ABUSE TRACKER

A worship pastor at Pleasant Grove Baptist Church was terminated after being arrested Monday night on multiple charges related to the sexual assault of a juvenile, according to a statement from the church.

Kentucky State Police troopers with Post 16 in Henderson arrested David A. Rodgers, 40, of Utica at 7:35 p.m. Monday following an investigation that revealed he had “engaged in a sexual relationship with a juvenile through a position of special trust.”

The church issued a statement on Tuesday concerning the arrest.

“On the evening of February 16, 2026, church leadership was made aware of sexual assault allegations against David Rodgers, who was serving as Worship Pastor at Pleasant Grove Baptist Church. We are deeply saddened and troubled by these allegations. The church takes all allegations of sexual assault extremely seriously, and we ask that you join us in prayerfully awaiting information regarding this ongoing legal matter.”

The…

View Cache

Holy Spirit Sister Maria Fransiska Imakulata has been advocating justice for 13 trafficking victims rescued from a nightclub

The governor of Indonesia’s West Java province has thanked a Catholic nun for assisting alleged trafficking victims rescued from a nightclub in East Nusa Tenggara and pledged legal support to ensure justice.West Java Governor Dedi Mulyadi called Holy Spirit Sister Maria Fransiska Imakulata on Feb. 17 to express appreciation for her efforts on behalf of the victims, most of whom are from West Java.

Sister Imakulata told UCA News that the governor asked about the victims’ condition and promised to oversee the case personally.

“He thanked us for helping the victims. He promised to handle the matter directly,” she said.

According to the nun, Mulyadi also said he would visit East Nusa Tenggara and meet the police to ensure the case is processed in accordance with the law.

Sister Imakulata chairs the…

View Cache

The Brooklyn Diocese has agreed to negotiate a “global” settlement to compensate 1,100 people who accused priests and staffers of child sex abuse — a figure that will likely run into hundreds of millions of dollars.

The payouts for these cases—90% of which date back more than 50 years to the 1960s and ’70s — will be a huge financial blow to the diocese, forcing it to unload real estate to raise the settlement money.

“To facilitate this global resolution, the Diocese is cost-cutting and setting aside significant funds to compensate victim-survivors,” Bishop Robert Brennan said Thursday in a “Dear brothers and sisters” letter to the church faithful.

“The process of marshalling these funds entails difficult financial choices, but the Diocese is committed to fairly compensating all meritorious claims,” Brennan said, adding that the payout cash will not come from parishioners.

“The funds used to make these settlements, and future ones, have…

View Cache

In a sweeping move, the Roman Catholic Diocese of Brooklyn announced that it intends to settle the remaining 1,100 lawsuits of alleged child sex abuse at the hands of priests and church staff.

“There’s no fair way to resolve these things,” said Sabrina Cools, of St. Albans. “So a little bit of compensation for what people have been through, it always helps.”

Plaintiff’s attorney Mitchell Garabedian has settled thousands of clergy sex abuse cases and currently represents 25 victim-survivors who filed against the Brooklyn Diocese. He has his doubts.

“My clients are skeptical, understandably, they don’t trust the diocese,” Garabedian told NBC New York. “Is the compensation program going to be fair? Is it going to provide validation?”

In a letter to the faithful, Bishop Robert J. Brennan wrote “we will endeavor to resolve expeditiously, all meritorious claims and to avoid the time expense and emotional strain for victim survivors that…

View Cache

In a landmark decision handed down on 11 February, the High Court of Australia has expanded the scope of the Catholic Church’s liability in sexual abuse cases.  

When he was 13 years old, a man known as “AA” was abused by an assistant priest of the diocese of Maitland-Newcastle, Fr Ronald Pickin, in 1969. Fr Pickin died in 2015 and was never charged with any offences, although other boys also complained about him later on. He never had an opportunity to respond to the allegations.  

AA won his case for compensation in the NSW Supreme Court, but he lost in the Court of Appeal. The justices contended that AA’s account of the abuse did not reach the requisite standard of proof, that the risk of harm was not foreseeable by the diocese, and that the diocese could not be held liable for a breach of a “non-delegable” duty of care…

View Cache

A necessary question in light of the Gospel

Editor’s note: This story is part of Global Sisters Report’s yearlong series, “Out of the Shadows: Confronting Violence Against Women,” which will focus on the ways Catholic sisters are responding to this global phenomenon. 

Speaking about sexual abuse within the church is not an ideological matter or the result of external pressure. Above all, it is a profoundly Gospel-centered issue. It places us before the core of Jesus’ message: the sacred dignity of every person, the protection of the most vulnerable, the truth that sets free, and the justice that heals. For this reason, the question many believers are asking today is neither superficial nor ill-intentioned, but honest and painful: Is the church truly seeking to combat sexual abuse, or is it trying to manage its consequences?

The church has spoken words, drafted documents, and created commissions and protocols. However, the existence of…

View Cache

The trial of Jacek K., a Catholic priest, accused of sexual offences against children has begun at a district court in Sosnowiec, southern Poland.

Prosecutors allege that Fr Jacek K., from the Sosnowiec diocese, committed nine sexual offences against minors and possessed child abuse imagery.

Seven people are recognised as victims in the case.

Proceedings are being held behind closed doors due to the nature of the charges.

The court approved a request to exclude the public, citing the privacy and welfare of those involved.

Jacek K. was brought to court from custody, where he has been held since his arrest in October 2024.

He has denied the allegations during the investigation.

If convicted, he faces up to 30 years in prison.

Allegations span 16 years

According to prosecutors, the alleged offences took place between 2008 and 2024 in locations where he carried out pastoral duties and taught religious education.

…

View Cache

A South Riding man apologized for soliciting underage girls while teaching at St. Veronica Catholic School in Chantilly and sought leniency at his Feb. 12 sentencing in Loudoun Circuit Court.

“I stand here before you embarrassed and humbled. My actions show a lack of character and self control and I do take full responsibility,” Nicholas Martin Zimmerman told Chief Judge Douglas L Fleming Jr. “Not a day goes by that I don’t regret all of it. The guilt I will carry with me for the rest of my life.”

Zimmerman, 36, taught at the school from August 2015 through February 2025. He pleaded guilty in September to two counts of electronic solicitation of a minor and six counts of possession of child pornography.

Zimmerman was arrested in April. The investigation began last February when a parent showed the St. Veronica principal photos from a sexually explicit Snapchat conversation…

View Cache

Woman Accuses Former Church Worship Director of Repeated Sexual Abuse

A 27-year-old woman spent hours on the witness stand Tuesday describing a relationship she says began as music lessons and turned into sexual abuse by a former Cleveland-area church worship director, according to WKYC. 

The woman stated she met Andres Andino when she was in sixth grade, when he worked as the school choir director at St. Anthony of Padua, located at 1305 E Erie Ave, Lorain, OH 44052.

Defendant Indicted on Multiple Counts

Andres Andino, 60, was indicted in March 2025 on two counts of sexual battery, two counts of unlawful sexual conduct with a minor and one count of rape. At the time of his arrest he was director of worship at St. John Bosco Catholic Church in Parma Heights and worked part-time at St. Joseph Parish in Avon Lake, while also holding volunteer roles across the Diocese…

View Cache

Editor’s note: This story is part of Global Sisters Report’s yearlong series, “Out of the Shadows: Confronting Violence Against Women,” focused on the ways Catholic sisters are responding to this global phenomenon.

Coal dust settles on Emalahleni before the sun rises, coating tin roofs, school uniforms and bare feet. By nightfall, smoke from power stations and cooking fires thickens the air, burning throats and eyes. In this mining city east of Johannesburg, extraction is not just an industry. It is the atmosphere people breathe and the ground they walk on.

It is also where children and young girls are disappearing.

Built at the heart of South Africa’s coal belt, Emalahleni, whose name means “place of coal” in isiZulu, sits in Mpumalanga province, about 70 miles east of Johannesburg. For decades, coal and gold mines here powered the national economy and promised jobs, stability and development. They drew workers from across South…

View Cache

The newly installed Archbishop of Westminster has said the Church must learn from victims of sexual abuse.

Archbishop Richard Moth was installed as the new head of the Catholic Church in England and Wales on Saturday. 

In his homily, he said the work of evangelisation was “vital” but admitted that this had been “adversely impacted” by past abuse scandals and safeguarding failings.

“Here I am most aware of every occasion on which members of the Church, or the Church as a whole, have failed, most especially when the vulnerable have been abused,” he said.

“Such failure calls for listening to and learning from those who have suffered so grievously and a continuing commitment to ensuring that our communities are places where all are safe in their encounter with Christ and with one another.”

Elsewhere in his homily, he called on believers to have “boldness” rather than fear in sharing the Gospel, and to be…

View Cache

The diocese, one of the nation’s most diverse, seeks to universally settle more than 1,100 cases—including one against a Black Catholic bishop.

The Diocese of Brooklyn has announced it will enter into mediation concerning more than a thousand pending child sex abuse cases, which include an active case against a retired Black Catholic bishop.

Bishop Robert J. Brennan announced the news on Feb. 12 with a letter to Catholics in the diocese, which covers the New York City boroughs of Brooklyn and Queens.

“Today I announce that the Diocese intends to pursue a global resolution of all approximately 1,100 remaining cases,” wrote Brennan, who has led the diocese—one of the nation’s most populous—since 2021.

“We will endeavor to resolve expeditiously all meritorious claims, and to avoid the time, expense, and emotional strain for victim-survivors that would be caused by individual trials.”

The Brooklyn Diocese is one of several…

View Cache

The newly installed Archbishop of Westminster has said the Church must learn from victims of sexual abuse.

Archbishop Richard Moth was installed as the new head of the Catholic Church in England and Wales on Saturday. 

In his homily, he said the work of evangelisation was “vital” but admitted that this had been “adversely impacted” by past abuse scandals and safeguarding failings.

