child molesting clerics in his jurisdiction.

According to the Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office, Fr. Riley was arrested on April 24 and faces five capital sexual battery charges that allegedly took place in the 1980s when Riley was a priest in Dubuque, Iowa.

→In 2014, Fr. Leo Riley of the Dubuque Archdiocese was accused of sexually abusing a boy about a decade earlier.

→In 2015, a church…

A former Dubuque priest who was arrested on sexual abuse charges on Wednesday has now bonded out of the Charlotte County, Florida jail.

Father Leo Patrick Riley, now of Port Charlotte, Florida, is charged with five counts of sexual abuse of Iowa school-aged boys in the 1980’s…

A former Dubuque priest who was arrested on sexual abuse charges on Wednesday has now bonded out of the Charlotte County, Florida jail.

Father Leo Patrick Riley, now of Port Charlotte, Florida, is charged with five counts of sexual abuse of Iowa school-aged boys in the 1980’s.

The investigation started in May of 2023, after the Archdiocese of Dubuque’s Office for the Protection of Children alerted the police about reports of “cold case” sexual abuse from 40 years ago.

The Archdiocese of Dubuque issued a statement in response to the charges on Friday, highlighting the church’s role in the investigation.

“No…

Michael Riley spoke with NBC2 Saturday evening regarding his older brother, Father Leo Riley – a Port Charlotte man who was arrested this week on multiple counts of capital sexual battery, with allegations connected to his previous tenure in the 1980s as a priest in Iowa.

Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office detectives and Dubuque, Iowa police worked together to arrest Leo P. Riley, 68, at his Port Charlotte home.Advertisement

Five days after his arrest, a 32-year-old, only identified as John Doe, stepped out to publicly share that Leo Riley sexually abused him as a child. Dubuque police also report that four individuals came forward saying they were sexually abused by Riley as alter boys in the mid-80s.

However, Michael Riley told NBC2 that “some important facts have been missed.”

He said the sole reason for his brother relocating to Southwest Florida was because their parents retired there.

He referred to…

A Florida man stepped out in faith Friday, publicly sharing his history of sexual abuse.

A 32-year-old, only being identified as John Doe, spoke with his attorney, Damian Mallard, in Sarasota.Advertisement

Doe said that as a child, he attended St. Charles Borromeo Catholic School in Port Charlotte. There, he claims he was physically and sexually abused by a teacher. In a civil lawsuit filed in 2020, Doe claims he went to the Rev. Leo Patrick Riley begging for help.

Rather than reporting the crimes to the proper authorities, Doe said Riley began participating in the abuse as well. Doe said he was threatened in order to stay silent.

“I never told anybody back then. He said that if I told, he would do to my sister what he was doing to me,” Doe said. “I buried these memories very deep, but I couldn’t keep them buried forever. When…

Father Leo Riley, age 68, continued to serve as a priest for years after a 2020 sexual abuse lawsuit was filed against him and the Diocese of Venice in Florida.

A Florida priest who was recently arrested on sex abuse charges was permitted to continue in active ministry for nearly three years after a civil sex abuse lawsuit was filed against him and the diocese in which he serves.

Father Leo Riley, age 68, continued to serve as a priest for years after a 2020 sexual abuse lawsuit was filed against him and the Diocese of Venice in Florida. 

The matter came to the forefront this week after Riley was arrested on several sex abuse charges dating back to his time serving as a priest in Iowa decades ago. 

The Charlotte County, Florida Sheriff’s Office said in a press release that deputies arrested Riley in Port…

A former Dubuque priest who was arrested on sexual abuse charges on Wednesday has now bonded out of the Charlotte County, Florida jail.

Father Leo Patrick Riley, now of Port Charlotte, Florida, is charged with five counts of sexual abuse of Iowa school-aged boys in the 1980’s.

The investigation started in May of 2023, after the Archdiocese of Dubuque’s Office for the Protection of Children alerted the police about reports of “cold case” sexual abuse from 40 years ago.

The Archdiocese of Dubuque issued a statement in response to the charges on Friday, highlighting the church’s role in the investigation.

“No allegation of sexual abuse was known while he was actively serving our parishes. The first notice of any allegation of abuse by Father Riley was made in December of 2014. The claim related to the time-period of 1985, when Father Riley would have been in Dubuque. Particulars…

Attorneys with Mallard Perez are challenging the accuracy of a statement provided by the Diocese of Venice, stating that another allegation was known prior to other recent reports.

Damian Mallard, a partner of the Mallard Perez law offices, urged other potential victims of Reverend Leo Riley to come forward. Father Riley is currently facing accusations out of the state of Iowa.

Detectives from the Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office Major Case Unit worked with the Dubuque, Iowa Police Department to arrest Leo P. Riley at his Port Charlotte home on Wednesday.

Dubuque Police Department had developed probable cause for five counts of capital sexual battery within their jurisdiction.

Riley was a past priest at the Resurrection Church in Dubuque, Iowa. In Charlotte County, he was a Priest at Saint Charles Borromeo in Port Charlotte in the early 2000′s, and is currently assigned to San Antonio Catholic Church, also in Port Charlotte.

…

A priest accused of getting away with sexually touching multiple boys for 40 years may have more victims.

Father Leo Riley was in Charlotte County court on Thursday. He has been accused of sexual abuse on four boys in Dubuque, Iowa, from 1984 to 1986 but wasn’t arrested until Wednesday.

WINK News spoke to John Celeste, a parishioner at St. Charles Borromeo Catholic Church, one of the churches Riley used to work at. He said it’s deeply saddening because you never want someone who promised to be a man of God to break that promise.

Prayer is not unusual for John Celeste, but on Thursday, his purpose for praying was truth.

“I want the truth to come out. Hiding the truth is never any good,” said Celeste.

He woke up to the news that Father Riley was accused of sexual assault.

“People here used to talk well about…

An attorney representing a Florida man who filed a lawsuit says their investigation uncovered multiple victims against the former Dubuque priest.

Father Leo Riley is accused of sexual abuse while he was serving with the Archdiocese of Dubuque in the 1980′s.

Leo Riley appeared in court today in Florida on five counts of sexual abuse. He’s accused of assaulting the boys while he was an associate pastor at Resurrection Parish in Dubuque from 1984 to 1986. He’s in jail on a $100,000 bond and awaiting extradition back to Iowa.

In a lawsuit filed in 2020, a man claims Riley abused him as a boy at a Catholic School in Florida in the early 2000s.

