ABUSE TRACKER

NORTH CAROLINA
Times-News

By Michael D. Abernethy / Times- News
Published: Thursday, April 24, 2014

GRAHAM — A 41-year-old woman took the witness stand this week and alleged decades of sexual abuse by her father in locations around the world as the family traveled on mission trips.

She told her husband and a church friend about the abuse after her father, Emmett Thomas Cosier, 76, of Boyne City, Mich., allegedly raped her twice during a Christmas visit in Snow Camp in 2010. She and her husband went to the Alamance County Sheriff’s Office with the accusations in May 2011.

For years, the woman blocked out the events — even when they occurred after she was married and had children — she said. Under questioning Tuesday and Wednesday, she sometimes became confused about which incidents she was being asked about.

“I have a hard time keeping it all straight in my head,” she said Wednesday, before listing about a dozen ages, locations and circumstances when she recalls her father raping her.

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CALIFORNIA
Southern California Public Radio

Catholics around the world are celebrating the sainthood of Pope John Paul II and Pope John XXIII. The historic canonization this weekend has stirred controversy for some victims of the clergy sex abuse scandal.

Pope John Paul II is widely credited with helping melt down the Iron Curtain, traveling the world and supporting oppressed people. Officials with the L.A. Archdiocese said he is particularly popular in Los Angeles, where 75 percent of parishioners are Latino. They say Pope John Paul II visited Mexico more than any other country besides Poland, his homeland.

Now Pope John Paul II is reaching sainthood in record time. But some say he should not be named a saint because of the church sex abuse scandal.

The pontiff “turned a blind eye to the problems that were happening in Los Angeles,” said Joelle Casteix, Western Regional Director of Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAP).

“The canonization of Pope John Paul II is very traumatic for victims of sexual abuse in the catholic church because they don’t see him as the unifying figure that many other Catholics do,” Casteix said. “They see him as someone who knew about sexual abuse, covered it up, promoted wrong doers and allowed more priests to molest kids.”

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UNITED KINGDOM
Bristol Post

IAN Ball was an accomplished musician who gave recitals at Bristol Cathedral. But behind the scenes the organist sexually abused a young boy, even kissing and embracing him in the cathedral’s loft, a court heard.

When the Jimmy Savile inquiry prompted the victim, now an adult, to complain to police, Ball was found to have 84 indecent photographs of girls aged between ten and 13 on his computer when it was searched.

Ball, 46, formerly of Bristol but now living in Worcester, pleaded guilty to four indecent assaults on a boy aged 14. He also pleaded guilty to seven charges of downloading indecent photographs of children.

Jailing him for two-and-a-half years yesterday, Judge Michael Roach told him: “What you did not only blighted the remainder of his adolescent years but it led to a blight of his adult years too.”

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UNITED STATES
National Catholic Register

by Joan Frawley Desmond Thursday, April 24, 2014

This week, as millions of Catholics travel to Rome for the canonization of Pope John XXIII and Pope John Paul II, the New York Times’ columnist, Maureen Dowd, attacked the decision to proclaim the Church’s first Polish pope a saint.

John Paul was a charmer, and a great man in many ways. But given that he presided over the Catholic Church during nearly three decades of a gruesome pedophilia scandal and grotesque cover-up, he ain’t no saint.

It is not the first time Dowd has pounded away at the credibilty of the Catholic Church or of a pope, and it won’t be the last. But it is worth pausing to register her remarks because her anger is shared by many Catholics who believe John Paul tolerated or dismissed the cancer of clergy sexual abuse while he was pope, rather than removing negligent bishops and challenging a status quo that permitted huge financial settlements made by dioceses, during the 1980s and 1990s, without real institutional reform.

Yet, it cannot be denied that John Paul also inspired the struggle to liberate Eastern Europe form Soviet dominiation, and that his personal virtue and spiritual paternity drew many Catholics back to the Church, gave the disabled and the vulnerable a renewed respect for their own inviolable dignity, and encouraged thousands of young people to embrace a priestly or religious vocation. At the time of his funeral in 2005, many in St. Peter’s Square spontaneously called for his canonization.

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UNITED STATES
Religion Dispatches

Post by PATRICIA MILLER

Is it my imagination, or has the process of canonizing saints in the Catholic Church largely become a circular process by which popes justify the political agendas of their predecessors?

When I was a kid growing up in the Catholic Church, sainthood was a long and mysterious process. I remember the excitement surrounding the canonization of Elizabeth Ann Seton not only because she was the first American-born saint, but because the order of nuns who taught at the Catholic elementary and high schools that I attended was founded in her honor and had waited a long time for her elevation to sainthood.

Seton founded the Sisters of Charity of St. Joseph’s, the first religious order in the United States, which gave birth to numerous orders under the Sisters of Charity umbrella. She pioneered the Catholic parochial school system, with its emphasis on serving poor children, before dying of TB in 1821 at the age of 46. She was beatified by Pope John XXIII in 1963 and canonized twelve years later in 1975 by Pope Paul VI.

It took 154 years for Seton to become a saint. By contrast, Pope John Paul II, who will be canonized Sunday, died in 2005, making his nine-year march to sainthood the fastest in the church’s history. His successor Pope Benedict waved the normal five-year waiting period so that his sainthood could be considered immediately and it was fast-tracked from there on in.

The benefit of the church’s traditional slow march to sainthood was that it removed the canonization of any individual from the politics of any particular papacy. You really had to stand the test of time to be made a saint in the Catholic Church. But now we see Benedict, who as head of the Vatican’s Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith created the rightward-leaning theology that fueled John Paul’s papacy and served as its chief enforcer, nominating his old boss for sainthood practically the moment he shuffled off his moral coil.

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UNITED STATES
dotCommonweal

Mollie Wilson O’Reilly April 24, 2014

Listen up, everyone, because Maureen Dowd has some serious thoughts about this weekend’s big double canonization. You’ll find them in her April 23 column: “A Saint, He Ain’t” (which, fortuitously, was published just after Alex Pareene’s latest blog post detailing “Why Friedman, Brooks, and Dowd Must Go”). It’s got all of that trademark Dowd style, which is what makes it so darn awful.

The trouble with Dowd’s column is not that she is (as you have probably guessed) critical of the decision to canonize John Paul II. The trouble is that she’s writing about it the way she writes about everything else: analysis via insult. Shallow thinking applied to serious subjects is her metier. It’s bad enough when her topic is politics — Pareene’s latest post reminds readers of the time she turned a misquotation of John Kerry into a meme, and it is depressing to contemplate just how prominently her smart-alecky-potshot approach figured in the 2004 presidential campaign.

But Dowd’s cute turns of phrase and offhand way with facts are particularly painful when she turns to writing about the church, as she does now and then, from her not-that-I-care-but-you-should-care-what-I-think perspective — and I find her shallow arguments especially irritating when I more or less agree with her basic conclusions.

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MINNESOTA
KARE

[with video]

GOLDEN VALLEY, Minn. – From his home in the Twin Cities, Al Michaud watched the deposition of Father Kevin McDonough released to the news media Thursday.

“It is it a little tough,” said Michaud as he watched the video.” A little tough.”

That’s because in 1993, Michaud went to Father McDonough — a top church official then — to tell him that Father Jerome Kern had sexually abused him in the 1970’s when he was 15. The priest allegedly reached inside Michaud’s bathing suit while swimming.

“That’s sexual abuse isn’t it?” asked attorney Jeff Anderson. McDonough replied, “I certainly would report that to the police today.” ‘

You didn’t report it then, did you?” asked Anderson. “I did not,” replied McDonough.

McDonough testified he did not report it to police because he was told they wouldn’t investigate because it happened so long ago.

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MINNESOTA
Pioneer Press

Former archdiocesan deputy reveals reluctance to talk to investigators

By Richard Chin
rchin@pioneerpress.com

A former top official in the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis — described by lawyers suing the church as the person who knows the most about child sex abuse allegations in the archdiocese — has avoided talking to police and his church’s own child abuse investigation panel, according to sworn testimony released Thursday.

In a deposition of the Rev. Kevin McDonough, former vicar general, McDonough said he regretted deeply that the church previously had “an outdated and now clearly dangerous assumption” that child-abusing priests could be rehabilitated, and he regretted how some older cases of alleged abuse were handled.

“But I think this diocese was a real leader and worked very hard to — to protect children,” said McDonough, in a transcript of the April 16 deposition.

“I feel good about the work that we were doing already by the early 1990s,” McDonough said.

But lawyers for an alleged abuse victim suing the church said McDonough’s 6 1/2 hours of testimony showed a pattern similar to one employed by accused abusers themselves — denying and minimizing accusations and blaming others.

Plaintiff’s attorney Mike Finnegan called McDonough a “master of half-truths” who helped cover up allegations of priest child abuse, putting “countless” children at risk.

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HAWAII
KHVH

A woman is suing the Roman Catholic Diocese of Honolulu and its former vicar general Marc Alexander, accusing him of sexually abusing her in 1984 when she was 16 and he was working at St. John Vianney in Kailua. The woman, known as Jane Roe 42, filed the suit on the last day a two-year window waiving the statute of limitations for civil child-abuse complaints was set to expire. Alexander’s attorney William McCorriston, called the allegations “demonstrably false,” saying Alexander wasn’t even a priest at St. John’s in 1984. He says he will fight the allegations. The church says the diocese was distressed by the allegations and will investigate.

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MINNESOTA
KARE

ST. PAUL, Minn. – Written transcripts of the deposition of former Vicar General Kevin McDonough were released Thursday morning by both attorneys for an alleged victim of clergy sexual abuse and the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis.

The former vicar general for the archdiocese, the Rev. Kevin McDonough, gave the deposition last week.

In it, McDonough acknowledges that he chose not to talk with St. Paul police investigators who are looking into allegations of clergy sexual misconduct. He also acknowledges he declined to be interviewed by a panel appointed by the archdiocese to review its policies and practices. He says most of his activity was already documented, so he didn’t feel a need to defend his record.

Attorney Mike Finnegan of Jeff Anderson and Associates says McDonough’s testimony supports their belief that the former Vicar General chose to protect abusive priests and the reputation of the archdiocese instead of the safety of children. He says McDonough’s failure to notify authorities put thousands of children at risk.

In his deposition, McDonough also refutes testimony from Archbishop John Nienstedt, who told attorneys that McDonough told him told him not to write down sensitive information about abusive priests because the information could become public in the event of lawsuit. Nienstedt also claimed McDonough provided vague information on past cases and led him to believe that the archdiocese was safe for children.

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OREGON
The Oregonian

By Aimee Green | agreen@oregonian.com
on April 24, 2014

A 12-year-old boy who awoke to discover Woodburn priest Angel Armando Perez holding a camera and molesting him during a 2012 sleepover is suing the Archdiocese of Portland for $8.5 million.

Perez, 48, is currently serving a prison sentence of more than six years. The boy, on the other hand, has suffered lifelong harm, according to the suit filed Wednesday in Multnomah County Circuit Court.

It is the first lawsuit that the boy’s attorney, Brent Barton, knows of that has been filed for sexual abuse occurring after the archdiocese sought bankruptcy protection in 2004. Other recent lawsuits have been filed for sexual abuse that mostly occurred decades ago.

“Although the church has made progress in recent years, this case demonstrates that it needs to do more to protect children from predators, particularly those who occupy positions of trust,” Barton said Thursday.

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NEW YORK
Fox 23

BALLSTON SPA, N.Y. – New details have emerged in the case of a local priest accused of having an inappropriate relationship with a 15-year old girl.

Authorities arrested James Taylor, 30, on an Endangering the Welfare of a Child charge.
The district attorney says that alleged relationship went on for seven months and involved physical contact, phone calls, text messages and photos. The Albany Diocese says the victim’s family first reported the inappropriate conduct to them and that they referred them to authorities.

Taylor, who is currently a priest for the Saint Kateri Tekakwitha Parish in Schenectady, was placed on administrative leave immediately after his arraignment, and the Albany Diocese says it will cooperate fully with the investigation.

Richard Tollner with the Survivor’s Network of Those Abused by Priests, or SNAP, is hoping the new bishop will take a stand on the issue.

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UNITED STATES
The Garden of Roses: Stories of Abuse and Healing

Virginia Jones

She styles herself a princess. It is the positive self talk she struggles to use to heal herself and propel herself forward to a better life.

Probably it is her way of trying to answer the words she heard from those who should have loved her from birth.

Princess was not only abused by those who actually beat her physically, but also by members of her community and church who judged her and blamed her and sided with the men who abused her.

Perhaps because of this she talks hesitantly about the past and not at all about some events and memories.

Like so many survivors sometimes all she can say is, “I was abused.”

The abuse started early. She was not as a wanted child. She was reminded of this over and over in her life.

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INDIANA
The Journal Gazette

Rebecca S. Green | The Journal Gazette

Respectfully and calmly, Nathan Hasty admitted in open court to encouraging juvenile boys to send him sexually explicit photos.

Hasty, 36, a former Huntington resident and Youth for Christ worker, filed a guilty plea in U.S. District Court on April 11, admitting to sexual exploitation of children, one of three counts in an indictment handed down against him in the fall of 2012.

On Wednesday afternoon, U.S. District Magistrate Judge Roger Cosbey heard Hasty’s guilty plea in a brief hearing. Hasty will be sentenced at a later date.