“Here I am most aware of every occasion on which members of the Church, or the Church as a whole, have failed, most especially when the vulnerable have been abused,” he said.

“Such failure calls for listening to and learning from those who have suffered so grievously and a continuing commitment to ensuring that our communities are places where all are safe in their encounter with Christ and with one another.”

Elsewhere in his homily, he called on believers to have “boldness” rather than fear in sharing the Gospel, and to be…

View Cache

Opinion

What if power abuses are ultimately theological? Clergy abuse is so common, it has become a cliche. The new archbishop of Canterbury was accused of colluding with an abusive priest. In December, a federal judge ordered the New Orleans Archdiocese to pay at least $230 million to hundreds of victims who were sexually abused by clergy. 

At the same time, we learned new details about the tentacles of the Southern Baptist Convention’s abuses, particularly concerning former seminary professor David Sills. Before that, it was the megachurch pastor charged with beating a 15-year-old with a power cord. Before that, it was the Idaho pastor engaged in human trafficking. Going further back, who could forget about the abuses perpetrated by Ravi Zacharias, or Sovereign Grace Ministries, or Mark Driscoll, who, a decade after his abuses at Mars Hill Church, is teaming up with Turning Point USA?

And sickeningly, we learned the acting ICE field director for Minneapolis is David Easterwood, a…

View Cache

Ted Gutierrez grew up in Canarsie, Brooklyn, attending Holy Family Roman Catholic Church. He remembers Priest Romano Ferraro touching him inappropriately.

“I became an altar boy, and that’s when I noticed the abuse. But I didn’t realize it was abuse because we thought it was just normal. Because how could a priest, a respected member of the community, do something like that,” he told NY1.

What You Need To Know On Thursday, Bishop of Brooklyn, Rev. Robert J. Brennan, announced the diocese “intends to pursue a global resolution of all approximately 1,100 remaining cases” 
However, Anela Doumanian, a lawyer representing about 50 survivors with claims against the Brooklyn Diocese, called this “a PR stunt masquerading as a settlement offer”
The church says it has reached out to lawyers representing the largest groups of plaintiffsSurvivor Ted Gutierrez, who already received a settlement from the Diocese of Brooklyn a few years ago, believes the church…

View Cache

I never expected to be producing a show that stares straight at the Catholic Church’s crisis of sexual abuse and cover-up, but right now it feels necessary in a way I cannot ignore.

This piece is for anyone who has ever felt silenced, shamed or pressured to look away from something they knew was wrong. It is for Catholics, non-Catholics, ex-Catholics, people who are allergic to religion, people who have never stepped inside a church and people who have. Because the thing I am talking about is not “a Catholic issue.” It is a human one.

I am producing this special event surrounding the 2024 documentary film “Fox Chase Boy” because this feels like the right moment to tell the truth out loud, in a room, together. (Full disclosure: As a producer, I have helped provide the funds to stage this show and to allow ticket prices to be set…

View Cache

David Ryan, a 61-year-old Irishman who suffered sexual abuse as a teenager, shared his story face-to-face with Pope Leo XIV, the first time the pope met with a victim individually.

Feb. 2 marked a turning point in the life of David Ryan, a 61-year-old Irishman who suffered sexual abuse as a teenager. More than 40 years later, he was able to share his story face-to-face with Pope Leo XIV in the first private meeting the pontiff has held alone with a victim of abuse.

While the Holy Father had already met with other victims of abuse, those meetings were in groups. The meeting with Ryan was different: For almost an hour, he was able to share everything he thought and still thinks about what happened to him and about the reaction of the Catholic Church in Ireland, which he felt did not listen to him.

“He’s a…

View Cache

SNAP condemns the Diocese of Brooklyn’s intention to pursue a global resolution of all of its approximately 1,100 remaining cases. This effort to settle more than a thousand cases in one fell swoop is merely a mechanism designed to block accountability through the courts, shielding church records from disclosure and church officials from sworn testimony. 

SNAP rejects Bishop Robert J. Brennan’s premise that summary resolution will protect victim-survivors from the strain of individual court cases. This effort’s true aim is one of damage control, capping liability and suppressing the full truth about decades of abuse and cover-up. 

The legal process of summary settlements shuts out survivors entirely from being heard, compounding their trauma and forcing them through mass dismissal. Survivors are reduced to claim numbers, their testimony muted, and their pain negotiated behind closed doors. SNAP stands in unwavering solidarity with all those harmed in New York, those who have…

View Cache

The diocese has already paid out more than $100 million to over 500 victims of abuse.

The Diocese of Brooklyn will pursue a broad settlement with more than 1,000 alleged victims of Church abuse, Bishop Robert Brennan said on Feb. 12, with a well-known California judge set to help mediate the process.

Unlike many U.S. dioceses that have faced hundreds of sex abuse claims and tens of millions of dollars in settlement costs, the Brooklyn Diocese has not filed for bankruptcy. But the diocese launched a compensation program in 2017, which Brennan in his Feb. 12 letter said has already paid “over 500 victim-survivors more than $100 million.”

The diocese now “intends to pursue a global resolution of all approximately 1,100 remaining cases,” Brennan wrote.

“We will endeavor to resolve expeditiously all meritorious claims and to avoid the time, expense, and emotional strain for victim-survivors that would be caused…

View Cache

This week, sexual abuse survivors and survivor-advocates testified in front of legislative panels in Georgia, Kansas and Missouri, supporting passage of state versions of Trey’s Law bills that impact sexual abuse cases.

These and other applications of Trey’s Law are named for Trey Carlock, a child sexual abuse survivor who died by suicide in 2019 after being muzzled by a nondisclosure agreement, or NDA.

Monday, witnesses testified in front of the Georgia House Judiciary Committee in a public hearing for HB 1187, the state’s version of Trey’s Law. Thursday, a group testified in front of the Kansas House Committee on Judiciary for  HB 2688, which is another version of Trey’s Law.

Between these two hearings on Wednesday, another group testified in front of the Missouri Senate Judiciary Committee in a public hearing for SJR 93 and SB 1140, which aim to amend the civil statute of limitations in sexual abuse cases. 

…

View Cache

A 50-year-old man from Cambridge was placed under arrest on Friday as part of an ongoing investigation into child sexual abuse and exploitation.

Michel Pleau, who is currently a vice-principal for the Waterloo Region Catholic District School Board is facing numerous charges in connection to the investigation.

Regional police have confirmed that the offenses he’s been charged with do not involve any students from the Waterloo Region Catholic District School Board.

The school board has released a statement following the arrest, where they confirm none of their students are effected.

The statement goes on to read “As this matter proceeds through the legal system, we will continue to cooperate fully with police and remain focused on supporting our school community. The safety and wellbeing of our students and staff remain our highest priority.”

Pleau has been charged with the following offences:

• Possession of Child Sexual Assault and Exploitation Material
• Making Child…

View Cache

A former Kaukauna private school teacher has changed his plea to guilty in 17 of the 30 felony child pornography and exploitation charges filed against him in Calumet County Circuit Court.

Collin Killoren, 31, of Shiocton, initially entered a not guilty plea to all 30 counts on July 10, but reached a plea agreement with prosecutors that was entered into the court record during a Feb. 12 hearing, according to public court records.

As a consequence, he changed his plea to guilty to 13 counts of child sexual exploitation and four counts of child pornography. The rest of the charges were read into the record and dismissed. Each charge carries a potential fine of up to $100,000, up to 25 years in prison for each child pornography charge, and up to 40 years for each exploitation charge.

His sentencing hearing is scheduled for April 16, according to…

View Cache

A former West Tennessee pastor convicted of sex crimes against children is up for parole next month, records show.

FOX13 first reported on Ronnie Gorton, the former pastor of Awakening Church in Atoka, in 2016 when he was initially charged with rape of a child.

In 2019, a jury found him guilty of 24 charges includes 11 counts of statutory rape by an authority figure. Gorton pled guilty soon after to another 23 charges.

RELATED: Trial begins for pastor accused of dozens of sex crimes involving children

At the time, his attorney, Blake Ballin, said he was sentenced to 38 years and eligible for parole after serving 17 years. This month, victims connected to the case received a letter from the Tennessee Department of Corrections (TDOC) saying Gorton has a parole hearing in March.

FOX13 spoke to one former associate of Gorton who described shock after he…

View Cache

Kathleen Chorbajian faces dozens of charges alongside her husband Myron

A judge has decided to grant bond for a woman facing dozens of charges of child abuse from the 1980s.

Kathleen Chorbajian and her husband Myron were both charged in May of last year. Myron Chorbajian was the pastor for First Southern Methodist Church in Greenville before he was arrested.

The couple faces more than 90 charges combined over accusations they abused their children in the 1980s. Their warrants lay out allegations that investigators say Myron Chorbajian sexually abused several of the children and forced a child to search dumpsters and eat rotten food. He’s also accused of forcing a child to sleep in a trashcan, paddling a child 50 times and killing pets in front of the children.

Investigators say Kathleen Chorbajian knew of the abuse and failed to intervene or report it.

Defense argues community ties

Kathleen Chorbajian…

View Cache

Kodungalloor police detained 48-year-old temple priest Shaji for allegedly sexually abusing a 14-year-old girl in Thrissur. The abuse occurred last year under the guise of performing rituals. The incident surfaced recently, leading to a case under the POCSO Act

A temple priest was taken into custody for allegedly sexually abusing a minor girl under the pretext of performing rituals in Kodungalloor here, police said on Friday.

The accused has been identified as 48-year-old Shaji, a resident of Edavilangu near Kodungalloor.

According to police, Shaji performed rituals intended to resolve various personal issues for the faithful at a temple in Edavilangu.

Officials stated that while purportedly performing such rituals for the 14-year-old victim last year, the accused sexually abused her.

The incident came to light recently when the victim revealed the abuse to a relative after refusing to attend another ceremony conducted by Shaji.