Today, the attorney for that victim says Riley’s arrest is a relief but he expects more victims and more charges are coming. “My client is elated and also…

Leo P. Riley faces five capital sexual battery charges.

PORT CHARLOTTE, Fla. — A Port Charlotte priest arrested for capital sexual battery charges has been accused of similar crimes in the past, documents show.

According to the Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office, Leo Patrick Riley was arrested on April 24, and faces five capital sexual battery charges that allegedly took place in the 1980’s when Riley was a priest in Dubuque, Iowa.

CCSO said investigators worked with the Dubuque Police Department after allegations of Riley’s abuse came to light in May 2022. At the time, Riley was a priest at the San Antonio Catholic Church in Port Charlotte.

The Diocese of Venice Florida told Fox 4 it was made aware of the allegations in May and immediately placed Riley on administrative leave. A spokesperson said he…

A day after a former Dubuque priest was arrested for an alleged 40-year-old sexual abuse case, we’re learning about more abuse allegations.

This time, the allegations come from Father Leo Riley’s time as a priest in Florida.

Father Riley was arrested in Florida on Wednesday after four men accused him of sexually abusing them in the 1980′s when they were altar boys at Resurrection Parish in Dubuque.

Riley moved to the Diocese of Venice, Florida in 2002 to be closer to his parents.

A lawsuit filed in July 2020 alleges Riley and Alan Klispie, a music teacher, verbally, physically and sexually abused a student at the St. Charles Borromeo Catholic School, a school owned and operated by the Diocese of Venice in Florida.

The lawsuit alleges Klispie started abusing the victim when he was a pre-kindergarten or kindergarten student at St. Charles in the mid 1990′s.

According…

Deanna Hampton wants justice for her son.

She wants the priest accused of sexually abusing her little boy to be brought back to the United States. She wants him to stand trial. She wants her son’s bravery – exemplified when he testified openly before a grand jury in 2014 – to mean something. Trevor died in a tragic accident two years later.

But Deanna Hampton also wants something else. She wants those she believes have played a role in denying her son justice – most notably the Calaveras County District Attorney and the Catholic Church – to be held accountable. She also has questions for the FBI.

The church acknowledges that Father Michael Kelly sexually abused Hampton’s son, Trevor Martin, then an altar boy, and at least two other young boys during his time in the Diocese of Stockton. “The diocese accepts full responsibility for the abuse of…

It’s 9 a.m. on a Sunday morning, and locals and tourists make their way into the iconic St. Louis Cathedral, the seat of the Archdiocese of New Orleans.

As they seek peace through prayer inside the country’s oldest cathedral, many of these attendees come with a heavy heart: The Archdiocese is struggling under payments owed to survivors of sex abuse estimated to be in excess of $100 million. 

Mark Vath is one victim, but he’s also a victims’ advocate, as the New Orleans representative of Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests. 

“We want justice and consequences. Period,” he said. “These people should be punished for what they did, especially men of God.”

The Archdiocese of New Orleans says when they originally filed for bankruptcy in 2020, they were facing 30 abuse claims. Today, they say that the number is 500.

In a letter posted…

The U.S. Center for SafeSport said it is willing to work with the U.S. Soccer Athletes Council to address concerns about the organization tasked with protecting athletes from abuse.

The U.S. Soccer Athletes Council sent a letter to the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives this week signed by more than 100 current and former national team players, including the entire U.S. team playing in the Women’s World Cup.

“As athletes, we want to take a lead in collaborating with Congress and National Governing Bodies of Sport in order to create a safe and supportive environment that allows soccer players — and all other athletes in the Olympic movement — to thrive both on and off the field. We are committed to working with you and other stakeholders to make the necessary changes to ensure that players are safe and protected from abuse. And that means that…

An Omaha priest pled guilty last month to two misdemeanor charges of theft, almost two years after he was charged with stealing nearly $200,000 from an elderly priest. The priest was also accused of stealing thousands from a Nebraska parish where he was pastor.

Fr. Michael Gutgsell, 74, pled in a Douglas County courtroom June 29 to two misdemeanor counts of theft, and was sentenced to two years of probation. The priest was initially charged in December 2021 with a felony count of theft along with the abuse of a vulnerable adult — and could have faced five years in prison if convicted of those charges.

According to charging documents, Gutgsell gave the stolen money, along with hundreds of thousands from his own savings, to an Omaha homeless man whom he apparently believed would pay him back.

The Omaha archdiocese told The Pillar it cannot yet comment on whether the priest will…

When Jenifer Valenti was hired by the Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas in April 2019, she was tasked with revising the archdiocesan Child Abuse Prevention Policy.

“Most of these policies, which had served the diocese well, had not been revised in some time,” said Valenti, director of the office for protection and care, “so we really started working on that process then.”

After four years of hard work and careful consideration, the archdiocese is promulgating its Abuse Prevention Policy, which will replace the Child Protection Policy.

“We believe the whole church and everybody that’s involved in the care or mentoring of our vulnerable people has an obligation to safeguard their protection,” said Valenti.

“We hope that this newly revised policy helps people to have some pretty clear behavioral standards,” she continued, “as well as the overarching values and principles that are a part of this ministry to help prevent…

Archdiocese of Dubuque officials said today that they have received another allegation of past sexual abuse by a former Dubuque priest. 

The new accusation of past abuse of a minor against the Rev. Leo Riley, who served in the archdiocese from 1982 to 2002, was reported to archdiocesan personnel on May 23, a press release states. That was the same day the archdiocese reported that Riley had been accused of sexually abusing a minor in the 1980s.

Dubuque archdiocesan spokesperson Deacon John Robbins said today that he could not share when and where the most recently alleged abuse happened but emphasized that the investigation is ongoing.

“That investigation includes us publishing the alleged perpetrator’s ministry assignments (in the diocese) rather than focusing on a specific time or location,” he said.

Riley was ordained a priest of the Dubuque archdiocese in 1982. He requested a move to the Diocese of Venice in 2002…

A Catholic priest accused in a lawsuit of sexual misconduct while serving at a Torrington church nearly three years ago has been assigned to “non-parish duties” at the Hamden parish where he now serves, officials said Saturday. 

The priest, the Rev. Mauricio Galvis, is a parochial vicar at Our Lady of Mount Carmel Parish in Hamden, according to the church’s website. The lawsuit alleges Galvis exposed himself to a woman in his office while serving at St. John Paul the Great Parish in Torrington.