As part of a plea agreement with federal prosecutors, Hasty will be sentenced to 15 years in prison and must forfeit a computer. Two other charges he had been facing will be dismissed.

When asked what he did that made him guilty, Hasty was brief and unequivocal.

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INDIANA
The Raw Story

By Scott Kaufman
Thursday, April 24, 2014

A former Campus Life Director for Youth for Christ from Huntington, Indiana pleaded guilty Wednesday to charges that he sexually exploited a minor.

Nathan Hasty used a fake Facebook page to solicit naked photographs from children, including ones who belonged to Youth for Christ. An FBI agent tasked to the case told WANE that Hasty established multiple Facebook accounts under false names in order to initiate conversations of a sexual nature with underage boys.

Eventually, he would attempt to coerce the boys into sending him nude photographs.

In the fake accounts, Hasty pretended to be a lascivious sixteen-year-old girl and struck up conversations with boys, mostly between the ages of 12 and 14. He would eventually ask them to send nude photographs, and even enticed some of them into webcam sessions in which he watched them masturbate while claiming he didn’t have a camera.

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INDIANA
Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests

For immediate release: Thursday, April 24, 2014

Statement by Barbara Dorris of St. Louis, Outreach Director of SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests ( 314-503-0003, SNAPdorris@gmail.com )

An Indiana youth pastor pleaded guilty to charges that he sexually exploited minors. We are deeply disturbed and distressed by the actions of this man and hope he gets a lengthy prison sentence.

[The Raw Story]

Nathan Hasty was the Campus Life Director for Youth for Christ from Huntington, IN. According to the FBI Hasty used a fake social media account to lure young boy into sending nude photos and other lewd sexual acts.

It is deeply upsetting that a man entrusted by the community to work with their children abused his power so greatly.

We urge Youth for Christ officials to reach out to anyone else who many have been victimized by this dangerous individual and encourage them to call law enforcement. There may be innocent children suffering in silence and self blame. We hope they find the courage to come forward and start healing.

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CANADA
The First Perspective

BY MARK KENNEDY, POSTMEDIA NEWS

The federal government, after months of delay, is hiring a firm to sort through millions of documents at Library and Archives Canada so they can be passed on to the commission probing the aboriginal residential school saga.

But the executive director of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, Kimberly Murray, said Tuesday she is worried the records will trickle in and arrive too late to be used for the commission’s report.

That multivolume report is being written and will be released by June 2015, but must be finished months before then so it can be translated and edited.

“They know we have to do all that,” a frustrated Murray said of the government. “They know it takes a year to do all that.”

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ST. LOUIS (MO)
Berger’s Beat

. .SNAP’s founders, David Clohessy and Barbara Blaine, will be honored May 5 at the Beverly Hills Hotel in L.A. at the Global Women’s Rights Awards gala “tor their work to hold Catholic hierarchy responsible for covering up priests’ rape and sexual abuse of children. . .

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MINNESOTA
National Catholic Reporter

Brian Roewe | Apr. 24, 2014

Shortly after becoming coadjutor archbishop of the St. Paul-Minneapolis archdiocese in 2007, John Nienstedt held a meeting with core staff officials to discuss the state of safe environments in the archdiocese.

During that two-hour meeting, “it didn’t occur to me,” the now-archbishop said in a deposition released Tuesday, to ask for a copy of the John Jay list — those priests the archdiocese listed as credibly accused in the 2004 John Jay College of Criminal Justice study on clergy sex abuse.

Nor did it occur to Nienstedt to document the names of priests currently enrolled in a monitoring program or to record any of the discussion among his delegate for safe environment, Fr. Kevin McDonough; his chancellors for civil and canonical affairs; and him.

“It was verbal,” the archbishop said.

Non-documentation would become an occasional norm for him and McDonough when discussing sensitive matters, Nienstedt said.

Through 200-plus pages of testimony, Nienstedt, who described himself as a hands-on manager, instead frequently appears as a leader unaware of information concerning abuse, who at times failed to follow up on child-protecting protocols, and who saw no need to discipline his staff or priests for their handling of abuse allegations.

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MINNESOTA
WCCO

[deposition via the archdiocese]

Nina Moini

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) — First we heard from the Archbishop. Now, we’re hearing from the priest in charge of keeping kids safe from abuse.

Former vicar general Father Kevin McDonough gave hours of oral testimony to one of the victim’s lawyers. On Thursday, that lawyer made transcripts and video from McDonough’s deposition public.
McDonough handled complaints of abuse within the archdiocese.

Attorney Jeff Anderson said the deposition shows McDonough denied and minimized the problem.

Transcripts and video clips show McDonough said he chose not to contact St. Paul police, who were looking into abuse allegations. He said he didn’t refuse to cooperate but wasn’t present when the officers stopped by — and didn’t respond to a letter that was left.

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MINNESOTA
BringMeTheNews

April 24, 2014 By Kevyn Burger

Screen Shot 2014-04-24

The release of the six-hour deposition of a former top leader of the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis is shedding additional light on how church officials addressed clergy sexual abuse of children.

The Star Tribune reports the sworn testimony of the Rev. Kevin McDonough, whom the newspaper called the archdiocese’s “longtime point person on Catholic priest sexual misconduct,” was released Thursday by Jeff Anderson, the attorney for an alleged child abuse victim. Here is the full 318-page transcript made available by the archdiocese on its website.

The release of McDonough’s court-ordered deposition comes two days after Anderson released the deposition of Archbishop John Nienstedt. In that deposition, Nienstedt frequently mentioned McDonough, formerly the vicar general. Neinstedt testified that McDonough did a “good job” but claimed that McDonough was aware of the details of wayward clergy while he was not.

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HAWAII
Honolulu Civil Beat

Vicar General Gary Secor of the Roman Catholic Church in Hawaii issued a response late yesterday to a sex abuse lawsuit filed against the Honolulu Diocese and former Vicar General Marc Alexander.

Today the Diocese of Honolulu learned of the filing of a lawsuit against Marc Alexander and the Roman Catholic Church in the State of Hawaii alleging that he abused a female minor about 1984. We are distressed by this allegation. Notwithstanding a much-publicized previous allegation about inappropriate conduct with an adult woman, this is the first time that anyone has alleged that she was abused by Marc Alexander when she was a minor.

When such an allegation is reported to the Diocese, we take it very seriously and thoroughly investigate it. No credible allegation is disregarded and, when abuse of minors is alleged, appropriate reports are made to public authorities as well. When an allegation is first brought to our awareness through the legal system, we also work within that process to find the truth of the matter. Either way, if the allegation is found credible, the cleric is permanently removed from ministry, no matter when the abuse took place.

Marc Alexander was either a seminarian or a deacon in 1984. He was ordained a priest in October, 1985, served in various parishes and ministries, and was Vicar General of the Diocese of Honolulu from early 2006 until he was suspended from priestly service in January, 2011. He has not served as a priest in this Diocese or anywhere else since that time. He is without authorization to exercise the priestly ministry here or elsewhere, but until now the reason for the suspension had nothing to do with any alleged sexual abuse of a minor.

When we learned of Marc Alexander’s relationship with an adult woman, the Diocese acted on the information it had, sought counsel and advice, and gave him the chance for professional evaluation and assessment at the Saint Luke Institute near Washington, DC. Although many associate the Institute with treatment of priests accused of abusing minors, in fact, it provides a broad range of medical and psychological services for clergy and religious for a variety of situations.

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ST. LOUIS (MO)
St. Louis Review

Jennifer Brinker | jbrinker@archstl.org | twitter: @JenniferBrinker

Father Xiu Hui “Joseph” Jiang was charged April 18 in St. Louis with two felony counts of statutory sodomy of a minor under the age of 14.

The allegation of abuse was reported through the Missouri Child Abuse and Neglect Hotline by a family who for the past year has been pursuing a claim against the archdiocese related to their child being bullied by other students, according to a statement from the archdiocese. The statement also noted that the family had not claimed their child had been abused by a priest until last week, when the allegations became public. Father Jiang voluntarily surrendered April 17 at the request of police, pending a decision on whether charges would be filed.

The archdiocese noted that the priest’s canonical privileges have been revoked while the allegations are being considered. The archdiocese also said it is fully cooperating with law enforcement during the investigation.

In 2012, Father Jiang, a former associate pastor at the Cathedral Basilica of St. Louis Parish, was accused of a separate incident of misconduct with a high school aged minor in Lincoln County and was placed on leave at the time. Criminal charges against the priest were dismissed in November 2013, when the court determined that the evidence established the priest had never been alone with the child; a civil suit against the priest is pending.

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ISRAEL
A Mother in Israel

April 24, 2014 by Hannah Katsman

In 2010, well-known religious Zionist rabbi Mordechai (Moti) Elon was accused by the religious forum Takana of forcible sexual acts on young men who approached him for counseling. Last December, Elon was convicted and sentenced to six months of community service.

It’s hard to imagine the shock within the community when the events were revealed. The national religious public revered Elon. He started a movement called Mibereshit, which published weekly pamphlets featuring stories, games and quizzes with versions for younger and older children. (Here is my take on one of the stories.) The movement attracted many from outside the community, and offered rallies and study sessions. I brought my kids to a weekly Mibereshit study session at a nearby synagogue for a year or so. Our school encouraged using the sheets, and Elon came and held a huge rally. His weekly classes at Bar-Ilan University on the Torah portion attracted hundreds, if not thousands.

After his conviction, Elon continued to give a weekly class at the Ohr Etzion yeshiva. A small group of protestors headed by Emunah Klein visited the yeshiva each week holding signs in protest. As a convicted sex offender, Elon is not allowed to work at institutions that serve minors. However, Ohr Etzion is a post high-school yeshiva even though some students may be under 18 and prospective students have visited and attended Elon’s class. For the last several months, the class has not taken place. The yeshiva did not make an official announcement and refused to answer questions, so we don’t know why it was canceled.

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CANADA
The Telegram

The Supreme Court of Canada has refused to hear an appeal of a decision won by the insurer of the Roman Catholic Episcopal Corp. of St. John’s in a battle over who pays for compensating victims who were sexually abused by priests.

Today, the country’s top court dismissed the Episcopal Corp.’s request for leave to appeal, awarding court costs to Guardian Insurance Co. of Canada.

“Our position is we always felt the (Supreme Court of Newfoundland and Labrador) Court of Appeal decision was right and proper and that it allows the determination of whether or not the Episcopal Corp. prior to obtaining the policy of insurance from our clients about the abuses carried by members of the clergy and in particular James Hickey,” said St. John’s lawyer Philip Buckingham, who represents Guardian.

The fight over who pays stretches to 1989 when a minor filed a claim against the Episcopal Corp. related to allegations of sexual abuse by James Hickey, a priest in the St. John’s diocese, between 1982 and 1988.

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MINNESOTA
Minnesota Public Radio

[with videos]

Madeleine Baran St. Paul, Minn. Apr 24, 2014

Updated: 11:58 a.m.

In a deposition earlier this month, a longtime official for the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis disputed Archbishop John Nienstedt’s sworn testimony on the clergy abuse scandal.

Nienstedt had testified April 2 that the Rev. Kevin McDonough told him not to write down sensitive information about abusive priests because the information could become public in a lawsuit. Nienstedt also said McDonough provided vague information on past cases and led him to believe that the archdiocese was safe for children.

Nienstedt deposition: “Were you concerned, Archbishop, that we shouldn’t make some recording…?”

Two weeks after the archbishop’s deposition, McDonough denied telling Nienstedt not to write down sensitive information. In a transcript released by the archdiocese Thursday, he said the description of the conversation wasn’t plausible. “He and I would have never been in a position for much casual conversation,” McDonough said. “Archbishop Nienstedt managed largely by memo.”

McDonough deposition: “If he did in fact characterize things… the way you’ve said them, I think he’s wrong” | Read the transcript

In a news conference held Thursday to discuss McDonough’s deposition, attorney Mike Finnegan asserted that “Countless children were put at risk in the 25 years that he was one of the top officials.”

• Transcript: Rev. Kevin McDonough’s April 16 deposition

McDonough served as vicar general for Archbishops John Roach and Harry Flynn and carried out their orders on clergy sexual abuse cases for 17 years. Under Nienstedt, McDonough oversaw the archdiocese’s abuse prevention programs until September 2013. For nearly three decades, he assured parishioners in dozens of interviews and personal conversations that the archdiocese was a national leader in fighting abuse.

However, an MPR News investigation last year found that McDonough helped both archbishops cover up clergy sexual abuse and failed to report some alleged sex crimes to police. It found McDonough advised against notifying parish employees of sexual misconduct by the Rev. Curtis Wehmeyer, a priest now in prison for sexually abusing two boys and possessing child pornography. He also advised against reporting possible child pornography found on another priest’s computer, arguing that the images of children were not sexually explicit.

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NORTHERN IRELAND
Irish Post

By Fiona Audley on April 24, 2014

SURVIVORS of institutional abuse in the North of Ireland who wish to make representations to the Historic Institutional Abuse inquiry must do so by the end of the month.

On April 30 the inquiry, which has been taking evidence in private sessions from former residents of children’s homes, schools and other institutions since 2012, will close to new applicants.

