ABUSE TRACKER

OAKLAND (CA)
NBC Bay Area

January 28, 2021

By Candice Nguyen, Michael Bott and Mark Villarreal

Two priests from the Oakland Diocese have been accused of sexually abusing a former seminarian. The man came forward with new allegations – some dating back to his childhood – after previously accusing another priest of raping him several years ago.

New sexual abuse allegations within the Oakland Diocese are publicly coming to light for the first time after being included in a lawsuit against the Diocese that settled late last year for $3.5 million, without any admission of liability.

The accusations come from a former seminarian, 28, who had previously alleged in 2019 that he was raped by Livermore priest Fr. Michael Van Dinh three years ago. He does not wish to be identified, so NBC Bay Area is calling him John Doe.

A police report obtained by NBC Bay Area shows Livermore police found a meth pipe and sex toys in the priest’s living quarters while investigating the alleged assault. Detectives recommended two felony charges, including sodomy by force, but the Alameda County District Attorney’s Office said there wasn’t enough evidence to prove the encounter wasn’t consensual.

Dinh remains on leave from the Diocese. Click here for NBC Bay Area’s 2019 story concerning Fr. Van Dinh.

After going through therapy for the alleged assault at the hands of Fr. Van Dinh, Doe’s attorney said he later disclosed being sexually abused by two other priests within the Diocese: Fr. Luis Lopez and Fr. Ricardo Chavez, who is now retired. Lopez is currently assigned to Fremont’s Corpus Christi Church, according to its website.

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

RICHMOND (VA)
Diocese of Richmond

January 28, 2021

Accusations were made in 2020

Following a lengthy investigation by the Diocesan Review Board, Bishop Barry C. Knestout of the Catholic Diocese of Richmond has determined that the allegations of child sexual abuse made against Thomas Long, a former priest of the diocese, are not credible. For this reason, Long will not have his name added to the diocesan list of clergy against whom credible and substantiated allegations of child sexual abuse have been made. Long voluntarily left active ministry in 1988.

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

VIRGINIA
Roanoke.com

January 28, 2021

By Casey Fabris

The Catholic Diocese of Richmond announced Thursday it had determined that allegations of child sexual abuse by a former priest were not credible.

Last June, the diocese announced it had received a complaint about former priest Thomas L. Long Jr. related to his time at Christ the King Catholic School in Norfolk in 1986.

The allegations prompted an investigation by the Diocesan Review Board, which reported its findings to Bishop Barry Knestout, who deemed them not credible, according to a news release.

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

RICHMOND (VA)
WRIC-TV

January 28, 2021

By Keyris Manzanares

Catholic Diocese of Richmond finds allegations of child sexual abuse against former priest ‘not credible’

After conducting an investigation, the Catholic Diocese of Richmond announced Thursday that they have found allegations of child abuse made against a former priest are not credible.

Richmond Catholic Diocese reviewing child sex abuse allegations against 4 former priests
Thomas Long, a former priest of the diocese, was accused of child sexual abuse during his time in Norfolk, Virginia in 1986 when he served at Christ the King Catholic School. In 1988, Long took a leave of absence and has since had his priestly faculties suspended.

The diocese said it will not add Long’s name to a list of clergy whom credible and substantiated allegations of child sexual abuse have been made.

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

RICHMOND (VA)
Richmond.com

January 28, 2021

By Holly Prestidge

The Catholic Diocese of Richmond announced Thursday that child sexual abuse allegations against Thomas Long, a former priest of the diocese, were not credible and that his name will not be added to its list of clergy for which credible and substantiated allegations of child sexual abuse have been made.

The allegations were part of an investigation launched in June 2020 after the diocese received an allegation of child sexual abuse against Long, who was accused of the abuse while serving at Christ the King School in Norfolk in 1986. He was ordained as a priest in the diocese in 1981 before serving at St. Joseph in Petersburg and Norfolk’s Christ the King.

Long took a leave of absence from ministry in 1988 and was already suspended from priestly ministry, and remained suspended last summer when the investigation began.

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

RICHMOND (VA)
WTVR-TV

January 28, 2021

Bishop Barry Knestout of the Catholic Diocese of Richmond reported Thursday that allegations of child sexual abuse made against one former priest were not credible.

The report came after a lengthy investigation by the Diocesan Review Board into the claims made against former priest Thomas Long.

A report of the allegations against Long was received by the Catholic Diocese of Richmond in June 2020. Those allegations were then reported to authorities.

The diocese launched an internal investigation of the allegations and the information they found was presented to the Diocesan Review Board, who then reported their findings to Knestout.

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

RICHMOND (VA)
13News Now

January 28, 2021

The Diocese of Richmond said a lengthy investigation into accusations of child sexual abuse against Fr. Thomas Long found that they were not credible

https://www.13newsnow.com/article/news/local/virginia/after-investigation-richmond-catholic-diocese-denies-allegations-of-sexual-abuse-by-priest/291-d1aaa417-fdde-4d8d-9105-3ee12595c8a1.

Thursday, the Catholic Diocese of Richmond announced that after an internal investigation, it didn’t find the allegations of child sexual abuse against Fr. Thomas Long credible.

The allegations were announced in June, 2020.

Long was a teacher at Christ the King Catholic School in Norfolk in 1986 (when the alleged abuse happened), and took a leave of absence from ministry in 1988. He hasn’t worked for the Richmond Diocese since then.

“Following a lengthy investigation by the Diocesan Review Board, Bishop Barry C. Knestout of the Catholic Diocese of Richmond has determined that the allegations of child sexual abuse made against Thomas Long, a former priest of the diocese, are not credible,” a release read. “For this reason, Long will not have his name added to the diocesan list of clergy against whom credible and substantiated allegations of child sexual abuse have been made.”

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

MALTA
Times of Malta

January 29, 2021

By Matthew Xuereb

They were suspended following an investigation by the Safeguarding Commission

The two Xagħra priests separately charged with sexually abusing an eight-year-old altar boy about 16 years ago were suspended from priestly duties last year, Times of Malta has learned.

The suspension followed the completion of an investigation by the Church’s Safeguarding Commission.

The abusive acts are alleged to have taken place at the Xagħra parish between 2003 and 2005.

Joseph Cini, 70, and Joseph Sultana, 84, are in preventive custody after being charged with defiling the boy on a number of occasions and holding him against his will. Cini was also charged with raping him. Both men deny the charges.

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

NORTHERN IRELAND
Derry Now

January 28, 2021

By Garrett Hargan

A simple headstone at Ardmore Cemetery in Derry commemorates the dates five former residents of the Good Shepherd’s Laundry died.

They, along with hundreds of others, worked in the local laundry without pay.

Some women spent a lifetime in the institution, died and were buried from there in unmarked or ‘communal’ graves.

This week these women and girls, along with thousands more, were described as the ‘voiceless’ who will finally have their stories heard following the announcement of an independent investigation.

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

AUSTRALIA
Catholic News Agency

January 28, 2021

Starting in February, the Catholic Church in Australia will have a national protocol for responding to allegations of sexual abuse, the bishops of Australia announced this week.

Archbishop Mark Coleridge of Brisbane, president of the Australian bishop’s conference, said the new protocol “demands an approach from the Church that is compassionate and just.”

“One of the strengths of the new protocol is that it provides a single national framework, which will ensure a consistent approach to the handling of concerns and allegations,” Coleridge said Jan. 28.

The National Response Protocol lays out principles that Church authorities must adhere to when responding to a child abuse allegation, as well as the concrete procedural steps that must be taken when an allegation is received.

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

AUSTRALIA
Vatican News

January 28, 2021

The Australian bishops have released information regarding a new national protocol for addressing child sexual abuse, due to take over past protocols as of 1 February.

In a media release published on Thursday, the Catholic Bishops of Australia have announced the release of a new protocol aimed at providing “a framework for Catholic entities across Australia to respond consistently to people raising concerns or allegations of child sexual abuse”.

Due to come into effect as of next week, the Bishops write that “the National Response Protocol, which was adopted by the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference at its November 2020 plenary meeting, is the product of two years of work and widespread consultation within and beyond the Church”.

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

AUSTRALIA
NCA NewsWire via Mercury

January 29, 2021

By Caroline Schelle

A judge has quizzed the former editor of The Age newspaper about why he published a story related to the George Pell sex abuse case despite a “plain prohibition” on the reporting of proceedings.

Alex Lavelle continued his evidence on Friday in the Victorian Supreme Court trial against more than two dozen media companies, journalists and editors for allegedly committing a contempt of court and breaching a suppression order in the Pell case. All defendants deny the charges.

The Age published an article online and in print explaining to readers why it couldn’t report on a high-profile case, without naming Pell.

Mr Lavelle is among 27 media outlets, journalists and editors on trial facing a total of 79 sub judice and contempt charges for publishing similar stories.