“In order to allay any concerns that parishioners may have about Fr. Galvis, he is being assigned to non-parish duties while his civil case alleging sexual misconduct with an adult awaits adjudication,” according to a statement released Saturday by officials with the Archdiocese of Hartford, which oversees both churches. 

It is unclear when or why Galvis moved from the church in Torrington to the Hamden congregation. 

A lawyer representing Galvis…

A Catholic priest accused in a lawsuit of sexual misconduct while serving at a Torrington church nearly three years ago has been assigned to “non-parish duties” at the Hamden parish where he now serves, officials said Saturday. 

The priest, the Rev. Mauricio Galvis, is a parochial vicar at Our Lady of Mount Carmel Parish in Hamden, according to the church’s website. The lawsuit alleges Galvis exposed himself to a woman in his office while serving at St. John Paul the Great Parish in Torrington.

“In order to allay any concerns that parishioners may have about Fr. Galvis, he is being assigned to non-parish duties while his civil case alleging sexual misconduct with an adult awaits adjudication,” according to a statement released Saturday by officials with the Archdiocese of Hartford, which oversees both churches. 

It is unclear when or why Galvis moved from the church in Torrington to the Hamden congregation. 

A lawyer representing Galvis…

An accusation of child sexual abuse against a Florida Catholic priest has been recently deemed to carry a “semblance of truth,” by the Apostolic Administrator of the Archdiocese of Dubuque. The cleric, Fr. Leo P. Riley, worked in 16 Iowa parishes following his ordination in 1982. He was transferred to the Diocese of Venice in 2002.

While the current complaint about Fr. Riley was apparently received on May 5th of this year, another accusation was brought to the Archdiocese of Dubuque in 2014.  That victim filed a lawsuit against the Archdiocese the following year. The Archdiocesan Review Board initially deemed that accusation as “not manifestly false or frivolous.” (Page 5) However, several months later Archbishop Michael O. Jackels announced that his investigation did not find the complaint to be true and Fr. Riley resumed working in a parish in Florida.

…

DUBUQUE, Iowa (KCRG) – A priest in Florida has been accused of sexual abuse of a minor while he was serving as priest of the Archdiocese of Dubuque in the 1980′s.

Father Leo Riley was ordained a priest of the Archdiocese of Dubuque in 1982. The alleged sexual abuse of a minor, reported earlier this month, is said to have happened between 1985 and 1986 while Riley was serving as associate pastor at the Church of Resurrection in Dubuque.

He requested to move to the Diocese of Venice, Florida in 2002 to be closer to his parents, and became a priest there in 2005.

The Archdiocese of Dubuque said Riley has been placed on administrative leave while the Archdiocese of Dubuque Review Board for the Protection of Minors begins an investigation.

In a press release, Bishop Richard Pates, who currently serves as Apostolic Administrator of the Archdiocese of Dubuque, said…

Archdiocese of Baltimore still colluding with abuse perpetrators

Lee Sanderlin’s and Cassidy Jensen’s excellent article uncovered the identities of five Archdiocesan officials whose names were redacted in the most recent version of the Attorney General’s report on child sex abuse by church clergy. (“Bishop, other high-ranking Baltimore Catholic officials identified as those who helped cover up sexual abuse,” May 6).

The information in the article provided me with some important pieces to the puzzle of my past. Getting this larger perspective strengthens my suspicions that all these officials knew what was happening, and some played key parts in this cover-up. Three such officials are Most Revs. Richard “Rick” Woy, G. Michael Schleupner and Auxiliary Bishop W. Francis Malooly.

I was introduced to Woy in August of 1992, when, as a representative of the Archdiocese, he was assigned to investigate my allegations of sexual abuse by…

Publishing the names of credibly accused child sex abusers, as Canada’s Jesuit Fathers did March 12, is one small step toward creating a better Church, but it’s not enough for abuse survivor John Swales.

For Swales, who was sexually exploited by Fr. Barry Glendinning between 1969 and 1974 in London, Ont., transparency about past sexual abuse is a good first step. But transparency must be accompanied by accountability, Swales told The Catholic Register. 

“The question that needs to be answered is, ‘Why? Why are we here? What are we going to do about it?’ Accountability really reigns high,” he said. “If the question is, ‘Would that build a better Church?’ Absolutely.”

Swales won’t get an argument from Canada’s most recognized expert on clerical sexual abuse, Sr. Nuala Kenny.

“Transparency and accountability are key in atonement and developing a culture of safeguarding,” she said in an e-mail. “We are slowly learning how…

Religion and government must coexist within a society of laws and norms. And when they intersect, society should determine which entity is serving the greater good.

The state Legislature is in the midst of a debate over House Bill 1098, which would make clergy members mandatory reporters of child abuse and sexual assault. The bill places the humanity of children over any religious practice that would allow a clergy member to withhold knowledge of child abuse — current or in the past. 

Lobbyists for the Catholic Church support the Senate version of the bill that would exempt clergy from reporting any knowledge of abuse gained during the sacrament of confession. That loophole would prevent the enforcement of the bill and place innocent lives in peril. Sponsored by Rep. Amy Walen, the House version would not include the loophole and would require reporting of alleged abuse, including of that learned through…

A Kansas senator has renewed his push to add clergy to the list of mandated reporters of child abuse and neglect, but the lack of protection for religious confessions sets the bill up for opposition.

Sen. Tom Holland, D-Baldwin City, introduced SB 87, which requires ordained ministers to report suspected physical, sexual or emotional abuse and neglect of children.

“Our children are taught to trust in certain authority figures in their communities, because adults are supposed to speak up for children when they’ve been harmed,” Holland said. “Far too many of our faith leaders — those who are foundational to the development of our sense of self and spirituality — have violated that trust, and Kansas kids have suffered as a result of their silence.”

Clergy would join the existing list of mandated reporters that includes medical and mental health providers, teachers and school administrators, child care…

More than 50 years ago, Susan Leighnor says she was raped in the 4th grade by priests at Holy Cross Catholic School in Hutchinson, Kansas.

All told, Leighnor says four priests in her childhood either sexually abused her or helped facilitate abuse against her, including the late William Wheeler, who appears on the Wichita diocese’s list of clergy with substantiated sexual abuse allegations against them. One of them told her she would go to hell if she spoke out, she said.

After repressing what happened for decades, Leighnor, now 67, says she has been recovering memories in recent years that paint a portrait of terrible trauma.

“I was furious that the Catholic Church could get away with this,” Leighnor, who lives in Colorado, said in an interview this week.