Anyone who suffered childhood abuse or neglect in children’s residential institutions in the North between 1922 and 1995 have been asked to share their experience with the inquiry’s Acknowledgement Panel.

Their evidence will inform a report into suggested failings by the state in its duty of care to children over the period — similar to the Ryan Report in the Republic.

The inquiry is examining the allegations of child abuse in state institutions in order to determine if victims should receive an apology and compensation.

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ROME
Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests

Victims plead with Vatican officials
“Please stop honoring wrongdoers like JPII,” they beg
SNAP: “Those who commit or conceal crimes keep getting praised”
And that, they say, encourages other clerics to continue wrongdoing
Such callousness also deepens the pain of victims & parishioners, group charges
Two events in Rome on Friday, and one in Geneva in May, will feature victims

WHAT
Holding signs and childhood pictures at a news conference, clergy sex abuse victims from Australia, Spain, Austria and the U.S. will

– denounce Vatican officials for making Pope John Paul II a saint,
– beg Pope Francis and other church staff to stop honoring those who commit and conceal child sex crimes and cover ups, and
– urge them to teach their flocks and employees how to act properly when clergy sex abuse reports surface.

WHEN
Friday, April 25 at 11:00 a.m. (Rome time/Central European time)

WHERE
Hotel Orange- Via Crescenzio, 86, 00193 Roma, Italy; +39 06 686 8969

WHO
Three-four clergy sex abuse victims who are leaders in an international support group called SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests. One is the founder and long time president of the organization, one heads SNAP’s Australia chapter, the others are SNAP leaders from Europe.

WHY
SNAP leaders are convinced that clergy sex crimes and cover ups persist, in part, because the Catholic hierarchy praises wrongdoers instead of punishing them. Across the world, church buildings, scholarships, stained glass windows, streets, sports fields, etc. are named after proven wrongdoers and church speaking roles and honorific titles keep being given to them.

In just a handful of cases across the globe, clerics who protected predators and endangered kids were ever so slightly rebuked (mostly lower level church staff and only after their misdeeds were made public through civil lawsuits or investigative journalism). In many cases, wrongdoers were subsequently promoted.

In virtually all cases, no matter how deceitful or egregious their misconduct is, no cleric is ever defrocked, demoted, disciplined, or even denounced by his church supervisors, at the parish, diocesan or Vatican levels. That encourages even more reckless, callous and deceitful actions, SNAP says.

The canonization of Pope John Paul II, who for decades presided over thousands of clergy sex crimes and cover ups, is the latest and most hurtful example of this irresponsible pattern.

“For Pope Francis and Catholic officials to honor JPII with this exalted title is extraordinarily heartless and unwise. It rubs salt into the already deep wounds of tens of thousands of still-suffering clergy sex abuse victims and their loved ones across the globe,” said Nicky Davis of Sydney, who heads the SNAP Australia chapter.

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MINNESOTA
Star Tribune

Article by: Associated Press Updated: April 24, 2014

ST. PAUL, Minn. — Attorneys for victims of alleged sexual abuse by priests have released a deposition from the former point man for such allegations for the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis.

The former vicar general for the archdiocese, the Rev. Kevin McDonough, gave the deposition last week.

In it, McDonough acknowledges that he chose not to talk with St. Paul police investigators who are looking into allegations of clergy sexual misconduct. He also acknowledges he declined to be interviewed by a panel appointed by the archdiocese to review its policies and practices. He says most of his activity was already documented, so he didn’t feel a need to defend his record.

Thursday’s release comes soon after the release of a similar deposition from Archbishop John Nienstedt.

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VATICAN CITY
U.S. Catholic

By Josephine McKenna
2014 Religion News Service

VATICAN CITY (RNS) Hundreds of pilgrims wind their way around St. Peter’s Square as tour guides shout in multiple languages. Beggars have their hands outstretched amid warnings of an invasion of pickpockets from abroad.

Across Rome, hotels are full, streets are clean and the cash registers in the souvenir stalls are singing as the faithful pour in to the Eternal City for the dual canonizations of Pope John Paul II and Pope John XXIII on Sunday (April 27).

Italian authorities are expecting at least a million pilgrims, including heads of state, prime ministers and diplomats from 54 countries. One group of Polish pilgrims is making the 2,000-mile trek on horseback, dressed in medieval costumes, to celebrate Poland’s most famous native son.

Yet despite the vast popularity of the two popes, there is intense debate about whether these canonizations are nothing more than an elaborate public relations exercise—and whether they should be taking place at all.

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.

MINNESOTA
Star Tribune

By Jean Hopfensperger and Chao Xiong  Star Tribune Staff Writers

A contentious back-and-forth emerges in the court-ordered deposition of the Rev. Kevin McDonough, the longtime point person on Catholic priest sexual misconduct at the Archdiocese of St. Paul-Minneapolis, was publicly released Thursday.

The six-hour testimony was released by Jeff Anderson, attorney for an alleged child abuse victim known as John Doe 1. The archdiocese also made the 320-page deposition available on its website.

Anderson associate Mike Finnegan said McDonough is “far and away the most knowledgeable” person in the archdiocese regarding sex abuse.

McDonough denied repeatedly any cover up, Finnegan said, and minimized priests’ conduct.

“Kevin McDonough’s actions put countless kids at risk. He chose to keep information about child sex abuse in the inner circle.”

Another Anderson colleague, Sarah Odegaard said, McDonough “denied and minimized” what he knew about the case of former priest Curtis Wehmeyer and his risk to kids. Wehmeyer, former pastor of Blessed Sacrament Church in St. Paul, was sentenced to five years in prison last year for abusing two brothers in a trailer parked outside the church.

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UNITED KINGDOM
The Big Issue

Tory rebel Nadine Dorries on the Catholic Church’s reaction to her book – and why she regrets supporting the bedroom tax

Tory outsider Nadine Dorries claims a Catholic conspiracy is targeting her for “attack” because of the contents of her debut novel.

The book, The Four Streets, includes a storyline of a Catholic priest abusing a young girl in 1950s Liverpool.

It was a particularly vitriolic review of The Four Streets in the Daily Telegraph that lead Dorries to her claim. Critic Christopher Howse – a former member of the hard-line Roman Catholic grouping Opus Dei – described it as “the worst novel I’ve read in 10 years”.

He was brought in, Dorries told The Big Issue, because the original review wasn’t tough enough on her.

“The Telegraph commissioned someone to review my book,” Dorries said. “It was a lovely review. They didn’t like it so they got someone from Opus Dei to review it.

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MINNESOTA
KSTP

[with copy of the deposition]

[with video]

By: Jennie Olson

The public on Thursday is learning what former Vicar General Kevin McDonough said during his deposition regarding alleged abuse in the Catholic church.

McDonough was the second-in-command at the Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis for 17 years and was the one in charge of investigating, researching, and reporting all claims of possible sex abuse in the church for more than a decade. The former Vicar General supervised the Child Sex Abuse Prevention program within the archdiocese until 2008.

He was deposed on April 16 as part of a civil lawsuit going to trial in September; a victim has sued the Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis, the Diocese of Winona, and former priest Tom Adamson, who allegedly abused the victim in the 1970s. Because McDonough was in charge of knowing about sex abuse cases, he’s crucial to the trial.

In the deposition, McDonough acknowledges that he chose not to talk with St. Paul police investigators who are looking into allegations of clergy sexual misconduct. He also acknowledges he declined to be interviewed by a panel appointed by the archdiocese to review its policies and practices. He says most of his activity was already documented, so he didn’t feel a need to defend his record.

Attorneys with Jeff Anderson & Associates say countless children were put at risk under McDonough’s leadership and that McDonough “personally worked with and worked on at least 30 people accused of sexual abuse.” They say two of the accused offenders lived with McDonough at some point and claim he is “intimately aware” of abuse.

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UNITED STATES
Think Progress

BY MASON ATKINS APRIL 24, 2014

In 1991, Congress passed the Jeanne Clery Act, a federal law that requires all colleges in the United States to accurately and effectively collect and disclose reports of sexual crimes that occur on their campuses and help end sexual violence on college campuses. Today, as college activists work to hold their administrations accountable for their sexual assault policies, the Clery Law is one of the federal requirements that allows them to demand change. But not every campus is required to follow it.

Two institutions that do not comply with the Clery Act are Pensacola Christian College (PCC) and Patrick Henry College (PHC). The colleges are two of 65 candidates and members of TRACS, the Transnational Association of Christian Colleges and Schools. And like many other colleges across the country, these institutions have been accused of mishandling rape cases.

Pensacola Christian College came under serious scrutiny after former student Samantha Field published the events of how PCC responded to her when she tried to seek counseling after a sexual assault. At one point, she was told by one of the five guidance counselors PCC has on staff to forgive her assailant because “bitterness will take seed and that bitterness will be so much worse than anything he could have done.”

At Patrick Henry College, a student tried to go to the office of Dean of Student Life to report harassment from a male classmate who had sent her an email that stated he “wanted to forcibly take her virginity.” As reported in the New Republic, the student was told that “the choices you make and the people you choose to associate with, the way you try to portray yourself, will affect how people treat you” and that she should “think about her clothing and ‘the kinds of ideas it puts in men’s minds.’”

College administrators at PCC and Patrick Henry have denied the students’ claims. But the alleged reactions of both institutions are classic examples of victim-blaming, and are indicative of the continuing rape culture epidemic that is exposing itself in colleges throughout the United States. The toxicity of rape culture extends extends even farther than victim blaming and reducing the agency of an individual. In some cases it has young women convinced that sexual harassment and violence are normal behaviors, which discourages so many from reporting these crimes.

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MINNESOTA
Jeff Anderson & Associates

[deposition video clips]

Deposition of FATHER KEVIN MCDONOUGH, taken pursuant to Notice of Taking Deposition, and taken before Gary W. Hermes, a Notary Public in and for the County of Ramsey, State of Minnesota, on the 16th day of April, 2014, at 30 East 7th Street, St. Paul, Minnesota, commencing at approximately 9:06 o’clock a.m.

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MINNESOTA
Minnesota Public Radio

Madeleine Baran St. Paul, Minn. Apr 24, 2014

In a deposition earlier this month, a longtime official for the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis disputed Archbishop John Nienstedt’s sworn testimony on the clergy abuse scandal.

Nienstedt had testified April 2 that the Rev. Kevin McDonough told him not to write down sensitive information about abusive priests because the information could become public in a lawsuit.

Nienstedt also said McDonough provided vague information on past cases and led him to believe that the archdiocese was safe for children.

Two weeks later, in a nearly seven-hour deposition, McDonough denied telling Nienstedt not to write down sensitive information. He said the description of the conversation wasn’t plausible. “He and I would have never been in a position for much casual conversation,” McDonough said. “Archbishop Nienstedt managed largely by memo.”

• Transcript: Rev. Kevin McDonough’s April 16 deposition

McDonough served as vicar general for Archbishops John Roach and Harry Flynn and carried out their orders on clergy sexual abuse cases for 17 years. Under Nienstedt, McDonough oversaw the archdiocese’s abuse prevention programs until September 2013. For nearly three decades, he assured parishioners in dozens of interviews and personal conversations that the archdiocese was a national leader in fighting abuse.

However, an MPR News investigation last year found that McDonough helped both archbishops cover up clergy sexual abuse and failed to report some alleged sex crimes to police. It found McDonough advised against notifying parish employees of sexual misconduct by the Rev. Curtis Wehmeyer, a priest now in prison for sexually abusing two boys and possessing child pornography. He also advised against reporting possible child pornography found on another priest’s computer, arguing that the images of children were not sexually explicit.

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CANADA
CBC News

A Nunavut court judge has ruled that final arguments in the trial of Eric Dejaeger will be heard as scheduled the week of May 26, and will not be delayed by a ‘similar fact’ application made by the Crown prosecutor in the case.

Dejaeger, a 66-year-old former Oblate priest, is facing dozens of charges alleging sexual abuse against children in Igloolik.

In March, the Crown made an application for the court to consider the evidence of each complainant to be in support of the evidence of other witnesses.

Prosecutor Barry Nordin said in court there were similarities in what was presented by the complainants.

Dejaeger’s lawyer argued against the application, saying witnesses may have colluded against Dejaeger prior to the trial.

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NEW YORK/ILLINOIS
Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests

For immediate release: Thursday, April 24, 2014

Statement by Kate Bochte of Geneva, SNAP member (630 768 1860, keight@sbcglobal.net)

This week, a Catholic priest who studied at University of St. Mary of the Lake was arrested for child sex crimes in Albany, New York.

[Albany Times Union]

We doubt this is the first time that Fr. James Michael Taylor has hurt a child.

We hope that anyone who saw, suspected or suffered clergy sex crimes or cover ups – whether by Fr. Taylor or other priests, nuns, seminarians, brothers or bishops, and whether in Chicago or Albany – will speak up, call police, protect others and start healing.

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OREGON
The Raw Story

By Travis Gettys
Thursday, April 24, 2014

A lawsuit claims church officials were sufficiently aware of sexual abuse by clergymen to have prevented an Oregon priest from molesting a boy and chasing him down the street in his underwear.

Father Angel Armando Perez pleaded guilty April 1, 2013 to drunken driving, providing alcohol to the boy, and sexually abusing him the year before.