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

ENGLAND
Daily Mail

January 29, 2021

By Latoya Gayle

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-9190273/Woman-kidnapped-England-sent-baby-mother-institution-Ireland.html

– Terri Harrison from Dublin, was pregnant when she moved to London in 1972
– She was forced to return to Ireland after visit from Catholic Crusade & Rescue
– Her son Niall was given to an adoption agency at around five weeks old
– Terri, now 66, says son Niall, now 47, doesn’t want ‘anything to do with her

An Irish teen mother whose baby was forcibly taken from her at five weeks old has revealed her heartbreak after tracking down her son 30 years later, only to discover he wanted ‘nothing to with her’.

Terri Harrison, 66, from Dublin, moved to London when she fell pregnant aged 18, in 1972.

But the unmarried teen was ‘kidnapped’ and forced to return to Ireland and live in a mother and baby institution after she was visited by a priest and two nuns from the Catholic Crusade & Rescue while in hosp

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

NEW ORLEANS (LA)
Archdiocese of New Orleans

January 27, 2021

Today the Archdiocese of New Orleans was informed of a lawsuit alleging abuse of a minor against Fr. John Asare-Dankwah. The archdiocese had no notice of this allegation or this lawsuit prior to today and has not been served with this lawsuit. The archdiocese does not know the identity of the individual bringing this lawsuit and allegations against Fr. Asare.

Effective immediately, Archbishop Aymond has removed Fr. Asare from priestly ministry pending the outcome of the investigation. Fr. Asare has most recently served as pastor of St. Peter Claver Parish in New Orleans. Fr. Asare was informed of the allegations late this afternoon. He is currently out of the country on vacation visiting family in Ghana.

The Archdiocese of New Orleans will ensure law enforcement is informed of this lawsuit and the allegations made.

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

NEW ORLEANS (LA)
WVUE-TV

January 27, 2021

By Tiffany Baptiste and Olivia Vidal

The Archdiocese of New Orleans says they have removed a priest from ministry following allegations of sexual and physical abuse.

Officials say the archdiocese was informed of a lawsuit against Fr. John Asare-Dankwah alleging that he abused a minor during a church retreat in 2008.

In the lawsuit filed in Orleans Parish Civil District Court Wednesday, the victim, who is identified as A.A. Doe, says he was 10-years-old when he attended a church retreat with Fr. Asare.

The victim served as a youth minister and lecter at Blessed Trinity Catholic Church, where Fr. Asare served as pastor at the time.

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

NEW ORLEANS (LA)
NOLA.com

January 27, 2021

By Ramon Antonio Vargas

The Archdiocese of New Orleans on Wednesday suspended the pastor of St. Peter Claver Catholic Church in Treme after he was accused in a lawsuit of raping a 10-year-old boy while hearing his confession during an out-of-state retreat in 2008.

The Rev. John Asare-Dankwah’s suspension will remain in effect until church authorities can complete an investigation into the allegations, archdiocesan officials said in a statement.

The events outlined in the nine-page lawsuit, filed in Orleans Parish Civil District Court, are not purported to have occurred at St. Peter Claver, the historic church purchased in 1920 by the Josephite Fathers to serve the area’s African American population.

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

NEW ORLEANS (LA)
WDSU-TV

January 27, 2021

A lawsuit an anonymous victim filed Wednesday accuses the pastor of St. Peter Claver Catholic Church in Treme of rape and assault during a 2008 church retreat.

The lawsuit filed by “A.A. Doe” alleges the Rev. John Asare-Dankwah attended a church retreat with 11 students from Catholic schools.

The suit claims the alleged rape and assault happened during a retreat in Montgomery, Alabama. Doe was a member of the Blessed Trinity Catholic church, where Asare-Daknwah was serving at the time.

Doe claims that during a confessional Dankwah asked him if he loved God and loved Dankwah.

That is when Doe claims Dankwah exposed his genitals to him.

The lawsuit alleges that Doe refused him two times before being forced to touch Dankwah.

The suit claims Dankwah told Doe, “This will be over soon” before raping the boy.

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

UNITED STATES
Religious News Service via Crux

January 28, 2021

By Carol Zimmermann

Father Michael Pfleger, senior pastor of St. Sabina Church in Chicago, faces a second sexual abuse allegation, from the brother of the first alleged victim who came forward in early January.

The popular Chicago priest and outspoken advocate against gun violence has denied these allegations and his parishioners rallied outside the parish in support of him Jan. 25, hours after the allegation was reported by Chicago media outlets.

Over 50 people gathered outside the church denouncing accusations that, beginning more than five decades ago, the priest had abused the two brothers, who now live in Texas. Parishioners spoke from a microphone of the priest’s 45 years at the parish and his nonstop dedication and activism.

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

PENNSYLVANIA
PennLive.com

January 27, 2021

By Ivey DeJesus

https://www.pennlive.com/news/2021/01/pa-house-passes-measure-to-allow-voters-to-create-a-window-for-child-sex-abuse-victims-to-go-to-court.html

Pennsylvania on Wednesday stepped closer to paving the way for adults who were sexually abused as children to seek recourse in court against their predators.

By a vote of 187-15, the state House of Representatives passed a measure that could lead to a temporary lifting of expired statute of limitations for some abuse victims, allowing them to file civil suits.

House Bill 14, authored by Rep. Jim Gregory, R-Blair, calls for a voter referendum on a two-year retroactive window that would lift expired statute of limitations to allow such legal civil action.

The bill now heads for the Senate, which has signaled strong support for the measure.

“This is a wonderful day. Attitude of gratitude for the people of Pennsylvania who have waited a long time,” Gregory said just moments after the vote. “This is just another step in the process of recognizing those who have been sexually abused in past decades. They have been waiting a long time for this and I‘m just grateful to colleagues who voted for this so strongly that they believe in justice for victims but also believe in the protection of our families.”

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

PENNSYLANIA
The Tribune-Democrat

January 28, 2021

By John Finnerty

The state House on Wednesday voted 187-15 to ask voters whether to amend the Constitution to give adult survivors of childhood sexual abuse an additional two years beyond the normal statute of limitations to sue institutions such as the Catholic Church that have covered up such abuse.

The measure moves back to the Senate. If it passes there, it could be on the ballot in May. The state Senate Judiciary Committee has already approved a companion version of the legislation that passed the House on Wednesday. Both chambers approved the proposed amendment last legislative session as well. Proposed state constitutional amendments must be approved by the General Assembly in two consecutive sessions.

It is one of several potential amendments that could end up on the ballot in May. Both chambers of the General Assembly this week also voted in favor of proposals to amend the Constitution to limit the ability of the governor to keep prolonged emergency declarations in place, a move inspired by frustration over Gov. Tom Wolf’s handling of the COVID-19 pandemic.

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

ALLENTOWN (PA)
The Morning Call

January 27, 2021

By Michelle Merlin

The Allentown Diocese has sold some of its property in Lower Macungie and Upper Saucon townships to help compensate victims of clergy sexual abuse.

The diocese sold 118 acres on Flint Hill Road in Upper Saucon for $3.55 million and 53 acres on North Krocks Road across from Hamilton Crossings in Lower Macungie for $7.5 million, the diocese said in a Jan. 8 news release. With the land sales, the diocese finished paying off a loan taken out to fund a compensation program for victims of clergy sexual abuse.

Allentown was among seven Pennsylvania Catholic dioceses to establish compensation funds in the wake of a 2018 Pennsylvania grand jury report that revealed efforts to hide decades of sexual abuse by hundreds of priests. The report named 37 priests from the Allentown Diocese, which includes more than 252,000 Catholics in Berks, Carbon, Lehigh, Northampton and Schuylkill counties. The diocese added another 15 or so to the list.

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

UNITED STATES
National Catholic Register

January 27, 2021

By Janet E. Smith

The Church really needs to do some deep thinking on how it should respond.

If you had a choice between losing a limb or being psychologically traumatized your whole life, which would you choose?

By “psychologically traumatized,” I mean suffering debilitating lifetime depression and anxiety, having difficulty holding onto a job, not being able to enter into satisfying personal and intimate relationships, unshakeable (and unwarranted) self-blame and even being rejected by family who don’t understand consequent behavior.

Many sex abuse victims struggle with substance abuse throughout their lives, undergo repeated hospitalization, attempt or commit suicide, and many without anyone knowing why they were so troubled. Many of them live in poverty or near poverty their whole lives.

In addition, victims of priestly sexual abuse often lose their faith and are deprived of the healing and consolation that come through the sacraments and the rich spiritual life that faith facilitat

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POLAND
The Tablet

January 27, 2021

By Jonathan Luxmoore

A group of Polish politicians has pledged to press new accusations against Cardinal Stanislaw Dziwisz, former secretary of St John Paul II, after prosecutors refused to investigate TV documentary claims that he ignored and covered up abuse by priests in his Krakow archdiocese.