Based on a complaint filed by the…

View Cache

The diocese, which also includes Queens, also said it would set aside hundreds of millions of dollars to settle accusations of child sexual abuse.

The Diocese of Brooklyn said on Thursday that it had agreed to enter into mediation with more than 1,000 people who have said they were sexually abused as minors by priests or church lay staff members. The diocese will also set aside a fund worth hundreds of millions of dollars to settle victims’ claims.

In a letter announcing the mediation, Bishop Robert Brennan of Brooklyn said that the claims were part of “the church’s shameful history of sexual abuse of our young people.”

“The impact of sexual abuse is devastating,” he wrote. “As your bishop, I again offer my deepest apologies to all the victim survivors.”

The letter names as mediators Daniel J. Buckley, a retired judge from California, and Paul A. Finn, a lawyer based…

View Cache

Bishop Robert J. Brennan of Brooklyn issued a letter to clergy and parishioners Feb. 12  announcing that the Diocese of Brooklyn intends to pursue a settlement of approximately 1,100 lawsuits filed under the New York Child Victims Act (CVA). 

The cases allege sexual abuse of minors by clergy and others associated with the diocese over several decades.

The Child Victims Act, enacted in 2019, created a lookback window permitting survivors of childhood sexual abuse to file civil claims previously barred by statutes of limitation. The measure led to a surge of litigation against institutions across New York state, including Catholic dioceses. In Brooklyn and Queens, which together compose the Diocese of Brooklyn, roughly 1,100 cases remain pending.

In his letter, Brennan stated that the diocese has been working “for many years” to address “its part in the Church’s shameful history of sexual abuse.” He offered…

View Cache

The Diocese of Brooklyn, New York, has announced it will enter into mediation to resolve some 1,100 sexual abuse claims.

“We will endeavor to resolve expeditiously all meritorious claims, and to avoid the time, expense, and emotional strain for victim-survivors that would be caused by individual trials,” said Bishop Robert J. Brennan of Brooklyn in a Feb. 12 letter to the faithful. The letter was posted at The Tablet, the diocese’s newspaper.

The bishop said that counsel for the diocese and survivors have agreed upon two “neutral mediators” for the resolution process: retired Judge Daniel J. Buckley with the dispute resolution firm Signature Resolution; and Paul A. Finn of Commonwealth Mediation and Conciliation.

Both mediators have experience with other diocesan abuse claim resolutions, said Bishop Brennan.

Buckley has worked with the Archdiocese of Los Angeles and the Archdiocese of New York, while Finn has been retained by the Archdiocese of Boston, the…

View Cache

Today Bishop Robert Brennan released the following letter to the faithful of the Diocese of Brooklyn regarding the intent to enter into a global resolution of all remaining Child Victims Act cases.

###

February 12, 2026

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

For many years, the Diocese of Brooklyn has been working to address its part in the Church’s shameful history of sexual abuse of our young people.  The impact of sexual abuse is devastating.  As your Bishop, I again offer my deepest apologies to all the victim-survivors.  We hope fair and comprehensive action to resolve the lawsuits stemming from the New York Child Victims Act (CVA) can further the healing process.  On this, I write today with an update. 

In 2002, the Catholic Bishops of the United States approved the  Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People, which includes guidelines for reconciliation, healing, accountability, and prevention of future acts…

View Cache

Police believe there may be more victims of church leader

A former deacon has been accused of sexual assault and sexual contact with a child during his time as a church leader in central Edmonton. 

Frezghi Zerezghi, 48, has been charged with sexual assault and sexual interference. The latter charge means he is alleged to have touched a person under the age of 16 for a sexual purpose. 

At the time of the assault, Zerezghi was serving as a deacon at an Edmonton church, according to a news release from the Edmonton Police Service.

Police have declined to name the congregation where Zerezghi served as church leader or provide more details on when he was removed from his post.

Police said the accused, during his time as a deacon, used a church in the area of 121st Avenue and 103th Street, just north of downtown, for weekly sermons.

Police said investigators…

View Cache

An explosive scandal rocking the exiled Tibetan community strikes at the heart of the power surrounding its spiritual leader. Tenzin Taklha, the Dalai Lama’s trusted nephew and private secretary, faces multiple internal whistleblower accusations of systematic sexual exploitation, misappropriation of aid funds, and attempts to monopolize the process of HHDL’s succession. The allegations, contained in disturbing chat logs, accuse him of using faith to exploit at least 25 girls, leading to a public marital breakdown with his wife.

These allegations intertwine with recent controversies sparked by U.S. Epstein case files, painting a startling picture of moral collapse among the exiled elite. As the 90-year-old HHDL enters his twilight years, this scandal is not just about individual alleged crimes; it threatens to ignite a brutal internal war over his vast religious and political legacy.

The Fall of the ‘Gatekeeper’: From Spiritual Aide to Accused Predator

Tenzin Taklha is no ordinary aide….

View Cache

When Will The Parish of the Holy Eucharist Pastoral Council Break Its Silence?

Try as it might, an influential organization representing priest sexual-abuse victims has heard nothing but crickets from the very body that by any measure should be all ears.

Parish of the Holy Eucharist Pastoral Council members are refusing pleas from Voice of the Faithful in Maine to lend their influence to the faithful’s efforts to set up a meeting with the Rev. Steven Cartwright of Falmouth.

Twice now Cartwright has cancelled scheduled meetings with Paul Kendrick of Freeport and Michael Sweatt of North Yarmouth, founders of the sexual-abuse support group.

“He is adding insult to injury by refusing to say why he is shutting the door on us,” Kendrick and Sweatt wrote the council. “We’ve asked each of you if you agree with Fr. Cartwright’s decision.

“Sadly, not one of you has responded,” they wrote….

View Cache

A Quebec priest has been charged with sexual abuse of a minor, police say.

The Sûreté du Québec (SQ) said its major crimes unit arrested Léandre Lapointe, 63, of Beauceville, at his home.

A charge sheet shows that he is facing four counts of sexual exploitation and two counts of sexual assault of a teenager “while he was in a position of authority or trust.”

The court record alleges the abuse took place on several occasions between Oct. 1, 2010 and Dec. 31, 2011.

Lapointe appeared in court in Val d’Or and was released pending further proceedings.

“The offenses were allegedly committed in several areas of the region while the suspect was working as a priest,” including in the towns of Macamic and Val-d’Or, in Quebec’s Abitibi-Témiscamingue region, the SQ said in a news release on Thursday.

“The investigation suggests that there may be other victims.”

Police did not release…

View Cache

Pope Leo XIV has confirmed Archbishop James F. Checchio as the new leader of the Archdiocese of New Orleans, effective immediately, following the retirement of Archbishop Gregory M. Aymond on Feb. 11.

Archbishop Checchio, 59, was appointed coadjutor archbishop of New Orleans by the pope in September. According to the Church’s canon law, a coadjutor bishop is appointed to assist the diocesan bishop until his retirement, when the coadjutor automatically becomes head of the diocese.

Archbishop Aymond is 76

The Vatican announced on Feb. 11 that Pope Leo had accepted Archbishop Aymond’s resignation. He is 76, one year past the age canon law requires bishops to submit their resignation to the pope.

Archbishop Checchio, a native of New Jersey, was formally welcomed to the archdiocese of New Orleans with a Mass on Nov. 18. As coadjutor, he came into an on archdiocese faced with having to resolve hundreds of sexual…

View Cache

Debates about which types of authority figures should be mandatory reporters of child abuse and neglect ended in one proposal’s failure and another’s advancement Wednesday at the South Dakota Capitol in Pierre.

The state House of Representatives approved a bill that would add coaches of school activities to a list of mandatory reporters in state law that includes teachers, health care providers, child care workers and others. The bill’s next stop is a state Senate committee.

The legislation’s sponsor, Rep. Mary Fitzgerald, R-Saint Onge, was not fully happy despite the 66-0 vote in favor of the measure.

Her initial draft sought to add the term “coach” to the mandatory reporters list. A committee amendment narrowed the language to high school coaches. Fitzgerald unsuccessfully sought Wednesday to amend the bill back to her original language.

“I just cannot imagine why we would go out of our way to not protect…

View Cache

After a recent meeting with Pope Leo, the CEO of support service and charity for sexual abuse survivors One in Four Ireland has called for a dialogue with the Church on how to better protect children in online spaces.

Deirdre Kenny, who has worked with the charity for nearly 20 years, recently traveled to Rome to accompany abuse survivor David Ryan in his audience with Pope Leo, and had the chance to meet the pontiff herself and speak about “building relationships with the Church communities.”

Addressing the relationship between the Church and charities like One in Four, the CEO told The Irish Catholic, “sometimes people feel that organisations like One in Four are always attacking the Church, and it’s not that. It’s more that as a society we have a responsibility to protect children, and that’s not just governments or institutions, it’s all of us.”

Ms Kenny’s conversation with Pope…

View Cache

The federal trial of a former youth pastor and high school basketball coach accused of child sex abuse has again been pushed back. Lindsey Whiteside has already been convicted of state charges involving the same victim. 

Editor’s note: This article refers to reports of child sex abuse, which some readers might find triggering and/or disturbing.

This is the third time the federal trial, which was originally set to take place in December, has been delayed. The trial is now set to begin on April 20. The trial date was pushed at the request of Whiteside’s counsel in light of inclement weather that has affected the law firm’s office.

RELATED: Former Pastor Sentenced to 10-15 Years in Prison in Multi-Victim Child Sex Abuse Case

Whiteside formerly worked at a campus of Getwell Church located in Hernando, Mississippi, as a student and outreach coordinator. She also formerly served…

View Cache

The High Court has found the Catholic Church legally responsible for the harm suffered by a 13‑year‑old boy who was sexually abused by a priest in Wallsend in the late 1960s. The case centred on Father Ronald Pickin, who worked at St Patrick’s Catholic Church and taught religious education at Wallsend High School.