The priest was sentenced to six years as part of his plea agreement.

A lawsuit filed by the victim’s guardian claims the Roman Catholic Archbishop of Portland and Saint Luke Catholic Church of Woodburn, Ore., were negligent and contributed to the sexual battery of a child.

“By the 1950s, and certainly by 2005 (after it had filed bankruptcy), the Archdiocese of Portland was aware of a systemic danger of child molestation by its priests,” the suit claims.

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MINNESOTA
Fox 9

ST. PAUL, Minn. (KMSP) –
Former Vicar General Kevin McDonough’s testimony about how the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis handled sexual abuse allegations will be released Thursday.

Rev. McDonough — who handled many of the clergy abuse claims — gave a deposition last week after being questioned by St. Paul attorney Jeff Anderson, whose team is suing the church on behalf of an alleged victim.

Archbishop John Nienstedt’s deposition was made public on Tuesday. He said he doesn’t believe the church mishandled any abuse allegations, and noted Rev. Kevin McDonough was responsible for problem priest notifications.

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DEUTSCHLAND
netzwerkB

[Summary: Norbert Denef, a victim of clergy abuse and spokesman for a network of people affected by sexual violence criticized efforts by the Vatican to canonize Pope John Paul II. He said he asked the pope for help in 2003 for help because the bishop of Magdeburg wanted to force him to accept 25,000 for his silance. The pope answered he would pray for him but there was no offer of help. Denef said he attempted suicide.]

Der Vatikan plant am 27. April 2014 die Heiligsprechung von Johannes Paul II.

Norbert Denef, Sprecher des Netzwerks Betroffener von sexualisierter Gewalt e.V., kurz netzwerkB, nimmt hierzu wie folgt Stellung:

Im Jahr 2003 bat ich Johannes Paul II. um Hilfe, weil der Bischof von Magdeburg mich mit 25.000 Euro zum Schweigen zwingen wollte. Am 27. April 2004 kam die Antwort:

“Papst Johannes Paul II. nimmt ihr Anlegen in sein Beten hinein und ermutig Sie, den Allmächtigen Gott um seinen starken Beistand für Ihre innere Heilung und um die Kraft der Vergebung zu bitten.”

Daraufhin versuchte ich mir das Leben zu nehmen.

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GERMANIA
Rete L’abuso

[Summary: The Germany Catholic Church has compensated 1,380 victims of sexual abuse, according to Bishop Stephan Ackermann of Trier.]

Parigi 22 apr. (TMNews) – La Chiesa cattolica tedesca ha indennizzato 1.380 vittime di abusi sessuali: lo ha annunciato Stephan Ackermann, vescovo di Treviri, intervistato dal quotidiano francese La Croix.

“Si tratta di un’iniziativa unica in Germania, che non esiste in alcun gruppo sociale o istituzione” ha spiegato Ackermann, incaricato dalla Conferenza episcopale tedesca di fare luce sugli scandali di abusi sessuali da parte di sacerdoti.

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ALLEMAGNE
La Croix (France)

[Summary: Bishop Stephan Ackermann of the Trier diocese explained the philosophy of the bishops study of sexual abuse in the church. The first of three objectives is to collect data for an accurate assessment of pedophilia in the church, the second is to better understand the systemic influences that may have existed in the church and the third is to summarize the results and compare them with studies conducted in the United States, Ireland, the Netherlands and in Germany religious orders.]

Mgr Stephan Ackermann, évêque de Trèves, en détaille la philosophie, qui se veut interdisciplinaire et souhaite associer les victimes.

Pourquoi l’Église allemande a-t-elle lancé un projet de recherche sur les abus sexuels ?

Mgr Stephan Ackermann : Cette initiative poursuit trois objectifs. Il s’agit d’abord de rassembler les données pour établir un bilan précis des actes de pédophilie portés à notre connaissance, puis d’examiner le douloureux phénomène des abus sexuels au sein de l’Église de façon différenciée : de combien de cas de pédophilie, au sens strict du terme, parle-t-on ? Quelles autres formes de violence et d’abus sexuels ont eu lieu ?

Le deuxième objectif consiste à mieux comprendre les influences systémiques qui ont pu exister au sein de notre institution. Y a-t-il une « dynamique spécifique à l’Église » en matière d’abus sexuels ? Il s’agit d’étudier de façon approfondie les agissements des criminels et le comportement des responsables ecclésiastiques au cours des dernières décennies.

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UNITED STATES
Feminist Majority Foundation

by MAVIS AND JAY LENO on Apr 23, 2014

We’d love for you to join us at the Feminist Majority Foundation’s Ninth Annual Global Women’s Rights Awards gala dinner and reception on the evening of Monday, May 5, 2014 at the Beverly Hills Hotel in Los Angeles. But time is running out!

We only have two weeks until the event. Get your tickets now!

Global Women’s Rights Awards

The Awards honor a select few individuals who have contributed significantly – often against great odds and at great personal risk – to advance the rights of women and girls and to increase awareness of the injustices women face on account of their gender.

The 2014 Award Recipients include:

Philomena Lee and Jane Libberton, founders of The Philomena Project. Their story was recently told in the powerful Oscar-nominated film Philomena.

Rosario Dawson, actor, activist, and founder and chairwoman of Voto Latino, an organization empowering young Latinas and Latinos to claim a better future through voting.

Barbara Blaine and David Clohessy, founders of the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, a group doing extraordinary work to hold the Catholic hierarchy responsible for covering up priests’ rape and sexual abuse of children.

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MINNESOTA
MinnPost

By Brian Lambert

Archbishop Nienstedt might be able to sell the idea he was legally clueless. But McDonough? Jean Hopfensperger and Chao Xiong of the Strib write, “The release of … Nienstedt’s court deposition on clergy abuse Tuesday has aggravated his already difficult relationship with concerned Catholics but also reinforced his support among admirers. That divide could widen Thursday, when the deposition of the archdiocese’s point person on child sex abuse — the Rev. Kevin McDonough — will also be made public on video and text.”

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MINNESOTA
Jeff Anderson & Associates

Media Advisory
April 23, 2014

St. Paul Press Conference Thursday

Deposition of Father Kevin McDonough to be
Publicly Released Tomorrow

WHAT: At a news conference Thursday attorneys Mike Finnegan and Sarah Odegaard will:

• Release video clips and the deposition transcript of former Vicar General Fr. Kevin McDonough taken on April 14, 2014 as part of a civil lawsuit.

WHEN: Thursday, April 24, 2014 at 11:00 AM CDT

WHERE: Law Office of Jeff Anderson & Associates
366 Jackson Street Suite 100
St. Paul, MN 55101

Notes: All attendees will be provided with copies of the video testimony and deposition transcript. Clips of the testimony and the transcript will be posted tomorrow on our website www.andersonadvocates.com.

Contact: Mike Finnegan: Cell: 612.205.5531 Office: 651.964.3458
Sarah Odegaard: Cell: 612.616.4218 Office: 651.964.3458

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MINNESOTA
KARE

[with video]

Lindsey Seavert, KARE April 24, 2014

SAINT PAUL – The deposition of Father Kevin McDonough, the former Vicar General of the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis, will be publicly released Thursday.

Attorney Jeff Anderson and his associates are expected to release video and transcripts of the deposition as part of a civil lawsuit Thursday morning.

Father Kevin McDonough served 17 years as the Vicar General, a position declaring him the second most powerful man in the Archdiocese. Records show he has served as a priest at Peter Claver Church in St. Paul since 1990.

“He is warm hearted, affable, friendly, decent sort of fellow, that is the reputation he has. That’s the way he comes off in public,” said Dr. Charles Reid, a University of St. Thomas professor specializing in canon law.

The deposition will offer a glimpse of McDonough behind closed doors, just two days after Anderson’s office released Nienstedt’s deposition. Nienstedt testified McDonough was responsible for major judgment calls within the Archdiocese, and told attorneys McDonough advised him not to put certain situations in writing.

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OREGON
Courthouse News Service

PORTLAND, Ore. (CN) – A priest dressed in his underwear chased a boy down the street after getting him drunk and sexually abusing him, the boy’s guardian claims in court.

Sam Friedenberg, guardian for J.T., sued the Roman Catholic Archbishop of Portland and his successors, and Saint Luke Catholic Church of Woodburn, Ore., in Multnomah County Court, alleging sexual battery of a child and negligence.

The boy was 11 and 12 years old when Fr. Angel Armando Perez sexually groomed him, gave him alcohol and molested him, Friedenberg claims in the lawsuit.

Perez is not named as a defendant. He pleaded guilty on April 1, 2013 to sexually abusing the boy and giving him alcohol, the complaint states. He was sentenced to 6 years in prison, according to Oregon press reports.

After he befriended the boy, and counseling him “emotionally and spiritually,” the complaint states, “On the night of August 12-13, 2012, plaintiff was staying at Fr. Perez’s residence at the rectory of Saint Luke’s Church. Fr. Perez-through the grooming that was within the course and scope of his employment and agency, and using the authority and position of trust as a priest for defendants – engaged in various sexual activities with plaintiff.

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PENNSYLVANIA
WITF

What to look for on Smart Talk Thursday, April 24, 2014:

There are almost 250,000 Catholics living in the 15 counties of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Harrisburg.

Last month, they got a new leader when Bishop Ronald Gainer was installed as the 11th Bishop of the Diocese.

With Catholics representing more than one-tenth of the region’s total population and considering the social fabric of the Church, Bishop Gainer will be a familiar face in Central Pennsylvania.

On Thursday’s Smart Talk, we’ll meet the Pottsville native, who most recently was the Bishop of a large diocese in Kentucky.

We’ll ask Bishop Gainer to discuss his background, his vision for the Harrisburg Diocese, education, the future of the Church, and Pope Francis and what he means to Catholics around the world.

Bishop Gainer also speaks passionately about aiding the poor and those left behind, including those in prison.

Catholics and non-Catholics are always interested in what positions the Church takes on contemporary social issues like same-sex marriage, contraception, women’s role in the Church, and clergy who have been accused of sexual abuse.

If you have a question or comment for Bishop Gainer, please comment below or call us at 1-800-729-7532 between 9 and 10 a.m.

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MISSOURI
WBLX

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. –
Days after community outrage over an art teacher’s resignation, the president of Helias High School in Jefferson City asks for patience.

Father Stephen Jones said in a Facebook statement that he apologized for a lack of communication with parents over the issue.

“The resignation of Mr Friggle has caused a lot of pain, and for that I am sorry,” he writes. “I also regret that there has not been more formal communication by the administration with the Helias community on this subject.”

Art teacher Mark Friggle resigned Thursday, February 13. Sources told ABC 17 News it was over an inappropriate comment toward a student, though the two did not have any kind of inappropriate relationship.

Friggle is not facing any charges and the Dicoese would not comment on the issue, other than to say Friggle resigned citing “personal reasons.”

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CALIFORNIA
The Worthy Adversary

Posted by Joelle Casteix on April 23, 2014

I am so flattered and overwhelmed to be honored with the Susan Laufer Award for Outstanding Contribution to Support Group Awareness for “tireless work in spreading the word about support groups for those abused by priests.

” If you would like to come, PLEASE let me know. We want you there to join us. You can also RSVP at the link above.

It’s times like this that I humbly realize that I stand on the shoulders of giants. I will accept it on behalf of the heroes that came before me, stand beside me, and will follow me after I am long gone.

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CHICAGO (IL)
Patch

Posted by Lorraine Swanson (Editor) , April 23, 2014

A Chicago priest has agreed not to enter the school or be alone with children at his current parish until a second allegation of child sex abuse is sorted out.

Rev. Michael W. O’Connell was reinstated at St. Alphonsus Church at 1429 W. Wellington Ave. on April 17, when law enforcement authorities could not find evidence to support an earlier claim of sexual misconduct with a minor at a south suburban parish from 20 years ago.

O’Connell was removed from ministry at St. Alphonsus when the earlier allegation surfaced last December.

In recent weeks, a 33-year-old Nevada man, “John Doe #2,” contacted SNAP, the Survivor’s Network of those Abuse by Priests, stating that he witnessed O’Connell touching and fondling a younger male at an Orland Park fitness club around 1999 or 2000. John Doe #2 was 19 or 20 years old when he witnessed the alleged assault.

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MINNESOTA
Star Tribune

by: JEAN HOPFENSPERGER and CHAO XIONG , Star Tribune staff writers Updated: April 24, 201

The release of Archbishop John Nienstedt’s court deposition on clergy abuse Tuesday has aggravated his already difficult relationship with concerned Catholics but also reinforced his support among admirers.

That divide could widen Thursday, when the deposition of the archdiocese’s point person on child sex abuse — the Rev. Kevin McDonough — will also be made public on video and text.

Even as Nienstedt’s testimony stoked new debate among 800,000 Catholics in the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis, there were pleas from all sides to reform how the church handles child abusers.

“I think the message to the faithful members of the archdiocese is this: If you have a question about whether a child is at risk, pick up the phone and call law enforcement,” said Suzanne Severson, a member of Spirit of St. Stephen’s Church in Minneapolis.