“The gravity of crimes that Cardinal Dziwisz may have committed is so enormous that failure to investigate them is obviously detrimental to the public good and the private interests of victims,” said Lukasz Kohut, a European Parliament member from Poland’s liberal Wiosna (Spring) party.

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

AUSTRALIA
Australian Associated Press

January 28, 2021

By Karen Sweeney

Claims of a “Catholic conspiracy” were partly behind a Melbourne newspaper’s decision to publish a story about Cardinal George Pell’s child sexual abuse conviction, a court has heard.

The Age newspaper, journalists and editors are facing contempt charges over articles published after Cardinal Pell’s now-overturned conviction in December 2018, over alleged breaches of suppression orders.

Australian media were banned from reporting the verdict in the case until February 2019 because Cardinal Pell, who has since returned to Rome, was due to face a second trial.

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

MALTA
Lovin Malta

January 27, 2021

By Sam Vassallo

Joseph Cini, one of two priests accused of raping an altar boy in Gozo, has left court after being arraigned this morning.

Asked by the press where he was ashamed, he responded, waving a handkerchief: “Don’t you see me crying?”

Cini, a priest in his 70s from Għarsi, and Joseph Sultana, an 84-year-old who served in Xagħra’s parish, both pleaded not guilty to charges of rape and corruption of a minor. Both will be kept under arrest as the case continues.

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

MALTA
Lovin Malta

January 27, 2021

By Sam Vassallo

Joseph Sultana, an 84-year-old priest, has pleaded not guilty to raping an altar boy.

Sultana, a well-known figure in Xagħra and its parish, was arraigned in court this morning in Gozo.

He is one of two priests arrested yesterday evening after hours of interrogation. The other was Joseph Cini, a priest in his 70s and ex-parish priest of Għasri. He will be arraigned separately.

Joseph Cini was previously accused of child abuse in Australia but refused to return to the country to face the accuser, who was also a former altar boy.

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

MALTA
Lovin’ Malta

January 27, 2021

By David Grech Urpani

‘The First Time Was A Sunday’: Bursting Into Tears, Gozo Rape Victim Recalls Being Pushed Into A Confessional And Touched By Priest

“He used to threaten me and use force when I refused. I often tried to run away but he would hold me down. He would force me in, telling me I’m going to hell or that he was going to speak to my parents.”

These were the harrowing words of a former altar boy who was allegedly raped by priest Joseph Sultana.

In an urgent testimony via videoconferencing, the victim – who was eight years old at the time of the alleged abuse but is now no longer a minor – went into disturbing detail that had him visibly emotional, even bursting into tears at one point.

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JOHANNESBURG (SOUTH AFRICA)
IOL.co.za

January 28, 2021

By Chulumanco Mahamba

The Heaven Fellowship Church has accused the Cultural, Religious and Linguistic (CRL) Rights Commission of being “unrestrained, reckless and biased” after the hearings into allegations of abuse were live streamed last week.

The Star reported last week that former congregation members of the church in Meyerton laid bare startling allegations of rape against the church’s leader, Bahlakwana Moleko, known as Samuel Paul Heaven, during hearings into allegations of abuse. One witness accused Moleko of allegedly raping her twice in October last year.

The hearings at the Commission for the Promotion and Protection of the Rights of Cultural Religious and Linguistic Communities were heard following complaints that were brought before it by victims and congregants.

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UNITED STATES
First Things

January 27, 2021

By George Weigel

The list of grave issues that must be addressed during a future papal interregnum, and by the cardinal-electors in a conclave, continues to grow.

The finances of the Holy See are arguably in worse shape than at any time since the papal interregnum of 1922; then, money had to be borrowed to pay for the conclave as Benedict XV had virtually bankrupted the Vatican in his efforts to aid refugees and POWs during World War I. Notwithstanding the reforms Pope Francis has put into place, the Holy See now faces a vast, unfunded pension liability; incompetent investment management (and worse) has done serious damage to the Vatican balance sheet; and contributions, not least to Peter’s Pence, are down dramatically.

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

AUSTRALIA
Catholic Weekly

January 28, 2021

New benchmark for the Church in place from February

A new national protocol for responding to historical child sexual abuse and any new allegations in the Catholic Church will be both more compassionate and just, says Archbishop Mark Coleridge, head of the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference.

The new framework to be implemented from 1 February is intended as a national benchmark forming a consistent approach for Catholic authorities and entities in investigating, compensating and providing ongoing care for people alleging child sexual abuse and survivors.

Calling it “an important step forward”, Archbishop Coleridge thanked those involved in preparing the “thorough proces

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UNITED STATES
Crux

January 26, 2021

By John Lavenburg

A Vatican investigation has exonerated retired Bishop Joseph Hart of Cheyenne, Wyoming, on seven accusations of sexual abuse towards minors, while five other accusations “could not be proven with moral certitude,” the diocese announced in a statement Monday.

The decree came from the Congregation for the Doctrine of Faith (CDF) – the Vatican office responsible for processing clergy sex abuse complaints.

However, the CDF issued a canonical rebuke to Hart for “his flagrant lack of prudence as a priest and bishop for being alone with minors in his private residence and on various trips, which could have been potential occasions endangering the ‘obligation to observe continence’ and that would ‘give rise to scandal among the faithful,’” according to the diocese statement.

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FLORIDA
adamhorowitzlaw.com (law firm blog)

January 25, 2021

An unlikely hero has saved two Florida kids.

She’s not a cop.

She’s not a prosecutor.

She’s not a psychologist.

She’s not a judge.

She’s not a children’s advocate or school teacher or nurse or doctor or day care provider.

In fact, she likely doesn’t have a college degree (or maybe not even a high school diploma).

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

WYOMING
Wyoming Public Media

January 26, 2021

By Jeff Victor

This week, the Vatican concluded its own investigation of Wyoming Emeritus Bishop Joseph Hart, ruling that there was not enough evidence to find him guilty of the numerous allegations against him.

Hart led the Catholic Church in Wyoming for more than two decades, from the late 70s to 2001. Since retiring 20 years ago, he has been accused of child abuse by more than a dozen people both in Wyoming and his home state of Missouri.

One alleged victim died of complications from AIDS in 1989. The disease was brought on by years of drug abuse that the victim’s family attributes to the trauma he allegedly experienced at the hands of Father Hart.

In 2018, the Diocese of Cheyenne opened an investigation into the once celebrated bishop. A group of mainly non ordained members of the church with backgrounds in fields such as law enforcement and child psychology determined that at least six allegations against Hart were credible, according to a release from the Diocese.

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

UNITED STATES
Catholic News Agency

January 26, 2021

By Christine Rousselle

The Vatican’s doctrinal congregation has exonerated retired Bishop Joseph Hart of Cheyenne over numerous accusations of the sexual abuse of minors, but issued a canonical rebuke.

The Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith (CDF) said that the bishop had acted irresponsibly as a priest and upheld restrictions placed on him in 2018.

In January 2018, the Diocese of Cheyenne, Wyoming, began an investigation into claims of abuse by Hart, its retired bishop. Hart, who is now 89 years old, led the diocese from 1978 until his 70th birthday in 2001.

The diocese said that its investigative team “were convinced that we had sufficient evidence to conclude with moral certainty that the six accusations against Bishop Hart are credible” and passed the case to Rome for a final decision in the canonical process.

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NEW JERSEY
Asbury Park Press

January 27, 2021

By Kathleen Hopkins

https://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:F8ZBp5356T0J:https://www.app.com/story/news/local/courts/2021/01/27/judge-has-decided-if-howell-ex-pastor-sex-abuse-accusers-can-testify/4264636001/+&cd=1&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us

Calling into question the accuracy of decades-old childhood memories, a judge on Tuesday ruled that two women who came forward almost 40 years later to accuse their former pastor of sexual impropriety will not be allowed to testify at the retired cleric’s upcoming child sexual abuse trial.

Superior Court Judge Ellen Torregrossa-O’Connor, in a 26-page ruling, said the stories of the two women who came forward in 2019 with allegations from 1983 were not clear and convincing enough to outweigh “the obvious prejudice” their testimony would pose to the Rev. Henry “Brendan” Williams, former pastor of St. Veronica R.C. Church in Howell, at his upcoming trial on child sexual assault charges stemming from alleged incidents in the late 1990s.

The two women came forward to authorities in October 2019 after learning Williams, now 81 and living in a retirement community for Catholic priests in Lawrence, had just been arrested on child sexual assault charges in the case dating to 1998.

One of the two women told detectives she was 13 and at a youth club meeting at St. Veronica’s in 1983 when Williams took her aside to an upstairs room in the rectory, where she thought he was going to kiss her. She told detectives she left before anything could happen.