Kansas prevents nearly all survivors of childhood sexual abuse from filing lawsuits against their abusers or the institutions that enabled them….

The Archdiocese of Kansas City released a statement Saturday after the Kansas Bureau of Investigation released a report results from a four-year investigation into abuse in Kansas’ Catholic Churches.

The investigation started when departing Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt requested it in 2018 after Kansas City Archdiocese Archbishop Joseph Naumann asked to have each diocese investigated.

It found all four dioceses in Kansas not only had clergy members who abused children between 1950 and the 2000s but also helped cover up those crimes.

“You cannot read this report without your heart breaking,” said Archbishop Joseph Naumann, leader of the Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas.

“The Archdiocese has openly collaborated with the KBI from the moment we initiated an extensive and thorough review of our internal files by an independent, outside law firm,” Vicar General Father John Riley said in a written statement. “We shared the full results of our…

The Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas learned from media reports last evening that the Kansas Attorney General has released a report by the Kansas Bureau of Investigation of its investigation of historical allegations of sexual abuse made against Catholic clergy in the state.  

Although there has not been sufficient time to carefully study the report, it reflects a detailed four-year investigation of all four dioceses (or church jurisdictions) in Kansas covering more than 50 years. 

The trauma experienced by the victims is clear from the KBI report, said Archbishop Joseph Naumann, leader of the Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas.

“You cannot read this report without your heart breaking,” he said.

The archbishop expressed his gratitude to the Kansas attorney general for the professionalism and thoroughness he and the Kansas Bureau of Investigation brought to the study. It was Archbishop Naumann who initially requested the investigation of archdiocesan files…

A woman who earlier this year accused a Diocese of Worcester parish soup kitchen director of coercing her and other vulnerable women into sex has sued the now-former director for his alleged actions, as well as diocesan leadership for alleged failure to act on the complaint in a timely manner.

“This complaint reflects the unlawful actions of the defendants relating to their tortious activity and their duty of care extended to Bell and other similarly situated individuals,” reads the complaint, filed on December 13 in Worcester Superior Court in Massachusetts.

“The defendants engaged in an ongoing course of conduct, acting in concert, to abuse and mistreat [plaintiff Nicole] Bell, and others, then conspired to shield themselves from liability,” it continues. “Based on the foregoing and the allegations that follow, Bell seeks compensatory and punitive damages.”

Bell detailed her allegations against the former St. John’s Catholic Church food for the poor…

The Diocese of Worcester announced that Bishop Robert McManus has determined a credible allegation of sexual abuse of a minor exists against Reverend Alan J. Martineau and he will remain on leave from his pastoral duties. Martineau was first placed on leave in January.

In a statement issued on Monday, the Diocese said that it scheduled Martineau for transfer to a new parish in January due to “concerns over boundary issues with a minor.” Additional information reported to the Diocese before that transfer took place led McManus to put Martineau on leave.

An independent investigation into the allegations, completed recently, led to McManus making the determination that the allegation are credible.

The Diocese says it notified the Massachusetts Department of Children and Families (DCF) and law enforcement about the allegations in early February. It also notified the Vatican and began a canonical process to adjudicate the allegation, according to hits…

Bishop Robert J. McManus has determined that an allegation of sexual abuse of a minor levied against a Diocese of Worcester priest is credible.

The diocese announced Monday that the allegation of sexual abuse of a minor against Father Alan J. Martineau is credible. Martineau has been on administrative leave since January. He will remain on leave and cannot present himself as a priest, the diocese said in a release Monday.

“The Department of Children and Families (DCF) and law enforcement authorities have been notified in a timely manner and a canonical process, including notice to the Vatican, has been initiated to adjudicate the allegation,” the diocese said.

Martineau was scheduled to be transferred to a new parish to “benefit from the tutelage of a seasoned pastor because of concerns over boundary issues with a minor, and for other pastoral issues,” according to the…

In the two decades since widespread child abuse within the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Boston came to light, every diocese in Massachusetts has released a list of priests credibly accused of sex abuse — except the Diocese of Worcester.

“There is no public precedent for the publishing of lists of the accused — such as those accused in other positions of trust such as medicine, education or law enforcement,” Ray Delisle, a spokesperson for the Diocese of Worcester, said in an email addressing the diocese’s lack of a list.

The diocese publishes and distributes information on each priest who is placed on administrative leave and/or laicized and that information remains public on its website, according to Delisle.

Mitchell Garabedian, who has represented survivors in their claims against the Catholic Church nationally and internationally, told MassLive Friday it is important to have a list of credibly accused…

The Yates report was not the first time we’ve seen widespread misconduct hidden in sports, and it almost certainly won’t be the last.

When U.S. Soccer commissioned an investigation by King & Spalding LLP partner Sally Yates and the results revealed widespread, “systemic abuse and misconduct” across the NWSL and women’s soccer as a whole, many of the findings felt eerily familiar. Three coaches—Paul Riley, Rory Dames and Christy Holly—had all been accused of verbal abuse and/or sexual misconduct. Officials in charge downplayed or ignored the complaints. The coaches moved from club to club freely despite reports of their behavior.

We’ve seen these scandals before in sports, and yet little is done to prevent them from repeating elsewhere.

The Yates report makes it abundantly clear that team owners, general managers and top officials in both U.S. Soccer and the NWSL had plenty of opportunities to just do the right…

A Hartford Superior Court jury on Tuesday convicted minister Robert Lee Nichols of touching a 10- or 11-year-old boy in sexual ways during a 10-day visit to Nichols’ family’s Manchester home in the summer of 2009 or 2010.

The year of the visit was disputed, but the real issue was whether the sexual touching happened. The boy testified Monday morning that it did, and Nichols, 43, flatly denied that in testimony later that day. Nichols’ wife, Tamara, subsequently took the witness stand and corroborated important parts of his testimony.

The six-member jury convicted Nichols of two felonies, risk of injury to a child and fourth-degree sexual assault. He faces a mandatory minimum of five years in prison and a maximum of 25 years when Judge Michael Gustafson sentences him Nov. 29.

The judge raised Nichols’ bond to $500,000 after the verdict. Online court records showed Wednesday that he had posted…

A Catholic priest who stepped aside from his Westwood church four years ago amid sexual assault allegations has reemerged at a church resource center in Newark that serves abuse victims, pregnant women and other vulnerable populations.

The Rev. Jim Weiner, who took a leave of absence from the Church of St. Andrew in 2018 amid decades-old allegations, has been reassigned to the Mercy House in Newark, a spokeswoman for the Archdiocese of Newark confirmed this week. The archdiocese said an investigation into the accusations against Weiner had closed, but it offered no further details.