Like many Catholics, Severson, a member of a group called Voice of the Faithful, logged into her computer after work Tuesday to read and watch portions of Nienstedt’s deposition, ordered as part of one of more than two dozen abuse lawsuits filed against the archdiocese in the past year. She was particularly interested in Nienstedt’s testimony about the Rev. Jonathan Shelley, who had been a priest at her church, she said.

To hear Nienstedt say that he couldn’t determine whether the pornography on Shelley’s computer was of adolescents or older boys, and that he didn’t report it, was particularly disturbing, she said.

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HAWAII
Star-Advertiser

Victims of child sexual abuse in Hawaii would have more time to file lawsuits against abusers if lawmakers pass one of two bills pending in the Legislature.

In a highly publicized law, victims had been given a two-year window to file suit in cases that have passed the statute of limitations, which led to the filing of many claims. That window is set to close Thursday.

In advance of the deadline, former child model Michael Egan III filed several lawsuits against Hollywood executives, claiming that “X-Men” director Bryan Singer and several others abused him as part of a Hollywood sex ring. Singer and others have denied the allegations. The director’s attorney has called the claims defamatory.

Lawmakers plan to debate the proposals Wednesday afternoon.

Rep. Mele Carroll says it’s important to empower victims of sexual assault no matter how much time has passed.

“Too often, by the time a victim is ready to admit the abuse they have suffered the statute of limitations is expired and the victims are left powerless and unable to receive the justice they deserve,” Carroll said in a statement.

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ILLINOIS
CSN Chicago

A teacher accused of sexually abusing a teenage girl in the 1990s is back in the classroom in suburban Buffalo Grove after an internal investigation found no wrongdoing in the school.

Cheri Carlson had been on paid administrative leave since November when allegations — unrelated to her work at the school — were made in a lawsuit reported on NBC 5.

A woman whose identity we agreed to conceal said Carlson was her spiritual mentor at a religious camp and began abusing her in 1996 when she was 16.

“She said she was showing me God’s love,” the alleged victim said. “Eventually the physical demands became constant. Sometimes, maybe four times a week.”

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AUSTRALIA
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Perth

Dear sisters and brothers,

The Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse will begin its public hearings in Perth on Monday, April 28th. The initial hearings are expected to last for two weeks.

Many people who have suffered terribly through the abuse inflicted on them as children and young people will relive their experience as they tell their stories to the Royal Commission. In doing so, they will demonstrate great courage and resilience. They deserve our admiration, our gratitude and our support. They also have a right to know that the Church really does recognise their suffering and genuinely apologises for the terrible things they have endured, both at the time of their abuse and through all the years they have carried these burdens with them.

As I did in November 2012 when the Royal Commission was announced, I again want to express my full support for the work of the Commission. I am hopeful that the public hearings in Perth, difficult though they will be for many, will provide an opportunity for people to finally have their voices heard. It is my hope too that when the Royal Commission finishes its work it will be able to put forward recommendations which will help all Australians, including the Catholic Church, to deal more justly, more compassionately and more effectively with this scourge of sexual abuse of children and young people.

A particular focus of the hearings in Perth will be the terrible experiences of abuse at institutions run by the Christian Brothers, especially at Castledare, Clontarf, Tardun and Bindoon. It was from these institutions that horrific stories of sexual abuse by Catholic religious brothers and others associated with the Church first emerged in our Australian context. We now know, to our shame, that this problem has been far more widespread. The curse of sexual abuse has infected the Catholic Church right around the country. Tragically, it is becoming ever clearer that it is a universal problem for the Church. We have some hard questions to answer.

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AUSTRALIA
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Perth

Press Release

Thursday 24th April 2014

As members of the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse arrive in Western Australia , Archbishop Timothy Costelloe of the Archdiocese of Perth has written to the entire Catholic community.

In his letter, the Archbishop admits to the past failures of Church leadership and assures Catholics and society at large of his determination to make church communities places of safety for all, especially minors.

The Archbishop’s letter begins by praising the “great courage and resilience” of survivors who will share their stories with the Royal Commission, stressing that “they deserve our admiration, our gratitude and our support”.

He states that the Church “recognises their suffering and genuinely apologises for the terrible things they have endured”.

The Archbishop expresses his “full support for the work of the Commission”, seeing this as “an opportunity for people to finally have their voices heard” especially as “the curse of sexual abuse has infected the Catholic Church right around the country” becoming “a universal problem for the Church”.
His letter goes on to state that “as a Church we have failed terribly” confessing that “Church leaders have at times failed to respond adequately… moving abusers from one place to another” thereby “putting other young people at risk”. Regarding the Church’s protocols, “mistakes have been made,” he says, “processes have not always been followed, and not everyone has been able to find the healing” they sought after.

The Archbishop points out that the Church’s first response “must be one of absolute support for those who have experienced this abuse” and that “every avenue [be explored] to make sure that the scourge of sexual abuse is eradicated from our Catholic community”.

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AUSTRALIA
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Perth

Archbishop Costelloe’s FULL LETTER – click here (PDF – 548KB) to download.

MEDIA RELEASE relating to the full letter – click here (PDF – 372KB) to download.

Below is the EXECUTIVE SUMMARY of the Archbishop’s letter containing the main points – click here (PDF – 513KB) to download.
____________________

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

Perth, 24th April 2014

Dear sisters and brothers,

On Monday 28th April, the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse begins two weeks of public hearings in Perth. Many who have suffered terribly as a result of their childhood abuse will relive their experience as they tell their stories to the Royal Commission, demonstrating great courage and resilience. They deserve our admiration, gratitude and support. The Church recognises their suffering and genuinely apologises for the terrible things they have endured, both at the time of their abuse, through to the present day and beyond.

As in November 2012, I again express my full support for the work of the Commission, hopeful that the difficult public hearings in Perth will provide an opportunity for people to finally have their voices heard. I hope that, when the Royal Commission finishes its work, its recommendations will help all Australians, including the Catholic Church, to deal justly, compassionately and effectively with the sexual abuse of minors.

The hearings in Perth will focus on truly horrendous abuse at institutions run by the Christian Brothers, especially at Castledare, Clontarf, Tardun and Bindoon. To our shame, we now know that sexual abuse has infected the Catholic Church nationwide and even universally. We have some hard questions to answer.

Knowing as we now do that sexual abuse of children is a pervasive problem throughout society does not, and must not, allow us to use this as some kind of perverse excuse. Christians hold up very high standards, ones that we also propose to those who do not share our faith. And yet, as a Church we have failed terribly. The perpetrators of sexual abuse have robbed so many of their childhoods and left deep scars. Church leaders have at times failed to respond adequately, even moving abusers from one place to another, thereby putting other young people at risk. Often children simply were not believed and left to grapple alone with a situation about which they were powerless to do anything.

Programmes such as our Towards Healing were put into place in part due to revelations made in the Media,. Even then victims were not and have not always been treated with the sensitivity and compassion they had a right to expect from the Church. Towards Healing has indeed helped many survivors of sexual abuse. Nevertheless, mistakes have been made, even by the generous and compassionate people undertaking a difficult and demanding role. Regrettably, not everyone has been able to find the healing they had hoped Towards Healing would offer.

As we hear some terrible and shocking stories over the next few weeks, of suffering inflicted on innocent and trusting young people our hearts will be torn. As Christians, our first response must be one of absolute support for those who were abused. We must help survivors with the heavy burden they carry, and find ways forward for them.

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AUSTRALIA
NEWS.com.au

Catholic Perth Archbishop Timothy Costelloe apologises for abuse in open letter

[the letter]

THE head of the Catholic Church in Perth has written to all members before next week’s royal commission into child sexual abuse hearings, saying “we have failed terribly”.

In an open letter to the entire Catholic community, Archbishop Timothy Costelloe of the Archdiocese of Perth reiterated his full support for the work of the commission, which will hold hearings in the city from April 28 until May 9.

He expects a particular focus will be the abuse at institutions run by the Christian Brothers, especially at Castledare, Clontarf, Tardun and Bindoon.

“It was from these institutions that horrific stories of sexual abuse by Catholic religious brothers and others associated with the church first emerged in our Australian context,” the archbishop wrote.

“We now know, to our shame, that this problem has been far more widespread.

“The curse of sexual abuse has infected the Catholic church right around the country.

“Tragically, it is becoming ever clearer that it is a universal problem for the church.

“We have some hard questions to answer.”

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AUSTRALIA
Queensland Times

Geoff Egan 23rd Apr 2014

AN IPSWICH pastor “had a guilty passion” for the best friend of his 12-year-old daughter an Ipswich jury has heard.

Crown prosecutor Sal Vasta yesterday told the court the 51-year-old man, who is standing trial for raping and maintaining a sexual relationship with his daughter and her best friend in 2004 and 2005, had an “unnatural sexual attraction” to the friend.

An Ipswich jury yesterday heard the closing arguments from Mr Vasta and defence lawyer Geoff Seaholme.

The man, who cannot be named so as to not identify the girls, has pleaded not guilty at the Ipswich District Court to a raft of child sex offences including rape and maintaining a sexual relationship.

Mr Vasta told the jury the evidence of the best friend had remained uncontradicted by sworn testimony throughout the trial.

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MINNESOTA
People Magazine

By STEVE HELLING
04/22/2014

Victor Barnard had always been known as a charismatic leader with an easy smile and pleasant demeanor. Moving to rural Minnesota in the early 1990s, the affable pastor started The River Road Fellowship, a tight-knit church on several acres of remote land. Within a few years, he had a small but dedicated following.

But the River Road Fellowship was no ordinary church, and Barnard was no ordinary minister. Authorities say that he had a dark side, ruling with intimidation and fear.

After a former church member contacted the Pine County Sheriff’s Office in 2012 to report rampant sexual abuse, authorities opened a two-year investigation. On April 11, the county attorney charged Barnard with 59 felony counts of criminal sexual misconduct with two young girls while they were members of his church.

But Barnard is nowhere to be found, and authorities in several states have begun a nationwide manhunt to find the 52-year-old leader.

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MONTANA
Beartooth NBC

By Camilla Rambaldi

An order of nuns being sued for child sex abuse want to bring the roman catholic diocese of helena back in state court.

Attorneys for the Ursuline Sisters of the Western Providence say they may want the diocese to pay a portion of any judgment that could go against them.

The Ursuline sisters and the diocese are being sued by 362 alleged abuse victims from the 1940s to the 1970s.

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HAWAII
Hawaii News Now

[with video]

By Tim Sakahara

HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) –
There are more troubling accusations against the Roman Catholic Church of Hawaii. The main defendant is Father Marc Alexander who has already had a brush with controversy.

Marc Alexander is still technically a priest although the Diocese of Honolulu suspended all his priestly service in 2011. Now he and the church are named in a new lawsuit filed today.

“We are also very much aware we have a crisis in our midst,” said Marc Alexander, back on March 3, 2011 when he was the State Homeless Coordinator.

Homeless crisis aside, Marc Alexander has a controversy of his own.

“This was an assault. It was not invited or permitted conduct,” said Mark Gallagher, Plaintiff’s Attorney.

The lawsuit specifically says there was “unpermitted, harmful and offensive sexual contact.” It was 1984. The anonymous accuser says she was 16 years old and a member of St. John Vianney Church in Kailua. She claims Marc Alexander forced himself upon her.

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HAWAII
Star-Advertiser

A woman filed a lawsuit Wednesday against Marc Alexander, the former vicar general of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Honolulu, accusing him of sexually abusing her when she was a minor, according to the mainland law firm representing her.

The plaintiff attended St. John Vianney in Kailua in the 1980s when the woman, who is now in her 40s, was allegedly sexually abused, according to her attorney.

The woman, identified only as Jane Roe 42, filed the lawsuit a day before a two-year deadline lapses that allows the filing of civil complaints by adults who were sexually abused as minors.

The lawsuit names Alexander, who stepped down as vicar general and became Gov. Neil Abercrombie’s homeless coordinator, and the diocese, claiming the church was grossly negligent in allowing Alexander to work with children.

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NEW GUINEA
Radio Australia

[with audio]

But the country’s Archbishop admits it faces various challenges, including the ‘wantok’ system, that are preventing some perpertators from being brought to justice.

Catholic Archbishop John Ribat’s comments come as the case of priest, Philip Kelera, has been in court in recent weeks.

Kelera’s been charged with five counts of incdecent assault against five school boys aged between 11 and 15 in East New Britain.

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UNITED STATES
The Week

[with video]

By Michael Brendan Dougherty

It was Oct. 3, 1992, when Sinead O’Connor sang a haunting a capella cover of Bob Marley’s “War” on Saturday Night Live, in which she replaced the word “racism” with “child abuse” and tore up a picture of Pope John Paul II while singing about the victory of good over evil. She finished her performance by shouting, “Fight the real enemy.” At the end of the clip you can practically feel the SNL audience lose its breath.

The freak-out was immediate and severe. O’Connor was pilloried tabloid to tabloid in perhaps the last collective utterance by ethnic outer-borough Catholic New York. The reaction was epitomized almost perfectly on the following week’s show, when Joe Pesci held up a taped-together picture of the Pope and said he “would have gave her such a smack” to vigorous applause.

As John Paul II’s canonization approaches, I can’t stop thinking about this event, these two people, and their subsequent history.