The male victim told the court he and a friend were given alcohol and cigarettes by the priest before he was assaulted in the presbytery. A trial judge accepted the abuse occurred and initially awarded the survivor more than $630,000 in damages.

That decision was later overturned on appeal, following earlier High Court rulings that priests were not considered employees and therefore could not create vicarious liability for the Church. But the man’s lawyers argued the Diocese owed a non‑delegable duty of care to children under a priest’s supervision.

The High Court agreed, finding the Maitland-Newcastle Diocese…

View Cache

Police are appealing for anyone with information regarding a former priest convicted of historical sexual offending to come forward.

It comes after RNZ was approached by former pupils of St Patrick’s Silverstream with concerns about former priest Rowan Donoghue.

RNZ earlier revealed Donoghue had admitted six charges including indecent assault on a boy aged 12-16, indecent assault on a boy 16 and over and sexual violation by unlawful sexual connection. He is awaiting sentencing.

The offending related to four boys who were boarding at St Bede’s College in Christchurch between 1996 and 2000.

Before he was at St Bede’s College, Donoghue worked at St Patrick’s Silverstream in Wellington between 1982 to 1992.

Do you know more? Email sam.sherwood@rnz.co.nz

In a statement to RNZ Detective Senior Sergeant Karen Simmons said police were appealing for anyone with information on offending by Donoghue to come forward.

A suppression order on Donoghue’s guilty plea was lifted…

View Cache

St Bede’s College was told nearly 20 years ago of allegations of sexual offending by a priest who has recently been convicted of historical abuse at the school.

The rector says if there was inaction regarding the allegations it would be “appalling”.

RNZ earlier revealed Friar Rowan Donoghue had admitted six charges including indecent assault on a boy aged 12-16, indecent assault on a boy 16 and over and sexual violation by unlawful sexual connection.

He is now awaiting sentencing.

The offending related to four boys who were boarding at St Bede’s College in Christchurch between 1996 and 2000.

Since then, RNZ has revealed that Fr Donoghue admitted sexual abuse to leaders of his religious order, the Society of Mary, in 2007. However, he was unable to identify the anonymous complainant and instead of notifying police, the order sent him to Australia for a six month-programme…

View Cache

The woman claiming she was sexual abused as a teen by a former church worship director testified Wednesday in Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court.

A 27-year-old woman testified for hours Tuesday in the trial of a former Cleveland area church worship director accused of sexually abusing her when she was a teenager.

In March 2025, Andres Andino, 60, was indicted on two counts of sexual battery, two counts of unlawful sexual conduct with a minor, and one count of rape. At the time of his arrest, he had been working as director of worship at St. John Bosco Catholic Church in Parma Heights as well as part time at St. Joseph Parish in Avon Lake, in addition to a number of other volunteer positions for churches and groups across the Diocese of Cleveland.

Andino maintains his innocence, claiming he viewed the victim as the daughter he never had…

View Cache

A judge in Pennsylvania is allowing a lawsuit to move forward arguing that the Diocese of Pittsburgh has created a public nuisance by failing to properly report and disclose information on sexual abuse of children.

A judge in Pennsylvania is allowing a lawsuit to move forward arguing that the Diocese of Pittsburgh has created a public nuisance by failing to properly report and disclose information on sexual abuse of children.

The lawsuit is filed by both abuse victims and parents of children in the Catholic Church. Their attorney, Benjamin Sweet, said the ruling is unprecedented in supporting a suit filed by individuals who are not alleging abuse against themselves or a family member.

“This is the first time a cause of action has been brought by a non-survivor member of the public and the first time a court has said that is a viable legal strategy, that a private citizen…

View Cache

Gregory Aymond, whose resignation was accepted on Feb. 11, recently completed a meeting with survivors of the molestation scandal

NEED TO KNOW

• Pope Leo XIV accepted the resignation of Gregory Aymond, Roman Catholic archbishop of New Orleans, on Feb. 11
• Aymond reportedly submitted his resignation in November 2024, but it was not immediately accepted as the Archdiocese of New Orleans worked to settle a federal bankruptcy protection case
• The archdiocese and its insurers agreed to a $305 million settlement for about 600 abuse survivors in December 2025

A top official within the Catholic Church has resigned as an estimated 600 sexual abuse survivors prepare to split a $305 million settlement.

Pope Leo XIV accepted the resignation of Gregory Aymond, Roman Catholic archbishop of New Orleans, on Wednesday, Feb. 11, the Archdiocese of New Orleans said in a statement.

He will be replaced by the Most…

View Cache

The court heard of a ‘highly inappropriate culture’ at that time

An all-girl Catholic school has said it is “incredibly sorry” for the harm caused by a former teacher who groomed and had sex with two pupils in the 2000s, admitting there were “failings”.

Plymouth CAST – the trust which oversees Notre Dame school – has also said it has now commissioned an independent review of safeguarding arrangements in the wake of the police investigation and conviction of former geography teacher Anthony Redmond.

Redmond, aged 54, from Fort Austin Avenue, was convicted following a trial at Plymouth Crown Court. The jury found him guilty by unanimous decision of five counts of abuse of a position of trust by engaging in sexual activity with one girl aged under 18, two counts of abuse of a position of trust by engaging in sexual activity with a second girl and one count of indecency…

View Cache

A Connecticut man accused of sexually abusing more than 100 impoverished Haitian boys through a charity he founded has been accused of violating terms of his release from prison by associating with another convicted sex offender and accessing online pornography.

Fifteen years ago, Douglas Perlitz was at the center of a notorious abuse case that became a model for federal efforts to track down and prosecute U.S. citizens who exploit children on foreign soil.

Perlitz founded and directed Project Pierre Toussaint, an orphanage in Haiti’s north coast city of Cap-Haitien. He admitted and later was convicted of using the orphanage, closely associated with Fairfield University, his alma mater, and the Catholic Church, to extort years of sexual favors from destitute children.

He was accused of threatening to expel children from his charity’s housing and return them to the streets if they refused his demands.

A federal court in 2019 approved a settlement in…

View Cache

In short:

A man who sued the Catholic Church for liability over sexual abuse he suffered as a boy has had his ruling upheld by the High Court.

The man alleged the priest abused him in the presbytery at St Patrick’s Catholic Church at Wallsend when he was 13 years old.

What’s next?

The case comes as the states and territories contemplate imposing vicarious liability on bodies such as churches and other groups, including Scouts, for the actions of paedophiles.

The High Court has found the Catholic Church liable for the harm caused to a 13-year-old boy who suffered abuse at the hands of a paedophile priest in the late 1960s.

Warning: This story contains details that may be distressing to readers.

The case has broken new ground in the fight for compensation by victims, relying on an argument about non-delegable duties.

The man at the centre of the…

View Cache

The Franciscan Friars of California announced a bankruptcy filing in 2024 ‘to address 94 child sexual abuse claims.’

The Franciscan Friars of California have announced a $20 million settlement with alleged abuse victims, with the eight-figure payout coming after the group filed for bankruptcy several years ago.

The friars announced in 2024 that they had filed a Chapter 11 petition “to address 94 child sexual abuse claims.”

The order said at the time that the dozens of claims came about due to California state laws that “allowed abuse survivors to file decades-old complaints that were otherwise time-barred or expired under the state’s statute of limitations.”

In a Feb. 4 filing, the friars said they had agreed to deposit $20 million into a trust for alleged victims of abuse. In a press release, the law firm of Lowenstein Sandler — which has represented the abuse victims in the case…

View Cache

Archbishop Gregory Aymond held meetings with childhood sex abuse survivors in local parishes across the area during a busy carnival weekend.

The archbishop said he hopes the meetings provide a sense of closure to the victims.

RELATED: New Orleans Archbishop schedules meetings with clergy abuse survivors, as some reject his apology

At St. Maria Goretti Church in New Orleans East, on Sunday afternoon, Aymond waited for survivors of clergy sexual abuse to show up. No one did, but Aymond said he had met some survivors at the four previous meetings.

“People have come, not in great numbers, but people have come,” Aymond said.

He feels the survivors who do choose to come can benefit.

“My feeling is, every person who comes, that’s one person that the church can pay attention to, can walk with and can help them heal,” Aymond said.

The group meetings are part of the archdiocese’s…

View Cache

Southern Baptist leaders and organizations should have known former youth minister Keenan Hord posed a danger to minors at First Baptist Church in Bentonville, Ark., according to a lawsuit filed by the parent of a sexual abuse victim.

The action names First Baptist, the Arkansas Baptist State Convention, the Northwest Arkansas Baptist Association, the Southern Baptist Convention and more than 20 other “John Doe” church leaders and insurers, Fayetteville’s KNWA-TV reported. Hord, 35, also is named in the lawsuit.

Former SBC President Steve Gaines was not named as a defendant but is singled out “as one specific person who should have flagged ‘disqualifying risk factors’ before Hord hurt anyone,” according to The Roys Report.

Hord pleaded guilty to more than a dozen counts of sexual assault in 2023 and was sentenced to 60 years in prison. He previously served as youth minister at First Baptist, where he sexually assaulted at least five minors…

View Cache

The Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith announced the online publication, “for study purposes,” of four documents related to the Church’s discipline at the time of addressing sexual abuse.

The dicastery published, in Latin, Crimen sollicationis, the 1962 instruction of the Holy Office on addressing accusations of solicitation in the confessional. The document had previously been published in English on the Vatican website.

The dicastery also published, in Latin, Pope St. John Paul II’s 2001 norms on addressing serious canonical crimes against the sacraments. The Vatican had previously published, in various languages, Pope St. John Paul II’s apostolic letter Sacramentorum sanctitatis tutela, by which he promulgated the norms, and an English-language overview of the 2001 norms, prepared by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. The 2001 norms were superseded by 2010 norms approved by Pope Benedict XVI and 2021 norms approved by Pope Francis.

