ABUSE TRACKER

CANADA
Metro

By Kate Webb
Metro

John Furlong says he’s “done” with allegations of sexual abuse raised by Beverly Abraham after the RCMP dismissed them in April — but RCMP say the investigation remains open after an independent review of their methods.

Abraham is one of three people who allege the former Olympics CEO sexually abused them more than 40 years ago. Another eight allege that he physically and verbally abused them when he was a teacher at a Burns Lake Catholic school.

None of the allegations have been proven in court and Furlong has filed several defamation suits denying all claims and seeking damages against the accusers.

“We are done with this. This is over,” Furlong told Global News on Sunday, after displaying a letter RCMP sent him in April indicating they had closed the Abraham case.

“I’m not going to put another second into this. I’m going to move on, as I’ve said, by escalating this case and exposing this and try to get on with my life.”

But senior RCMP spokesman Sgt. Rob Vermeulen said in an email on Monday that an independent review of the Mounties’ investigation by a major crime section in another province resulted in a number of investigative recommendations.

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CANADA
Vancouver 24hrs

By Michael Mui, 24 Hours Vancouver
Monday, October 28, 2013

Mounties are continuing to follow up on “investigative recommendations” in allegations against former Vancouver Olympic chief John Furlong, despite a media report Monday suggesting a sexual abuse allegation has been dismissed.

According to RCMP Sgt. Rob Vermeulen, the force earlier this year asked for an independent review from out-of-province major crime investigators after completing its own investigation.

“That review resulted in a number of investigative recommendations that we continue to follow up on,” he said by email. “Our file remains open at this time.”

On Monday, Global BC reported a sexual abuse allegation by Beverly Abraham — one of several people who have filed suit against Furlong alleging unproven accounts of abuse — has been dismissed.

In an April letter obtained by the media outlet, police said they have “concluded their investigation into (Abraham’s) matter and have found nothing to substantiate the complaint,” adding no report will be forwarded to the Crown as a result.

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CANADA
The Globe and Mail

SUNNY DHILLON AND TU THANH HA
VANCOUVER and TORONTO — The Globe and Mail
Published Monday, Oct. 28 2013

Former Vancouver Olympics CEO John Furlong has stepped back into the spotlight after months of silence, declaring in an interview that he has been told an RCMP investigation into allegations he sexually abused a student when he was a teacher decades ago has proven his innocence.

But the RCMP says its file remains open. And while the criminal allegation to which Mr. Furlong referred was made by one person, civil lawsuits from the complainant and two other students alleging sexual abuse are ongoing.

In an interview in Toronto with The Globe and Mail on Monday, Mr. Furlong, who was the public face of the 2010 Games, said his lawyer was told last week the RCMP investigation concluded in his favour.

The initial probe, which ended in the spring, looked at allegations Mr. Furlong sexually molested Beverly Abraham when he was a physical education teacher at Immaculata Roman Catholic Elementary School in Burns Lake, B.C., four decades ago.

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CANADA
CBC News

A woman who alleges that she was sexually assaulted by former VANOC CEO John Furlong says the RCMP has informed her they have found no evidence that the assaults took place.

Beverly Abraham, 55, claimed in a civil suit filed in July that Furlong molested her approximately 12 times in 1969 and 1970 while he was a physical education teacher at Immaculata Roman Catholic Elementary School in Burns Lake, B.C.

Furlong says he never abused her or another student who has made similar accusations. He has not been convicted of any offence relating to the allegations.

Abraham says that two weeks ago, an RCMP investigator informed her that they have found no evidence of the incidents and so cannot move forward with any charges.

“It’s really, honestly, hurting me. It’s hurting my heart so bad. It’s like broken into a million pieces now, and it hurts my stomach. It’s just like someone touching me all over again,” she says.

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CANADA
The Province

BY CHERYL CHAN, THE PROVINCE OCTOBER 29, 2013

John Furlong said he is dropping his defamation suit against the Georgia Straight newspaper but vows to “escalate” action against the freelance journalist who wrote the article containing allegations Furlong abused former students.

In an interview with Global News broadcast Monday night, Furlong said he is not interested in pursuing the lawsuit against the Straight.

“My issue is not with the media,” said the former Vancouver 2010 Olympics boss. “We tried to convince them not to do it … they printed the story. But the story was given to them by Laura Robinson. All of this was hers.”

The article, published last September, alleged Furlong physically and verbally abused eight First Nations students while he was a physical education teacher at Immaculata school in Burns Lake in the late 1960s. Furlong filed the defamation suits in November.

In July, two former students, Beverly Abraham and Grace West, filed separate lawsuits against Furlong alleging sexual abuse. Last month, a third lawsuit was filed by an unidentified man who claims he was sexually abused. None of these claims has been proven in court.

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CANADA
Vancouver Sun

BY MATTHEW ROBINSON AND BEV WAKE, VANCOUVER SUN, THE CANADIAN PRESS OCTOBER 29, 2013

John Furlong went on a media offensive Monday to proclaim his innocence as a police investigation into claims of abuse against his former students continues.

In television interviews, the organizer of the 2010 Vancouver Olympics shared a letter he said RCMP sent him in the spring stating they were unable to substantiate one of the complainants’ claims of sexual abuse. But RCMP Sgt. Rob Vermeulen would not confirm police were finished with that claim – levelled by Beverly Abraham – and said the overall investigation remains open.

“Due to the serious and sensitive nature of the allegations, earlier this year we asked for an independent review of our complete investigation by major crime investigators from another province,” said Sgt. Vermeulen in an email. “That review resulted in a number of investigative recommendations that we continue to follow up on.”

The allegations against Furlong surfaced following an article, published last fall in the Georgia Straight, suggesting he physically and verbally abused First Nations students at Burns Lake while teaching at a Catholic school there in the late 1960s.

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CANADA
Macleans

by Ken MacQueen on Tuesday, October 29, 2013

Former Vancouver Olympic chief John Furlong took to the airwaves Monday night to defend his name after months of letting his lawyers deal with allegations of physical and sexual abuse filed by three former students while he was a volunteer missionary teacher at Catholic schools in Burns Lake and Prince George, B.C. in 1969 and 1970.

He told Global BC television anchor Chris Gailus he’s been living in “hell” since the first allegations surfaced some 13 months ago in an article in Vancouver’s Georgia Straight newspaper. “I was stunned and at the time I thought it’ll go away quickly because there’s no truth to this. So I just thought naively that it will just end. It’ll take a few weeks. Instead of ending, it got worse. It became quite horrible.”

In excerpts from the Global interview Furlong said the story “pulverized us. It pulverized me and my family very, very deeply.” He denied claims he physically abused students while he was a gym teacher. Any punishment he meted out used “phys-ed traditional means, like running laps or stuff like that.” Corporal punishment was not allowed and he didn’t use it, he said. “I’ve never had a strap in my hand in my life.”

This July, two former female students at Immaculata Elementary School in Burns Lake filed civil suits in B.C. Supreme Court against Furlong and the Roman Catholic diocese in both Vancouver and Prince George, accusing him of physical and sexual abuse, and the church of failing to protect its students. These have also been denied by Furlong.

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CANADA
CTV

[with video]

CTVNews.ca Staff
Published Monday, October 28, 2013

John Furlong, the man who organized the 2010 Vancouver Olympics, says he is trying to reclaim his life by using the courts to fight back against allegations of sexual abuse brought against him last year.

In an interview with CTV’s Chief Anchor and Senior Editor Lisa LaFlamme, Furlong says he’s been “living in absolute hell” for the past 17 months after a weekly Vancouver newspaper published allegations claiming he physically and verbally abused First Nations students while working as an 18-year-old volunteer teacher in northern B.C. more than four decades ago.

In a report published last September, the Georgia Straight said eight former students signed affidavits about their experiences at Immaculata Elementary in Burns Lake, B.C., in the late ‘60s and early ‘70s. They alleged a young Furlong would hit and kick them, as well as make racist comments, while serving as a physical education teacher.

Over the summer, two women — Beverly Abraham and Grace West — filed separate civil lawsuits accusing Furlong of sexual abuse. A third student filed a third lawsuit last month, alleging he, too, was abused.

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CANADA
GlobalPost

The Canadian Press

VANCOUVER – The man who organized the Vancouver Olympics says he’s been cleared by police of sexual-abuse allegations brought by a former student, though the RCMP says the file remains open.

The allegations against John Furlong surfaced following a newspaper article published last fall, suggesting he physically and verbally abused First Nations students at Burns Lake, B.C., while teaching at a Catholic school there in the late 1960s.

This past July, Beverly Abraham and Grace West filed separate lawsuits against Furlong alleging sexual abuse, and a third lawsuit was filed last month by a man who said he, too, was sexually abused.

Furlong said in an interview with Global News that police gave him a letter in April saying they found nothing to substantiate allegations by one of the complainants, identified as Abraham in a letter to Furlong that was posted online. According to the letter, the police would not be sending a report to Crown counsel.

“We are done with this,” said Furlong. “I’m not going to put another second into this. I’m going to move on, as I’ve said by escalating this case and exposing this and try to get on with my life.”

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IRELAND
Irish Times

Patsy McGarry

Tue, Oct 29, 2013

The Department of Justice has sharply criticised a submission by the Justice for Magdalenes (JFM) advocacy group to the McAleese committee on the extent of abuses in the Magdalene laundries.
The group had claimed that the McAleese report, published last February, minimised the physical and psychological abuse suffered by women in the laundries, as reported in its submission.

The McAleese report was also criticised by Felice de Gaer, rapporteur to the UN Committee Against Torture (Uncat), who wrote to the Government on May 22nd last on the issue.

She said Uncat had received information that the State was presented with extensive survivor testimony by the group “and was aware of the existence of possible criminal wrongdoings, including physical and psychological abuse”.

In its response to Ms de Gaer, the Department of Justice has acknowledged that JFM “did present a great volume of material purporting to point to the existence of possible criminal wrongdoings, including systematic physical and psychological abuse”.

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VATICAN CITY
Vatican Radio

(Vatican Radio) The Standard Ethics independent rating agency has announced it has elevated the Standard Ethics Rating (SER) attributed to Vatican City State from “EE-” to “EE.”

The Standard Ethics Rating is a benchmarking tool on sustainability, social responsibility, governance and environment.

The sustainability ratings issued by Standard Ethics are the result of statistical and scientific work carried out to take a snapshot of the economic world in relation to ethical principles promoted by large international organisations.

In a note, Standard Ethics reported that since it was given a “positive outlook” last July, Vatican City State has successfully met international requests to provide greater financial and accounts transparency of its financial institutions.

The note clarifies that significant steps were taken against money laundering, illicit financial transactions and financing of terrorism, in great part due to the Vatican’s gradual adherence to criteria laid out by the Financial Action Task Force (Groupe d’action financière FATF-GAFI) and adoption of recommendations from the Moneyval Division of the Council of Europe.

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AUSTRALIA
The Smith Lecture 2013

Patrick Parkinson AM, Professor of Law, University of Sydney

Introduction

Some people may be puzzled, even angered, that the title to this lecture ends in a question-mark. Surely, we already know that the story of child sexual abuse in churches is a story of shocking moral failure. Story after story has appeared in the media in Australia in recent years of terrible sexual exploitation of children – and if that were not bad enough, the cover-up of those crimes by superiors in the Church who, for whatever reason, chose not to involve the police or to act protectively towards children. These are not just Australian stories. In the Catholic Church at least, these patterns have been replicated in many countries across the western world, and it is perhaps just a matter of time before stories emerge from other countries which reveal the same patterns.

In the court of public opinion, then, the judgment has already been delivered. It is only the consequences of that judgment which are still being worked out.

In this lecture, I will not for one moment deny that there have been serious moral failures, and it is likely that these are to be found in all churches over the years. I have played a small part in exposing some of those failures, in challenging wrongdoing, and seeking to promote higher standards of child protection in church communities. 1 I offer no defence for the failure of the churches, except to say that if the churches are particularly in the firing line now – and they are – it should be noted that it was so often the churches that were involved in caring for those that no-one else cared for. It was the churches that ran orphanages and children’s homes, that established boarding schools at a low cost to give educational opportunities to children from the country. It is churches which have been at the forefront of community life from one end of Australia to another, providing Sunday Schools, youth clubs and holiday camps. The moral failures of the churches ought to be assessed against the background of that enormous contribution to the care of children over the last century and more.