“The Archdiocese of Newark has returned Father James Weiner to ministry to serve the needs of the poor and vulnerable,” spokeswoman Maria Margiotta said in an email this week. “A re-review of an allegation of misconduct with an adult originally reported almost 20 years ago has concluded and the matter regarding Father Weiner has been closed.”

Asked…

Following a diocesan investigation into allegations that for years he coerced vulnerable women into sex, the head of a parish soup kitchen in the Diocese of Worcester in Massachusetts has resigned amid complaints from at least one accuser that the diocese itself needs to take greater responsibility.

The investigation into allegations against William “Billy” Riley, former head of the St. John’s Catholic Church food program, began in mid-March. The final report was published on July 14, one day after Riley resigned from his post.

In a statement accompanying the publication of the report, the diocese doesn’t comment on Riley other than to say he resigned, and because the 72-page report is heavily redacted it’s unclear what the findings were. There are three separate complaints against Riley in the report that are almost completely redacted.

“You are allowing a perpetrator to resign and redacting all findings … taking no ownership or…

For 20 years, leaders of the Southern Baptist Convention — including a former president now accused of sexual assault — routinely silenced and disparaged sexual abuse survivors, ignored calls for policies to stop predators, and dismissed reforms that they privately said could protect children but might cost the SBC money if abuse victims later sued.

Those are just a few findings of a bombshell, third-party investigation into decades of alleged misconduct by Southern Baptist leaders that was released Sunday, nearly a year after 15,000 SBC church delegates demanded their executive committee turn over confidential documents and communications as part of an independent review of abuse reports that were purportedly mishandled or concealed since 2000.

The historic, nearly 400-page report details how a small, insular and influential group of leaders “singularly focused on avoiding liability for the SBC to the exclusion of other considerations” to prevent abuse. The report was published by Guidepost…

A former pastor at Catholic parishes in Lawrence and Eudora and on the Haskell Indian Nations University campus has been suspended from ministry following an allegation of sexual abuse of a minor.

According to March 25 issue of The Leaven, the official publication of the Archdiocese of Kansas City, Kansas, the archdiocese learned on Feb. 28 that Father Michael Scully had been accused of sexual abuse. Upon notification, the archdiocese “relieved Father Scully from public exercise of priestly ministry” until an investigation is complete.

Scully served as pastor at Lawrence’s St. John the Evangelist Parish in the 1980s and 1990s. From 1995-2001, Scully served as pastor of St. Joseph Catholic Church in Hays. He then headed a Denver-based order of Capuchins until approximately 2007 before returning to Douglas County where he was pastor of Holy Family Parish in Eudora as recently as June 2021.

Most recently, he was leading services…

The head of a Massachusetts parish soup kitchen was placed on administrative leave on March 11 after allegations were made to the diocese that for years he has coerced vulnerable women who use the soup kitchen’s services into sex.

The complaint was made against Billy Riley, who has been the food for the poor coordinator for St. John’s Catholic Church in the Diocese of Worcester since 2013. A spokesperson for the diocese confirmed that the complaint was made on March 11.

“The coordinator is being placed on administrative leave and, given the seriousness of the allegations, an independent third-party investigator will be retained for a thorough investigation about this complaint,” Ray Delisle, the Diocese of Worcester chancellor and director of communications told Crux on March 11.

Bishop Robert McManus of Worcester declined to comment on the allegations citing that the complaint was recently received. Father John Madden, pastor of St. John’s, declined…

[Includes copy of lawsuit.]

Three former St. Joseph High School volleyball players have filed a lawsuit against the school, the Diocese of Fort Wayne-South Bend and school officials, accusing their coach of abusive sexual misconduct and administrators of failing to appropriately respond to their allegations during that misconduct.

The women, who graduated in 2018 and 2019 and are suing anonymously as Jane Doe plaintiffs, provide detailed accusations in their court filing.

The lawsuit claims Justin Cochran, 32, sent one of the players pictures of his genitals over the social media platform SnapChat. SnapChat messages disappear after a short time. Jane Doe 3 claims Cochran included explicit details of his sexual escapades and the size of his penis in the message containing the nude photo.

Jane Doe 3 claims she was afraid and unsure what to do, so she blocked Cochran on SnapChat and told two…

Leaders are still debating whether to hand over privileged materials as survivors and the majority of their own denomination have requested.

Months after the Southern Baptist Convention voted for a third-party investigation into how its Executive Committee responded to abuse allegations, leaders failed to adopt the convention’s terms for the process, deferring to ongoing negotiations between leaders and a sexual abuse task force.

The two-day proceedings in Nashville highlighted growing turmoil in the nation’s largest Protestant body and disappointed victims who had held out hope the convention would adopt a thorough outside review to address its missteps.

Still up for debate is whether the Executive Committee (EC) will comply with the convention’s directive to waive attorney-client privilege to allow investigators to obtain relevant documents from EC members and staff.

The majority of the EC voted against doing so, with several citing the “fiduciary duty” to protect the entity and the…

[Photo above: RCMP said in a release that officers were called to the blaze at St. John Baptiste Parish in Morinville, about 40 kilometres north of Edmonton, just after 3 a.m. on June 30, 2021. — TRACY DALZELL-HEISE/THE CANADIAN PRESS]

Just days after al-Qaeda terrorists flew passenger planes into the Twin Towers and the Pentagon on Sept. 11, 2001, a mosque all the way over in Montreal was firebombed. Another mosque was then vandalized in Hamilton, where a rather confused assailant also set a Hindu temple ablaze. A few weeks later, two Ontario mosques – one in Burlington and one in Mississauga – were firebombed in the same weekend. In the U.S., a bullet flew through the window of the only mosque in Hernando County, Fla. The Islamic Center of Tallahassee was broken into and trashed. A man rammed his car into a mosque in Evansville, Ind.

Indeed, hundreds of…

NORWICH (CT)
The Day

November 8, 2020

By Joe Wojtas

The Diocese of Norwich revealed to the region’s Catholics on Sunday that it has spent the past 13 months investigating the extent of abuse of children by priests assigned to the diocese dating back to 1953.

In a letter to parishioners across the diocese, Bishop of Norwich Michael Cote announced that retired state Superior Court Judge Michael E. Riley is leading the “Clerical Sexual Abuse Accountability Investigation” for the diocese. Riley is a member of the Internal Investigations and Alternative Dispute Resolution practice at Pullman & Comley, a Connecticut-based legal firm.