The other woman told detectives she was 12 years old when Williams approached her in a vestibule after track practice and, while looking at her chest, told her, “You’re awfully big for sixth grade.” She alleged he then began kissing her and touching her buttocks.

Both women told detectives they reported the incidents to their parents, who didn’t take them seriously.

Torregrossa-O’Connor said in her ruling that detectives did not conduct any further investigation to corroborate the women’s claims by seeking out others, such as family members, to whom they told their stories or, in the case of the first woman, finding out who else had attended the youth group meeting that night.

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

NEW JERSEY
Asbury Park Press

January 19, 2021

By Kathleen Hopkins

https://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:Uzjsr2RDxe0J:https://www.app.com/story/news/local/courts/2021/01/19/howell-church-sex-scandal-why-did-women-come-forward-decades-later/4152015001/+&cd=1&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us

Soon after news broke about the arrest on sex charges of a beloved former pastor of St. Veronica R.C. Church in Howell, two alumni of the parish’s grammar school came forward in 2019 with allegations that the priest acted inappropriately when they were students at the school decades ago.

One of the women told detectives the Rev. Henry “Brendan” Williams kissed her repeatedly and patted her on the buttocks one afternoon in 1983, when she was 12.

The other said she thought Williams was going to kiss her after he took her aside to an office to show her something, but she got up and left before anything could happen. The woman said she was 13 when that occurred in 1983.

The Rev. Henry ‘Brendan’ Williams, former pastor of St. Veronica Church in Howell, is shown after his arraignment on child sex abuse charges in State Superior Court in Freehold Monday, January 6, 2020.

Williams, now 81, is not charged in connection with either women’s story, but prosecutors want the women to testify at Williams’ upcoming trial on charges he sexually assaulted another child in the late 1990s.

Defense attorney Robert Konzelmann is trying to block the testimony, questioning why the women took 36 years to come forward to authorities with the allegations and suggesting they did so at a time when attorneys handling clergy sex-abuse lawsuits were flooding the airwaves with advertisements for clients.

Thomas Fichter, an assistant Monmouth County prosecutor, acknowledged the statute of limitations has long passed to prosecute crimes that may have occurred in 1983, but said the earlier events are relevant to the case at hand because the stories of the two women are similar to that of the victim in the case for which Williams is under indictment.

That victim was 12 when she claims Williams touched her inappropriately, on her inner thigh and vaginal area, on two different occasions at two different restaurants while she was with her parents and a third time at her home, according to Fichter.

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CHICAGO (IL)
Chicago Tribune

January 26, 2021

By Eric Zorn

https://www.chicagotribune.com/columns/eric-zorn/ct-column-pfleger-allegations-sex-abuse-corroboration-difficult-zorn-20210126-b2tmsqvyonbitkwmub4wmymqvq-story.html

The accusations against South Side activist priest the Rev. Michael Pfleger are, in a word, revolting.

Either way.

If they’re true, Pfleger repeatedly sexually abused two boys in the early and mid-1970s, a grotesque, inexcusable and scarring violation of trust and innocence that his accusers — two brothers who now live in Texas — say has haunted them ever since.

If they’re false, Pfleger’s good name is being dragged through the mud and his four decades of service to his parishioners at St. Sabina Church and Chicago’s African American community unfairly tainted. He may never get his reputation back.

Like many of you, I’m sure, I’ve been considering both possibilities since the initial allegation arose earlier this month. What to make of this?

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

CHICAGO
Chicago Sun-Times

January 26, 2021

By Neil Steinberg

What are those who love and respect Father Michael Pfleger to make of accusations against him?

“No one ever had a bad word to say about him.”

In late May, 2015, it was revealed that Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert had sexually molested boys he coached in high school wrestling. The media descended on his hometown of Yorkville, Illinois. Those who knew him were shocked and supportive.

“He was a fantastic mentor.”

Hastert was charged, not with the abuse itself, but for structuring payments to silence the abused. Which isn’t quite a signed confession. But close.

“I would have known for sure. Something like that we would have jumped on right away.”

Only the good people of Yorkville didn’t know. Or knew and didn’t jump on it right away. Hastert admitted to molesting children and went to prison for 13 months.

“I hope it’s not true.”

Which sums up the view of those who know and respect Father Michael Pfleger, including myself, as the longtime firebrand priest of St. Sabina’s faces a pair of brothers who accuse him of abuse 45 years ago.

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NEW YORK (NY)
New York Post

January 26, 2021

By Keith J. Kelly

Marty Baron, the top editor of the Washington Post who helped rejuvenate the newsroom after years of malaise, ended months of speculation Tuesday in announcing his retirement at the end of next month.

Baron, 66, took over as executive editor eight years ago, shortly before the Graham family sold the paper to billionaire Amazon founder Jeff Bezos. During that time, the newsroom expanded from about 580 people to over 1,000 and won 10 Pulitzer Prizes.

“Almost two years ago, I told department heads that I was committed to staying at The Post through the presidential election,” Baron wrote in a Tuesday memo to staffers. “I left open what might happen beyond that. Today, I am letting you know that I will retire on Feb. 28.”

Baron came to the Washington Post in 2013 after spending 12 years at the Boston Globe, where he helmed the now-legendary expose on sex abuse by Catholic priests in the Boston Archdiocese. A 2015 film about the investigation called “Spotlight,” in which Liev Schreiber played Baron, won the Academy Award for Best Picture.

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BRIDGEPORT (CT)
Associated Press

January 26, 2021

A Catholic priest raped a 9-year-old altar boy on the day of his sister’s wedding that the the priest officiated, according to a new lawsuit against the Roman Catholic Diocese of Bridgeport.

The lawsuit, filed in Superior Court in Bridgeport, charges that the diocese knew or should have known that the Rev. Kiernan Ahearn was unfit to be around children but continued to assign him duties that involved children.

“Unfortunately, we continue to witness the carnage of the Catholic Church’s decades-long tolerance of pedophiles in its ranks,” attorney Joel Faxon, who represents the plaintiff in the lawsuit, told the Connecticut Post. “This particular criminal, Ahearn, was circulated through the Bridgeport Diocese and others in New York — attacking children all along the way.”

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UNITED STATES
SNAP (Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests)

January 26, 2021

Now that Vatican officials have formally chosen to do nothing to punish or isolate serially abusive former Bishop Joseph Hart, it is crucial that police and prosecutors double down on their pursuit of charges against him.

Cheyenne, WY police have already finished multiple investigations into Bishop Joseph Hart and have recommended that charges be filed against him. Given that this secular investigation by trained investigative professionals resulted in a recommendation for charges, we cannot take seriously the Vatican’s determination that Bishop Hart was not proven guilty “beyond a moral certitude.” The rebuke issued by the CDF is little more than a slap on the hand for Hart, but is surely a slap in the face to the men and women who were hurt by him and hoped to see some measure of justice done.

We hope that, in light of this disappointing-yet-not-surprising decision from the Vatican to do nothing against Bishop Hart, prosecutors will re-examine the case and reverse their previous decision.

At least 17 different people have alleged abuse by Hart. We know that there is no magical age at which a predator stops abusing children, and so we believe that Hart remains a threat today. Police and prosecutors should use their authority to get this dangerous man off the streets, helping protect children from the scourge of sexual abuse. We hope that they will act immediately.

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CHEYENNE (WY)
Wyoming News Now

January 26, 2021

In a release put out by the Catholic Diocese of Cheyenne, the Diocese said, “The ongoing case regarding allegations of the sexual abuse of minors by Bishop Joseph Hart has reached its conclusion.” In a multi-page release, the Diocese said, the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith has concluded its process of looking into sexual abuse allegations.

The Catholic Diocese said the CDF has issued a definitive decree on the case of Bishop Hart. In the release, the Catholic Diocese of Cheyenne said, “Bishop Hart was exonerated of seven accusations, and five other accusations could not be proven with moral certitude. These accusations involved 11 males and one female. Therefore, based on the assessment of the bishop delegate, Bishop Hart’s guilt was not proven with moral certitude, which is held to be equivalent to “beyond a reasonable doubt,” the legal standard of proof required to impose a criminal conviction. These findings do not equate to innocence; rather, a high burden of proof has not been met.”

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KANSAS CITY (MO)
Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph

January 25, 2021

By Bishop James V. Johnston, Jr.

Bishop Stephen Biegler of the Diocese of Cheyenne has informed me that the ongoing case regarding allegations of the sexual abuse of minors by Bishop Joseph Hart has reached its conclusion. The Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith (CDF) has issued both a canonical rebuke of the now retired Bishop Hart, and a definitive decree.