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HAWAII
The Garden Island

HILO, Hawaii (AP) — A May 27 trial date has been set for a convicted Big Island murderer charged with sexually assaulting a 12-year-old girl six years ago.

The 2009 conviction of 56-year-old Peter Kalani Bailey in the assault case was overturned. Supreme Court justices in March 2012 said a mistrial should have been declared because a juror had revealed Bailey’s murder conviction.

The Hawaii Tribune-Herald (http://bit.ly/1aBaSd6) reports Bailey was convicted in 1979 of murder, kidnapping and robbery in the shooting death of a 17-year-old Oahu girl. He was paroled in 2002.

On July 22, 2007, he was working as choir director at Hamakua Coast Assembly of God Church and charged with four counts of attempted sexual assault of the girl at the church. He was sentenced to 20 years in prison.

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MINNESOTA
WCCO

[the letter]

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) — WCCO-TV has obtained an internal Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis letter saying a high-ranking church leader will personally control what files a task force on clergy sex abuse will have access to.

The letter, from the Reverend Reginald Whitt to all priests in the diocese, says that he will decide which files the task force can look into. Earlier this month, the task force was formed to look into claims of clergy sex abuse and an alleged cover-up by the archdiocese.

However, Whitt’s letter to priests raises questions about whether or not the task force has the ability to operate independently of the archdiocese.

In the Oct. 21 letter, Whitt — a law professor at St. Thomas and the newly-named vicar for ministerial standards – wrote that the task force will be reviewing clergy files as part of the archdiocese’s investigation into clergy sexual misconduct.

“Access to these files,” Whitt wrote, “will be within my control and limited only to what is necessary for the task force to be able to make an informed decision.”

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NEW YORK
Saratogian

By Ian Benjamin, ibenjamin@troyrecord.com, @ibenja2 on Twitter
POSTED: 10/28/13

ALBANY >> “I’ve come a long way for a boy from the ’Burgh,” said Bishop Howard Hubbard, his voice reverberating within the vaulted arches of the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Albany.

For those who know him, that was not a pretentious statement, but rather one reflecting his amazement at being the spiritual leader for nearly 400,000 Catholics for more than three decades.

When Howard James Hubbard, then a 38-year-old priest from the Lansingburgh section of Troy, was ordained Bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Albany on March 27, 1977, he was the youngest bishop in the nation. He was dubbed the “boy bishop.”

The sobriquet has long since faded, and having served as bishop for more than 36 years, Hubbard is now the longest tenured bishop in the country. When the bishop celebrates his 75th birthday on Oct. 31, his career will begin to conclude.

By Papal law, that is the date by which Hubbard must submit his letter of resignation through official channels to the Vatican. It is only once Pope Francis names a successor, however, that he will actually step into retirement. …

As the bishop has weathered the closure of parishes, he also led the diocese when cases of sexual abuse at the hands of priests have come to light. After the prosecution of five priests in the archdiocese of Boston received national attention in 2002, victims of pedophile priests began to come forward across the nation, creating a crisis for the church in America, and years of trouble for Hubbard. A number of victims have since come forward in the Albany Diocese. In 2004, two men brought allegations of sexual misconduct against Hubbard, but after an exhaustive $2 million investigation led by former prosecutor Mary Jo White, those accusations were found to be baseless.

While most of the cases of sexual abuse in the church occurred roughly between 1965 and 1985, the vast majority of the reports on those cases only began gaining national attention following the Boston scandal. The same year the scandal erupted, the church instituted a number of safeguards to prevent the sexual abuse of minors by priests. Those seeking to enter the priesthood are now required to undergo extensive background checks and a long interview process that can last up to a year.

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MINNESOTA
Star Tribune

[the letter]

Article by: TONY KENNEDY , Star Tribune Updated: October 29, 2013

A task force appointed to conduct an independent examination of clergy sex abuse in the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis will have to go through a top archdiocese official for access to internal files, according to a letter distributed to priests last week.

The Rev. Reginald Whitt, who was assigned this month to appoint the panel and receive its reports, told priests and deacons in a letter dated Oct. 21 that the task force may review specific files to determine whether the policies of the archdiocese concerning clergy sexual misconduct were properly followed. But, he wrote, “Access to these files will be within my control, and limited only to what is necessary for the task force.”

He also wrote that he recognized that many priests and deacons “may be anxious about your right to privacy and a good reputation.” He assured them that the archdiocese will proceed according to the principles of due process and uniform application of canon policy.

Whitt’s letter seemed to mark a sharp contrast to a statement issued on Oct. 6, when the task force was announced and the archdiocese said, “The task force will have full authority and all the resources needed to complete its work.” That statement also said the task force would operate “independently” of Whitt and Archbishop John Nienstedt, who appointed Whitt.

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MINNESOTA
MinnPost

[the letter]

By Brian Lambert

Uh, “controlling access” would seem to be pretty close to the nut of the problem … Tom Scheck and Madeleine Baran of MPR report: “A task force created to address the clergy sexual abuse crisis in the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis will only have access to information provided by a church official. The task force will not investigate allegations against specific priests, and priest files will not be made public, according to an Oct. 21 letter to clergy by the Rev. Reginald Whitt. Whitt, chosen by Archbishop John Nienstedt to create the task force, will control the panel’s access to information about clergy abuse. ‘Access to these files will be within my control, and limited only to what is necessary for the Task Force to be able to make an informed decision with respect to their policy review,’ he wrote.” Is the ecclesiastical definition of “clueless” the same as in the lay world?

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MINNESOTA
Pioneer Press

By Emily Gurnon
egurnon@pioneerpress.com
POSTED: 10/28/2013

The archdiocese official in charge of handling clergy sexual misconduct issues has invited priests to a Wednesday briefing on how the matter is being handled.

Rev. Reginald Whitt also told fellow clerics in an Oct. 21 letter that he wanted to offer clarification about his role as the new Episcopal vicar for ministerial standards and that of the new lay task force whose members he chose.

Because “serious allegations” have surfaced over the last several weeks concerning certain priests and the handling of their cases, Whitt wrote, clergy would have an opportunity to be briefed and ask questions at Wednesday’s “clergy study day.”

Laurie Wohlers, an administrative assistant at the archdiocese, said in an Oct. 22 email to priests that Archbishop John Nienstedt would speak about the “current crisis” at the session. Later that day, she said, auxiliary Bishop Lee Piche would address the meeting.

Whitt said he would not attend. He teaches at St. Thomas that day, an archdiocese spokesman said.

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NEW JERSEY
The Star-Ledger

By Mark Mueller/The Star-Ledger
on October 28, 2013 at 6:54 PM

The pastor of a Roman Catholic church in Hillsborough has been removed from ministry over allegations that he sexually abused a child in the late 1970s.

The Rev. Msgr. Raymond L. Cole, 70, who leads St. Joseph Parish in the Somerset County community, was an associate pastor at St. Mary Parish in South Amboy when the alleged abuse occurred, according to a letter read aloud during weekend Masses at St. Joseph.

Metuchen Bishop Paul Bootkoski wrote in the letter that Cole “steadfastly denies the charges against him.” At the same time, the bishop wrote, canon law requires the removal of a priest when an allegation of sexual abuse “has been deemed to have a semblance of truth.”

Bootkoski said he was alerted to the allegation by the Middlesex County Prosecutor’s Office, which did not pursue criminal charges because the statute of limitations had long since passed.

A retired investigator from the prosecutor’s office looked into the claim on behalf of the diocese. The Diocesan Review Board, a panel of lay people and clergy members who examine sex abuse allegations — also investigated the matter, interviewing Cole and the alleged victim, Bootkoski said.

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MINNESOTA
Minnesota Public Radio

by Madeleine Baran, Minnesota Public Radio,
Tom Scheck, Minnesota Public Radio
October 28, 2013

ST. PAUL, Minn. — A task force created to address the clergy sexual abuse crisis in the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis will only have access to information provided by a church official.

The task force will not investigate allegations against specific priests, and priest files will not be made public, according to an Oct. 21 letter to clergy by the Rev. Reginald Whitt.

Whitt, chosen by Archbishop John Nienstedt to create the task force, will control the panel’s access to information about clergy abuse. “Access to these files will be within my control, and limited only to what is necessary for the Task Force to be able to make an informed decision with respect to their policy review,” he wrote.

Whitt’s letter appears to contradict Nienstedt’s characterization of the task force as independent. It also raises the question of how the task force will be able to make fully informed decisions without access to all information.

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CANADA
Global News

[with video]

News Hour anchor Chris Gailus sits down exclusively tonight with John Furlong, the former head of the Vancouver 2010 Olympics and the man at the centre of allegations of physical and sexual abuse.

Three former students of a Catholic school in Northern B.C. have filed civil claims alleging abuse at the hands of Furlong over four decades ago.

For the first time tonight, Furlong speaks with News Hour anchor Chris Gailus, and tells his side of the story.

The full, 27-minute interview will air at 7 p.m. on BC1. It will also be live streamed on our website globalnews.ca/bc.

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ARKANSAS
UALR Public Radio

By MICHAEL HIBBLEN

Former Mount St. Mary Academy teacher and volleyball coach Kelly O’Rourke, who pleaded guilty to sexually assaulting a student, was sentenced Monday to 10 years in prison for repeatedly contacting the victim.

The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette reports Judge Barry Sims said he was coming down hard on the teacher for willfully disregarding the court’s no-contact order after pleading guilty in the case.

Last month O’Rourke pleaded guilty to violating the terms of her original sentence and read a statement in court apologizing for her actions.

O’Rourke is alleged to have called the student more than 50 times while serving a four month sentence.

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ARKANSAS
Daily Journal

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
First Posted: October 28, 2013

LITTLE ROCK, Arkansas — An ex-teacher teacher at an all-girls school has been sentenced to 10 years in prison after contacting a girl she was convicted of sexually assaulting in 2010 and 2011.

Kelly O’Rourke was fired from Mount St. Mary Academy last year. Judge Barry Sims sentenced O’Rourke to a 15-year prison term but suspended all but 120 days and told the ex-teacher to stay away from the victim. Sims said Monday that O’Rourke instead contacted the girl more than 50 times.

Sims said O’Rourke willfully disregarded the court’s order and that he had to come down “pretty hard” on the ex-teacher. O’Rourke apologized.

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ARKANSAS
Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests

For immediate release: Monday October 28, 2013

Statement by Barbara Dorris, Outreach Director, 314-862-7688 SNAPdorris@gmail.com

We are grateful that this dangerous predator was given a long sentence. Children are safe when predators are behind bars.

This woman chose to use her position of trust and respect as a teacher to harm a child entrusted to her care. This behavior cannot be tolerated. We applaud the judge for sending a strong statement to anyone who has the privilege of working with children; if you exploit your position for criminal behavior you will be held accountable.

Kelly O’Rourke was serving time when she broke the terms of her sentencing. Her blatant disregard for the judicial system makes us even more concerned that she cannot be trusted.

We beg anyone who has been harmed by her to come forward and begin healing. We encourage anyone with knowledge of these crimes to work with law enforcement so that she will continue to have no access to children.

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UNITED STATES
Associated Baptist Press

If churches are to “act justly” in dealing with clergy sex abuse allegations, outsiders are essential.

By Christa Brown

Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary president Paige Patterson preaches that churches should resolve their conflicts internally and should not take them to “the world of unbelief.”

This means, he explains, that when a person has been “offended … misused and abused” within the church, he should take his complaint to church elders and the congregation, and should not go to the courts or talk to the press. In the final prayer of his sermon, Patterson included even “the government” among those to whom church members should not take their troubles.

This insular sort of anti-outsider stance is dreadfully dangerous. Yet, for decades, it has been a common Baptist teaching, and tragically, it is now being inculcated into still another generation of Baptist pastors.