NEW LONDON (CT)
The Day

November 9, 2020

By Joe Wojtas

Norwich – The retired state Superior Court judge leading the Diocese of Norwich’s investigation into the extent of sexual abuse of children by priests assigned to the diocese said Monday that his team’s goal is to “speak with as many persons as possible who have information relevant to our investigation.”

Michael E. Riley, made the written comments in response to questions posed by The Day.

On Sunday, the diocese revealed to the region’s Catholics that it has spent the past 13 months investigating abuse dating back to 1953 as part of its “Clerical Sexual Abuse Accountability Investigation.”

The Day had asked Riley if he is interviewing the many men and women who say they were sexually assaulted by diocesan priests, attorneys who have represented some of them in civil cases or if he is interviewing retired Bishop of…

WASHINGTON D.C.
MetroWeekly

August 1, 2020

By John Riley

Conspiracy-minded archbishop accuses Pope of trying to “legitimize” homosexuality, even though church teaching would say otherwise

A right-wing Catholic archbishop who once served as the Vatican’s ambassador to the United States has accused Pope Francis of heresy for promoting the “legitimization of homosexuality.”

Archbishop Carlo Maria Viganò, who is known for his anti-gay views and has previously called on the pope to resign, made the charge in a recent interview with Italian journalist and Vatican expert Marco Tosatti. In that interview, Viganò, who refers to the pope by his given name and refuses to use his official title, claims that Pope Francis, a.k.a. “Jorge Bergoglio,” is involved in a ploy to “corrupt” the church by promoting homosexuality, according to Newsweek.

HOT SPRINGS (AR)
BP

March 31, 2020

By Diana Chandler

The Arkansas Baptist State Convention (ABSC), Millcreek Baptist Church and other defendants have denied allegations and filed motions to dismiss a 2019 lawsuit accusing them of liability in alleged multiple sexual assaults of a minor.

The defendants responded to a lawsuit filed in December 2019 accusing former Millcreek pastor Teddy Hill Jr. of sexually assaulting Riley Fields over a period of years. Fields, now 19, alleges the sexual assaults began in 2014 and continued after Hill was appointed as Field’s guardian in 2016, according to court documents filed in the Ninth Circuit Court of Pulaski County, Ark. Fields originally identified himself as John Doe, but revealed his name in an amended complaint in January.

BETHLEHEM (PA)
Morning Call

January 5, 2020

By Riley Yates

A Catholic priest in Walnutport was removed from ministry after he was seen taking “disturbing” photographs of wrestlers at a high school tournament last month, the Diocese of Allentown announced Sunday.

The Rev. Thomas A. Derzack, 70, pastor of St. Nicholas Parish, took the photos Dec. 27 without the wrestlers’ knowledge during the event at the Bethlehem Catholic High School gym, the diocese said. Using his phone, Derzack photographed the wrestlers from behind as they were waiting to compete, leading to a complaint by a concerned spectator, the diocese said.

In a prepared statement, Bishop Alfred Schlert said Derzack’s actions violated church standards for acceptable behavior. Derzack was suspended as a precaution while the diocese investigates, and he is also barred from school events and property, the statement said.

WASHINGTON D.C.
Washington Post

December 26, 2019

By Shawn Boburg, Robert O’Harrow Jr. and Chico Harlan

Former cardinal Theodore McCarrick gave hundreds of thousands of dollars in church money to powerful Catholic clerics over nearly two decades, according to financial records obtained by The Washington Post, while the Vatican failed to act on claims he had sexually harassed young men.

Starting in 2001, McCarrick sent checks totaling more than $600,000 to clerics in Rome and elsewhere, including Vatican bureaucrats, papal advisers and two popes, according to church ledgers and former church officials.

Several of the more than 100 recipients were directly involved in assessing misconduct claims against McCarrick, documents and interviews show. It was not until 2018 that McCarrick was removed from public ministry amid allegations of misconduct decades earlier with a 16-year-old altar boy, and this year he became the first cardinal known to be defrocked for sexual…

LINCOLN (NE)
Lincoln Journal-Star

December 13, 2019

By Riley Johnson

Lincoln Bishop James Conley has taken a leave of absence to seek treatment after being diagnosed with depression, anxiety, insomnia and tinnitus, the diocese announced Friday.

“My doctors have directed me to take a leave of absence for medical and psychological treatment, and to get some much-needed rest,” Conley said in a news release.

“After prayer, and seeking the counsel of my spiritual director, my brother bishops, and my family, I have accepted the medical necessity of a temporary leave of absence.”

Conley’s leave is effective immediately, and Pope Francis has appointed Omaha Archbishop George Lucas to handle the administrative duties for the Lincoln diocese in Conley’s absence, according to the release.

Conley, 64, plans to return to his post after undergoing “the best psychological and medical treatment available to me,” the release said.

In a letter to parishioners,…

EAST LANSING (MI)
The State News

March 13, 2019

By Riley Murdock

A group of journalists and media professionals gathered at the Michigan State Museum Tuesday evening to discuss their experiences covering the Larry Nassar cases and their impact.

The panel discussion, titled “Covering the Crisis: Journalism and Sexual Violence,” was the fourth of the “Sister Survivors Speak” series. The series consists of five panels leading up to the opening of the MSU Museum’s “Finding our Voices: Sister Survivors Speak” exhibit, set to open April 16.

Among the panelists were Matt Mencarini from the Lansing State Journal, Kim Kozlowski from The Detroit News, Kate Wells from Michigan Radio and independent journalist Alexandra Ilitch. Others on the panel included WKAR Digital News Director Reginald Hardwick and MSU School of Journalism professors Judith Walgren and Joanne Gerstner. The panel was moderated by MSU School of Journalism professor Sue Carter.

Before she…

WASHINGTON (DC)
The Hoya

March 15, 2019

By Riley Rogerson

“We have a nightmarish fear that Father Walsh may sexually molest innocent female students, and little girls in the Georgetown area.”

Sarah Lynne Landsdale was 5 years old when her uncle, Fr. William J. Walsh, S.J., first molested her while wearing his clerical clothing. Approximately 40 years later, in 1996, she and four of her sisters told the Maryland Province that Walsh had abused each of them hundreds of times. And two years later, in 1998, she and her sisters called a press conference to plead for their uncle’s removal from Georgetown University’s campus.