Read the Diocese of Cheyenne’s full statement

This case is of special interest to the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph because several of the accusations against Bishop Hart originated from our diocese, dating to the time when he served here as a priest prior to becoming a bishop in Cheyenne in 1976.

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CHEYENNE (WY)
Diocese of Cheyenne

January 25, 2021

The ongoing case regarding allegations of the sexual abuse of minors by Bishop Joseph Hart has reached its conclusion. In January 2018, the Diocese of Cheyenne hired an expert investigator, a Catholic lawyer who has investigated more than 200 allegations of sexual abuse for many dioceses. He concluded that the allegations against Bishop Hart were credible. Over time, the reports of six accusations were reviewed by the Judicial Vicar and Diocesan Review Board, consisting of the Vicar General, three lay men and three women, one of whom is the Chancellor. Their professional backgrounds include law enforcement; school administration; a Doctor of Psychology; a pediatrician; a psychotherapist, who treats sexually abused children; and a judge, who was a criminal prosecutor for 13 years involving crimes against children, primarily child sexual abuse. They judged that proper procedures were followed; they agreed that we needed to report credible allegations to law enforcement; and they were convinced that we had sufficient evidence to conclude with moral certainty that the six accusations against Bishop Hart are credible. These findings were presented to the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith (CDF), which has competence for coming to a final decision in such cases.

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ROME (ITALY)
Associated Press

January 26, 2021

By Nicole Winfield

The Vatican has cleared a retired U.S. bishop of multiple allegations he sexually abused minors and teenagers, rejecting lay experts’ determination that a half-dozen claims were credible and instead slapping him on the wrist for what it called “flagrant” imprudent behavior.

The Vatican’s Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith exonerated retired Cheyenne, Wyoming Bishop Joseph Hart of seven accusations abuse and determined that five others couldn’t be proven “with moral certitude.” Two other cases involving boys, who were 16 and 17, couldn’t be prosecuted given the Catholic Church didn’t consider them minors at the time of the alleged abuse, the diocese reported Monday. A 13th allegation wasn’t addressed in the decree.

Hart, 89, had long maintained his innocence and denied all allegations of misconduct.

The Vatican decision clearly disappointed Hart’s successor, Bishop Steven Biegler, who stressed that the Vatican’s findings didn’t mean Hart was innocent, just that the Holy See determined that the high burden of proof hadn’t been met.

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WYOMING
Casper Star-Tribune

January 25, 2021

By Joshua Wolfson and Brandon Foster

https://trib.com/news/state-and-regional/crime-and-courts/vatican-exonerates-former-wyoming-bishop-on-some-allegations-still-delivers-rebuke/article_d9b6b792-fc34-55b5-80a4-bcb2ef56d680.html

An investigation by the Vatican has exonerated retired Bishop Joseph Hart of seven accusations tied to the sexual abuse of juveniles while determining five other allegations “could not be proven with moral certitude,” the Catholic Diocese of Cheyenne announced Monday.

At the same time, the Congregation for the Doctrine of Faith issued a canonical rebuke to Hart “for his flagrant lack of prudence as a priest and bishop for being alone with minors in his private residence and on various trips, which could have been potential occasions endangering the ‘obligation to observe continence’ and that would ‘give rise to scandal among the faithful,’” the diocese stated in a news release.

He was also rebuked “for his disregard of the urgent requests that he refrain from public engagements that would cause scandal among the faithful due to the numerous accusations against him and the civil and canonical investigations and processes being conducted in his regard.”

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WYOMING
Denver Gazette

January 25, 2021

By Seth Klamann

https://denvergazette.com/news/courts/retired-wyoming-bishop-exonerated-on-seven-sexual-abuse-allegations-by-vatican/article_2be1faac-5f31-11eb-9062-3373e04c4493.html

Retired Wyoming bishop Joseph Hart has been cleared of sexual abuse allegations by the Vatican, after an 18-month penal process that exonerated the clergyman on seven accusations of abuse for a man accused of abusing more than a dozen adolescents.

Five more accusations were “not proven with moral certitude,” according to a press release from the Diocese of Cheyenne. Two more were not considered because the alleged victims were over the age of 16. The Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, the branch of the Vatican that handles such investigations, examined allegations from 11 men and one woman.

“These findings do not equate to innocence; rather, a high burden of proof has not been met,” the Diocese of Cheyenne stated in a Monday afternoon news release.

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CHICAGO (IL)
Chicago Sun-Times

January 25, 2021

By Madeline Kenney and Stefano Esposito

Attorneys for the longtime St. Sabina Church pastor, though, have vehemently shot down the accusations, calling them “false attacks … motivated by greed.”

https://chicago.suntimes.com/2021/1/25/22249118/2-brothers-alleged-sex-abuse-rev-michael-pfleger-supporters-rally-outside-st-sabina-church

Two brother on Monday shared details of sexual abuse they say they suffered at the hands of the Rev. Michael Pfleger over four decades ago. Attorneys for the longtime St. Sabina Church pastor have vehemently shot down the accusations, calling them “false attacks … motivated by greed.” Ashlee Rezin Garcia/Sun-Times

Two brothers on Monday detailed sexual abuse they say they suffered at the hands of the Rev. Michael Pfleger more than four decades ago, with one saying the abuse “destroyed my life.”

But attorneys for the longtime St. Sabina Church pastor have blasted the accusations as “false attacks . . . motivated by greed.”

The men, who are in their 60s and now live in Texas, said at a news conference that Pfleger molested them dozens of times, starting in the 1970s. It allegedly began when they were in the choir at Precious Blood Church on the West Side and continued for years at the Mundelein Seminary as well as two other churches, including St. Sabina Church, where Pfleger has served as pastor since 1981.

Neither brother ever told anyone about the abuse, they said, including each other, until this month.

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UNITED STATES
Catholic News Agency

January 25, 2021

A second alleged victim has accused activist Chicago priest Fr. Michael Pfleger of sexually abusing him as a minor decades ago, the Chicago archdiocese has confirmed to local media. The priest has strongly denied both accusations, which come from two brothers.

The Chicago archdiocese’s general counsel had “just received” the second allegation Sunday evening, a spokesperson told the Chicago Sun-Times.

“It is important to note that Fr. Pfleger remains removed from ministry pending the outcome of civil and church investigations,” said the spokesperson. “We will continue to follow our process as we do with all such allegations.”

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

BROOKLYN (NY)
The Tablet (Brooklyn diocesan newspaper)

January 25, 2021

A deacon at St. Sebastian Church in Woodside, Queens was arrested on Jan. 20 as part of a police sting operation on allegations that he attempted to have sex with a minor.

The Diocese of Brooklyn became aware that Rogelio Vega, 50, was arrested on Jan. 22 and immediately suspended the deacon. The parish administrator, Father Patrick West, addressed the parish at Mass this weekend by reading a letter from Bishop Nicholas DiMarzio.

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HARRISBURG (PA)
Capitol Wire via Altoona Mirror

January 26, 2021

By Robert Swift

A Senate committee moved quickly Monday to start the second round needed to pass a state constitutional amendment to open a two-year retroactive window for lawsuits by child abuse survivors.

The Judiciary Committee voted unanimously to approve Senate Bill 8, which addresses fallout from a 2018 statewide grand jury report that examined decades of child sexual abuse and cover-ups in six Catholic dioceses in Pennsylvania.

The proposed amendment provides for a two-year period where victims can bring civil lawsuits against alleged abusers in older cases where the statute of limitations has expired.

In the last legislative session, House Bill 14, a version of this legislation, was championed by state Rep. Jim Gregory, R-Hollidaysburg, who has revealed he was sexually assaulted as a 10-year-old by two 13-year-old boys.

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CHICAGO (IL)
Chicago Sun-Times

January 24, 2021

By Madeline Kenny

https://chicago.suntimes.com/2021/1/24/22247817/st-sabina-rev-michael-pfleger-faces-2nd-allegation-child-sex-abuse-lawyers-assail-false-attacks

In a statement on St. Sabina pastor Michael Pfleger’s behalf, his lawyers denied the allegations.

A second person has come forward with allegations of sex abuse as a minor by Rev. Michael Pfleger, which attorneys of the longtime St. Sabina Church pastor have called “false attacks … motivated by greed.”

Pfleger, one of the most prominent figures in the Catholic community in Chicago, stepped away from the Auburn Gresham parish earlier this month at the archdiocese’s request as it investigates decades-old sexual abuse allegations made by another person.

The Archdiocese of Chicago’s general counsel “just received” the additional allegation, a spokesperson said Sunday evening.

“It is important to note that Fr. Pfleger remains removed from ministry pending the outcome of civil and church investigations,” the spokesperson said in an email. “We will continue to follow our process as we do with all such allegations.”