Outsiders are essential to any organizational system of accountability. They bring objectivity and detachment, and these ingredients are critical for the effectiveness and credibility of an accountability system. Without outsiders, you get cover-ups and cronyism.

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MINNESOTA
The Journal

October 27, 2013

It has been painful the past few weeks to watch the situation with the Archdiocese St. Paul and Minneapolis develop. Whether or not you are Catholic, the issue of child sex abuse, especially by clergy of any denomination, is a serious one. The fact that it continues to affect the Catholic Church can be frustrating.

The crux of the crisis with the archdiocese goes beyond the fact of the abuse that happened, but how the archdiocese has reportedly reacted in the past to allegations and reports of clerical sex abuse. Have archdiocesan officials reacted in a manner that would protect children and church members, or in a manner that would protect the church’s reputation?

It is a truth that has been apparent in the U.S. since the Watergate scandal that it’s not the crime, but the coverup that causes the most problems. When an organization – political, religious, whatever – finds itself dealing with the wrongdoing of a member or faction, the best course of action (and the hardest, it seems) is to come clean, denounce the wrongdoing, excise it from the organization and reaffirm that the organization is on the proper path. It is all too tempting to cover up, to hush up, to deny and to circle the wagons.

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GERMANY
The Independent (UK)

TONY PATERSON Author Biography SUNDAY 27 OCTOBER 2013

Germany’s recently suspended “Bishop of Bling” faces the prospect of seeing his lavish multimillion euro residence turned into a refugee centre or a soup kitchen for the homeless, Catholic church officials in his home diocese announced today.

Bishop Franz Peter Tebartz-van Elst was formally suspended last week amid accusations that he had spent over €31m (£26.5m) on renovating his official residence in Limburg. The charges, which earned the 53-year-old bishop his nickname, provoked outrage among German Catholics.

Yesterday, church officials in Limburg said they were taking their own steps to admonish him.

“The residence is like an inherited sin which the bishop has left in his wake,” said a spokesman for the Caritas organisation for the homeless. “People who seek sanctuary with us could be given food in the residence,” he added.

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CANADA
Vatican Information Service

Vatican City, 28 October 2013 (VIS) – Today, the Holy Father:

– appointed Bishop Richard Joseph Gagnon as archbishop of Winnipeg (area 116,405, population 723,000, Catholics 169,000, priests 82, permanent deacons 19, religious 135), Canada. Archbishop Gagnon, previously bishop of Victoria, was born in Lethbridge, Canada in 1948, was ordained to the priesthood in 1983, and received episcopal ordination in 2004. He succeeds Archbishop James Weisgerber, whose resignation from the pastoral care of the same archdiocese, upon having reached the age limit, was accepted by the Holy Father.

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UNITED STATES
skipshea

Skip Shea

There are certain times in an artists life that are used as milestones. I’m about to achieve one. My horror short, “Ave Maria“, will screen at the Interiora Horror Film Festival in Rome, Italy.

“Ave Maria” has already had is share of success and good fortune with film festivals having already screened at the Leamington Underground Cinema Film Festival in the UK, the Pawtucket film Festival in Rhode Island, the Horrible Imaginings Film Festival in San Diego, CA and Rock and Shock in Worcester, MA – which was also a milestone.

It is also still scheduled to screen at Germany After Dark Film Festival in Gronau, Germany and Buffalo Dreams Fantastic Film Festival in Buffalo, NY. All accomplishments I’m very proud of. But Rome…

It’s no secret but I’m often told I need to remind people that I am a survivor of clergy sexual abuse by a ring of Catholic priests in the Diocese of Worcester, MA. Survivor, victim etc. All words I can’t stand. But such was may path. And it has shaped the statements I make as an artist.

On November 2nd I’ll make a statement in Rome. It seems that, at least here in America all of these crimes are forgotten. People think it is over and done with. So much so that the likes of Cardinal Dolan of NY get to yuk it up with Stephen Colbert on the Colbert Report or get a special seat at the dinner table with men who would be presidents, or at least wanted to be.

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VATICAN CITY
Blue and Green Tomorrow

Monday, October 28th, 2013 By Ilaria Bertini

Vatican City has been upgraded to a rating of EE for ethics from its previous EE minus, following the country’s moves to fight money laundering and make its financial operations more transparent.

The upgrade comes courtesy of Standard Ethics, an EU agency that rates countries within the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) on sustainability, responsible conduct and governance.

The countries that score the highest mark – EEE – are Denmark, Iceland, Norway and Sweden. The UK is rated EEE minus, along with other EU countries such as Germany, Austria and Spain.
Vatican City used to be ranked EE minus, alongside Brazil, Mexico and Romania, but recent measures to tackle corruption and illicit funding have allowed the country to move towards a more positive EE rating.

According to Standards Ethics, the upgrading has been achieved thanks to relevant steps taken to fight terrorism funding, money laundering and illegal financial operations. In addition, one of the latest Vatican laws issued in October pushed for more transparent and controlled financial moves.

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WISONSIN
Kenosha News

By J.J. Steinhoff

Special to the Kenosha News

In the last few years I’ve noticed that many of the Catholic churches in Kenosha have reduced their Mass schedules. Even with these reductions, many parishes appear to be only half full during their weekly services and those in attendance seem to be more old than young. As a lifelong Catholic, I often wonder why so many people have left the church and what we can do to get them back. In my view, the first steps are to restore the image of the Catholic priest and to also make the public aware that the church has cleaned up its act.

To be clear, I was as disgusted as anyone when the sexual abuse scandals rocked the church back in 2002. The cover-up and subsequent payoffs by the Archdiocese of Milwaukee made it even worse. When the Kenosha News ran their front page story in July on the 10 local abusive priests, I studied documents on each one for hours. Some of the priests were alcoholics with emotional problems and some never should have been ordained to begin with. One in particular was nothing more than a monster who used his position of power to terrorize others. There is nothing that can be done to remove the pain of each victim, their families and all of those who were involved in this scandal. However, it’s time to move on and look at some current facts about today’s Catholic Church, and specifically its priests.

Almost all accusations against Catholic priests date from many decades ago, and nearly half of all abuse accusations concern priests who are already long dead. The 10 priests who were featured in the Kenosha News over the summer fit this profile. None of them had performed Mass in this area for many years, yet judging by their pictures on the front page, it appeared as if they were current and active priests. Nationally, in today’s Catholic Church, accusations against current clergy are very rare and averaged only eight per year between 2005-2012. With an overall Catholic population of 77 million people, this is a very low number.

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MINNESOTA
SDPB

[with audio]

Transcript

RACHEL MARTIN, HOST:

Now comes the kind of story George Polk would have pursued, sexual abuse within the Catholic Church. And indeed, several Boston newspapers won a Polk Award for their reporting on the subject back in 2003.

Recently, the Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis was rocked by revelations of abuse. A former official says church leaders covered up numerous cases of sexual misconduct by priests and even made special payments to known pedophiles, this in archdiocese that claimed to be a national leader in dealing with the issue.

In this encore broadcast, Madeleine Baran of Minnesota Public Radio brings us the story last week.

MADELEINE BARAN, BYLINE: To understand what’s happening now, it helps to go back to 2002, when the U.S. Catholic Church faced a crisis brought on by its failure to remove abusive priests from ministry. Archbishop Harry Flynn of St. Paul and Minneapolis emerged as a national leader on the issue, urging bishops at a now-historic conference in Dallas to root out what he called a cancer in the church.

ARCHBISHOP HARRY FLYNN ST. PAUL-MINNEAPOLIS ARCHDIOCESE: This is a defining moment for us this morning as bishops.

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UNITED STATES
Bilgrimage

William D. Lindsey

In my previous posting, I referred to a report Fr. Thomas Reese has published at National Catholic Reporter regarding Bishop Charles Scicluna’s recent address to the Canon Law Society of America. Scicluna was previously the Promoter of Justice for the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith in the Vatican. In that capacity, he was, as Reese notes, roughly the equivalent of the Vatican’s “chief prosecutor” for cases of clerical abuse in the Catholic church.

As I read what Scicluna has to say about how canon law addresses abuse cases, I’m struck by the following:

1. The emphasis of Scicluna’s reading of canon law (and this reflects the emphasis of canon law itself) is far and away skewed in the direction of protecting the rights and serving the needs of clerics–while the rights and needs of lay Catholics, and notably of lay Catholics abused by clerics, are only distantly addressed by canon law.

2. Scicluna notes that canon law envisages three ends in any process considering the guilt of a cleric: these are “reparation of scandal, restitution of justice and the conversion of the accused.” Only the second of these ends can in any way be said to address the needs of those abused by priests, and it does so only in a glancing way.

3. What’s very clear in Scicluna’s presentation is that canon law itself sees the primary problems in an abuse case as tamping down all reports that can lead to scandal and as “converting” the priest himself. Canon law has almost no room at all for considering the needs of lay Catholics who have been sexually abused by a priest, or for addressing the hurts and mending the injuries done to those who have been abused.

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WISCONSIN
Fox 6

October 27, 2013, by Derica Williams

WAUWATOSA (WITI) — The Milwaukee County District Attorney’s Office is investigating whether a former priest stole money from Annunciation Greek Orthodox Church in Wauwatosa.

Members of the congregation gathered on Sunday, October 27th to learn more about the alleged activity of their former priest, Father James Dokos. Church attorney Emmanuel Mamalakis presented members with the findings and sequence of events that led them to the District Attorney’s Office.

“We were doing some work on accounting. We were cleaning up papers and as we were going through, we noticed some issues,” explained Mamalakis.

The issue was first discovered in February when Father Dokos received a reimbursement check for his health insurance premium. It was later discovered that he was allegedly tapping into church funds.

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UNITED KINGDOM
Telegraph

The number of rape cases the police are referring to prosecutors has tumbled to its lowest level in five years prompting fears that adult victims in Jimmy Savile-like historic abuse cases are not being taken seriously as under-pressure officers ”cut corners”.

Police forces in the last financial year sent 5,404 rape cases to the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) for it to decide whether to charge alleged offenders – over 2,700 less than in 2010-11, CPS figures released by Solicitor General Oliver Heald showed.

The drop-off came despite a steady increase in the number of rapes reported to the police in England and Wales between 2008 and 2013, prompting shadow attorney general Emily Thornberry to voice concerns that officers under pressure following budget cuts may be ”cutting corners”.

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CALIFORNIA
The Worthy Adversary

Governor Jerry Brown denies justice for those sexually abused as children

Mark Crawford

Last week Catholic officials were jubilant when Governor Jerry Brown chose to kill bill SB 131, which would have temporarily lifted the statute of limitations for some child victims of sexual abuse. The governor made several excuses as to why he struck down the bill. He referenced the Romans who first used the “statute of limitations” centuries ago. Curious choice, but had Governor Brown, the former Jesuit seminarian done his homework sufficiently he would have learned that the application of the statute of limitations, at that time, applied to debts, or money owed, not crimes. In fact, the Romans were more than harsh with those who violated the law for far lesser crimes. I have never heard of Pontius Pilot discussing the statute of limitations before ordering a crucifixion, have you?

Have church leaders and Governor Brown forgotten about a man called Jesus Christ? Only in the last 100 years have lawyers began to apply SOL to other “infractions” of the law. Church officials and the governor’s main argument is an example of hypocrisy at its finest. Both claimed the bill was “unfair” as it only applied to victims of private institutions, not public. Was it was unfair to exclude some of the victims? Perhaps, but their solution to this disparity was to deny everyone the opportunity for justice by vetoing bill SB 131. Why not pass this bill, as it afforded justice to some victims and THEN introduce a bill that would include public institutions as well? Neither Church officials nor the Governor has spoken of any such intention.

We have repeatedly heard church officials claim “evidence is lost, witnesses die and memories fade” as a reason to oppose reforming statute of limitation laws throughout our country. We now know in many cases the opposite is often true. There is in fact much evidence. Should we simply forget about the cases that have concrete record of criminal behavior or wrong-doing? Of course not. Then why should they be time-barred as well? I don’t hear the Catholic conference, our bishops or the governor speaking about that injustice.