Walsh, who served as a Georgetown professor during the 1966-67 school year and conducted research on campus from 1996 until 1998, sexually abused minors in at least four locations — including Washington, D.C. — over the course of four decades, according to a December 2018…

LINCOLN (NE)
Lincoln Journal Star

March 11, 2019

By Peter Salter and Riley Johnson

The Catholic church pushed back against state investigators this month, asking a judge to toss the 400 subpoenas the Nebraska attorney general served on churches and schools this week seeking evidence of clergy sex abuse of minors.

Short of that, church officials asked a judge to give them more time to comply, and to force Attorney General Doug Peterson to narrow his requests.

“The attorney general has improperly attempted to use these subpoenas like warrants without a showing of probable cause, by demanding immediate responses, threatening sanctions for failing to comply, and using the element of surprise,” lawyers for the bishops wrote.

On Tuesday, Peterson announced he’d instructed law enforcement officers across the state to serve 400 subpoenas on Catholic churches, schools and other institutions. Specifically, he required all records related to any assault or…

MEMPHIS (TN)
Fox 13 News

March 10, 2019

By Siobhan Riley

The victims abused by priests spoke out Saturday morning about the first Catholic bishop of Memphis who has been named on a list of priests accused of child sexual abuse.

FOX13 spoke with a victim involved in a separate incident who is demanding immediate action from the newly named Bishop for Memphis Catholic Diocese.

“All these buildings, all these facilities, all these awards named after Carroll T. Dozier, I want them taken down,” said David Brown with Survivors Network of those abused by Priests or SNAP.

Victims abused by priests have several questions after recent headlines accusing Bishop Carroll Dozier’s of sexual abuse against a minor.

The Richmond Virginia Diocese released the list accusing Dozier of the allegations. Dozier who led the Memphis Diocese from 1971 to 1983 was the first Catholic Bishop of Memphis.

“Did they report…

LINCOLN (NE)
Lincoln Journal Star

February 26, 2019

By Riley Johnson

Nebraska Attorney General Doug Peterson issued more than 400 subpoenas to Catholic churches and institutions across the state Tuesday to compel officials to turn over information on child sexual assault and abuse within the church.

The legal summonses seek all records or information related to any assault or abuse that has occurred by those employed or associated with each church or institution, whether previously reported or not, according to a news release.

Thus far, the state’s three dioceses have cooperated with Peterson’s investigation, which sought 40 years of internal investigative records.

However, Peterson “believes subpoenas are necessary in order to ensure all reports of impropriety have been submitted to the appropriate authorities,” the news release said. “It is our goal that all reports of abuse are subject to complete law enforcement review and investigation as warranted.”

Asked whether…

TOLEDO (OH)
Toledo Blade

November 24, 2018

The Editorial Board

Since the early 2000s, waves of revelations about clergy sex abuse and the systemic cover-ups that hid that abuse for generations have rocked the Catholic Church.

And despite paying billions of dollars in settlements, despite creating institutional reforms, despite apologies and promises that such abuses were no longer tolerated, victims continue to come forward.

And the church continues to demonstrate that its first priority is to protect itself and its predatory priests, rather than to protect its most vulnerable parishioners.

In the case of 51-year-old Riley Kinn, the church is doing nothing less than stonewalling a man who is taking church leaders at their word that abuse allegations would be taken seriously.

FREMONT (OH)
Fremont News Messenger

November 21, 2018

Thanks to The News-Messenger for an outstanding story about how Toledo Bishop Daniel Thomas and his top staff continue to shun victims and deceive parishioners. (“Area man says bishop won’t hear his abuse allegations,” November 17)

There’s no clearer sign that Catholic bishops haven’t changed than this: An alleged victim of a known predator priest fights unsuccessfully for two years just to sit in a room with a single Catholic official.

My heart aches for Riley Kinn and other Toledo area victims and Catholics who continue to be betrayed. And my blood boils at Thomas, Victim Assistance Coordinator Frank DiLallo and other church officials who refuse to act with compassion and honesty.

David G. Clohessy
St. Louis

TOLEDO (OH)
The Blade

November 16, 2018

By Lauren Lindstrom and Nicki Gorny

Riley Kinn thought he was handling it.

Never mind the drinking, the substance abuse, the difficulty in interpersonal relationships that had intermittently plagued him since he was a teenager.

He’d been to therapy. He thought he’d managed to push down and push away the months of grooming and abuse by the Rev. Joseph Schmelzer, predatory behavior that he says culminated in sexual assault in the rectory of St. Wendelin Parish in 1980.

Then came 2015. Mr. Kinn took a new client for his information technology business — his childhood parish in Fostoria.

Once on site to run new wires for the internet and phone systems, he found himself drawn to the rectory bedroom. The memories flooded back. So did a fierce panic attack. He fled to his truck and took off.

FOSTORIA (OH)
The Blade

November 16, 2018

By Lauren Lindstrom and Nicki Gorny

Riley Kinn thought he was handling it.

Nevermind the drinking, the substance abuse, the difficulty in interpersonal relationships that had intermittently plagued him since he was a teenager.

He’d been to therapy. He thought he’d managed to push down and push away the months of grooming and abuse by the Rev. Joseph Schmelzer, predatory behavior that he says culminated in sexual assault in the rectory of St. Wendelin Parish in 1980.

Then came 2015. Mr. Kinn took a new client for his information technology business — his childhood parish in Fostoria.

Once on site to run new wires for the internet and phone systems, he found himself drawn to the rectory bedroom. The memories flooded back. So did a fierce panic attack. He fled to his truck and took off.

FOSTORIA (OH)
The News-Messenger

November 16, 2018

By David Yonke

At their meeting in Baltimore this week, America’s Catholic bishops decided to delay a proposed vote on dealing with clerical sexual abuse.

The delay did not surprise Riley Kinn, a 51-year-old Fostoria man who said he has been trying for two years to talk to Toledo Bishop Daniel Thomas about allegations that a priest sexually abused him when he was a child.

“All I am asking is for Bishop Thomas to sit down with me for a short while and listen,” said Kinn. “This is bigger than just one child being victimized. They say they want other victims to come forward, but why would they come forward if no one in the church will even listen to them?”

Thomas oversees the Toledo Catholic Diocese, which has more than 320,000 members in 19 counties across Northwest Ohio including Sandusky and…

NASHVILLE (TN)
Fox 13 TV

November 9, 2018

By Siobhan Riley

Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests or SNAP is putting pressure on the Catholic diocese to tell the truth about former priests from across the state accused of sexually abusing minors.

FOX13 traveled to Nashville where that group suggested the TBI and other outlets investigate.