Finally, the dicastery published, in Italian, two rescripts approved by Pope…

View Cache

Andres Andino, a 60-year-old former employee at both St. John Bosco and St. Joseph Catholic parishes, faces trial for alleged sexual abuse of a minor.

Attorneys delivered opening statements Tuesday afternoon in the trial of Andres Andino, a 60-year-old former church worship director accused of sexually abusing a minor.

Police arrested Andino 11 months ago outside St. Joseph Parish in Avon Lake, where he worked part-time. He had additionally served as director of worship at St. John Bosco Catholic Church in Parma Heights, and also volunteered for a number of other parishes and faith groups around the Diocese of Cleveland.

Andino faces two counts of sexual battery, two counts of unlawful sexual conduct with a minor and one count of rape. He has pleaded not guilty.

Prosecutors told the jury Tuesday that Andino served as a private music teacher for the victim and that their relationship became…

View Cache

A central Oregon pastor who served 16 years in jail for abusing a 13-year-old girl is back in ministry after his 2007 conviction was overturned. 

Bend, Oregon prosecutors considered re-charging Jeremy Shane Hall, a former pastor in the mountain town of Sisters, according to The Bulletin. But they decided to drop the case. 

Deputy District Attorney Aaron Brenneman submitted a motion to dismiss in September. He said that because of the amount of time that has passed, there is a lack of evidence and available witnesses, making a retrial impossible. 

Hall relocated east to Hermiston, a small Oregon city on the Columbia River gorge, when he was released from prison. TRR confirmed he is now the pastor of Echo Community Church on Bonanza Street in the town of Echo, just south of Hermiston. The church did not respond to phone calls asking for a comment. 

The church has regularly posted Hall’s sermons online since September 2024. 

“Doggone stinking sin,” Hall preached in the first sermon. “Jesus goes, ‘Alright,’ and what was dirty with sin is now…

View Cache

A growing lawsuit alleges years of sexual abuse by a former sports medicine director at North Carolina State University, with 31 former student-athletes now involved. The case reflects broader concerns about oversight, accountability, and abuse in college athletics.

A new wave of allegations has emerged in a North Carolina college sports sex abuse case, drawing national attention as more student athletes step forward. A recent filing accusing a former North Carolina State University sports medicine director of sexually abusing student athletes has grown significantly.

A complaint was filed in Wake County Superior Court in late January alleging years of sexual abuse, exploitation, and harassment by Robert L. Murphy Jr., the former NC State director of sports medicine. Plaintiffs claim that Murphy abused his position of trust by engaging in improper touching during medical treatments and subjecting athletes to invasive and humiliating drug-testing procedures. Murphy has denied the allegations.

How…

View Cache

Beatification of the popular American archbishop has been anticipated for several years

Peoria Bishop Louis Tylka announced Monday that the Vatican has approved the beatification of American Archbishop Fulton Sheen, setting the stage for a beatification Mass later this year.

While Tylka did not announce when the beatification Mass will take place, sources close to the process have told The Pillar that a September date is likely, and the Mass is likely to take place outside Peoria, the largely rural diocese where Sheen was ordained a priest, and where his canonization cause was initiated.

The Feb. 9 announcement comes after The Pillar reported last month that Sheen’s beatification approval was imminent, and would come ahead of the anticipated retirement of apostolic nuncio Cardinal Christophe Pierre, which Vatican-watchers expect to see announced within weeks.

—
“The Holy See has informed me that the Cause for the Venerable Servant of God Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen can…

View Cache

A woman whose story led to the resignation of the president at a prominent Southern Baptist–affiliated university testified Monday at the Georgia State Capitol to urge passage of a bill to protect survivors. 

“For me, this issue, it hits really hard,” said Hayle Swinson, a graduate of Truett McConnell University (TMU), a top-ranked SBC-affiliated school in North Georgia. “I’m a survivor of sexual abuse here in Georgia at a university. In my case, leaders used power, authority, fear, grooming, manipulation and spiritual language to control and exploit.” 

On Monday, Swinson was among nearly a dozen abuse survivors and advocates who testified before the Georgia House Judiciary Committee in Atlanta. They spoke in support of Trey’s Law, a bill that would prohibit non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) in cases of child sexual abuse. 

Four states have enacted Trey’s Law so far, as The Roys Report (TRR) previously reported. “We will be the fifth state to pass this law if it moves forward,” said…

View Cache

As part of a government probe into allegations of child abuse by priests, Cardinal Godfried Danneels was questioned for several hours by Belgian police on Tuesday. Reportedly in “a state of shock,” he is said to have difficulty believing that many people think he knew about sexual abuse and did nothing.

As part of a government probe into allegations of child abuse by priests, Cardinal Godfried Danneels was questioned for several hours by Belgian police on Tuesday. Reportedly in “a state of shock,” he is said to have difficulty believing that many people think he knew about sexual abuse and did nothing.

The 77-year-old cardinal led the Catholic Church in Belgium until his retirement last year. A retired priest has accused him of sheltering abusive priests during his tenure from 1979 to 2009, the Agence France Presse reports. The cardinal has denied any cover-up.

During police questioning, Cardinal Danneels was…

View Cache

A Plymouth-based former teacher who betrayed his position of trust by sexually abusing two students at the school and sixth form he worked at has been jailed. 

Anthony Redmond, 54, of Fort Austin Avenue in Plymouth, abused one of the victims in a hotel prior to her turning 16.

Redmond was convicted following a trial at Plymouth Crown Court of seven counts of abuse a position of trust by engaging in sexual activity, three of which related to full intercourse, and one count of indecency with a child.

He returned to the court to be sentenced on Tuesday 10 February and was sentenced to three years and nine months imprisonment. Restraining orders were also put in place to prevent Redmond from contacting the victims.

During the trial, the court heard how Redmond used his status as a teacher and band musician to appeal to, and groom his victims.

He continued…

View Cache

A man who was sexually abused by a priest says he’s “appalled” police were not notified the priest had admitted abuse to leaders of his religious order nearly 20 years ago.

He said he expected authorities to be told of all other members of the order who admitted child sex offences.

RNZ earlier revealed Fr Rowan Donoghue had admitted six charges including indecent assault on a boy aged 12-16, indecent assault on a boy 16 and over and sexual violation by unlawful sexual connection.

The offending related to four boys who were boarding at St Bede’s College in Christchurch between 1996 and 2000.

Do you know more? Email sam.sherwood@rnz.co.nz

In response to questions by RNZ, a Society of Mary spokesperson said a complaint alleging offending by Donoghue was received by the priest via an anonymous Hotmail account in October 2007.

“He advised Society of Mary administration and in a conversation with leaders of…

View Cache

It’s a sad and sordid reality of human nature: Some adults have the desire to prey on children, and such people are likely to enter careers or otherwise seek out situations that give them the opportunity to do so.

For reasons that are largely impossible for functional, well-adjusted people to understand, this problem has always existed. The best society can do is take steps to identify potential predators – people, for example, who’ve faced several allegations of sexual misconduct – and remove them from settings that provide easy opportunities to offend. No institution can be expected to identify predators before they strike, but once a pattern of allegations is established, it’s the responsibility of those institutions to prioritize safety over all other concerns.

Reports from Hearst Connecticut Media indicate school officials in two Connecticut recently failed to perform this fundamental duty.

Darien High School teacher Sean Arthur Boardman was…

View Cache

A former Subiaco Academy student has filed a lawsuit alleging she was sexually abused as a minor by a Benedictine monk in 1978.

Subiaco Academy is a private Benedictine boarding and day school for boys in grades seven through 12 and is located near Paris in Logan County. Subiaco Academy is directly owned by and canonically part of Subiaco Abbey, the Benedictine monastery located on the same hilltop campus near Paris in Logan County.

The complaint, filed Jan. 30 in Logan County Circuit Court, names Brother Ephrem O’Bryan, O.S.B., along with Subiaco Abbey, Subiaco Academy, the Subiaco Foundation and the Catholic Diocese of Little Rock. Arkansas resident Brenda Bann is represented by attorney Andrew Myers of Myers & Woods Law Firm in Fayetteville.

Allegations of abuse

The lawsuit states Bann was scheduled for French tutoring with O’Bryan, who was an educator at Subiaco at the time. It alleges that during…

View Cache

Inside St. Patrick’s Cathedral were 2,000+ people who were lucky enough to score tickets to the installation of Archbishop Ronald Hicks. Outside were hundreds of the faithful who reflected the hopes as well as the problems the new spiritual leader must confront.

The pomp and circumstance of the Roman Catholic Church were on full display on Feb. 6 as Archbishop Ronald Hicks was installed as the new spiritual leader of the 2.5 million Catholics in the Archdiocese of New York in a ceremony at St. Patrick’s Cathedral.

He’s replacing Cardinal Timothy Dolan who reached the mandatory retirement age.

The new archbishop, 58 years old, who was most recently the archbishop of a suburban Chicago diocese in Joliet, IL, spent five years as a missionary priest running an orphanage in El Salvador. He’s a fluent Spanish speaker. Marachi bands and songs in Spanish were heard often echoing off the streets surrounding…

View Cache

Bill faces no opposition as lawmakers move to close gap that survivors say allowed predators to escape justice

Kansas clergy would report suspected child abuse under legislation advancing to the House floor with no opposition.

On Friday, Feb. 6, the House Judiciary Committee recommended House Bill 2352 be passed after hearing emotional testimony from survivors and support from religious leaders.

No one testified against the measure during a Jan. 26 committee hearing.

The bill would add ordained ministers to Kansas’s list of mandated reporters. Currently, Kansas is one of several states that does not require clergy to report suspected child abuse.

“Our kids are our future, and we must do everything we can to protect them from sexual predators. The bill fills a conspicuous lacuna in the long list of those professionals who are legally required to report any suspicion of child sexual abuse by adding…

View Cache

The data suggest that children make up more than half of all trafficking victims on the African continent, subjected to horrific abuse, including sexual exploitation and forced labor.