For the rest of the 1990s, Pope John Paul II was increasingly considered a holy man, made more saintly by his daring embrace of the suffering brought on by Parkinson’s disease. Devotion to him as “John Paul the Great” developed even as he lived.

Meanwhile, O’Connor’s career diminished. She was commonly assumed to be a silly weirdo. In a kind of religious left-right mash-up, she was ordained a “priest” in a breakaway Catholic sect founded by Latin Mass devotees. Rather charmingly, she embraced a vow of celibacy only to give that up after three months. “I tried,” she said, “No thanks.”

It took more than a decade before people came around to the fact that O’Connor may have been on to something. She no longer seems to have anything to do with breakaway Traditionalists, but she still occasionally performs in a Roman collar, still rocks an unbelievably expressive voice for pop music, and has an album due out soon. In a recent formal debate, she took the position that the Scriptural prophets, the Gospels, and the Book of Revelation show that the story of God is one of a divine enemy fighting against organized religion.

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UNITED STATES
Christian Catholicism

Jerry Slevin

With all the problems the Vatican now faces, why are more “papal saints” being declared now, and what is the rush on Pope John Paul II? With almost a hundred popes already declared “saints”, do Catholics need more papal saints to pray to? What is really going on? Is Pope Francis’ “infallible” declaration of sainthood, or canonization, for Popes John XXIII and John Paul II part of a larger undisclosed strategy? It seems so. Despite the usual cheerleading from conflicted and opportunistic papal apologists, neither pope deserves to be declared a saint, for the reasons specifically discussed below.

Francis’ “divinizing” these two popes now, thereby seeking to enhance selectively Francis’ ability to capitalize on their individual moral influence over various Catholic groups, appears aimed at consolidating Francis’ papal power base and at maximizing his influence over a divided world Catholicism.

Francis’ strategy appears directed at both so-called “conservative” Catholics, who often favor John Paul II’s more dogmatic approach in his rigid encyclicals and self-serving Catechism, and “liberal” Catholics, who often favor John XXIII’s seemingly more pastoral approach in initiating the Second Vatican Council reforms. Since the Catechism contains many positions that support a dominant papacy that depends on a rigid sexual morality, Francis’ rushed and unsurprising “elevation” of the Catechism’s papal proponent, John Paul II, is both symbolically, practically and perhaps ominously significant for many key “doctrines” that Francis is purported by some to be reconsidering, such as women priests, contraception, divorced and remarried Catholics’ readmission to sacraments, and marriage equality.

As to the seeming rush to sainthood, maximizing Francis’ power over a less theologically divided Catholicism appears to be especially important to the Vatican currently. The Vatican now faces its greatest external threat since the loss of its extensive Papal States’ territory almost a century and a half ago. The democratically driven threat for the Vatican is the increasing pressure, including potential criminal prosecutions of the hierarchy, from powerful democratic governments over the Vatican’s mismanagement, especially of its bishops’ poor child protection performance. The Vatican over a 1,500 year period has eliminated democratic pressure internally, but is now paradoxically facing democratic pressure externally.

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UNITED STATES
POPE FRANCIS the CON-Christ.

Paris Arrow

Updated April 23, 2014

Today the Media report released a statement that made a big deal out of the crocodile tears apology of Benedict XVI and Pope Francis. It said: One essential element of the media’s sex abuse narrative is the idea that the Catholic Church must repeatedly and perpetually apologize for past abuse committed by priests. Pope Benedict repeatedly apologized and even met with victims to hear their stories. So it was big news when Pope Francis recently asked for forgiveness for the past abuse committed by a small number of priests decades ago.

What is this “big news about Pope Francis apology”? He was an unknown cardinal from Argentina who has suddenly skyrocketed to instant fame at the Vatican – and the Opus Dei Beast is capitalising on his podgy ass – that looks different from the ugly Benedict XVI-RATzinger – all he does is his Jesuitical skill — to papal fart at Catholics left and right – and his apology is supposed to “erase” or “salve” decades of Vatican crimes against children – that even the United Nations after careful investigations – condemned?

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NEW HAMPSHIRE
CBS News

MANCHESTER, N.H. – A priest who was the former leader of one of America’s top clergy treatment centers was sentenced Wednesday to serve at least four years in prison for stealing $300,000 from a hospital, a dead priest’s estate, and the state’s Roman Catholic bishop.

Monsignor Edward Arsenault held several senior positions in the New Hampshire diocese from 1999 to 2009, when he became president and CEO of Saint Luke Institute in Maryland. He resigned in May of 2009 after allegations arose involving an inappropriate adult relationship and misuse of church funds.

Details of the thefts revealed Wednesday show a priest who billed the church for lavish meals and travel for himself and often a male partner. He was convicted of writing checks from the dead priest’s estate to himself and his brother and billing Catholic Medical Center $250 an hour for consulting work he never did.

“It’s criminal behavior. It’s disturbing behavior,” Senior Assistant Attorney General Jane Young said. “These are thefts from a charitable institution by someone very high up.”

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UNITED STATES
POPE FRANCIS the CON-Christ.

Paris Arrow

Updated April 23, 2014

Vatican PR Stunt of the Day in the USA: Goliath-bully Bill attacks woman NYT writer for her article, A Saint, He Ain’t, and distracts American Catholics from JP2 Army – John Paul II Pedophile Priests Army to a British pedophile actor.

Anyone who has watched Hollywood war movies can see how wars were won when informants gave the wrong information of the whereabouts of the enemy or divert attention and split concentration of armies. Likewise, American Goliath-bully Bill Donohue is doing exactly that to American Catholics by diverting their attention from the 27 years cover-up of John Paul II on thousands of pedophile priests worldwide, more than 6,100 in USA alone, so that on his canonization, stupid American Catholic robots – especially those yes-women, will simply sing the Opus Dei Hitlerism chant “JP2, we love you”.

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CANADA
Nunatsiaq Online

DAVID MURPHY

Justice Robert Kilpatrick is insisting that the trial of former Oblate missionary Eric Dejaeger be wrapped up, as scheduled, during the week of May 26.

The trial at the the Nunavut Court of Justice in Iqaluit is still in an adjournment — the third break in proceedings since it began five months ago on Nov. 18.

Proceedings were supposed to conclude at the end of the last sitting in March, but Crown prosecutors made three legal applications to the court that created delays and prevented lawyers from wrapping up their final arguments.

Kilpatrick threw out two of those applications in court and he’s now reserving his decision on the third application until after he hears final arguments.

The third application seeks to allow similar fact evidence for all the charges Dejaeger faces — effectively combining all evidence given by the complainants into one package.

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UNITED STATES
City of Angels

by Kay Ebeling

“There in a picture from 1981 are my parents, my sister, and her nipples, smiling at the camera in the family photo album.” (See cartoon below)

In his home in the Castro district, conversation with my cousin* finally came to why I’d come to San Francisco with my six year old daughter. I asked him, “Do you remember Father Horne?” and then blurted out a version of events from the past few months, where I’d recovered the memory of the priest sexualizing me at age five, and confirmed that he’d molested my sister Patricia too. I ended with “Now I know why I’ve been so screwed up my whole life,” excited, thinking my cousin would share my elation. Instead: The Thud.

When you’re in a conversation and everything is going fine, then you mention you’re a pedophile priest victim, there it is: The Thud. [BEAT] All talk comes to a complete stop, any ambiance of friendliness that had once been there evaporates, the room is silent, and all persons within hearing distance stiffen. Once The Thud happens, communication is never the same again.

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MARYLAND
Associated Baptist Press

By Bob Allen

A lawsuit described as the biggest evangelical sex abuse scandal to date is headed for appeal, a year after being dismissed on a technicality, elders of the church involved informed members in a letter dated April 22.

Elders of Covenant Life Church in Gaithersburg, Md., said a lawsuit dismissed by a district judge in May 2013 due to statute of limitations will be heard by the Maryland Court of Special Appeals in early June.

The lawsuit originally filed in October 2012 and amended in 2013 alleges a decades-long conspiracy that led to numerous children being sexual abused on church and school property by employees and volunteers.

It accuses church leaders of colluding “to suppress the reporting of sexual abuse to civil authorities, to interfere with the prosecution of child abuse and to prevent other church members from learning of past reported child abuse.”

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UNITED STATES
The New York Times

By ADAM LIPTAK
APRIL 23, 2014

WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court on Wednesday set aside a $3.4 million award to a victim of child pornography who had sought restitution from a man convicted of viewing images of her. That figure was too much, Justice Anthony M. Kennedy wrote for a five-justice majority, returning the case to the lower courts to apply a new and vague legal standard to find a lower amount that was neither nominal nor too severe.

The victim in the case said the majority’s approach was confusing and meant that she might never be compensated for her losses.

The two dissents to the majority opinion would have taken more categorical approaches. Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr., joined by Justices Antonin Scalia and Clarence Thomas, said that restitution was a worthy goal, but that the federal law at issue did not allow awards when many people had viewed the images.

Justice Sonia Sotomayor took the opposite view, saying that each viewer could be held liable for the full amount of the victims’ losses.

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UNITED STATES
Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests

For immediate release: Wednesday, April 23, 2014

Statement by David Clohessy of St. Louis, Director of SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests ( 314 566 9790, SNAPclohessy@aol.com )

In light of today’s U.S. Supreme Court child porn ruling, we urge lawmakers to redouble their efforts to deter future child sex crimes and help those who suffer because of these heinous crimes.

[The New York Times]

Most child sex offenders are never caught, charged or convicted, so hundreds of thousands of boys and girls keep getting severely hurt.

So we challenge those who celebrate today’s decision to come up with better ideas. For kids, the status quo stinks. So if you think this award isn’t appropriate, what will you do instead to stop this horror and expose the perpetrators?

It’s fine to say ‘this is unreasonable.’ So too, however, is the sexual exploitation of tens or hundreds of thousands of kids. It’s not enough, then, for adults to say ‘this amount of money is excessive.” It’s incumbent on critics to come up with a better plan.

To those who back this ruling, how much would someone have to pay you to sexually violate your child? What price should be put in this devastation?

We hope lawmakers will remedy this injustice as quickly as possible.

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MICHIGAN
Mortgage Daily via United States Department of Justice for the Eastern District of Michigan

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

April 23, 2014

A Catholic priest and a parish administrator were indicted for stealing almost $700,000 from St. Thomas More Church in Troy during an eight-year period, U.S. Attorney Barbara L. McQuade announced today.

McQuade was joined in the announcement by Paul M. Abbate, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Detroit Division.

Charged were Edward Belczak, 69, of Troy, and Janice Verschuren, 67, of Bloomfield Hills.

The five-count indictment alleges that between 2004 and 2012, Belczak and Verschuren stole money and diverted funds from St. Thomas More Church and the Archdiocese of Detroit for their unjust enrichment and then concealed their criminal acts by creating or verifying false financial reports that were submitted to the Archdiocese. Charges in the indictment include mail fraud, wire fraud, and conspiracy.

The indictment alleges that Belczak, assisted by Verschuren, used the proceeds of their illegal conduct in a number of ways, including:

* Diverting to their own use nearly $500,000 donated or bequeathed by parishioners to St. Thomas More Church

* Using almost $110,000 stolen from the church to pay closing costs on the sale of Verschuren’s condominium in Palm Beach, Florida, to Belczak

* Diverting to their personal bank accounts more than $26,000 in commissions paid to St. Thomas More Travel Group

* Diverting to themselves more than $33,000 owed to St. Thomas More Church by Diocesan Publications

To conceal the theft and diversion of money, Belczak approved false financial reports that were submitted to the Archdiocese of Detroit. The reports underreported the amount of the parish’s operating receipts.

An indictment is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. The defendants are entitled to a fair trial in which it will be the government’s burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.

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NEW YORK
WGY

A 30 year old priest with the Albany Roman Catholic Diocese has been arrested in Saratoga County on misdemeanor charges of endangering the welfare of a child.

Saratoga County District Attorney Jim Murphy says James Michael Taylor has been involved in an “ongoing pattern” of conduct with a 15 year old Clifton Park girl that involved physical conduct, text messages, phone calls and photos.

Murphy credits the girl and the Sheriff’s office with putting a stop to the cycle of abuse.

Taylor has been serving as the associate pastor of St. Kateri in Niskayuna.

Murphy says he met the girl while he was a deacon in Clifton Park.

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NEW YORK
WNYT

[with video]

By: WNYT Staff

A Schenectady priest is accused of ongoing inappropriate conduct with a 15-year-old girl from Clifton Park.

Rev. James Michael Taylor is a Roman Catholic priest at St. Kateri Tekakwitha Parish.

He was arrested in Saratoga County after the sheriff’s office says he had ongoing physical contact with the girl that included phone calls, text messages and photos.

Officials say the 30-year-old priest met the teenage girl while he was serving as Deacon and youth minister for the Corpus Christi Church in Round Lake.

The incidents allegedly took place between October 2013 and April 2014.

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NEW HAMPSHIRE
New Hampshire Public Radio

[with audio]

By MICHAEL BRINDLEY

A former top Manchester diocese official has been ordered to pay back hundreds of thousands of dollars to the church and other organizations in a plea deal reached this morning.

Msgr. Edward Arsenault will also serve at least four years in prison.

Appearing in Hillsborough County Superior Court in Manchester Wednesday morning, Arsenault pled guilty to three felony charges and apologized for his actions.