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

CHICAGO (IL)
WGN-TV

January 24, 2021

By Mike Ewing

The Archdiocese of Chicago is investigating a second allegation of child sexual abuse made against Father Michael Pfleger, church officials confirmed Sunday, while lawyers representing the prominent pastor call the claims a “shakedown.”

According to the archdiocese, Pfleger faces a second accusation of sexual abuse from the brother of a man who filed the first complaint against him in early January. In the initial complaint, Pfleger is accused of child sexual abuse that took place more than 40 years ago.

Pfleger has been the pastor of St. Sabina Catholic Church in Auburn-Gresham since 1981, but stepped aside on January 5 after the archdiocese revealed it was investigating the first allegation.

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IDAHO
Magic Valley.com

January 24, 2021

By Laurie Welch

A man from Oakley is among 13 victims who filed an Idaho federal lawsuit alleging they were sexually abused as Boy Scouts in troops sponsored by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

The Oakley victim was a member of Boy Scout Troop 22, sponsored by the church’s Oakley Second Ward in 1980-1981. The other 12 scouts were from Boise, Nampa, Caldwell and Lewiston.

The lawsuit, filed in October by the plaintiffs’ attorney Dumas & Vaughn, names the Boy Scouts of America’s Mountain West Council, Ore-Ida Council, Inland Northwest Council and Lewis & Clark Council as well as the Corporation of the Presiding Bishop of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the Corporation of the President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

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SEATTLE (WA)
ECA (Ending Clergy Abuse) USA

January 23, 2021

Three Popes Enabled McCarrick’s Rise to Power Despite Well-Documented Evidence of His Serial Abuse of Seminarians and Minors.

On November 10, 2020, U.S. victims called on then President-elect Biden to respond. To date. No response.

In 1988, James Grein, a child victim of former Cardinal Theodore McCarrick, revealed the abuse to Pope John Paul II, telling him, “McCarrick has been abusing me since I was young.” In the room with John Paul II were the second and third most powerful Vatican officials, Italian Cardinal Angelo Sodano, the Vatican Secretary of State, and his personal secretary, now Cardinal Stanislaw Dziwisz. According to Grein, John Paul II, now a Catholic saint, responded with a blank stare and then absolved Grein of “his sins” and sent him on his way.

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ECA (Ending Clergy Abuse) Global

January 21, 2021

THE “NEW NORMAL”

Another year is ahead of us and 2021 has certainly brought with it several of the uncertainties and troubling features that lingered throughout 2020 as well as new challenges and opportunities. … In the midst of all of this, ECA is still working to hold accountable those who have violated the rights of children in church settings and ECA is committed to seeking justice for survivors.

ECA’S HIGHLIGHTS OF 2020 INCLUDE:

LUCAS LECOUR AND SERGIO SALINAS (ARGENTINA), Argentine Attorneys, for their historic prosecution and conviction of clergy for abusing deaf survivors and their journey to Geneva and Rome to highlight the Vatican’s failure to protect children and provide justice to survivors; ECA has supported their efforts and will help in their action against the government of Argentina before the OAS court and before the United Nations;

ADALBERTO MENDEZ LOPEZ (MEXICO) AND SARA OVIEDO (ECUADOR) for precedent setting hearing before the OAS (Organization of American States) Inter-American Human Rights Commission to promote justice for survivors in the Americas, particularly Latin America. ECA provided assistance for legal fees for this effort.

JANET AGUTI OF UGANDA and her groundbreaking grassroots effort to educate local communities about sexual violence and providing services for children and women who are victims of sexual violence; ECA financially supports her important work. …

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AUSTRALIA
The Australian

January 25, 2021

By Caroline Schelle

https://www.theaustralian.com.au/breaking-news/former-catholic-ladies-college-eltham-teacher-matthew-saada-accused-of-possessing-child-porn/news-story/3c87f93a22559ab3ffb9afe53c9b655f

A Melbourne teacher was allegedly caught with explicit images of young girls when he handed in his work laptop to the school’s IT department.

Maths teacher Matthew Saada will go to trial charged with eight offences including knowingly possess child abuse material and accessing child pornography using a carriage service dating between January 2016 and October 2017.

The 33-year-old was working at Catholic Ladies College at Eltham in the city’s north at the time and is fighting the charges at a committal hearing in the Melbourne Magistrates Court.

“Not guilty, your honour,” Mr Saada told magistrate Johanna Metcalf on Monday when asked to enter a plea.

School IT worker Andrew Roberts was quizzed about how he uncovered the images which led to the charges.

He was planning to wipe the laptop for the school to sell to a computer recycling company when he found the images, the court was told.

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NEW ZEALAND
RNZ via New Zealand Herald

January 23, 2021

By Andrew McRae

A survivor group for people abused while in the care of the Catholic Church says only a fraction of them are coming forward.

A number have spoken with the Royal Commission into Abuse in Care, but it is being seen as only the tip of the iceberg.

Dr Christopher Longhurst of SNAP (Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests) said many people are reluctant to come forward for fear of ridicule.

“There is so much shame around the abuse that society sees the victim as wounded and defective and there is victim blaming.”

Longhurst said there is dignity in surviving abuse and it is nothing for the victim to be ashamed of.

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GALWAY (IRELAND)
Galway Advertiser

January 24, 2021

By Declan Varley

Green party Senator Pauline O’Reilly has called on Galway County Council to issue a full apology to the survivors of the Tuam Mother and Baby Homes at their meeting in Corrandulla tomorrow (Monday ).

Soeaking in the Seanad, Sen O’Reilly commended all of those who came forward, adding that said that no one could read their reports and not say that it was abuse and neglect.

While calling out the Church and Galway County Council, she said that the ultimate responsibility “lies with a State that did not provide women with alternatives, that did not prosecute rape, that did not provide them with contraceptives, and that acted in a deferential way to a Church that used its power and was allowed to use its power to abuse others”.

As part of her speech, she made a personal apology on behalf of the State and said that “we must be judged by our actions”.

She called for Galway County Council to make an apology for the huge part that it played and the Minister, Roderic Gorman, said that he agreed with his colleague that that would be appropriate and that other local authorities could follow this lead. “Tuam is highlighted over and over. Nearly 1,000 people died and as we are all well aware that they were shown no dignity in death.

“Their families continue to have no closure, with scant records and no tracing having been carried out. The conditions were among the worst in the country. This was an institution run by nuns, but also by the local authority.

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IRELAND
BreakingNews.ie

January 24, 2021

By Rebecca Black

A Northern Ireland woman has recalled spending months at a “hellhole” institution for unmarried mothers and babies.

Adele, 69, was sent to the Marianvale home in Newry, run by the Good Shepherd Sisters, at the age of 17 after becoming pregnant.

“When my mother found out, wheels were set in motion and I was duly shipped off,” she said.

“I was picked up in a car with the parish priest and taken there. I hadn’t a clue what was going on.

“I was told there were no other options, your child will be adopted and you’ll stay here. That was reinforced by the nuns and my mother.”

Adele believes she stayed for around 12 weeks and described Marianvale as a “hellhole.”

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PERU
Vice

January 22, 2021

By Simeon Tegel

The work of Peruvian journalist Pao Ugaz has made her the target of a string of legal actions.

When reporters at the Boston Globe exposed child sex abuse within the Catholic Church, their investigative work was so celebrated that Hollywood made a film, Spotlight, about it.

Now, after carrying out a similar crusading probe into pedophilia in a Catholic lay organization in South America, Peruvian journalist Pao Ugaz is facing jail time and a hefty damages bill.

For years, Ugaz, 45, has been researching Sodalicio de Vida Cristiana, a Catholic boot camp for children from elite families. She began by contributing to the 2015 Spanish-language book Half Monks, Half Soldiers, by Pedro Salinas, which revealed a pattern of abuse at Sodalicio, which Salinas had attended as a teen. She is now investigating its financing and is due to publish a book on that subject later this year.

But the pair’s award-winning work has ruffled feathers and made Ugaz in particular the target of a string of lawsuits from Sodalicio members and conservative activists, some for defamation and some seeking to have her charged with corruption.

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KANSAS CITY (MO)
Kansas City Star

January 22, 2021

By Katie Moore and Judy L. Thomas

A lawsuit alleging a Topeka priest sexually abused a boy in the 1980s can proceed after an appeal by church officials was struck down this week.

The lawsuit, which says the boy was 9 years old when a priest at St. Matthew’s Church began abusing him, was filed in Wyandotte County District Court in August 2017.

The lawsuit names as defendants a priest identified in court records only as M.J. and the Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas, which has authority over St. Matthew’s.

It alleges that M.J., a former priest, engaged in a pattern of sexual abuse during his assignments to parishes in northeast Kansas. According to the plaintiff, who is now in his 40s, the priest abused him at the church’s rectory, the Topeka YMCA and on trips until he was 12. The lawsuit says the boy repressed the memories until late fall 2015 when news reports of priest abuse emerged in the media.