As Catholics mark the Feast of St. Josephine Bakhita on February 8, harrowing testimonies from survivors of human trafficking across Africa are shedding light on the horrendous treatment they endure.

John, a mechanic from Nigeria, is one such survivor. He recalls being trafficked to Libya in 2015 after being promised a good-paying job that would generate the income he needed to eventually migrate to Europe.

 “When I got to Libya, I discovered it was all a lie,” he told CWR.

 “Terrible things were done to us in that place,” he said, revealing scars on his body as proof. “Eventually, I was sold out for $300 to go and work in a mine.”

A widespread and predatory system

John’s tragic experience is not…

View Cache

Two sisters have sued several United Methodist Church entities in Ohio, claiming church leaders enabled former music director to sexually abuse them for years.

The 26-page complaint, filed Jan. 29, alleges the church defendants failed to stop or report sexual abuse of sisters “Jane Doe” and “Mary Doe.” The sisters say they were assaulted hundreds of times beginning as young teens at United Methodist churches in western Ohio.

The suit names as defendants the General Council on Finance and Administration of the United Methodist Church; the West Ohio Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church; and the Great Miami River District of the West Ohio Conference of the United Methodist Church, Inc.

Christ United Methodist Church, formerly known as St. Andrew United Methodist Church; Parkview United Methodist Church; and the United Methodist Children’s Home West Ohio Conference of the United Methodist Church, doing business as UMCH Family…

View Cache

A former Michigan pastor will spend at least 10 years behind bars after pleading no contest to multiple child sex abuse charges. Michael Ronald Goble, 77, maintained at sentencing that he committed no crimes despite agreeing to a plea deal. 

Editor’s note: This article refers to reports of child sex crimes that some readers might find triggering and/or disturbing.

Goble was formerly the pastor of the now-defunct Church of the Good Shepherd in Adrian, Michigan.

Goble was initially arrested in July 2024 after two victims came forward. Both were minors under the age of 13 at the time of the alleged abuse. 

RELATED: Worship Leader Formerly Associated With Creation Museum Sentenced to 15 Years in Child Sex Abuse Case

The two victims, who were brothers, alleged that Goble sexually abused them on separate occasions as they helped him with yard work at his home. Goble was charged with…

View Cache

Editor’s note: If you or someone you know needs help, the national suicide and crisis lifeline in the U.S. is available by calling or texting 988. There is also an online chat at 988lifeline.org.

Cindy Clemishire was 12 years old on Christmas night in 1982 when a traveling evangelist staying with her family first abused her.

According to Clemishire, the sexual abuse continued over the next four years. She eventually told her family and the abuse stopped. But her abuser, Robert Morris, went on to found Gateway Church in Texas, which became one of the largest megachurches in the nation.

When Clemishire sought restitution in 2007, Morris’ attorney offered her $25,000 if she would sign a nondisclosure agreement that would prevent her from speaking publicly about the abuse. She refused.

“Had I agreed to that NDA, Robert would have continued to have power over me,” Clemishire View Cache

Note: This story contains descriptions of child sexual abuse. 

Fourteen women filed suit in federal court last week against a former pastor and regional director of the Texas Baptist Bible Fellowship who possessed images of them being abused as children.  

David Lloyd Walther, 59, pleaded guilty to possession of child sexual abuse material back in 2023. According to an FBI investigation, the pastor of Faith Baptist Church in Round Rock, Texas, had more than 100,000 explicit and obscene images of children on two hard drives he carried with him.  

Some of the images depicted small boys tied down, gagged and raped. Some showed girls performing sex acts on dogs. The children appeared to be as young as 3, according to the FBI. 

Law enforcement was able to identify some of the people in those images and notify them in July 2023. Fourteen of the victims chose to review the evidence, confirming they were the ones being assaulted. 

The women…

View Cache

Bishop Arthur N.Tafoyaof Pueblo, Colorado in an official, statement released today, answered to charges of negligence and misconduct directed against his diocese from lawyers and pressure groups defending victims of sexual abuse.

Bishop Arthur N. Tafoya of Pueblo, Colorado in an official, statement released today, answered to charges of negligence and misconduct directed against his diocese from lawyers and pressure groups defending victims of sexual abuse.

The issue came to the attention of the diocese of Pueblo through an article released yesterday in the Pueblo Chieftain newspaper, and related by pressure groups, alleging the diocese had documents showing the diocese was aware of abuse in June 2002, way before any actions was formally taken.

To this Bishop Tafoya answered that “as has been stated in recent newspaper articles, records indicate that the Diocese of Pueblo received no complaints or reports of sexual misconduct or abuse against former Brother Mueller until the…

View Cache

California’s Legislature is considering revising a state law that has enabled more victims of child sexual abuse to sue public schools. This column argues against reforming the law. This accompanying column argues for it.

Lobbyists for school districts, public employee unions and insurance interests are again pressuring California legislators to emasculate Assembly Bill 218, a measure legislators enacted unanimously in 2019 to close a gaping loophole in the statute of limitations that let schools  avoid civil liability for enabling or covering up child sexual abuse by teachers and staff. 

AB 218 passed as awareness grew of the psychological, cultural and economic barriers victims face, discouraging them from disclosing their abuse — often for many years — as well as the revelation of mass abuse cases still occurring. Case in point: the horrific Miramonte Elementary School case in which Los Angeles Unified School District teacher Mark Berndt posed and photographed dozens of…

View Cache

California’s Legislature is considering revising a state law that has enabled more victims of child sexual abuse to sue public schools. This column argues for reforming the law. This accompanying column argues against it.

What began as a moral imperative has become a fiscal emergency, draining California’s public schools of the dollars meant for students.

Assembly Bill 218 was written to deliver justice for survivors of sexual abuse, but its design opened the door to a costly and unbalanced system — one that rewards trial lawyers while punishing classrooms across California. 

During the last legislative session, lawmakers attempted to craft a solution to address the law’s unintended consequences. But pressure from trial lawyers, who stand to make billions from AB 218 lawsuits, blocked any meaningful reform. 

The consequences of inaction are mounting: every day reform is delayed, attorneys profit while classrooms lose vital resources, and California’s students continue to bear…

View Cache

Details can be revealed as one diocese argues it has no immediately available funds to pay abuse victims

Catholic dioceses with parishes in Northern Ireland are sitting on cash and assets totalling more than £400m.

Trusts overseeing the finances of Down and Connor, Derry, Clogher, Dromore and the Archdiocese of Armagh had close to £200m in the bank or investments, with income in 2024 reaching approximately £70m.

Details of the total funds held by the dioceses can be revealed as Dromore, administered by Archbishop Eamon Martin, asks a court to decide what cash and assets it can use to pay those abused by Malachy Finegan, the deceased former principal of St Colman’s College in Newry.

In total, across all four dioceses and the archdiocese, funds held amounted to £438m. This includes more than £180m in cash and investments.

Only Down and Connor, and Dromore are entirely within Northern Ireland.

Dromore…

View Cache

In the Catholic tradition, repentance begins with truth. It requires acknowledging harm, accepting responsibility and committing to change. Bankruptcy, by contrast, is a legal process. It exists to manage risk, limit exposure and bring disputes to procedural closure. When the church turns to bankruptcy to resolve clergy sexual abuse claims, the gap between those two ideas becomes difficult to ignore.

I am currently serving in a court-appointed role representing abuse survivors in a diocesan bankruptcy. I cannot discuss confidential details of that case. What I can describe is the structure survivors encounter once abuse enters the bankruptcy system and the unease many feel as deeply personal harm is absorbed into a process designed for financial claims.

In bankruptcy, language matters. Survivors become “claimants.” Abuse is categorized, scheduled and valued. Deadlines replace dialogue. The process is orderly and neutral by design. But for those who were harmed, nothing about this experience…

View Cache

Cardinal Pierre turns 80 on Friday. Who will follow him?

The long-serving apostolic nuncio to the United States, Cardinal Christophe Pierre, turns 80 on Friday. While the cardinal’s replacement may take a few days, or even a week to be announced by the Holy See, there is no doubt that the guard will soon be changed.

Media reports continue to speculate on who might be named to replace Pierre in one of the Vatican’s most senior and visible diplomatic postings — one made all the more sensitive by the ascension of the second Trump administration and the election of the first American pope last year.

While nothing is certain until the official announcement, some names have emerged as rumored or theorized front runners — among them current Vatican sostituto Archbishop Edgar Peña Parra — even if there appears little to recommend the logic of their prospective appointments.

Meanwhile, other, less remarked upon…

View Cache

A Contra Costa County jury on Wednesday convicted Richmond pastor Emilio Alberto Esperanza-Pacheco of sexually abusing a child in his congregation, a verdict that could carry life behind bars. Jurors found the 52-year-old guilty of five counts of aggravated sexual assault of a child and 10 counts of forcible lewd acts for conduct prosecutors say happened between June and October 2023. Judge Danielle Douglas has set a sentencing hearing for April 9 at the Martinez courthouse. Prosecutors say the victim and her family

Verdict and charges

The jury convicted Esperanza-Pacheco on five counts of aggravated sexual assault of a child under 14 and 10 counts of forcible lewd acts, including a forcible lewd act committed during a burglary. Prosecutors told jurors the offenses occurred between June 1 and Oct. 14, 2023, and that the defendant used his position at God’s Lighthouse of Truth Church and a friendship with the family…

View Cache

De haber reincidencia, se debe acudir a denunciar formalmente y pueden dirigirse al comisión de protección de menores del obispado: Víctor Ledesma

Celaya, Gto.- Sin una denuncia formal de por medio, no se puede dar seguimiento a las declaraciones dadas por el colectivo de víctimas de abuso sexual, donde señalan que un sacerdote adscrito a la diócesis de Celaya presuntamente habría abusado sexualmente de niñas en años pasados, así lo señaló el obispo de la diócesis de Celaya, Víctor Alejandro Aguilar Ledesma.