We know there have been instances in which priests admitted to molesting children, plenty of examples in which the priest wrote or texted his victim discussing his sexual acts and we know there have been cases where church officials held documents detailing claims of previous victims. We saw several clear examples in the recently released files of the Los Angeles Archdiocese, where Cardinals and bishops worked to conceal these crimes from law enforcement and the faithful. How could Governor Brown not see the appalling injustice of protecting powerful institutions, which sought to violate civil law over the need to protect children from known predators? The acts of exposing past crimes and allowing victims civil rights protect children. They are also a deterrent to institutions that put self-preservation before child protection.

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UNITED STATES
Vatican Insider

A “Religious News Service” study warns that the number of baptisms and church weddings has dropped. “People want God but they’re not happy with churches”

MARCO TOSATTI
ROME

Religious News Service, an independent interfaith news service raised the alarm bell. The country which has “In God we trust” stamped on its currency seems in fact to be trusting in God less and less every year since the motto first appeared on coins in 1864 and later became the national motto in 1956.

The study carried out by the Religious New Service, shows that one in five Americans today say they have no religious identity. Religious practice has taken a dive among people of any denomination who call themselves Christian, starting with children’s baptism. In 1970 there were 426,000 marriages in U.S. Catholic churches — a full 20% of all U.S. marriages that year. By contrast, in 2011, there were 164,000 such weddings — only 8% of all marriages. But in both years, Catholics were 23% of the national population. Baptisms have followed the same trend. Back in 1970 there were approximately 1 million baptisms registered but by 2011 this had dropped to exactly 793,103.

“There is a de-emphasis on practicing faith. People want God but they’re not happy with churches,” the Rev. Frank Page, president of the Southern Baptist Convention’s Executive Committee said. According to Page, sacraments such as baptism have fallen victim to an “anti-denominational, anti-institutional, even anti-church era.” Like the Catholic Church, the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) which rightly considers baptism a key part of the Christian faith, recorded 314,959 baptisms in 2012, a low which has not been seen since 1948. This is odd when one considers that the number of faithful joining the SBC has risen from 6 million back then to nearly 16 million now.

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AUSTRALIA
The Australian

DAN BOX THE AUSTRALIAN OCTOBER 28, 2013

MORE than half of Catholics who attend mass believe the response of their church’s leadership to cases of child sex abuse by clergy has been inadequate and shows a complete failure of responsibility.

New research from a survey of about 2800 churchgoers in more than 200 parishes across the nation also shows that almost half say that the scandal has damaged their confidence in church authorities.

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MINNESOTA
Faribault County Register

October 27, 2013
by Brock Buesing – Register Staff Writer (bbuesing@faribaultcountyregister.com) , Faribault County Register

A former Blue Earth priest facing criminal sexual conduct charges caught a break in Faribault County District Court last week.

Judge Douglas Richards ruled in favor of a motion that favored Father Leo Charles Koppala in a motion hearing on Friday, Oct. 18.

Koppala, 47, was serving as a priest for Saints Peter and Paul Catholic Church in Blue Earth and has been charged with second-degree criminal sexual conduct from an alleged event on June 7.

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UNITED KINGDOM
Mirror

Some victims of Jimmy Savile have suffered Post Traumatic Stress Disorder as a result of revealing their experiences during the inquiries into the former DJ’s abuse at NHS hospitals.

They developed PTSD or had an ongoing PTSD made worse by the stress of having to go back to the hospitals where they were abused to tell their horrific stories.

Under the terms of the three separate inquiries, victims had to give evidence at either Broadmoor, Stoke Mandeville or Leeds General Infirmary.

They have revealed the experience of having to relive their ordeals at the place the abuse happened caused intense stress.

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MINNESOTA
Pioneer Press

By Ruben Rosario
POSTED: 10/26/2013

“Hide the truth and you hide Christ” — A popular Greek saying.

It was 2002. A publicly embarrassing clergy child sex-abuse scandal was unfolding in a large city on the East Coast. Take a wild guess which one.

It wasn’t long before Jonathan Bernstein’s phone rang. Bernstein is a successful Los Angeles County-based crisis-management expert. The folks at the other end of the conference call included the archbishop, his spokesperson and a church lawyer.

They expressed interest in hiring his firm but first wanted his general advice on how best to snuff out the inferno of bad publicity.

Bernstein obliged.

“I told them that they needed to do three basic things — total candor, total transparency and total humility,” Bernstein told me last week. “They said, ‘Thank you very much,’ hung up, and I never heard from them again.”

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MINNESOTA
Star Tribune

Article by: BAIRD HELGESON , Star Tribune Updated: October 26, 2013

Revered for work with poor, the Rev. Kevin McDonough is accused of protecting abusers.

The Rev. Kevin McDonough charmed legislators as chaplain of the Minnesota Senate. He leveraged his community connections to revive a struggling St. Paul parish and school. On his way to the highest levels of the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis, he gained national stature in helping root out priest sexual misconduct.

Now the charismatic parish priest finds himself at the center of growing controversy and outrage over how the Twin Cities archdiocese handles cases of clergy sex abuse. Newly revealed documents paint a picture of someone protecting accused priests while methodically working behind the scenes to limit damage to the church.

McDonough had a key role in at least three cases of alleged priest sexual misconduct that, combined, have resulted in a lawsuit against the archdiocese, a priest in jail, the resignation of a top archdiocesan official and calls for the resignation of Archbishop John Nienstedt.

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UNITED STATES
Waiting for Godot to Leave

Kevin O’Brien

St. Peter Damian was writing about child molesting priests and bishops who enabled them a thousand years ago. This paper on Damian by C. Colt Anderson makes the argument that the magisterium is not to be confused with the imperium – that the teaching authority of the Catholic Church (which we believe has the guarantee of infallibility on matters of Faith and Morals) is not the same thing as the ruling authority of the Catholic Church.

In other words, the bishops will, in the long run, teach authoritatively, but they may not manage or administer authoritatively. Indeed, the worldly jurisdiction of the Church is not something clearly spelled out in Scripture or anywhere else, as far as I know. Who Christ is, what He asks of us and how Salvation works – this the Church passes on with a Divine authority. But exactly how the Church is to function as a Thing in the world, and how we are to implement this Thing, we are largely left to work out for ourselves.

One thing we know – the Church is not to function as it is today.

I gave just one example in my most recent post – a known child molesting priest being passed from parish to parish, while a string of bishops, who were fully aware of the harm this man was causing his innocent victims, not only failed to warn parishioners, but lauded the man as being “pious”, praising his “character”: the pious character of a man who got a 13-year-old pregnant, who tried to perform a forced abortion on her, and who sexually abused dozens of boys over his 30-plus year career.

* How can such bishops, successors to the apostles, not only allow but enable and to an extent pave the way for such crimes?

* How can the infamous German “Bishop of Bling” spend $45 million dollars of Church funds to build himself a house?

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UNITED STATES
Pope Crimes & Vatican Evils…

Paris Arrow

German Catholics are required to give 10% of their salaries to the Catholic Church (if they want to be buried in the Catholic cemetery). Germany’s church tax, collected by the state and handed over to the churches, raised 5.2 billion euros for the Catholics in 2012. Germany is one of the richest countries in the world. So what does the Vatican Prince – German Bishop do with all that money coming into the Catholic Church treasury? He renovates his Bishop’s Palace with 42 million Euros which includes a 15 thousand Euros bathtub! Vatican Holy Shit!

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ILLINOIS
Waiting for Godot to Leave

Kevin O’Brien

Across the river from where I live, the neighboring diocese of Belleville, Illinois is a trend-setter. They led the way with the sex abuse scandal in the Church long before the story broke nationally.

NCR reports about Fr. Kownacki, a diocesan priest from the Belleville diocese …

* In 1973, a 16-year-old girl, Gina Parks, contacted diocesan officials and claimed Kownacki, during a two-year period while he was pastor of a small parish in St. Francisville and later in a parish to which he was transferred in Washington Park, abused her sexually, had intercourse with her, even attempted to cause an abortion when she became pregnant. … Parks said Kownacki gave her alcohol, promised to help her get into art school and assured her sex was OK because God “wanted people to love each other.”

The bishop, knowing this, and knowing that Fr. Kownacki had molested a girl from Guatemala and that “twin boys from Guatemala were living in the Washington Park rectory and also involved sexually with Kownacki” transfers him to St. Theresa parish in Salem, and writes to the parishioners at St. Theresa’s of Kownacki’s “knowledge, piety, prudence, experience and general character”.

* The diocese gathers evidence that while Kownacki is at St. Theresa’s, he molests several boys, including an altar server who would later be awarded $5 million in compensation and punitive damages.

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ST. LOUIS (MO)
CBS St. Louis

ST. LOUIS, Mo. (KMOX) – Does the St. Louis area have it’s own “Bishop of Bling?”

This week the Pope suspended a German bishop for his lavish expenses. David Clohessy, with the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAP) says a Belleville Bishop should be disciplined as well.

He says Bishop Edward Braxton has spent a small fortune renovating his home and taking trips to Africa.

“We’d like to think that if Bishops spent their money more prudently they could devote more resources to stopping abuse and to healing victims,” Clohessy said.

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GERMANY
The Economist

THE faithful of Limburg, a diocese in Hesse, have been protesting in front of their Romanesque cathedral, a few even affixing “95 theses” to its door to make their views of their bishop unmistakable. But the prelate, Franz-Peter Tebartz-van Elst, had already gone to Rome, where he awaits a meeting with Pope Francis that will determine his future. The extent of his excesses is such that it is hard to say which detail most rankles Germans, and not only Catholic ones.

For some it is the petty lying. Last year the bishop flew first class to India to look at some do-goody projects. But when Der Spiegel, a news magazine, confronted him, he insisted that he had flown business class, even signing affidavits. On October 10th prosecutors in Hamburg indicted him for perjury.

For others it is the pomp and luxury. In 2010, two years after he became Germany’s youngest bishop at the age of 48, Bishop Franz-Peter began building a new residence next to the cathedral. The cost was estimated at €5.5m ($7.43m). Then his requests piled up. His bathtub cost €15,000. Instead of resting an advent wreath on an iron frame in his chapel, he wanted it suspended from the ceiling, requiring the roof to be cut open, at a cost of €100,000 instead of €10,000. In total, the cost estimates now run to €31m.

Germans usually expect to read about such clerical ostentation in history books about the Reformation. Pope Francis, who has chosen simplicity and modesty as his message, makes the incongruity even starker. In an increasingly secular Germany this latest scandal is disastrous for the churches.

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PERU
CNN

A Peruvian assistant bishop resigns after a woman reveals he fathered her daughter. Rafael Romo reports.

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MINNESOTA
dotCommonweal

Grant Gallicho October 25, 2013

Yesterday, after shying away from the press for weeks, Archbishop John Nienstedt of St. Paul and Minneapolis responded to the disturbing revelations about the way his diocese has been handling priests accused of sexual misconduct. He apologized to victims and their families. He promised to do better. And he pledged “before God and in memory of my beloved parents”–whose deaths he recounts at the top of his weekly column–“to do all in my power to restore trust here in this local church.”

A tall order–made taller still by Nienstedt’s reluctance to come clean about the facts of the cases in question. (Last month, Nienstedt’s former top canon lawyer, Jennifer Haselberger, publicly revealed that the current and past archbishops of St. Paul-Minneapolis promoted a priest with a history of sexual misconduct–who later went on to abuse children–and failed to notify civil authorities when they learned that another priest had possessed “borderline illegal” images of what appeared to be minors.) In an e-mail interview with Minnesota Public Radio (MPR)–his first since they started reporting on this fiasco weeks ago–Nienstedt answers relatively straightforward questions with something shy of the whole truth.

MPR led by asking why Nienstedt didn’t go to the police after learning about the priest whose computer apparently contained “borderline illegal” photos. Here’s Nienstedt’s response:

NIENSTEDT: The analysis completed in 2004 did not find evidence of possession of child pornography. The images that [former chancellor for canonical affairs Jennifer] Haselberger showed to coworkers were of pop-up ads. Pop-up ads are unsolicited and often attach to the hard drive without the user’s awareness or permission.