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NEW YORK (NY)
New York Post

January 22, 2021

By Rebecca Rosenberg

A church deacon was busted this week for trying to have sex with a 14-year-old boy he met on the gay hook-up site Grindr, officials said.

It turns out that Rogelio Vega, 50, of Maspeth, Queens, was actually chatting up an undercover detective posing as a youngster, according to prosecutors.

“This defendant by all outward appearances is a church-going family man,” said Queens DA Melinda Katz. “Sadly, the real person under the sheep’s clothing is an alleged sexual predator who sought out a teenage boy to fulfill his needs.”

Vega, a deacon with Saint Sebastian Roman Catholic Church in Woodside, allegedly began using the app Grindr in July 2020 to communicate with the undercover who he thought was an underage boy. The married father of four allegedly asked the “child” to send him nude pictures and shared several photos of his genitals with him.

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UNITED STATES
Patheos

January 21, 2021

By Annie Laurie Gaylor

Like you, I’m moved and saddened by the luminous, somber sight of the 400 lights lining the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool collectively representing the 400,000 Americans who’ve died so far from Covid-19.

President-elect Joe Biden, Jill Biden, Vice President-elect Kamala Harris and her spouse, Doug Emhoff, stood by themselves in front of that memorial, our nation’s overdue first official memorial to Covid-19 victims, on Tuesday night and poignantly addressed the country, saying, “It’s important to [heal] as a nation. That’s why we’re here today.” It was a lovely, loving way to ensure the Inauguration festivities-to-come did not disrespect the suffering or eclipse our focus on the urgent challenges ahead.

But one aspect of that Tuesday event was not at all lovely to me: the decision to single out Cardinal Wilton Gregory to join this elite group of four, to deliver an invocation to a nation tuned in to witness a civic event. Gregory’s liturgical presence and his Christian invocation turned it from a civil ceremony into a religious service.

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ROME (ITALY)
Crux

January 23, 2021

By Inés San Martín

After releasing a report documenting 81 cases of the sexual abuse of minors in Spain, the Jesuit leadership in the country expressed “shame, pain, and regret.”

The report on allegations of abuse made against members of the religious order covered the years 1927-2020, and also included documentation about the sexual abuse of 37 adults in that period.

“We feel shame, pain and regret,” said Jesuit Father Antonio España, the head of the Spanish province of the order.

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MADRID (SPAIN)
Associated Press

January 22, 2021

By Aritz Parra and Nicole Winfield

The first comprehensive internal inquiry on sex abuse allegations by a religious order in Spain has identified 81 children and 37 adult victims of 96 Jesuits since the late 1920s, a much higher number than the cases that had so far been publicly known.

Associations of victims are welcoming the disclosure, but they see it falling short since the names of perpetrators or those who covered up the abuses weren’t disclosed. They also want the Jesuits’ inquiry to lead to proper criminal cases against the few abusers that are still alive and a detailed plan to compensate their victims.

“It’s a timid measure that goes in the right direction, but it falls too short,” Miguel Hurtado, a spokesman with the Stolen Childhood Association, told The Associated Press on Friday.

Jesuits is how members of the Society of Jesus, a Roman Catholic religious order formed in 1540 by Ignatius Loyola, are commonly known. According to its website, the order runs 68 schools with some 75,000 students in Spain as well as half a dozen universities and high education centers.

The Society of Jesus in Spain said in its report published Thursday that the internal probe confirmed that 96 members had been accused of sex abuses since 1927, the year of the first recorded case. For 65 of the Jesuits, the accusations involved underage victims. The report nevertheless highlighted that the accused Jesuits make up just over 1% of the 8,782 members admitted in the order during the past 93 years.

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PENNSYLVANIA
Philadelphia Inquirer

January 22, 2021

By Angela Couloumbis

Pennsylvania’s chief advocate for crime victims announced Friday that she will resign her position, saying it was “untenable” to remain in the high-profile job amid a political feud with legislative Republicans.

Jennifer Storm, the state’s victim advocate since 2013, called her decision to leave at the end of the month “gut-wrenching.” But she said it would be a mistake to remain in the $133,000-a-year position after the GOP-controlled state Senate late last year blocked her from serving another six years.

Storm has said she believes the Senate’s rejection of her is the direct result of a “vendetta” by the chamber’s onetime top Republican, Joe Scarnati of Jefferson County. Storm and Scarnati were on opposite sides of an emotionally charged debate in 2018 over giving victims of long-ago child sexual abuse a chance to sue the perpetrators and institutions that covered up the crimes.

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NORTH DAKOTA
The Jamestown Sun

January 22, 2021

By Rob Port

If your religious or political beliefs require you to stay silent when a child is in harm’s way, it’s time to change those beliefs.

A bipartisan group of lawmakers in Bismarck is looking to change an exemption to North Dakota’s mandatory reporter law established for clergy.

Sen. Judy Lee, a Republican from Fargo, has introduced Senate Bill 2180. Co-sponsoring it are two other Republicans (though at least one, Rep. Mike Brandenburg of Edgeley, has withdrawn his support) as well as two Democrats.

As I noted in a previous column, the Catholic Church is fighting the legislation, characterizing it as some assault on religious liberty.

I’ve had others, particularly of the Catholic faith, contact me to make the same argument.

My friend (and former state senator) Joe Miller has a letter to the editor making that argument. “There must be a better way than to criminalize good and righteous traditions that saints and martyrs have died to protect,” he writes. “Let us not take a path backward 627 years on religious liberty.”

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UNITED STATES
Catholic News Service via Catholic Philly

January 22, 2021

By Agostino Bono

“Glimmers of Grace: Moments of Peace and Healing Following Sexual Abuse” by Faith Hakesley. Our Sunday Visitor. (Huntington, Indiana, 2020). 174 pp. $15.95.

Reams have been written about the legal and moral dimensions of the clergy sexual abuse of minors and its decadeslong cover-up by Catholic officials, stretching into the papacy.

Not grabbing as much attention but equally important is the long-term destructive effects on the lives of abuse victims.

The damage to victims’ souls, emotions, psychological well-being and physical health has been devastating. Some commit suicide. Others become predators themselves. Many cannot have healthy, normal emotional relationships with other people and even distrust people honestly trying to befriend th

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IRELAND
The Sligo Champion

January 23, 2021

By Emma Gallagher

https://www.independent.ie/regionals/sligochampion/news/the-voiceless-abuse-of-women-and-their-children-laid-bare-in-commission-report-on-irelands-mother-and-baby-homes-39982289.html

Ireland was described as a ‘cold, harsh place’ for the 56,000 women and 57,000 children in the mother and baby homes, from 1922 to 1998, who suffered serious discrimination, the Mother and Baby Homes Commission Report stated.

The extensive report, almost 3,000 pages in length, covers a 76 year period and gives a harrowing, shameful look into the treatment of these mothers and their babies.

The Commission found that a total of 9,000 children died in the institutions under investigation during that time, most under the age of one, 15% of all the children in the institutions.

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IRELAND
Independent

January 22, 2021

By Aodhan O Faolain

Woman (50s) who became pregnant at 15 claims in High Court action she was forced to work at Cork’s Bessborough House and subjected to ‘harsh and unsafe’ conditions

A FORMER resident of a mother and baby home in Cork has initiated a High Court damages action against the State, the HSE and the order of Catholic nuns who ran the facility.

The action has been brought by Caroline Donovan who was a resident of Bessborough House in Cork on two occasions, once in the mid-1980s and also for a period during the early 1990s.

She says that while there she was subjected to physical and emotional abuse which it is claimed amounted to a breach of her constitutional rights.

The action is understood to be one of the first brought following the publication earlier this month of the final report by the Commission of Investigation into Mother and Baby Homes.

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IRELAND
Irish Examiner

January 23, 2021

By Ann O’Loughlin

A former resident of a Cork mother and baby home has initiated a High Court damages action against the State, the HSE and the order of Catholic nuns who ran that facility.

The action has been brought by Caroline Donovan who was a resident of Bessborough House, in Cork on two occasions, once in the mid-1980s and also for a period during the early 1990s.

She says that while a resident of Bessborough mother and baby home, which was located in Blackrock, Cork, she was subjected to physical and emotional abuse, which it is claimed amounted to a breach of her constitutional rights.

The action is understood to be one of the first brought following the publication earlier this month of the final report by the Commission of Investigation into Mother and Baby Homes.

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IRELAND
irish Examiner

January 19, 2021

By Fergus Finlay

There is evidence of children being taken from their mothers, despite these mothers fighting and pleading to keep them, to facilitate the trade and export of babies

Dear Minister O’Gorman,

I’ve written to you before, but this time, please, listen to the one piece of critical advice I have to give you. And believe me when I say I know what I’m talking about.