Esto, luego de que en días atrás el Colectivo de Víctimas de Abuso Sexual de Apaseo el Grande hizo pública esta situación, en donde señalan presuntos actos de violación y presunto abuso sexual contra niñas y adolescentes por parte de un sacerdote identificado como Roberto Carlos.

El comunicado hizo público que el sacerdote Roberto Carlos, actual representante legal de la Diócesis de Celaya, tiene un historial de presunto abuso.

“Durante varios años fuimos víctimas de conductas que vulneraron de manera profunda nuestra integridad física,…

View Cache

Two former Gateway Church elders on Friday have lost their bid to be removed from a $1 million defamation lawsuit filed by sexual assault survivor Cindy Clemishire.

Dallas County Judge Emily Tobolowsky issued the ruling after a hearing Friday, saying the case can move forward.

Steve Dulin and Kevin Grove, both former elders, had argued they shouldn’t be part of the suit under the Texas Citizens Participation Act, legislation designed to protect people from meritless or retaliatory legal claims.

Defamation suit filed

Clemishire and her father filed the suit against Gateway Church in June of last year.  It names the church, its founding pastor, Robert Morris, wife, Debbie, along with former and current elders and a staff member.  In their suit, the Clemishires alleged the church downplayed and mischaracterized abuse she suffered as a child at the hands of Mr. Morris.

In November, the Fifth Court of Appeals…

View Cache

Group meetings are part of a $305 million settlement resolving hundreds of clergy abuse claims and come as Archbishop Gregory Aymond prepares to retire.

NEW ORLEANS — A small number of victims of clergy abuse filed into the Holy Name of Jesus Parish Center on Friday for the first of 10 group meetings with Archbishop Gregory Aymond.

The Archdiocese of New Orleans agreed to the meetings as part of its bankruptcy settlement late last year. Group and one-on-one meetings are some of the nonmonetary terms of a settlement that’s expected to pay about 600 abuse survivors $305 million.

The church set the schedule for group meetings, with two each day for the next five days. Some survivors complained about the tight schedule during Carnival and Super Bowl weekend, but Aymond said he was “befuddled” by the criticism, pointing out that the church advertised the meetings in January and explaining a…

View Cache

Lafayette lawyer went from defending pedophile priest Gilbert Gauthe to crusading to expose breadth of US church’s coverup

Ray Mouton, a Lafayette attorney whose work helped crack open the Catholic Church’s long-hidden clergy sexual abuse crisis, died Thursday morning at Ochsner Medical Center in Jefferson after a yearlong battle with cancer. He was 78.

Mouton’s path to becoming one of the earliest and most influential figures in exposing systemic abuse inside the Church was deeply personal — and professionally paradoxical. In the 1980s, he was hired by the Diocese of Lafayette to defend Gilbert Gauthe, a priest charged with raping children.

Mouton successfully negotiated a plea deal for Gauthe to serve a 20-year prison sentence. The case effectively started the US’s reckoning with the worldwide Catholic clergy molestation scandal, though Gauthe was released from prison after just a decade.

And in the course of that work, Mouton became privy to…

View Cache

Former priest Mark Ford indicted for allegedly victimizing a boy between ages 12 and 14, between 2006 and 2008.

A man accused of molesting a disabled boy whom he met while working as a Roman Catholic priest in New Orleans has been indicted on child rape charges, according to authorities.

An Orleans Parish grand jury on Thursday handed up a nine-count indictment against Mark Francis Ford, nearly five months after authorities arrested him and jailed him without bail. The document charges Ford, 64, with aggravated rape of a child; raping a person suffering from a physical disability preventing resistance; two counts of molesting a juvenile; another three of indecent behavior with a minor; and kidnapping.

Ford is only the latest figure to come under authorities’ scrutiny during the longstanding clergy molestation scandal within the New Orleans Catholic Church. Prosecutors allege that he committed the offenses cited in the indictment between 2006…

View Cache

The student, who tested positive for a sexually transmitted infection in October, described inappropriate physical contact by a teacher at the Solomon Schechter Day School, according to the Boston Globe.

Multiple investigations are underway, and a private school teacher in Newton, Massachusetts, has been placed on leave after a young child, who tested positive for a sexually transmitted infection, reported the teacher touched them inappropriately.

The Boston Globe reports officials at the Solomon Schechter Day School sent an email to parents on Jan. 15, saying a student at the lower school “described inappropriate physical contact by a teacher at the school during the previous school year.”

The student’s age was not disclosed by school officials, however the lower elementary school is attended by students in pre-kindergarten through third grade. Solomon Schechter‘s head of school, Rebecca Lurie, and the board of trustees’ president, Eytan…

View Cache

For the second time in less than a year, Clovis Unified School District in Fresno County is being accused of ignoring sexual abuse, the Fresno Bee reported. 

A former Clovis North High School student is suing the school district and two men convicted of sex crimes in other cases. She alleges that the men groomed students and that they were able to do so because of the district’s lack of oversight, the Bee reported. 

The lawsuit, filed Dec. 19, alleges that the school’s drama teacher, Andrew Cardillo, often behaved inappropriately toward students and allowed community member and parent Michael Conner into the classroom, according to The Bee. Conner allegedly began sexually abusing the complainant in March 2010 after months of grooming. 

Clovis Unified failed to conduct proper background checks on Cardillo, to investigate rumors of his inappropriate behavior and to oversee the department, the lawsuit alleged. A…

View Cache

A Burlington County woman has filed a lawsuit against the Lenape Regional High School District, claiming teachers and administrators failed to protect her from a teacher’s alleged sexual abuse.

The woman claims in court papers she was 14 when Brantley Cesanek, her Latin teacher, began grooming her when she was a student in 2014 at Cherokee High School in Marlton.

“This case exposes the horrific experience of a minor student who was abused for years by a teacher and the school system that failed to protect that student,” the victim’s attorney, Ashley Garland, an associate at Anapol Weiss, states in a lawsuit filed Jan. 14 in New Jersey Superior Court.

The teacher allegedly bought the student coffee and breakfast, removed her from school grounds for sex at his home, groped her in his classroom and wrote her excessive hall passes when she was…

View Cache

An unidentified woman is suing the school district and the teacher, who was convicted in 2019 of endangering the welfare of a child and sentenced to five years in prison

NEED TO KNOW

• A New Jersey woman is suing her former school district for allegedly failing to protect her when her high school teacher groomed and sexually assaulted her
• The teacher, Brantley Cesanek, pleaded guilty to endangering the welfare of a child in 2019 and was sentenced to five years in prison
• Cesanek was “obsessed” with the student, but no one at the school protected her, the complaint alleges

A New Jersey woman is suing her former school district for allegedly failing to protect her when her high school teacher groomed and sexually assaulted her.

In a civil complaint filed on Jan. 14 in New Jersey Superior Court, a woman identified as Jane Doe A.H. alleges that for more…

View Cache

[Click here to see a PDF of the lawsuit filed by D.O. – BishopAccountablity.org]

The Diocese of Little Rock said it has put in place “significant” measures to protect minors from sexual abuse while in the care of the church.

Dennis Lee, a spokesman for the diocese, said the effort doesn’t minimize or change prior abuses, but the church is making an effort to ensure protections are put in place.

“What has happened in the past continues to be addressed,” Lee said.

Lee’s comments came after a man identified in court records only as “D.O.” sued the diocese in Pulaski County Circuit Court on Jan. 30, claiming a priest, Joseph Correnti, and an unnamed staff member sexually abused him in 1975 and 1976, when he was a 7-year-old attending school and church services at Our Lady of Holy Souls in Little Rock.

In View Cache

The allegation of sexual abuse involving a suburban private tutor and a juvenile has landed a 43-year-old behind bars.

According to Orland Park police, officers arrested Brett Smith on Wednesday, Jan. 28, after he turned himself in. Police say their investigation began when parents hired a tutor who identified himself as “BJ S. McAuliffe” to tutor their child.

Police say concerns grew when the name on a bank payment appeared as Brett Smith.

The parents ran an online search of Brett Smith, also known as Brett Zagorac. Police said they found news articles and videos referencing prior allegations against Smith involving children in other states.

Orland Park opened their investigation after the parents contacted the department.

Upon further investigation, area detectives found that Brett Zagorac legally changed his name to Brett Smith and used several aliases, including “BJ S.,” “BJ Smith,” and “BJ S. McAuliffe,” when advertising private tutoring services.

…

View Cache

In South Africa, a child or woman is raped or killed every 23 seconds. It is a daily reality documented by the South African Law Reform Commission.

The perpetrator could be anyone. A pastor delivering a Sunday sermon. A politician promising change. A judge sworn to uphold justice. A lawyer defending the vulnerable. A police officer meant to protect. A father, an uncle or a brother. A friend. A colleague. A celebrity admired by millions.

This crisis cuts across race, class, language and age. Black, white and Indian women live with the same fear. Newborn babies, toddlers, schoolchildren, teenagers, university students, mothers and grandmothers — even women in their late eighties — have become victims. No woman or child in South Africa can confidently say, “I am safe here.”

Some church leaders have mirrored the wider culture of abuse, leaving congregants spiritually and physically endangered.

Women and children are being…

View Cache

Note: This story contains details of child sex abuse.

A Texas woman says the pastor of the largest Assemblies of God church in Arkansas sexually abused her for years, starting when she was a teen.

Georgetown, Texas, resident Suzanne Lander filed suit against North Little Rock First Assembly of God Church (First NLR) and its lead pastor, Rodney Loy, on Jan. 26.

Lander claims that Loy began grooming her in 1996 shortly after she began attending the church. He was an executive pastor at the time. She was 16 and had recently “encountered God for the first time” at the church. She says she was previously a victim of parental sex trafficking and abuse.