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MINNESOTA
KAAL

Top members of The Archdiocese of St.Paul and Minneapolis continue to search for a firm to review clergy files. Archbishop John Neinstedt called for the review in a post to the churches website Thursday. It is unclear if a law firm or other type of agency will carry out the review.

Legal experts tell KSTP TV that the key to this review will be transparency. Richard Painter of the University of Minnesota Law School said, “This happens in many contexts. In corporations, in government organizations and elsewhere. It is almost always better to confront problems earlier rather than later. To take steps to compensate people, take steps to hold those who are guilty accountable. If there is a cover up, the cost to be paid is going to be much more down the road.”

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AUSTRALIA
Digitial Journal

ADELAIDE, Australia (PRWEB) October 26, 2013

An insider’s perspective can sometimes be the most clear. Father James Valladares, takes a hard look at recent child abuse allegations against the Catholic church in his new book, “Hope Springs Eternal in the Priestly Breast: A Research Study on Procedural Justice for Priests-Diocesan and Religious” (published by iUniverse).

The book is a culmination of intense research and hours of candid conversations that Valladares facilitated among both priests and religious superiors. The goal, he says, was to determine a procedure for dealing with abuse allegations that would not compromise priest’s basic right to be presumed innocent until proven guilty as well as the sacred relationship between a priest and his superior.

“The deadliest attacks to the Catholic church are coming from within its own walls,” Valladares says. “I conducted this study to show that society is effectively tarring all priests with the same brush, using the allegations against a select few to discredit others.”

The procedure that Fr. Valladares developed, which is outlined in the book, is based on Scripture, Church traditions and teachings, as well as canon law, moral theology and pastoral praxis. Using this procedure, allegations can be promptly addressed without compromising the basic right of presumed innocence.

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PENNSYLVANIA
Reading Eagle

State Rep. Mark Rozzi said he was talking to a group after a taxpayer rally in Harrisburg last month when someone asked him what else he was up to.

He told them about legislation he is co-sponsoring to raise the statute of limitations on the filing of civil suits in cases of child sexual abuse.

Afterward, one woman stayed behind and began crying.

Rozzi recalled her words: “Mark, I’m 75 years old. I was raped and abused by my uncle when I was 15. It was 60 years ago, and I have never forgotten one thing. I never told anybody.”

“We cannot forget,” said Rozzi, who alleges he was abused by a priest when he was 13. “It’s in your mind every single day.”

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UNITED KINGDOM
The Guardian

Claire Kilroy
The Guardian, Friday 25 October 2013

Published in a flip-over format, Hello and Goodbye is billed as two Halloween horrors in a single volume: Patrick McCabe does Patrick McCabre, if you will, for McCabe is a master of both the demented narrative and demented narrator. Beneath the ghosts and ghoulies, however, lies a compassionate exploration of the aftermath of psychological damage.

The first novella, Hello Mr Bones, concerns a disgraced Christian Brother and an abused child. However – in a radical departure for Irish fiction – the abused child is the Christian Brother. As a boy, Valentine Shannon had been “interfered with” by the local psychopathic Anglo-Irish toff from the manor, “eccentric pervert” Balthazar Bowen, who styles himself as Mr Bones. Valentine goes on to join the Christian Brothers, only to be ejected after striking a student, one Martin Boan. In an effort to escape his past, he relocates to London and works as a lay teacher. His past, however, catches up with him when Valentine receives a phone call from Mr Bones. This call is even more disturbing than a call from one’s abuser might usually be, given that Bowen, or Bohen, or Boan, or Mr Bones, is now dead.

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OHIO
The Plain Dealer

By James F. McCarty, The Plain Dealer
on October 25, 2013

CLEVELAND, Ohio – A Cuyahoga County grand jury today returned a three-count criminal indictment charging the Rev. James McGonegal, the 68-year-old pastor of St. Ignatius of Antioch Church, with soliciting sex from an undercover ranger at Edgewater Park two weeks ago.

Because McGonegal is HIV-positive, and failed to tell the ranger that, the soliciting charge is a third-degree felony.

McGonegal also was charged with abusing harmful intoxicants and public indecency, both misdemeanors.

His lawyer, Henry Hilow, said he had just learned about the indictments and had not yet discussed them with McGonegal.

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.

MISSOURI
KCUR

By DAN VERBECK

A Catholic priest serving a 50-year federal sentence on a Kansas City area child pornography conviction will absorb a new sentence while behind bars.

Reverend Shawn Ratigan pleaded guilty October 25 to state charges at Liberty, MO.

The burly and bearded Ratigan will serve three consecutive 7 year sentences on his admission he had obscene pictures of girls, some under the age of 12.

The priest took the photos during his tenure at churches and schools of the Kansas City- St. Joseph Diocese.

The sentences will not be added to the federal punishment.

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.

SPRINGFIELD (MO)
Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests

Each abused in CA but spent time in MO
The clerics worked in Springfield-Cape diocese
And so did Missouri’s most notorious pedophile priest
Victims blast Spgfld Catholic officials for “continued secrecy”
SNAP to bishop: “Reach out to others who may be in pain right now”

WHAT
Holding signs at a sidewalk news conference, clergy sex abuse victims will urge Springfield – Cape Girardeau Catholic officials to

–publicly disclose the release of long-secret files about two child molesting clerics,
–announce the recent death of Missouri’s most notorious predator priest, and
–post the files and the announcement on diocesan websites and parish bulletins urging more victims, witnesses and whistleblowers to come forward (so that those who committed or concealed crimes will be prosecuted and kids will be safer and victims will get help).

WHEN
Saturday, Oct.26 at noon

WHERE
Outside the Springfield Catholic diocese headquarters (“chancery office”), 601 South Jefferson Ave., (corner of E. Harrison) in Springfield, MO

WHY
More than 200 pages of records about two predator priests who worked in the Springfield-Cape Girardeau diocese have recently been released.

More info about both men can be found at BishopAccountability.org and here:

http://www.semissourian.com/story/2005690.html

http://www.lorpb.com/documents/Clergy-September/Vincentians-(Farris).PDF

http://www.lorpb.com/documents/Clergy-September/Vincentians-(Ruhl).PDF

And last week, Missouri’s most notorious predator priest, Msgr. Thomas O’Brien passed away. He worked at St. Agnes parish in Springfield in the 1950s and has been sued dozens of times for sexually assaulting kids, mostly in the Kansas City area.

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.

UNITED STATES
National Catholic Reporter

Thomas Reese | Oct. 25, 2013

The experience of the sexual abuse crisis, hopefully, will “help us become more humble, less arrogant and bossy in our ministry,” Bishop Charles Scicluna told members of the Canon Law Society of America on Oct. 16 at their annual meeting in Sacramento, Calif.

He described sexual abuse as “an egregious betrayal of sacred trust” that “has the power to stint the normal development of people” and “cause depression, post-traumatic disorders, loss of self-esteem and, most tragically, loss of faith.” It “is an expression of the anti-Gospel, a betrayal of the message of compassion and love.”

Scicluna began working as the first promoter of justice (roughly equivalent to chief prosecutor) at the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith in May 2002, when a “tsunami” of abuse cases hit his office.

As an official of the doctrinal congregation, Scicluna conducted the investigation of Fr. Marcial Maciel Degollado, the founder of the Legionaries of Christ. Despite opposition from some curial cardinals but with the backing of Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, Scicluna pursued the investigation until Maciel was suspended from priestly ministry in 2006. Scicluna also reviewed hundreds of case files of priests who eventually were dismissed from ministry for sexual abuse. He left the congregation in 2012 to become an auxiliary bishop in Malta.

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.

AUSTRALIA
The Australian

Pia Akerman
From: The Australian
October 26, 2013

JOHN Ellis, whose lawsuit against the Catholic Church prompted a landmark ruling on the church’s liability in sexual abuse claims, has condemned the church’s Towards Healing process for treating victims like “troublemakers” and reviving their trauma.

In a submission released by the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse, Mr Ellis and his wife Nicola describe their experience as solicitors who have acted for more than 200 victims of clerical sexual abuse.

They say participation in Towards Healing, which the church offers as an alternative to legal action, has led to “significant re-traumatisation” for many victims through its lack of transparency and accountability.

Mr Ellis himself has sought redress for being sexually abused by a priest in the 1970s, starting when he was a 14-year-old altar boy, and tried Towards Healing as an adult before suing the Sydney archdiocese trustees. The NSW Court of Appeal eventually ruled they could not be held liable for damages in abuse claims.

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.

MISSOURI
Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests

For immediate release: Friday October 25, 2013

Statement by Barbara Dorris, Outreach Director, 314-862-7688 SNAPdorris@gmail.com

While today’s sentencing ends a legal chapter on one Catholic cleric who committed heinous child sex crimes, it ends nothing about several Catholic clerics who concealed these crimes.

The Kansas City diocese is still headed by a convicted criminal. Every Other person who hid Fr. Ratigan’s crimes and misdeeds is still on the church payroll. More lawyers have been brought in. More promises have been made.

But little has changed. Bishop Finn still fights tooth and nail against victims of priests, even those who are proven predators.

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.

OHIO
Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests

For immediate release: Friday October 25, 2013

Statement by Barbara Dorris, SNAP Outreach Director, 314-862-7688 SNAPdorris@gmail.com

Cleveland priest charged with three felony charges
Fr. James McGonegal was arrested after soliciting sex from a uniformed park ranger.

It is important that anyone in his parish, St. Ignatius of Antioch, that has any more information come forward in order to provide prosecutors with as much information as possible to keep this predator away from children or other possible targets.

We hope Cleveland Catholics will continue to speak out about abuse and cover ups. We hope every single Cleveland Catholic or citizen who sees, suspects or suffers abuse will call police, expose wrongdoers, protect kids, deter cover ups and start healing.

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
Fox 9

[the petition]

Updated: Oct 25, 2013

ST. PAUL, Minn. (KMSP) –
A St. Paul parishioner has started an online petition calling for the resignation of Archbishop John Neinstedt.

Thomas Lyons collected about 70 signatures on his petition by Friday afternoon.

In a column published Thursday in the online version of The Catholic Sprit, Nienstedt apologized and ordered an outside review of all clergy files at the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis. The archbishop acknowledges “some serious mistakes” and vowed “prudent and ongoing disclosure.”

The archdiocese has been under intense scrutiny since whistleblower Jennifer Haselberger went to the Ramsey County attorney’s office with claims that church leaders mishandled and covered-up allegations of abuse by priests.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

MINNESOTA
Catholic League

Bill Donohue sent the following letter today to Archbishop Carlo Maria Viganó, the U.S. Papal Nuncio:
Your Excellency:

This letter is in response to a missive sent to you by a motley group of dissident Catholics, as well as those no longer in communion with the Church, asking for the resignation of Archbishop John Nienstedt. The request is illegitimate: Those pressing this issue cite Canon law as the basis of their agenda, yet they themselves belong to organizations that expressly reject the teachings of the Catholic Church on many issues. That is why some U.S. bishops have excommunicated anyone who belongs to some of these rogue Catholic groups.

The Catholic Coalition for Church Reform never mentions the fact that the Archbishop of St. Paul and Minneapolis has no offending priests in ministry, or that he has taken exceptional steps to ensure the integrity of the archdiocese. Not surprisingly, some in the secular media are giving high profile to this orchestrated effort to unseat Archbishop Nienstedt. He deserves better.

The letter you were sent contains many factual errors, all intentionally designed to smear Archbishop Nienstedt. I am enclosing a piece that was published today by Joan Frawley Desmond in the National Catholic Register that accurately describes this issue.

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.

OHIO
WKYC

CLEVELAND — The Rev. James McGonegal has been indicted on sex related felony charges.

He has now been formally charged with felony soliciting, abusing harmful intoxicants and public indecency.

The indictment stems from an Oct. 11 incident where McGonegal, 68, a priest at St. Ignatius of Antioch Church on Lorain Avenue.

McGonegal has already pleaded not guilty and has posted bond and is out of jail.