As part of the deal, Arsenault must pay restitution on the order of $184,000 the Diocese of Manchester and $104,000 to Catholic Medical Center.

Arsenault was chancellor at the Manchester Diocese from 1999 through 2009.

It was in May of last year when prosecutors first announced an investigation into allegations that Arsenault misused church funds and had an improper adult relationship.

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NEW HAMPSHIRE
Roman Catholic Diocese of Manchester

On being advised that the Reverend Monsignor Edward J. Arsenault pleaded guilty to Misappropriating funds of the Roman Catholic Bishop of Manchester, Catholic Medical Center, and the Estate of Rev. Msgr. John Molan, the Most Reverend Peter A. Libasci, Bishop of Manchester, made the following statement:

“This is indeed a sad day. Foremost on my mind are the more than 275,000 Catholic faithful in our state. Every week, parishioners freely give their funds to support the mission of the Church to worship, evangelize, and serve the poor and vulnerable. They place their trust and confidence in the Church that these contributions will be safeguarded and used for its good works.

“Msgr. Arsenault’s criminal actions profoundly betrayed this trust and confidence by diverting substantial amounts of diocesan funds for personal use. While the sentence imposed by the court today includes restitution, the loss of diocesan funds is not the full measure of the damage that has been done.

Many of the faithful and former co-workers inevitably will be left with a profound sense of betrayal and mistrust. They are very much the victims here.

“It is important to acknowledge another reason for feelings of sadness and betrayal. I know that many people benefitted from Msgr. Arsenault’s ministry over the years. As a pastor, he served his parishioners as a source of spiritual guidance and support. As a leader in the Diocesan dministration, he was dedicated and hard-working, managing the establishment and implementation of diocesan policies and procedures that provided for greater efficiency, accountability, and transparency. That Msgr. Arsenault would use his many skills and talents for improper purposes is tragic.

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NEW HAMPSHIRE
Roman Catholic Diocese of Manchester

The following narrative sets forth information regarding the events that led to an investigation and the conviction of Msgr. Edward J. Arsenault for misappropriation of diocesan funds. Much of the information contained in this narrative is or will be publicly available. The information is provided to the faithful because Msgr. Arsenault has been a public figure in the local Church, and his conduct has had a significant impact on the Church. Msgr. Arsenault has rights under civil and canon law that constrain the Diocese from further comment.

Rev. Msgr. Edward J. Arsenault, III

Edward J. Arsenault, III was ordained a priest for the Diocese of Manchester in 1991. He attended Mount Saint Mary Seminary in Emmitsburg, Maryland. He later received a Pontifical License in Sacred Theology from the Weston Jesuit School of Theology, and a Master of Science degree in Finance from Bentley University. Father Arsenault began working in the Diocese of Manchester Administration offices after obtaining his degree in Finance.

In 2000, Most Reverend John B. McCormack, Bishop of Manchester, appointed Father Arsenault to serve as a member of the College of Consultors, Chancellor, and Delegate for Ministerial Conduct. In 2003, he was appointed Cabinet Secretary for Administration. In light of the facts that Father Arsenault had a degree in Finance and demonstrated that he possessed the knowledge, talents, and leadership and management skills necessary to oversee an effective and efficient administration, Bishop McCormack delegated to Father Arsenault oversight of the diocesan administration, including finances.

In 2004, Bishop McCormack appointed Father Arsenault to serve as Moderator of the Curia in addition to his duties as Cabinet Secretary for Administration and Delegate for Ministerial Conduct. As Moderator of the Curia, in addition to oversight of the diocesan administration, Bishop McCormack delegated to Father Arsenault the responsibility to oversee the work of all of the other Cabinet Secretaries. During his tenure as Moderator of the Curia, Father Arsenault was involved in establishing a Parish Finance Manual to institute financial controls in all parishes of the Diocese.

In addition to the aforementioned duties, Father Arsenault served as the Bishop’s Delegate for Healthcare on the Board of Directors for Catholic Medical Center (“CMC”). Father Arsenault also served as chair of the Board of Governors of CMC Healthcare System, the parent company of CMC.

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NEW HAMPSHIRE
Roman Catholic Diocese of Manchester

On April 23, 2014, the Reverend Monsignor Edward J. Arsenault, III, a priest of the Diocese of Manchester, pleaded guilty to criminal charges of misappropriating funds of the Roman Catholic Bishop of Manchester, Catholic Medical Center, and the Estate of Rev. Msgr. John Molan. The Diocese of Manchester issued the following documents in connection with this matter:

Statement of Bishops Libasci and McCormack

Bishop Libasci’s Letter to the Faithful

Victim Impact Statement

Narrative Regarding Investigation

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NEW HAMPSHIRE
Berlin Daily Sun

If you were to find out that the leadership of a group or organization you belonged to had appeared before commissions and grand juries and openly admitted to covering up the abuses of children, from rape to severe beatings, to even the death of a child, and that this involved tens of thousands of members own children, and that the cover ups are wide spread throughout the organization or group, you would think that the membership of the group would rise up in arms and make sure that the leadership is arrested and prosecuted to the fullest extent the law allows. That they would stand up and defend and protect their children over the leadership of their group or organization. Yet there is one such organization…though there are others….that its leadership is totally immune from liability for crimes such as these by it’s membership. This organization is known as the Roman Catholic Church.

While they have come far with this problem of child abuse, the Vatican announced that for 2011-2012 almost 400 priests had to be let go because of credible accusations of child abuse, including rape, there is still much to be done. While it is commendable that they caught and fired these priests, what about those whom participated in the cover ups of these crimes? Why are they not called to account for their crimes of the members own children? Why are the leadership of the church put above the law and those whom they have harmed? Why are they defended and even praised or made a saint?

There have been at least a half a dozen commission reports, like the Ryan Report, that detail the systematic sexual, physical, mental, emotional and spiritual abuse of children and teens, children of the Roman Catholic Church; and the cover ups of these abuses by the leaders and even their highest leaders, ones whom are supposed to be the Vicars of Jesus while on this earth and in their position. Yet even to this day, not one credibly accused leader has ever been arrested or prosecuted for their crimes save one, Bishop Robert Finn and that case is being retried. Matter of fact, one of these, John Paul II was given sainthood. There is overwhelming evidence he participated in the cover up of and through acts of omission, turned a blind eye to, the pederast Rev. Marcial Maciel, founder of the Legion of Christ. Yet he is given sainthood? This is an insult to all those whom are survivors of these evil crimes against us.

There are some incredible priests and leaders of the Roman Catholic Church. I have met some of them. From Fr Tom Doyle, ret., whom has fought tirelessly for the victims of priest abuse, at the cost of his being a priest, to even our own local priest Fr Kyle Stanton whom has helped me immensely, to groups like Catholic Whistleblowers, and others, they have sort of restored my faith that this problem of priests and nuns abusing children and teens will stop. Yet to truly set things right the following must be done.

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MICHIGAN
Macomb Daily

By Dave Phillips, dave.phillips@oakpress.com
POSTED: 04/23/14

A priest and a parish administrator have been indicted on federal charges, accused of stealing nearly $700,000 from a Troy church.

Edward Belczak, 69, of Troy, and Janice Verschuren, 67, of Bloomfield Hills, were charged in a five-count indictment, U.S. Attorney Barbara L. McQuade announced Wednesday.

Belczak and Verschuren are accused of stealing money and diverting funds from the church and the Archdiocese of Detroit “for their unjust enrichment, then (concealing) their criminal acts by creating or verifying false financial reports that were submitted to the Archdiocese,” McQuade’s office stated.

Authorities accused Belczak and Verschuren of diverting to their own use nearly $500,000 donated or bequeathed by parishioners to the church; using almost $11,000 stolen from the church to pay closing costs on Verschuren’s sale of her condominium in Palm Beach, Fla., to Belczak; diverting to themselves more than $26,000 in commissions paid to St. Thomas More Travel Group; and diverting to themselves more than $33,000 owed to St. Thomas More Church by Diocesan Publications.

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NEW HAMPSHIRE
Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests

For immediate release: Wednesday, April 23, 2014

Statement by David Clohessy of St. Louis, Director of SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests ( 314 566 9790, SNAPclohessy@aol.com )

We hope

—that Msgr. Edward Arsenault (he has not been defrocked) will serve all or most of his sentence, and

—that Manchester’s Catholic bishop will tell citizens and Catholics whether he thinks Msgr. Arsenault is guilty of sexual misconduct.

Today, the bishop is meeting with his priests to discuss Msgr. Arsenault. But he owes it to his flock to disclose the status of the sexual misconduct allegations against Msgr. Arsenault.

We hope New Hampshire’s bishop will “come clean” about allegations that Msgr. Arsenault has been involved in an inappropriate sexual relationship with an adult. And we hope that anyone who has seen, suspected or suffered clergy sex crimes in New Hampshire will report to secular officials, not church officials.

There can be no true sexual consent between a doctor and a patient, a therapist and a client, a clergyman and a congregant, and a general and a soldier. Period. The power differential is just too great.

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UNITED STATES
TheMediaReport

One essential element of the media’s sex abuse narrative is the idea that the Catholic Church must repeatedly and perpetually apologize for past abuse committed by priests. Pope Benedict repeatedly apologized and even met with victims to hear their stories. So it was big news when Pope Francis recently asked for forgiveness for the past abuse committed by a small number of priests decades ago.

But acting on cue, the anti-Catholic group SNAP issued a nasty media statement which not only belittled the Pontiff’s gesture but actually compared the pope to a “deranged gunman,” a “drunk driver,” and a “husband [who] keeps beating his wife.”

Meanwhile, scores of mainstream media outlets – including The Boston Globe, the New York Times, and CNN – continue to trumpet the angry efforts of SNAP.

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NEW YORK
The Saratogian

By Caitlin Morris, The Saratogian
POSTED: 04/23/14

BALLSTON SPA >> A 30-year-old priest and youth pastor has been charged with endangering the welfare of a minor by county sheriff’s deputies following allegations involving a teen female.

James Michael Taylor, 30, who was ordained in 2012 and most recently served at Saint Kateri Tekakwitha Parish in Niskayuna, which also has an elementary school, was arrested Tuesday and, according to a statement from the Roman Catholic Dioceses of Albany, he was placed on administrative leave immediately following his arraignment.

Details of the arrest were released at a Wednesday morning press conference conducted by Saratoga County District Attorney James A. Murphy and County Sheriff James Zurlo.

Sheriff’s investigators say the victim was a 15-year-old Clifton Park girl that Taylor met while serving as a deacon and leader of a youth ministry program at Corpus Christi Church in Round Lake. …

Murphy said Taylor used his position in the church to gain trust and access to the victim and her family, and warned that more victims and more severe charges for Taylor are possibilities.

“We also want the media to help us to the degree that we suspect that there may be other victims out there. While his name is James Michael Taylor, he went by Father Michael, which is how the public may know of him,” Murphy said, adding that he wants potential other victims to know they will be protected if they come forward.

Murphy said the girl’s parents contacted authorities Monday, triggering the investigation.

This story, Murphy said, could be used by parents as a springboard to talk about what is and isn’t appropriate.

“Be vigilant. Be inquisitive. If your kid tells you something that’s unusual or out of the ordinary, ask questions,” Murphy advised.

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UNITED STATES
GlobalPost

Jason Berry

On Sunday, Pope Francis will elevate two past popes to sainthood, John XXIII and John Paul II, each a figure of major historical weight, each a visionary, each bearing responsibility for the divergent trail of the church beyond their own lives.

Francis’s decision to canonize the two popes on Divine Mercy Sunday is a gesture of unity for a church battered by scandals in the public square by appealing to camps on the left and right who revere the two popes in different ways. It also provides a chance to look closely of the history of both popes.

John XXIII and John Paul II loom as polar figures in the church we know today. It represents the largest faith in the world, one thought for centuries to be changeless, yet a church that has changed constantly, if not utterly, since John XXIII called the Second Vatican Council from 1962-65.

Conservatives decry the council for opening the floodgates of Vatican II, unloosing too much change. They have a point. The church once described as “Here comes everybody” by the noted Irish agnostic James Joyce in Finnegan’s Wake is still a big tent, yet one divided into blue and red followers, like election-time TV maps. …

After Pope Benedict beatified John Paul in 2011, putting him on a fast track for canonization, abuse survivors raised an outcry over John Paul’s unwavering support of the long-accused pedophile, Legion of Christ founder Father Marcial Maciel.

After 1998, when former seminarians filed detailed allegations seeking Maciel’s excommunication in Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger’s tribunal, John Paul continued praising Maciel. In late 2004, five months before the pope died, Ratzinger ordered an investigation of Maciel, and as Pope Benedict dismissed him from active ministry in 2006.

At a Vatican briefing on Tuesday, Msgr. Sławomir Oder, who worked on John Paul’s sainthood cause, told reporters: “Without getting into details, I can say that the investigation was carried out with the real desire to clear things up and confront all the problems as they came up…. An investigation was carried out, documents were studied, (documents) which are available, and the response was very clear. There is no sign of a personal involvement of the Holy Father in his matter.” Meaning to cover up.