According to the suit, Loy took Lander shopping for dresses, watched her model them, and began attending her basketball games. He then began inviting her over to his home to play Nintendo while “positioning himself as a…

View Cache

Rio Dell City Manager Kyle Knopp returned our phone message and explained that while the parcel is currently zone for one-acre minimum parcels, the city would “enthusiastically” support up-zoning to allow for denser development. 

The water board previously curtailed development in this area due to wastewater issues, but a new treatment plant was built in 2013 and restrictions were lifted in 2017. 

“We have a project going on already to upsize the sewer line in that area,” Knopp said. “The parcel is ripe for housing, it’s in a great location and it has beautiful views of the Scotia Bluffs.

The Catholic Diocese of Santa Rosa recently put a handful of Northern California properties, including 8.19 undeveloped acres in Rio Dell, up for sale in an effort to raise some quick cash as it works through bankruptcy proceedings. 

The diocese, whose territory comprises Del Norte, Humboldt, Lake, Mendocino, Napa and Sonoma…

View Cache

Ray Mouton, the Louisiana attorney who defended since-defrocked priest Gilbert Gauthe against child sex abuse allegations and later co-authored a confidential report warning U.S. bishops about the growing crisis of clergy abuse nationwide, long before the Vatican publicly acknowledged the scandal, died Feb. 5 at a hospital in Jefferson, Louisiana. He was 78.

 His death was confirmed by his son Todd, who cited the cause as cancer.

The Cajun lawyer’s introduction to the scourge of child sex crimes committed by Catholic priests came from representing Gauthe, a prolific abuser, nearly two decades before revelations in The Boston Globe roiled the Vatican and stunned the faithful. Galvanized and horrified by what he learned, Mouton, a Catholic, began a crusade to caution bishops about a burgeoning national scandal that tallied untold numbers of young victims and threatened to bankrupt the church.

But attempts by Mouton and others to…

View Cache

Bishop Socrates Mesiona issued a pastoral message for the National Day of Prayer and Awareness Against Human Trafficking that serves as a “call to the conscience of the entire nation.”

A Filipino bishop said human trafficking is a significant problem in the country driven by poverty, illegal recruitment, online abuse, and growing dangers facing migrants, women, and children.

Bishop Socrates Mesiona of Puerto Princesa, chairman of the Episcopal Commission for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerant People within the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines, issued a four-page pastoral message for the National Day of Prayer and Awareness Against Human Trafficking on Feb. 1 that served as a “call to the conscience of the entire nation.”

He urged all parishes nationwide to intensify their anti-trafficking efforts, particularly by increasing awareness, educating the public, and providing support for the protection of vulnerable individuals.

False promises

Twelve of the country’s 87…

View Cache

A Long Island man was recently arrested for sexual abuse that allegedly occurred at a Catholic school in Ozone Park more than a decade ago, according to the authorities.

The NYPD Special Victims Squad arrested Jeffrey Connelly, 36, on Jan. 22 for sexual abuse and endangering the welfare of a teenage girl in 2015, cops said, within the confines of the 102nd Precinct.

According to the criminal complaint, between June 15 and July 17, 2015, Connelly, then a 25-year-old teacher at 103-12 101 Ave. in Ozone Park, the now-defunct St. Mary Gate of Heaven Catholic Academy, allegedly kissed and pressed himself against a 14-year-old student. He was charged with third-degree sexual abuse.

In addition to the incident in Queens, there is another on file, according to state court records, that also occurred in 2015, but within the NYPD’s 6th Precinct in Manhattan. In that case, Connelly is charged with three…

View Cache

Queen of Martyrs teacher, private tutor Brett Smith fired over history of child molestation allegations: Archdiocese of Chicago

There new allegations tonight against a fired Chicago-area Catholic school teacher.

Brett Smith was already accused of sex abuse. Now a family’s lawsuit says he groomed their second grader and “inappropriately touched” him last month.

A lawsuit filed by the mother of a second grader at Queen of Martyrs School in Evergreen Park alleges 43-year-old Brett Smith groomed her second grade son and inappropriately touched him.

Last week, days after the Archdiocese of Chicago said Smith was fired as a substitute teacher at Queen of Martyrs, Evergreen Park Police announced he was charged with battery related to his time at the school. It’s unclear if those charges and the new lawsuit are related.

Smith was also charged last week by Orland Park Police with criminal sexual abuse of a 9-year-old boy during private…

View Cache

The sentencing of a paedophile priest over the abuse of children in the 1970s and 80s has been adjourned after it emerged he has cancer.

Edward Phillips-Smith, 75, has admitted abusing boys while working as a priest in the Lichfield Diocese and chaplain at a school in Wolverhampton.

During a hearing at Wolverhampton Crown Court on Thursday, Judge Lockhart described the accused’s condition as “very significant and life-limiting”.

Phillips-Smith was remanded in his absence on conditional bail ahead of a sentencing date on 10 April, pending pre-sentencing and medical reports.

He has admitted and indicated guilty pleas to counts of abuse carried out between 1978 and 1983, following separate police investigations in Staffordshire and Wolverhampton.

In November, he pleaded guilty to indecent assault of a boy under the age of 14 and to inciting the boy to commit an act of gross indecency.

These two charges relate to attacks that…

View Cache

A judge at Derry Magistrate’s Court said that he was ‘disappointed’ that there was only one police officer assigned to the case of a priest charged with attempted sexual communication with a child.

Edward Gallagher (58) of Orchard Park, Lifford has been charged with one count of attempted sexual communication with a child between April 2 and April 17, 2025, and with seven further offences, including inciting a child to engage in sexual activity, causing a child to watch sexual activity, and charges of possessing indecent images of children.

Defence solicitor Derwin Harvey said that no time-frame has been identified for the case.

Deputy District Judge Trevor Browne gave two weeks to submit a completed file, and said he is ‘dissapointed that only one officer was allocated’ to a case this size.

The prosecution described the charges as a ‘huge crime’ with 650 pages of communications in police possession.

Gallagher…

View Cache

At the end of January, several civil lawsuits were filed against multiple churches in the city of Little Rock. In all three, the plaintiffs ask for a trial by jury.

The first, filed Jan. 26, claims a pastor at Defendant North Little Rock First Assembly of God Church sexually abused a 16-year-old girl in 1996. The girl, now a woman living in Texas, says the abuse continued for 20 years until she moved.

The accused pastor, Rodney Loy, served as executive pastor at Defendant Church in 1996 and now serves as the Senior Pastor of the church.

Court documents detail how Loy began grooming her by showing up at her after school events and part-time job. This escalated to her visiting his home multiple times a week and arranging private meetings in his church office. She says he began to sexually abuse her just a few months after she began…

View Cache

Detectives say there may be other victims.

Investigators believe there may be additional victims after a Pacoima pastor was arrested on child sex abuse charges, the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department (SBSD) said.

Junior Andrew Bennett, 32, of Piñon Hills, was arrested on suspicion of child sex abuse after allegedly using his role as head Pastor of Breakthrough Church to target minors. According to SBSD, the suspect, who was known as Prophet Junior Bennett, used his title to “manipulate minors and ultimately sexually assault them.”

Bennett faces charges that include sodomy of a minor, lewd acts with a child and oral copulation of a minor.  Detectives say there may be other victims.

Anyone with information on the case or who believes they have been victimized by Bennett is urged to contact SBSD’s Victor Valley station at 760-552-6800 or 760-956-5001. Anonymous tips can be made by contacting the We-Tip Hotline at…

View Cache

One of the nation’s top podcasters says he is not backing down after Kanakuk Ministries threatened to sue him over statements about past child sex abuse at the summer camp. 

On Tuesday, in a video posted to his YouTube channel, Shawn Ryan said he had received a demand letter from Kanakuk, a prominent Christian camp in southwest Missouri. The letter accused Ryan of having “callous and malicious disregard of the truth” and demanded he retract one of his statements and apologize for its content.  

“Here’s my response: No,” said Ryan in his video. “I don’t negotiate with pedophiles or the people who defend them. I’m not taking anything down. I’m not apologizing. And I’m damn sure not going to stop talking about child sexual abuse in a Christian camp that continues to operate on the same grounds where horrific abuse took place.” 

Ryan also posted a lengthy letter his attorney sent in response. 

Kanakuk’s letter followed Ryan’s release of a four-hour podcast with abuse prevention advocate Elizabeth…

View Cache

Thirteen women filed a suit against David Lloyd Walther claiming he possessed pornographic images depicting them being sexually abused as children.

A federal lawsuit has been filed against a former Round Rock pastor previously sentenced for possession of child pornography. 

Multiple people filed the suit Wednesday in Austin against David Lloyd Walther, who served as the pastor of Faith Baptist Church in Round Rock before his arrest in 2022. 

Among those suing Walther are 13 women who are listed in the documents under the pseudonyms: “April” Doe, “Angela” Doe, “Chelsea” Doe, “Cara” Doe, “Lily” Doe, “Maria” Doe, “Sarah” Doe, “Pia” Doe, “Sloane” Doe, “Violet” Doe, “Maureen” Doe, “Taylor” Doe and “Jenny” Doe. The suit states that all of these women were sexually abused as children, and that their abuse was “depicted in images of child pornography” possessed by Walther. 

The suit states that Walther was…

View Cache

Legal experts are perplexed over how a substitute teacher convicted of abusing children passed a background check and worked as a substitute teacher for the Archdiocese of Chicago for over a year.

And no one has an answer why.

Brett J. Smith passed background and fingerprint checks despite allegations, charges and convictions going back over 20 years across several states. Searches on the Illinois State Police’s publicly accessible sex offender registry didn’t produce results for his name or his aliases. The archdiocese has not responded to a detailed list of questions asking about the church’s background check process.

But experts told the Sun-Times it’s hard to believe a person’s lengthy criminal record wouldn’t come up in a background check.

“I find that almost impossible,” said Mike Leonard, a Chicago-based criminal defense attorney who specializes in state and federal criminal matters and civil employment. “Especially with a fingerprint check. There is…

View Cache