He is accused of soliciting sex from a park ranger at Edgewater Park Oct. 11 by offering to pay him $50 to touch him and exposed himself.

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.

OHIO
Fox 8

October 25, 2013, by Peggy Sinkovich

CLEVELAND- A priest is now facing felony charges after being indicted on sex related charges.
Rev. James McGonegal is accused of soliciting sex at Edgewater Park earlier this month.
The indictment was released shortly after noon Friday.

McGonegal is now facing three counts, including counts of soliciting and public indecency.

The 68-year-old has “stepped away from his duties” at St. Ignatius of Antioch parish to “attend to his personal matters,” according to a statement released by the Diocese of Cleveland.

A police report states that McGonegal asked a ranger at the park to get into his vehicle.

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.

MISSOURI
The Kansas City Star

October 25
BY GLENN E. RICE
The Kansas City Star

The final criminal chapter in the child pornography case against a Northland Catholic priest concluded Friday when the Rev. Shawn F. Ratigan pleaded guilty in Clay County Circuit Court to three counts of possessing child pornography.

Ratigan was sentenced to seven years in prison on each felony charge, with the 21-year combined sentence to run concurrent to the 50-year sentence that he recently received in federal court for producing child pornography.

“There are certain offenses that shock the conscience when the defendant takes advantage of people who are unable to defend themselves, and this is one of those cases,” Presiding Circuit Judge Larry D. Harman said when announcing the sentence in Liberty.

Earlier in the hearing, Harman asked Ratigan to explain in his own words the crimes he committed.

Ratigan simply stated, “I possessed them.”

Harman asked if Ratigan was aware that possessing child pornography was illegal.

“Yes sir,” the 48-year-old priest answered.

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
National Catholic Register

by JOAN FRAWLEY DESMOND 10/25/2013

MINNEAPOLIS — In 2002, Archbishop Harry Flynn of St. Paul and Minneapolis spearheaded the passage of the 2002 “Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People,” the U.S. bishops’ landmark effort to overcome a scandalous legacy of clergy sexual abuse of minors and failed episcopal oversight.

Archbishop Flynn, who once chaired the U.S. bishops’ Ad Hoc Committee on Sexual Abuse, retired in 2008, but his successor, Archbishop John Nienstedt, now faces allegations that diocesan leaders, past and present, failed to remove troubled priests from ministry and to report suspected possession of child pornography. The archbishop has now called for an independent review of archdiocesan policies and procedures for handling clergy sexual misconduct.

The recent furor began when Jennifer Haselberger, a canon lawyer who previously worked for the archdiocese, alleged that Archbishop Nienstedt ignored her warnings about the past misconduct of a diocesan priest, Father Curtis Wehmeyer, who would later plead guilty to charges of criminal sexual conduct involving minors and possession of child pornography in November 2012.

Haselberger served as the archdiocese’s chancellor for canonical affairs and also managed the records department from Aug. 18, 2008, to April 30, 2013. After her voluntary departure, which she said was prompted by the archdiocese’s response to her concerns, Haselberger spoke with Minnesota Public Radio (MPR). Documents from the archdiocesan archives were supplied to local police and have been posted on MPR’s website.

She was also critical of instances where she believed the archdiocese failed to immediately forward concerns or allegations to local law enforcement, instead having chosen to conduct its own investigation in advance of such.

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
MinnPost

By Beth Hawkins

Archbishop John Nienstedt’s apology to clergy sex abuse victims published Thursday drew reactions ranging from praise and gratitude to more calls for his resignation.

“The archbishop is offering humble, thoughtful and decisive leadership,” said Father Bill Deziel, a parish priest who earlier used his church bulletin to ask the archbishop to step down. After the archbishop’s statements, the priest said in an email: “I fully support him and his team and these meaningful steps that he is implementing to ensure that no children are ever put in harms way by abusive clergy.”

The Catholic Coalition for Church Reform (CCCR), meanwhile, wrote to Papal Nuncio Carlo Maria Viganó asking for Nienstedt’s resignation and to have a voice in his replacement [PDF].

“We have grave concerns that the pastoral needs of the archdiocese will be compromised by the amount of time, energy and money that Archbishop Nienstedt will expend as he defends himself and his previous actions in the ongoing sexual abuse and cover-up crisis,” the group’s leaders wrote.

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
Catholic League

Bill Donohue comments on an interview that St. Paul and Minneapolis Archbishop John Nienstedt gave to Minnesota Public Radio (MPR):

It is not uncommon for the leader of any organization to be on the firing line for decisions made by his predecessor and his staff. But in this regard, bishops have no rival: sitting bishops are being held responsible to an absurd degree for the rulings made by those who preceded them.

Two days ago, MPR published the e-mail interview it had with Archbishop Nienstedt. There was one question that showed palpable bias: “Why haven’t you released the names of offending priests?”

The question suggests that MPR knows about a cover-up of guilty priests. It turns out that it does not, which is why it did not name names. Nienstedt replied, “There are no offending priests in active ministry in our archdiocese.” So why did MPR assume he was guilty?

Nienstedt then addressed the issue of falsely accused priests who have been exonerated—a subject that MPR, and the media in general, have been strikingly incurious about—saying that it “would be wrong to publicize their names as offenders when they have not been proven to be offenders.” Good for him.

Equal justice demands that if the leaders of other religious and secular organizations do not publicize the names of those who are accused, but not convicted, then neither should the bishops. Does MPR’s parent organization, NPR, go public with accusations made against its employees?

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
Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests

For immediate release: Friday, Oct. 25

Statement by Bob Schwiderski Minnesota SNAP Director, (952 471 3422, skibrs@q.com )

You can’t make this stuff up.

Yesterday, Archbishop John Nienstedt wrote “We must also be committed to honesty and transparency.”

[Archdiocese]

But he refuses to give interviews. And he and other top Twin Cities Catholic officials refuse to disclose

–who’s allegedly been hired to review archdiocesan clergy child sex abuse files

[Minnesota Public Radio]

–who’s allegedly been hired as the new outside archdiocesan public relations firm

–who’s allegedly investigating an accused predator priest at a Catholic university

[Star Tribune]

–who’s on the archdiocesan ‘review board’ that looks at specific child sex abuse reports and that found a child sex abuse report against Fr. Michael Keating lacks “sufficient evidence.”

[Minnesota Public Radio]

This is being “open and transparent?”

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.

POLSKA
Dziennik

{Summary: Prosecutors are heading to the Vatican to seek help in its investigation of Archbishop Jozef Wesolowski, former papal nuncio to the Dominican Republic. Wesolowski allegedly abused minors in the Dominican Republic but he can be prosecuted in Poland under Polish law. The want to know if the archbishop is a national of the Vatican, are Vatican State authorities conducting their proceedings with respect to the allegations, is he covered by diplomatic immunity regarding acts of abuse of minors.]

Prokuratura Okręgowa w Warszawie kieruje do Watykanu kilka ważnych z punktu widzenia śledztwa pytań:

1. Czy arcybiskup Józef Wesołowski posiada obywatelstwo watykańskie?

2. Czy odpowiednie organy państwa watykańskiego prowadzą swoje postępowanie w sprawie czynów, o jakie podejrzewają byłego nuncjusza apostolskiego śledczy z Dominikany?

3. Czy prawo państwa watykańskiego dopuszcza możliwość ekstradowania swoich obywateli?

4. Czy czyny polegające na czynnościach seksualnych z wykorzystaniem osób poniżej lat 15 i utrwalaniu treści pornograficznych z małoletnimi poniżej lat 15 objęte były immunitetem dyplomatycznym przyznanym arcybiskupowi Józefowi Wesołowskiemu na Dominikanie, kiedy był nuncjuszem apostolskim. A jeśli tak, to czy po zakończeniu misji dyplomatycznej immunitet taki byłemu nuncjuszowi wciąż przysługuje?

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.

UNITED STATES
In a Mirror Dimly

A few years ago I attended a church that was on the brink of closing down. A previous pastor had left the church in a difficult situation that he’d successfully hidden until it was nearly too late. I was heart sick over the thought of losing our church.

Where would we go if it closed? Would we lose touch with all of our friends?

I really liked our pastor and the simple liturgy they used each Sunday with a focus on communion. They had a lot of great ministry partnerships with groups outside the church. I felt like I was surrounded by people who were on the same page with me.

This was the church where I began to heal from my previous wounds and missteps from evangelicalism in the past, and I hated the thought of losing it.

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.

CANADA
The Daily Observer

By Sean Chase, Daily Observer
Friday, October 25, 2013

PEMBROKE – A Pembroke priest is facing more charges of gross indecency and indecent assault

Ontario Provincial Police announced this week that Father Dan Miller had been arrested on the new charges connected with historical sexual offences.

The 69-year-old was released on a promise to appear and will make his next court appearance in Pembroke on Nov. 26.

Miller has already plead guilty to five counts of gross indecency and indecent assault. The incidents involving the boys occurred between 1969 and 1980. Police charged him with six counts in February, 2012, however, the crown has since dropped one of the charges. Ordained in Renfrew in 1969, Miller served in parishes in Arnprior, Deep River, Eganville and Petawawa before 1999 when he was suspended by the Pembroke Diocese.

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
Minnesota Public Radio

10:06 AM, October 25, 2013

Recent revelations about the handling of troubled or abusive priests in the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis have led to calls for Archbishop John Nienstedt to resign. Already, key figures in the archdiocese have resigned their leadership positions in the aftermath of a series of reports by MPR News.

In answering questions for the first time in response to the MPR News reports, Nienstedt said Wednesday that he would not resign and he insisted that no offending priests remain in active ministry in the archdiocese. He said he regretted that parishioners and priests had lost confidence in him.

As that story continues to unfold, we take a look at the future of the Roman Catholic Church in Minnesota and beyond. What lies ahead for Nienstedt? How has the church in America changed since the scandal that shook the Boston Archdiocese more than a decade ago? And what can Pope Francis do to help repair the church?

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

MINNESOTA
St. Cloud Times

Editorial

Speaking truth to power and doing what you say you will do are hallmarks of credibility — whether it’s a person or an organization.

In the case of the Archdiocese of Minneapolis/St. Paul, a person — the Rev. Bill Deziel — is speaking truth to power because an organization — the archdiocese — is not doing what it said it will do.

Kudos to Dezeil for his courage and credibility. As for the credibility of the archdiocese, well, it’s hanging in the balance.

The Star Tribune reported earlier this week that Dezeil, who leads the 6,000-member Church of St. Peter in the Twin Cities, is openly asking if Archbishop John Nienstedt should step down after recent news reports show archdiocese leadership has failed this decade at doing what it said it would do starting in 2002 — stop covering up clergy sex abuse.

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.

AUSTRALIA
Newcastle Herald

THE last time I saw John was in late September.

He slipped into a public gallery seat in Newcastle Supreme Court. It was the final public hearing day of the NSW Special Commission of Inquiry into NSW Police and Catholic Church handling of child sex allegations.

John was one of the regulars. He nodded and smiled to others – victims of child sex abuse and their parents, like him – who have sat in the gallery since the inquiry started in May.

He smiled at me where I sat in seats taken over by journalists. I smiled back.

We first spoke in September 2007. I found his name in some documents and gave him a call. By that stage he wasn’t an employee of the Catholic Church any more.

He was guarded, careful.

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
Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests

POSTED BY BARBARA DORRIS ON OCTOBER 25, 2013

That’s how one of the most heroic whistleblowers in Catholic history describes her efforts to expose predators and protect kids.

“I didn’t do enough.”

What haunting words. That must send a chill up the spine of anyone who works – or worked – for any Catholic entity in Minnesota.

That’s what Jennifer Haselberger told the Associated Press the other day.

[ABC News]

Haselberger was, for years, a high ranking archdiocesan chancery office staffer in the Twin Cities.

When she saw that her church colleagues and supervisors were ignoring or hiding evidence of possible crimes by predatory priests (including Fr. Jon Shelley and Fr. Curtis Wehmeyer), she spoke up and stepped down.

She’s done more to expose continuing clergy sex cirmes and cover ups than perhaps any Catholic employee since Fr. Thomas Doyle.