SNAP leaders met outside the courthouse in downtown Nashville.

Brown who has Memphis ties showed FOX13 a picture when from his childhood which he said brings back painful memories from 1961.

That’s the year he says he was sexually abused by a priest in Nashville.

“In rural area out there, he would pick me up, take me off in his car, which is out highway 100, quite a ways away and that’s where he raped me,” he explained.

Brown along with other leaders of Survivors Network of those abused by Priests told…

ALLENTOWN (PA)
Morning Call

September 15, 2018

By Tim Darragh, Riley Yates and Christine Schiavo

For the last 20 years, Diana Vojtasek could barely speak about the sexual abuse she says she suffered as a Catholic high school student during a vulnerable time in her life.

When she married in 1997, her husband, Mark, didn’t know about what she would later describe as forced sexual encounters with a priest, who has since been defrocked.

And when a civil lawsuit she filed in 2004 failed to advance because it missed a legal deadline, she said, “I just kind of went back into my little hole.”

With three little children at the time, Vojtasek, who lives near Reading, said she became consumed with protecting herself and them.

VATICAN CITY
The Telegraph

July 28, 2018

By Ben Riley-Smith

One of America’s most prominent Catholic cardinals has resigned after an allegation was made that he sexually abused a teenage boy almost 50 years ago.

Theodore McCarrick, the former archbishop of Washington, wrote to the Vatican offering his resignation on Friday, which was accepted by Pope Francis.

A statement from the Vatican issued on Saturday read: “Yesterday evening the Holy Father received the letter in which Cardinal Theodore McCarrick, Archbishop Emeritus of Washington (USA), presented his resignation as a member of the College of Cardinals.

“Pope Francis accepted his resignation from the cardinalate and has ordered his suspension from the exercise of any public ministry, together with the obligation to remain in a house yet to be indicated to him, for a life of prayer and penance until the accusations made against him are examined in a regular canonical…

MICHIGAN
Bridge

April 24, 2018

Written by: Riley Beggin

It’s been three months since Larry Nassar was sent to spend the rest of his life in prison for criminal sexual conduct, after more than 200 women and girls said he sexually abused them. Now, representatives in Michigan’s state House are considering bills they hope will prevent other predators from following in his footsteps.

There are more than 30 bills total, which range from more rigorous medical practice requirements to extending the statute of limitations on criminal sexual conduct prosecutions and lawsuits. Most have bipartisan sponsorship.

Among the bills being considered, some would have far-reaching impact. One would greatly expand or even eliminate the statute of limitations on criminal sexual conduct cases. Another would create a system to track the reasons for firing school employees and ensure that future prospective employers know why. Yet another would give the governor more…

SCOTLAND
Daily Record

By Wilma Riley

A disgraced priest was yesterday jailed for nine years for the historic sexual abuse of three young boys and a trainee priest.

Eighty-two-year-old Father Francis Moore was told by judge Rita Rae that he had abused his position as a parish priest.

And one of his victims 49-year-old Paul Smyth urged other victims of historic abuse to come forward.

Moore, who was also known as Father Paul, was found guilty after trial at the High Court in Glasgow last month.

GLASGOW (SCOTLAND)
The Daily Record

March 15, 2018

By Irvine Herald

Father Paul Moore now faces a lengthy prison term, writes Wilma Riley.

A disgraced retired priest has been convicted of the appalling historic sexual abuse of three young boys and a trainee priest.

Eighty-two-year-old Father Francis Moore was told by judge Rita Rae that he had abused his position as a parish priest.

Moore who was also known as Father Paul, was found guilty on Wednesday after trial at the High Court in Glasgow. Some of the jurors were openly weeping as they delivered their verdicts.

Judge Lady Rae told the priest: “Mr Moore you have abused your position as a priest in the most horrible manner. You have been convicted of , particularly in relation to the young children, appalling abuse.

LONDON (ENGLAND)
The Times

March 15 2018

By Wilma Riley

A retired priest has been convicted of the sexual abuse of three boys and a trainee cleric.

The offences were committed between 1977 and 1996 but the High Court in Glasgow was told that when the Catholic church was informed about allegations, Father Paul Moore, a priest in Ayrshire, was sent for treatment in Canada rather than being reported to the authorities.

Judge Lady Rae told the priest, who had denied the offences: “Mr Moore you have abused your position as a priest in the most horrible manner. You have been convicted of, particularly in relation to the young children, appalling abuse. The damage such conduct does to young people is immeasurable.”

The allegations against Moore, 82, who will be sentenced next month, were first raised in 1996 but it was not until 2015 that a major police investigation…

SCOTLAND
The Scottish Sun

March 8, 2018

By Wilma Riley

Father Francis Moore denies the accusations of assault that allegedly took place 40 years ago

A PRIEST accused of sexually abusing a boy of five offered to take a lie detector test, a court heard today.

Fr Francis Moore, 82, denied assaulting the child at a primary school when he was quizzed by police about the claims.

The High Court in Glasgow heard he told cops probing two alleged incidents 40 years ago at St Mark’s primary in Irvine, Ayrshire: “It is absolutely untrue. I would take a lie detector test.

“It disgusts me that would happen to a child.”

MELBOURNE (AUSTRALIA)
Australian Broadcasting Corporation

December 15, 2017

By Riley Stuart, Bellinda Kontominas and staff

Catholic Archbishop of Melbourne Denis Hart has said he does not fully support some of the 189 new recommendations delivered by the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse.

The sanctity of the religious confessional would be tossed aside and celibacy would become voluntary under the new recommendations, many of which are aimed at making children safer.

In what would be a shake-up of centuries of tradition, the recommendations called for an overhaul of confessional, with religious ministers forced to report any child sexual abuse revealed to them.

But Archbishop Hart says he does not support any changes to confession that would force a priest to report information to authorities.

UNITED KINGDOM
This is London

Riley Krause

A South Norwood pastor who would blindfold children before hitting them with belts and wires has avoided jail.

Rose Amadasun, 49, of Beauchamp Road, was sentenced to 16 months’ imprisonment, suspended for 18 months at Croydon Crown Court on August 9.

She had admitted five counts of child cruelty at a previous hearing.

On Saturday, August 2, 2015 police were called by the manager of South Norwood Leisure Centre stating that two members of the public had informed her they had witnessed the female leader of a church group hitting children with a belt.

Officers spoke to the members of the public who stated they had seen a group of children being assaulted by a woman with a belt and shouting “Jesus” as she did so.