But the details matter. Until the Vatican releases documents to explain why John Paul sheltered a notorious moral criminal, as the prosecution against Maciel stalled under the pope’s watch, his sainthood will be stalked with questions, a trailing credibility asterisk. Why not release the documents? Saints are people, people are sinners. “The Pope goes to confession like the rest of us,” wrote Flannery O’Connor. “The church is mighty realistic about human nature.”

Withholding information is what grubby politicians do. Whatever his flaws, John Paul, a saint come Sunday, deserves better than a continuing cover up.

So do People of God.

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NEW YORK
Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests

For immediate release: Wednesday, April 23, 2014

Statement by David Clohessy of St. Louis, Director of SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests ( 314 566 9790, SNAPclohessy@aol.com )

A Round Lake priest was arrested for inappropriate conduct with a minor. We are grateful this predator is being held accountable, but worried that he has been released. Even though there is an order of protection for the victim, there could be more victims who have not yet come forward.

[Troy Record]

We hope, although it is unlikely, that this was an isolated incidence. Predators rarely attack only once. Fr. James Michael Taylor was a deacon and youth minister for the Corpus Christi Church during the alleged abuse and is now an ordained priest at Saint Kateri Tekakwitha Parish in Schenectady.

Church officials should aggressively seek out any other people who may have been hurt. Bishop Edward Scharfenberger should personally go to each parish where Fr. Taylor worked and beg victims, witnesses and whistleblowers to speak up and call police.

We hope that anyone who saw suspected or suffered abuse will contact law enforcement.

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MICHIGAN
The Detroit News

Robert Snell
The Detroit News

Detroit — A Catholic priest and a parish administrator were indicted and accused of stealing almost $700,000 from St. Thomas More Church in Troy and blowing the cash on a condominium and other expenses.

The five-count indictment, announced Wednesday, charges the Rev. Edward Belczak, 69, of Troy and Janice Verschuren, 67, of Bloomfield Hills with stealing the money from the church and Archdiocese of Detroit between 2004 and 2012.

The stolen money allegedly included most of a $350,000 gift to the church from the family of a dead parishioner and cash donated by churchgoers during special Mother’s Day and Father’s Day collections, prosecutors alleged.

The duo tried to hide the alleged crime by creating false documents and submitting them to the Archdiocese, prosecutors allege. The documents under-reported the amount of the parish’s operating receipts.

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MICHIGAN
Detroit Free Press

By Robert Allen
Detroit Free Press staff writer

A Catholic priest and his parish manager are accused of stealing nearly $700,000 from St. Thomas More Church in Troy, according to an indictment from U.S. Attorney Barbara McQuade’s office.

Rev. Edward Belczak, 69, of Troy, and Janice Verschuren, 67, of Bloomfield Hills face charges of mail fraud, wire fraud and conspiracy in connection with the eight years of alleged thefts dating to 2012, the U.S. attorney announced Tuesday.

Among the allegations are that Belczak used $109,570.80 from a parish bank account to put a down payment on a swanky Palm Beach, Fla. condo he was purchasing from Verschuren, according to documents previously filed by the FBI to seize the property. Belczak, since suspended as pastor, had approved false financial reports that were submitted to the Archdiocese of Detroit in an effort to conceal thefts, according to a news release from McQuade’s office.

Belczak, assisted by Verschuren, is accused of stealing nearly $500,000 donated or bequeathed by church members, more than $26,000 in commissions paid to St. Thomas More Travel Group and more than $33,000 owed to St. Thomas More Church by Diocesan Publications in addition to the amount used for the Palm Beach property.

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UNITED STATES
World Magazine

By WARREN COLE SMITH
Posted April 22, 2014

More than a month after stepping down as president of the ministry he founded, Bill Gothard released a statement that attempts to respond to allegations of sexual impropriety that ultimately led to his resignation from the Institute for Basic Life Principles (IBLP).

“God has brought me to a place of greater brokenness than at any other time in my life,” Gothard wrote in the statement released April 17. “It is a grief to realize how my pride and insensitivity have affected so many people. I have asked the Lord to reveal the underlying causes and He is doing this.”

But the statement denied some of the more serious charges leveled against Gothard by the group Recovering Grace, which earlier this year released statements from 34 women detailing incidents dating back to the 1970s. The statements accuse Gothard of sexual harassment and—in one case—sexual abuse that included fondling but not rape.

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UNITED STATES
Chicago Sun-Times

BY FRANCINE KNOWLES Religion Reporter April 22, 2014

The former head of a controversial Oak Brook-based religious and home-schooling organization, who resigned in March following allegations he sexually harassed teen girls, is denying any inappropriate sexual behavior.

Bill Gothard, who led the Institute in Basic Life Principles for decades — a conservative organization whose seminars have reached millions — said, “I have never kissed a girl nor have I touched a girl immorally or with sexual intent.”

But he confessed that his “actions of holding of hands, hugs and touching of feet or hair with young ladies crossed the boundaries of discretion and were wrong. They demonstrated a double-standard and violated a trust. . . . I have failed to live out some of the very things that I have taught. I am committed to learning from my failures by God’s grace and mercy, and do what I can to help bring about biblical reconciliation as Jesus commands.”

The statement, released on Gothard’s personal website, was labeled as “disingenuous” Tuesday by Recovering Grace, a website that has received reports from dozens of women, who’ve alleged they were sexually harassed by Gothard with unwanted touching, including bare foot games of footsie, years ago. The behavior Gothard described fits the standard legal definition of sexual harassment, Recovering Grace said in a statement on its website.

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UNITED STATES
Catholic League

Bill Donohue explains why Maureen Dowd is a phony:

If Maureen Dowd had guts, she would demand the resignation of her boss, Mark Thompson, president and CEO of the New York Times.

In her column today, Dowd rails against the canonization of Pope John Paul II, saying, “he presided over the Catholic Church during nearly three decades of a gruesome pedophilia scandal and grotesque cover-up.”

Dowd ought to get her facts straight: there was no pedophilia scandal—less than five percent of molesting priests were pedophiles—it was homosexuals who accounted for 81 percent of the sexual abuse cases. The facts are incontrovertible. So it’s time she stopped her cover-up.

More important, Thompson worked at the BBC for decades, and claimed to know nothing about the BBC’s biggest child molestation case in its history: Jimmy Savile was a true pedophile, raping hundreds of children. Both Savile and Thompson worked at the BBC for decades; Thompson was Director General from 2004-2012. And unlike John Paul II, we have proof that Thompson lied: after Savile died in October 2011, a “Newsnight” story exposing his conduct was spiked, and Thompson said he knew nothing about it. In fact, he was told about the cover-up at a Christmas party that year. On top of that, he told his BBC lawyers in September 2012 to write a letter to The Sunday Times threatening to sue if they ran a letter implicating him in the Savile matter. His only concern was to land a plum job at the New York Times (he was set to join the Times on November 12, but events forced him to wait).

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NEW YORK
Troy Record

By staff report

POSTED: 04/23/14

SARATOGA COUNTY >> A 30-year-old former Round Lake priest has been charged with endangering the welfare of a minor by county sheriff’s deputies following allegations of an offense involving a minor female.

James Michael Taylor, 30, last serving at St. Kateri Tekakwitha Parish in Schenectady, was arrested Tuesday.

Details of the arrest were released at a Wednesday morning press conference conducted by Saratoga County District Attorney James A. Murphy’ and county Sheriff James Zurlo.

Sheriff’s investigators say the victim was a 15-year-old Clifton Park female that Taylor met while leading a youth ministry program when stationed at Corpus Christi Church in Clifton Park.

It is alleged that between October 2013 and this month Taylor, who is now a Roman Catholic priest of the Albany Diocese, engaged in an ongoing course of inappropriate conduct with the girl. The charge is a misdemeanor.

Contact consisted of physical contact, telephone calls, text messaging and the sending of photos, authorities said. Taylor met the youth when he was serving as a deacon and youth minister for the Corpus Christi Church. …

The investigation is ongoing. Given the nature of the case and Taylor’s positions in the various communities, the sheriff’s office is asking for anyone with relevant information to contact the sheriff’s office at 518-885-6761.

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CHICAGO (IL)
Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests

For immediate release: Wednesday, April 23, 2014

Statement by Barbara Dorris of St. Louis, Outreach Director of SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests ( 314-503-0003, SNAPdorris@gmail.com )

The Archdiocese of Chicago says a twice-accused predator priest will stay in a parish, but has supposedly agreed not to be alone with children.

This is ridiculous. It’s like putting a drug addict to work in a pharmacy and claiming “he’s agreed to never be alone with pills.”

[Chicago Sun-Times]

This is precisely the claim that hundreds of bishops made for decades: that somehow, priests could still be in parishes and stay away from kids because their colleagues will supervise them 24/7.

This is precisely the claim that had led to thousands of children being molested by priests, nuns, brothers, seminarians and bishops.

This is precisely what bishops promised they would stop doing more than a decade ago, when, in Dallas in 2002, they committed to a much-ballyhooed but rarely enforced “zero tolerance” policy for child molesting clerics.

Fr. Michael W. O’Connell faces two accusers. The most recent one met with and is being taken seriously by law enforcement officials. A criminal investigation has been re-opened. Yet Cardinal Francis George and his staff insist on keeping Fr. O’Connell in a position where he will undoubtedly encounter children.

We challenge Chicago Catholic officials to explain in detail how they’ll make sure Fr. O’Connell will keep himself away from kids.

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NEW HAMPSHIRE
The Republic

By LYNNE TUOHY Associated Press
April 23, 2014

MANCHESTER, New Hampshire — A New Hampshire priest who was the former leader of one of the nation’s top clergy treatment centers was sentenced Wednesday to up to 20 years in prison for stealing at least $104,000 from a hospital, a dead priest’s estate and the state’s Roman Catholic bishop.

Monsignor Edward Arsenault held several senior positions in the New Hampshire diocese from 1999 to 2009, when he became president and CEO of Saint Luke Institute in Maryland. He resigned in May after allegations arose involving an inappropriate adult relationship and misuse of church funds.

Arsenault pleaded guilty Wednesday to three felony theft charges, which included a theft of at least $104,000 from Catholic Medical Center in Manchester, where he had done some consulting. When his initial plea was announced in February, prosecutors would say only that he committed a felony in each case by stealing more than $1,500 from the hospital, the estate of a Manchester priest who died in 2010 and the bishop.

The plea agreement calls for Arsenault to serve 4 to 20 years in prison. He will go back to a judge after serving the minimum to determine if the sentence can be reduced.

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NEW YORK
Fox 23

BALLSTON SPA, N.Y. – Saratoga County Sheriff Michael Zurlo and Saratoga County District Attorney James Murphy III say a Roman Catholic priest has been arrested.

Authorities say James Taylor, 30, has been charged with misdemeanor Endangering the Welfare of a Child. Taylor was arrested on Tuesday.

The Sheriff’s Office said that between October 2013 and April 2014, Taylor engaged in an ongoing course of inappropriate conduct with a 15-year-old Clifton Park female. Taylor, who is currently a priest for the Saint Kateri Tekakwitha Parish in Schenectady, is accused of having physical contact, telephone calls, and text messages and photos with the teenager.

Taylor allegedly met the girl when he was serving as a Deacon and Youth Minister for the Corpus Christi Church in Clifton Park.

Taylor has been arraigned and released on his own recognizance to re-appear in the Town of Clifton Park Court at a later date.

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NEW HAMPSHIRE
CBS Boston

CONCORD, N.H. (CBS/AP) — The former leader of one of the nation’s top clergy treatment centers pleaded guilty Wednesday to stealing at least $4,500 from a hospital, a dead priest’s estate and the state’s Roman Catholic bishop.

Msgr. Edward Arsenault held several senior positions in the New Hampshire diocese from 1999 to 2009 before becoming president and CEO of Saint Luke Institute in Maryland in 2009. He resigned in May 2013 after allegations arose involving an inappropriate adult relationship and misuse of church funds.

The attorney general’s office said in February that Arsenault waived indictment and would plead guilty to three felony theft charges.

The agreement was heard Wednesday morning in superior court in New Hampshire. During the hearing, prosecutors said Arsenault was in a relationship and used the stolen money to pay for a vacation.

“I broke the law. I’m truly and sincerely sorry,” Arsenault told the judge.

Arsenault will serve four-years in state prison and was ordered to pay $300,000 in restitution to the church and affected parties.

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NEW HAMPSHIRE
New Hampshire Union Leader

By MARK HAYWARD
New Hampshire Union Leader

MANCHESTER — The right-hand man to former Manchester Bishop John McCormack was in a Manchester courtroom this morning and sentenced for stealing thousands of dollars from the Catholic church diocese, Catholic Medical Center and the estate of a fellow priest.

His sentence calls for the Rev. Msgr. Edward J. Arsenault III to pay restitution of $184,240 to the Diocese of Manchester and $104,000 to Catholic Medical Center.

The Rev. Msgr. Edward J. Arsenault III has already signaled his intent to plead guilty to the three felonies, and his lawyer and prosecutors have agreed to ask Superior Court Judge Diane Nicolosi for a four-year prison sentence.

(The sentencing hearing is still ongoing, and more details will be reported as they become available.)

Last May, the Diocese of Manchester announced that it had suspended Arsenault from his priestly duties, citing both illegal financial transactions and an “inappropriate adult relationship.”

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