Even so, she now feels like she “didn’t do enough.”

Imagine how her former peers – in the chancery office, in parishes, in parochial schools – will feel years from now when the teacher or seminarian or nun or priest or brother who they suspected might have acted inappropriately with a child is arrested for child sex crimes (like Fr. Wehmeyer was) or for adult sex crimes (like Fr. Mark Huberty was) or found guilty in court (like Fr. Robert Kapoun was) or suspended (like Fr. Michael Keating was).

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.

CANADA
Sylvia’s Site

Most of you are aware by now that further charges have been laid against convicted molester Father Daniel Miller.

I urge anyone out here who has sex abuse allegations against Father Miller and has been struggling to come forward to seriously consider doing so now.

My thoughts and prayers are with all of you – those victims who are awaiting the sentencing from the first set of charges, the complainant who recently came forward, and those who may still be struggling.

I also want to draw your attention to another Victim Impact Statement which has just been posted, this by a mother whose sons were sexually abused by Father Dan Miller. This is the woman who went to see Father Miller down and smacked him across the face after she found out that he had molested her boys. She is the mother who – believe it or not – was told by a bishop that she needed anger management counselling!

Here is the VIS of this brave mother whose world came tumbling down when she discovered that the priest she had confided in and trusted had been molesting her boys:

17 September 2013: Victim Impact Statement by mother whose sons were sexually abused by Father Daniel Miller

I thank her for allowing me to share her statement with all of you.

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.

UNITED KINGDOM
Bognor Regis Observer

THE VICTIM of child abuse by a former Chichester priest has rejected a compensation package from the diocese.

The man, who cannot be identified, was sexually abused as a boy between 1982 and 1984 in Chichester by Robert Coles, 71, who is now serving an eight-year jail term for the offences.

The victim told the BBC this week he wanted an amount ‘in proportion’ to his suffering.

He has rejected a six-figure sum from the diocese.

Coles pleaded guilty last December to 11 offences against this victim, and also two other boys, aged ten at the time.

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.

UNITED STATES
Fox News

By Christopher Snyder
Heard on Fox
Published October 24, 2013

The Catholic Church is more than 1 billion strong, but has been weakened in recent years by secularization and abuse scandals. While the church is growing globally, a recent Pew study found nearly one-third of Americans who were raised Catholic no longer practice the religion.

Fox News Chief Religion Correspondent Lauren Green asked former U.S. Ambassador to the Holy See Francis Rooney whether the Catholic Church is still the world’s moral authority.

Rooney says even with the child sex abuse, Vatileaks scandals and a declining number of faithful attending church each week, the church still has the power to lead. “The principles which compromise the Holy See’s diplomatic outreach are enduring … in many parts of the world where scandal hasn’t occurred … [the Catholic Church has] the greatest impact in areas that are marginalized, where Christians are persecuted, “said Rooney.

Pope Benedict XVI resigned as the leader of the Catholic Church in February 2013. Green asked if it

“I don’t think it was the scandals per say… you gotta remember that Benedict was part of the solution … he was the fella that changed the procedures to make sure that the Vatican would have a voice when these [sex abuse] cases came up and that Bishops wouldn’t be able to sweep them under the rug and avoid calling in the civil authorities,” said Rooney.

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.

UNITED STATES
St. Louis Post-Dispatch

Rev. Christopher W. Keating

As German bishop Franz-Peter Tebartz-van Elst learned this week, church reform begins at home. More to the point, it often starts in the bathroom.

In fact, one could argue that’s exactly how the Protestant Reformation began.

The bishop’s upscale taste landed him in hot water with the Vatican. Tebartz-van Elst was suspended from his post after it was revealed that he had spent millions renovating his church-owned residence in Limburg. Among other excesses, the bishop had ordered a $20,000 bathtub. Rubber ducky sold separately.

Germans who are church members, incidentally, are required by law to give 8-10% of their income to the church.

The remodeling news came to light after it was revealed that the bishop had recently flown business class on a trip to India to visit impoverished communities. All of this seems to have garnered the attention of the pope, who has shunned a lavish lifestyle and drives a 20-year old clunker around the Vatican grounds. The pope’s commitment to simple living has been a hallmark of his papacy. I’m sure he takes quick showers, too.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

CANADA
Ottawa Citizen

BY THE CANADIAN PRESS OCTOBER 25, 2013

BATTLEFORD, Sask. – A former dormitory supervisor at a residential school in Saskatchewan has taken the stand in his defence and denied all charges of indecently assaulting students.

Paul Leroux, who is representing himself at trial, went through the list of allegations one by one Thursday and refuted them all.

He said one incident of sexual abuse couldn’t possibly have happened because the room one complainant alleges he was molested in didn’t exist at the time.

He said another alleged incident at a Saskatoon hotel couldn’t have happened because he never travelled to Saskatoon with the school’s choir or stayed in a hotel with them.

When his testimony was complete, Leroux finished by saying he wished all of his former students well, including his accusers.

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.

NETHERLANDS
NL Times

A special committee will compensate people who fell victim to excessive force in the Roman Catholic Church as minors, announced the church on Thursday.The committee already started on October 15, and will offer help, and acknowledge the suffering of the victims.

The church started this initiative in response to the call of Wim Deetman, who studied female victims of excessive force in the Catholic Church. Victims who already reported to Deetman or the RKK Sexual Abuse Hotline, will be informed about compensation after November 30.

The independent committee consists of René Westra, Wiel Stevens, Pieter Kalbfleisch, and Secretary Bert Kreemers. They will look into reports of violence against children to the RKK Sexual Abuse Hotline and the Deetman commission. The focus is on sexual abuse, for which there is a different arrangement.

Wim Deetman proposed to establish such a committee in March. People who reported to the committee or Hotline will be informed after November 30 about the status of their report. The committee checks the validity of the report, and whether any additional information is needed from the victim.

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MINNESOTA
WCCO

[with video]

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) — Twin Cities Archbishop John Nienstedt acknowledged Thursday that “serious mistakes” have been made in how he’s handled allegations of clergy sexual misconduct. It’s his strongest wording yet over the ongoing scandal rocking the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis.

The Archbishop wrote his thoughts in the Catholic Spirit newspaper, titled “My Pledge to Restore Trust.”

In one sentence he writes, “with genuine sorrow, I apologize to all those who have been victimized, whether on my watch or not.”

In the lengthy column Nienstedt acknowledges that questions remain, specifically over policies and procedures used by the Archdiocese to identify and prevent clergy sexual misconduct. …

Bob Schwiderski was abused by a priest as a child. Today, as state director of SNAP, which represents similar victims, he says another task force isn’t what’s needed.

“We don’t need independent people without subpoena power. We need law enforcement looking at potential crimes. We don’t need independent people picked by him,” Schwiderski adds.

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NEDERLAND
De Standaard

De katholieke kerk is niet aansprakelijk voor de ‘doofpotschade’ die de slachtoffers van seksueel misbruik hebben geleden. Dat heeft de Gentse rechtbank dinsdag beslist.

Verschillende slachtoffers van seksueel misbruik binnen de kerk stapten in groep naar de rechter en dienden een klacht in tegen de Heilige Stoel – de ‘ceo’s van de kerk’ – voor schuldig verzuim. Het ging de slachtoffers niet om de feiten van misbruik zelf, die al lang verjaard zijn, maar om het ‘onzorgvuldig beleid’ van de kerk, waardoor slachtoffers decennia in de kou zijn blijven staan. Ze eisten 1 miljoen euro schadevergoeding voor deze ‘doofpotschade’.

De Gentse rechtbank sprak de kerk dinsdag echter over de hele lijn vrij. De rechter volgde de verdediging van de kerk dat de Heilige Stoel niet kan vervolgd worden omdat die soevereine immuniteit geniet.

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AUSTRALIA
Eureka Street

Frank Brennan | 24 October 2013

Address to the Australian Lawyers Alliance Conference, Rydges Lakeside, Canberra, 26 October 2013

Putting the case for state intervention in church affairs

On 31 October 2012, I was privileged to deliver the 2012 Law and Justice Oration at Parliament House in Sydney. I said:

You will all know that these are not easy times for Catholic priests; and they have never been easy times for those children in our society who have been sexually abused, a disproportionate number of them by Catholic priests. When in Sydney in July 2008, Pope Benedict XVI apologised in these words: ‘I…acknowledge the shame which we have all felt as a result of the sexual abuse of minors by some clergy and religious in this country. Indeed, I am deeply sorry for the pain and suffering the victims have endured and I assure them that, as their pastor, I too share in their suffering. These misdeeds, which constitute so grave a betrayal of trust, deserve unequivocal condemnation.’ I adopt his apology without demurrer.

Whatever our religion or none, whatever our love or loathing of the Catholic Church, what is to be done in the name of law and justice? Clearly, the Church itself cannot be left alone to get its house in order. That would be a wrongful invocation of freedom of religion in a pluralist, democratic society. The State may have a role to play. As our elected politicians prudentially decide how best to proceed, they need assistance from lawyers committed to justice, not lawyers acting primarily to protect the Church or to condemn it. The Catholic Church in Victoria has admitted that ‘in the past 16 years, about 620 cases of criminal child abuse have been upheld by the Church in Victoria’. In the Archdiocese of Melbourne alone, 301 complaints have been upheld since 1996.

Professor Patrick Parkinson, probably the nation’s most experienced academic lawyer in the field, having conducted the 2009 Study of Reported Child Sexual Abuse in the Anglican Church and having advised the Catholic Church on its Towards Healing protocol, informed the Victorian Parliament last month:

[T]here were 44 allegations of abuse [since 1990] within the Anglican diocese of Melbourne which fitted within the criteria of our study.

Archbishop Hart [the Catholic Archbishop of Melbourne] referred to 60 priests…of the archdiocese of Melbourne, who are substantiated offenders against children. We found 78 across the country against whom allegations were made in the Anglican Church. It gives you a sense of the scale of the problem.

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NEW YORK
CNY Central

[with video]

by Kellie Cowan
Posted: 10.25.2013

The Catholic Church has been rocked by child abuse scandals that have received plenty of publicity in recent years, but the only thing perhaps more scandalous has been the reaction from the church regarding the victims. Silence, high-level cover ups, even threats have left many to wonder who the church hierarchy are actually trying to protect.

Tonight Rev. Tom Doyle, a catholic priest and retired Air Force Major, spoke at All Saints Church in Syracuse about the need for reform in the way the Catholic Church handles sexual abuse cases.

“Victims are just swept under the rug,” said Parrish member Jane LeClair. “It’s like it’s all about trying to dismiss any embarrassment in the Catholic Church.”

Doyle hopes that an open and honest discussion about child abuse within the church, and the way in which the church treats victims, will create much needed change. Though he has spoken across the country and the world on church reform, the Catholic Church has been apprehensive at best to give Doyle a platform. Tonight Doyle divulged that All Saints Church is just the fifth catholic venue to allow him to speak on the topic of child abuse within its walls.

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MINNESOTA
The Progressive Catholic Voice

Minneapolis October 24, 2013 — Despite his statements of October 24 in The Catholic Spirit, the Catholic Coalition for Church Reform (CCCR) has urged Archbishop John C. Nienstedt to step down from his role as head of the Saint Paul/Minneapolis Archdiocese in a letter to him dated October 24, 2013.

At its meeting of October 16, 2013, the board of CCCR resolved to write to Archbishop Carlo Maria Viganó, the Vatican delegate to the U.S., stating its vote of no confidence in the leadership of the Archbishop. The Vatican delegate, whose office is at 3339 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington DC 20008, is charged with recommending episcopal appointments to the Vatican.

Also in its letter, CCCR sought recognition for lay consultation in selection of the archdiocese’s next bishop, whenever that happens. They asked the papal delegate “to seek recommendations from all the people of the Archdiocese—ordained and lay, as well as men and women religious—in the matter of a successor Archbishop or any bishops appointed hereafter.”

The letter to Archbishop Viganó was held pending the Archbishop’s statement in the Archdiocesan newspaper, The Catholic Spirit, October 24, then copied to Archbishop Nienstedt with the letter asking him to resign.

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MINNESOTA
MinnPost

By Brian Lambert

The archbishop has spoken … or at least written. Madeleine Baran of MPR continues her coverage of the church’s local problems saying: “Archbishop John Nienstedt said he accepts responsibility for addressing the unfolding clergy sexual abuse crisis and regrets that a growing number of parishioners and priests in the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis have ‘lost confidence’ in him. However, he denied any abuse cover-up or illegal actions and repeated the archdiocese’s claim that there are no offending priests in active ministry. Nienstedt’s remarks came in an e-mailed response to questions from MPR News. It’s the first time the archbishop has answered questions about the scandal since MPR News began publishing investigative reports in late September. … Nienstedt wrote … ‘My highest priorities are to ensure the safety of our children and to restore the trust of Catholics and our clergy. I will do everything in my power to do so.’ ” Will this be before or after the next anti-gay campaign?

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MINNESOTA
WTAQ

Thursday, October 24, 2013
MINNEAPOLIS (Reuters) – The Roman Catholic archbishop of the Minneapolis-St. Paul Archdiocese said on Thursday that serious mistakes had been made in the archdiocese’s investigations of allegations of sex abuse by clergy and he has ordered a review of all of its files by an outside firm.

“To those who have been hurt, to the victims of clergy abuse and their family members, I can only tell you how sorry I am,” Archbishop John Nienstedt said in the archdiocese’s official publication. “I realize how damaging such actions are in violating the care of their human dignity.”

But David Clohessy, director of the Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests, said Nienstedt’s review plan would only result in more secrecy and his statement did not reveal the names of sexual predators.

“He knows who should look at these records, the cops,” Clohessy said. “But he continues to act irresponsibly, to protect the predators and to endanger kids.”

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NEDERLAND
FOK

[Summary: Those who as minors were victims of excessive violence in the Catholic church may received compensation. A special committee will review the cases, the church announced Thursday.]

Mensen die als minderjarige slachtoffer werden van excessief geweld in de katholieke kerk kunnen een schadevergoeding krijgen. Een speciale commissie gaat zich daarover buigen, heeft de kerk donderdag bekendgemaakt.

De kerk komt met de stap tegemoet aan de oproep van Wim Deetman, die onderzoek deed naar vrouwelijke slachtoffers van buitensporig geweld in de katholieke kerk. Slachtoffers die zich al bij Deetman of het Meldpunt Seksueel Misbruik RKK hebben gemeld, worden na 30 november over de schadevergoeding geïnformeerd.

De commissie bestaat uit Pieter Kalbfleisch, Wiel Stevens en René Westra en wordt ondersteund door psychologen en deskundigen. Als alle gevallen zijn afgehandeld, zal de commissie publiekelijk verantwoording afleggen.

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MINNESOTA
Pioneer Press

[Archbishop Addresses Media Questions – St. Paul and Minneapolis archdiocese]

[My pledge to restore trust]

By Emily Gurnon
egurnon@pioneerpress.com
POSTED: 10/24/2013

Archbishop John Nienstedt admitted to Catholics on Thursday that “some serious mistakes have been made” in the handling of clergy sex-abuse cases.

Nienstedt apologized to all victims of abusive priests and promised to institute changes, including “a review of all clergy files by an outside firm.”

An archdiocese spokesman said Thursday that he did not know who that firm is.

In a written statement titled, “My pledge to restore trust,” Nienstedt said that “sweeping changes” made in every diocese after the 2002 U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops in Dallas led him and others to hope that clergy sex abuse was a thing of the past.

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MINNESOTA
KARE

ST. PAUL, Minn. – Archbishop John Nienstedt has hired an outside firm to examine whether any priests in ministry pose a danger to children.

Writing in his weekly column, Nienstedt said he ordered the review after reading recent media reports and hearing from “so many Catholic faithful” that there is “real fear that some priests in ministry today constitute a danger to children.”

He said would never knowingly allow such a situation and decided to order a review of all clergy files by an outside firm.

The announcement comes after intense scrutiny over how Nienstedt has handled clergy misconduct in the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis. An MPR News investigation has found that church officials disregarded concerns over priest misconduct over the past ten years.

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MINNESOTA
NPR

[with audio]

by MADELEINE BARAN
October 24, 2013

The Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis has been rocked in recent weeks by revelations from a top-level whistle-blower. The former official says church leaders covered up numerous cases of sexual misconduct by priests and even made special payments to pedophiles.

The scandal is notable not only because of the abuse but also because it happened in an archdiocese that claimed to be a national leader in dealing with the issue.

To understand what’s happening now, it helps to go back to 2002, when the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops faced a crisis brought on by its failure to remove abusive priests from ministry.

‘I Wanted Them To Do The Right Thing’

Archbishop Harry Flynn of St. Paul and Minneapolis emerged as a national leader on the issue, urging bishops at a now-historic conference in Dallas to root out what he called a cancer in the church.

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UNITED STATES
National Catholic Reporter

Robert McClory | Oct. 24, 2013 NCR Today

The recent story about Jennifer Haselberger, a former chancellor for the St. Paul-Minneapolis archdiocese who finally blew the whistle on long unreported allegations of sexual abuse by priests, calls to mind a similar key role some years ago played by a woman in the Belleville, Ill., diocese.

In that case, a priest, Raymond Kownacki, was moved due to ecclesiastical indifference from parish to parish for more than 25 years despite a mounting host of allegations and complaints about his sexual activities with countless boys and at least one girl. During that time, three bishops of Belleville had to be personally aware of Kownacki’s well-documented history. As the chancellor of the diocese testified at a later trial, “Everyone at the chancery office knew Kownacki was sick and liked to molest children.”

Yet the parishes to which he was assigned were never given any warning. Bishops Albert Zuroweste, John Wurm and James Keleher sent these parishes glowing comments about Kownacki’s dedicated priestly service and confidence in his ability to carry out his duties. In 1988, Kownacki was sent to a Belleville church that had a grade school next door. No restrictions of any kind were placed on his ministry or other activities.

In 1993, the Belleville diocese finally adopted a policy about clerical sexual misconduct and set up a seven-member review board (three priests and four lay members), which was given access to the diocesan records. It did not take long for Margie Mensen, the board’s administrator and lone woman member, to see what had been going on. She viewed the evidence, met with parents, then firmly recommended that Kownacki be immediately removed from all ministry. The board unanimously supported her, and Kownacki was put on administrative leave, where he remains to this day. It is likely Mensen was the first woman to ever see that record of gross abuse that had been mounting for so many years.

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IRELAND
National Catholic Reporter

Dennis Coday | Oct. 24, 2013 NCR Today

Five years ago, 18 religious orders in Ireland pledged to set aside 110 million euros (about $160 million at the time) to pay for the treatment for survivors of institutional abuse, but to date they are about 40 million euros short of that figure, The Irish Independent is reporting.

The orders, which ran various schools and residential homes for children and vulnerable adults in Ireland, including the Christian Brothers and the Daughters of Charity, turned over only 72 million euros to the Residential Institutions Statutory Fund, or RISF.

Some 15,000 people are thought to be eligible for grants from RISF, which is to begin issuing funds in January.

The orders have blamed the depressed property market for the shortfall, according the The Independent, which quote an unnamed source as saying: “They made the commitment at the time based on property and property prices. Obviously, as we all know, their value has fallen since then.”

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MINNESOTA
Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests

MN archbishop will comment on his crisis today; SNAP responds

MN – What to look for today from Archbishop Nienstedt

MN archbishop’s answer: “I’ll hire more lawyers”

For immediate release: Thursday October

Statement by Barbara Dorris, Outreach Director, 314-862-7688 SNAPdorris@gmail.com

We agree with Nienstedt: he and his staff can “do better.” But they don’t.

Instead they posture. And they perpetuate the fallacy that child abuse is the root of this inexcusable horror.

It’s not.

Priests that sexually assault adults and kids are NOT the root of this crisis. All kinds of trusted adults sexually violate the vulnerable. (And it’s pretty hard to stop them, at least before the first offense.)

The cover up of those crimes that is the root of this crisis. (That’s what enables the second and 22nd offense. And that’s what enrages Catholics, citizens and victims – knowing that prompt, honest and responsible moves by Nienstedt and his staff would have prevented others from being hurt by at least some of the 34 publicly accused abusive Twin Cities clerics.)

And the cover up is what Nienstedt refuses to mention today. Conveniently, he focuses on just how bad those awful predator priests are, cleverly diverting attention from his actions that ignore, minimize, conceal and enable those predator priests to commit their heinous crimes.

It’s deliberate deception. It’s a carefully-devised public relations calculation designed to shift blame and attention to those who can’t control themselves (the predators) and attention away from those who won’t control them (their peers and supervisors, the Nienstedts, McDonoughs, Bairds, et al.)

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MINNESOTA
KMSP

by Mike Durkin

ST. PAUL, Minn. (KMSP) –
Archbishop John Nienstedt has ordered an outside review of all clergy files, while acknowledging “some serious mistakes” over the last decade in how the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis handled allegations of clergy sexual abuse.

Nienstedt’s comments and action plan were published Thursday in a column for The Catholic Spirit, titled, “My pledge to restore trust.”

“Having seen so many reports in the media and read the letters and emails of so many Catholic faithful as well as the general public, I am aware that there is real fear that some priests in ministry today constitute a danger to children. I could never knowingly allow such a situation,” Nienstedt wrote. “In order to demonstrate this fact, I have ordered a review of all clergy files by an outside firm. We need to ascertain the facts, and this will lead us to prudent and ongoing disclosure.”

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MINNESOTA
MinnPost

By Brian Lambert | 10/23/13

It was only a matter of time before the question came up. Tom Scheck of MPR reports: “Recent reports about clergy misconduct in the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis threaten to put new financial pressure on an institution already under some financial strain. Even before recent revelations about alleged misconduct of priests, the archdiocese was concerned about the impact a new law could bring in dozens of new lawsuits against the church for clergy sex abuse. In fact, church officials met privately with attorneys to discuss ways to protect archdiocese assets from creditors. … Scott Domeier, a former accountant for the archdiocese, said bankruptcy was discussed openly among top officials. Domeier, who is serving three years in prison for filing improper tax returns and stealing more than $600,000 from the archdiocese, said church leaders constantly worried about legislation that would extend the statute of limitations for sex abuse victims to file a civil suit against their abuser.”

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KENYA
Standard Digital

By Erick Abuga

A Catholic priest has denied luring a schoolgirl into bed with bananas and oranges for her sick mother.

Father Thomas Gori had allegedly been sending the 14-year-old girl with the fruits to her mother in hospital for three years before the sex attack.

On October 12 when he allegedly had sex with her in Ikuruma village, the priest had told the Standard 7 girl that he was going to pray for her, a Kisii court heard.

Resident magistrate Lucy Kaitani freed the priest on a Sh500,000 bond as he awaits trial.

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MINNESOTA
The Catholic Spirit

Archbishop Addresses Media Questions

Archbishop John C. Nienstedt | October 24, 2013

It was Dec. 13, 2007. I remember it well. I had just returned from a meeting of the college of consultors of the New Ulm Diocese, having presided over the selection of a new apostolic administrator to take my place as bishop. The phone rang and my brother said, “Dad is dead.”

I pulled the car over to absorb those words. Six weeks later I stood at my mother’s hospital bed and watched her die. It was an extremely painful time in my life, losing both parents within such a short period. My parents had been very close to me. They had a huge influence on who I am. I could not have asked for better parents.

I recall those moments now, because the pain and sorrow I felt then reflects that which I have heard from so many of you in your own suffering and disillusionment these past few weeks. I want you to know that I have been praying for all of you. I am experiencing that pain, too. The media have been filled with all kinds of accusations and unanswered questions. There is cause here for sadness, confusion and anger.

After almost a month, I have come to understand more clearly what has happened to bring us to this point. I am grateful to my leadership team, which has helped me process this understanding. Practically all of my senior leadership team is new, with an average tenure of less than a year. We have been searching for answers. And while there is more to do, we have arrived at a better picture of the truth.

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