That may sound arrogant, but it’s not. I’ve made the same mistake I fear you’re about to make. This time it matters.

First of all, I hope you’ll forgive me if I say what an appalling report the Mother and Baby Homes Commission produced. I don’t know why they pulled so many punches. I don’t know why they produced a report that was so unworthy of the calibre of people involved.

But from the very first page, it was clear that this report wasn’t going to address fundamental injustices.

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IRELAND
Irish Examiner

January 23, 2021

Commenting on the Mother and Baby Homes Commission of Inquiry report, your columnist Fergus Finlay said: “The Catholic Church ruled us — formed our attitudes, told us what we were allowed to think.”

Not Derek Leinster in the Bethany Home, sent to a dysfunctional family that abandoned him, it didn’t; not the children farmed out as labour from the age of five by the Nursery Rescue Society, it didn’t; not the children emotionally, sexually, and physically abused in Smyly’s Homes, it didn’t; not the Westbank Orphanage children transformed into professional orphans and paraded around church and Orange halls in Northern Ireland, it didn’t.

The misogyny and abuse Finlay writes about were not the preserve of the Roman Catholic Church. Protestants got their fair share, too, in equivalent institutions, like the ones mentioned above.

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TUCSON (ARIZONA)
KVOA-TV

January 20, 2021

By Lupita Murillo

N4T Investigators: Tucson legislator introduces bill to have clergy report child abuse despite Clergy Privilege

A horrifying case of child sexual abuse is making its way to the Arizona legislature.

Paul Adams a former Border Patrol agent admitted to sexually abusing two of his young children. He was arrested by law enforcement after he was identified in the illegal acts, he posted on the internet in 2017.

Adams, and his wife, Leizza, were indicted on multiple abuse charges in 2017.

He committed suicide before going to trial she was sentenced to prison and has been released.

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ENGLAND
Lichfield Live

January 21, 2021

Survivors of abuse linked to churches are being urged to make sure their voices are heard in a review being carried out by the Diocese of Lichfield.

The independent review of safeguarding cases is taking place as part of the Church of England’s Past Cases Review 2.

The Diocese of Lichfield was one of seven identified as needing to carry out further work to provide an updated version of the previous review published in 2010.

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CANADA
Global News

January 20, 2021

By Doyle Potenteau

A B.C. priest who was sentenced to four years in prison for sex crimes against girls over a 28-year span is being sued by an alleged male victim, albeit posthumously.

In a lawsuit filed with the B.C. Supreme Court on Jan. 12, the civil claim states that the plaintiff, named only as A.B., was sexually abused as a child five times between 1974 and 1975 at or around Nelson.

The court document says the former and now-deceased priest, John Frederick Monaghan, and a man only named as John Doe, but believed to be a priest, committed sexual battery upon the then-12-year-old plaintiff at three different locations.

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AUSTRALIA
9News

January 21, 2021

A man abused as an altar boy says he’s been vindicated after winning a record payout after more than 40 years.

The man was nine years old when he was first abused by Western Australian priest Bertram Adderley in the Holy Cross Catholic Church Sacristy in Hamilton Hill, Perth, in the 1970s.

“No longer is he a shadow looming over me,” the man told 9News.

“There’s a big glaring spotlight that I’ve turned on him.”

Adderley on another occasion took the boy to Swanbourne nudist beach before assaulting him in his apartment.

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PERTH (AUSTRALIA)
Australian Broadcasting Corporation

January 21, 2021

By Keane Bourke and Amelia Searson

A victim who will be awarded $2.45 million in compensation for sexual abuse he suffered at the hands of a Catholic priest has spoken out about the “severe” impact the abuse continues to have on his life.

Perth’s Catholic archbishop consented to pay the compensation after the victim, who is now aged in his 50s, described being raped by Father Bertram Adderley in the 1970s.

The landmark judgement was approved by a District Court judge last week and is believed to be one of the highest known sums paid by any Catholic church in Australia to a survivor of historic sex abuse.

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UNITED STATES
Houston Chronicle

January 21, 2021

By Robert Downen

The church pastored by Southern Baptist Convention President J.D. Greear announced Wednesday that an outside firm will review the recent hiring of a pastor accused of mishandling sex abuses a decade ago.

The review of Bryan Loritts comes six months after he was hired at Greaar’s Summit Church in Raleigh, N.C., and after months of criticism from sexual abuse survivors.

Among the critics were those with whom Greear and other Summit leaders have worked closely as the SBC continues to confront sexual abuses detailed in a 2019 Houston Chronicle and San Antonio Express-News investigation, Abuse of Faith.

In 2010, the worship director at Loritts’ Memphis, Tenn., church was accused of recording at least one person as they used the restroom. The man, Rick Trotter, was at the time Loritts’ brother-in-law and the announcer for the NBA team Memphis Grizzlies. Trotter was terminated from that position soon after, but moved to another nearby church.

After he was charged with multiple counts of voyeurism in 2016, the churches released a joint statement in which they said they “openly discussed Trotter’s prior sexual misconduct and the counseling he attended for sexual addiction,” according to media reports.

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UNITED STATES
Word & Way

January 21, 2021

By Diana Chandler

The Summit Church, whose senior pastor is Southern Baptist Convention President J.D. Greear, has retained the services of an outside firm to perform an independent review of specific actions taken by Bryan Loritts, one of the pastors at The Summit Church, in his handling of 2010 sexual misconduct allegations against his then-brother-in-law at a Memphis church Loritts pastored.

The Summit Church hired Loritts in June 2020 after completing an investigation into sexual misconduct allegations at Fellowship Memphis Church. At that time, Summit elders cleared Loritts of any wrongdoing in the case against his then-brother-in-law Rick Trotter. But in a statement on its website Wednesday (Jan. 20), the church announced that it has hired Guidepost Solutions LLC to conduct a new investigation.

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UNITED STATES
Christian Post

January 21, 2021

By Leonardo Blair

The Summit Church in North Carolina, led by Southern Baptist Convention President J.D. Greear, said they have contracted global investigating firm Guidepost Solutions to independently review their recent hiring of Pastor Bryan Loritts who has been accused of mishandling past sex crime allegations at a previous church.

“At the recommendation of trusted advocates, we have engaged the firm Guidepost Solutions …. This firm was recommended to us based on their independence from any geographic location, entity or denominational affiliation, and because of their expertise in investigations and assessing institutional processes and dynamics specifically related to sexual harassment, abuse, and assault,” the church said in a statement Wednesday.

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SPAIN
EuroWeekly

January 22, 2021

By Oisin Sweeney

THE SOCIETY Of Jesus has apologised for survivors and their families for widespread child abuse carried out by its Jesuit members since the 1920s.

In a report released on Thursday, the Jesuit order admitted that 81 children and 21 adults have been sexually abused by 96 of its members since 1927. The organisations has apologised for the “painful, shameful and sorrowful” crimes, which were mainly carried by members who worked as teachers “or was related to schools”

The document claims that 48 of the 65 Jesuits who abused children are now dead, while four of the surviving abusers are no longer Jesuits and 13 have been prevented from working with children. Some are awaiting civil or internal charges, while others have already been stripped of many duties and banished to isolated Jesuit communities.

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MADRID (SPAIN)
The Guardian

January 21, 2021

By Sam Jones

Society of Jesus admits 81 children and 21 adults were sexually abused by 96 of its members since 1927

The Jesuit order in Spain has admitted that 81 children and 21 adults have been sexually abused by 96 of its members since 1927, and has apologised for the “painful, shameful and sorrowful” crimes.

In a report released on Thursday, the Society of Jesus, whose members often work as teachers, said most of the abuse had taken place in schools “or was related to schools”.

According to the document, 48 of the 65 Jesuits who abused children are dead. Four of the surviving abusers are no longer Jesuits and 13 have been prevented from working with children pending the outcome of civil or canonical cases, or have already been ordered to cease their ministry and sent to isolated Jesuit communities.

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[Jesuits admit abuse of 81 minors since 1927]

SPAIN
El País

January 21, 2021

By Iñigo Dominguez and Julio Nunez

Es la primera investigación interna de la Iglesia en España. La orden reconoce 96 acusados y 37 adultos agredidos. La Compañía revela que dio “ayudas económicas” a las víctimas, que ven “ridículas” las cifras

[GOOGLE TRANSLATION: It is the first internal investigation of the Church in Spain. The order recognizes 96 accused and 37 assaulted adults. The Company reveals that it gave “financial aid” to the victims, who see the figures “ridiculous”

The Society of Jesus has recognized this Thursday that at least 81 minors and 37 adults have suffered sexual abuse at the hands of 96 members of its order since 1927, the most distant date to which the first internal investigation of a Catholic institution has been traced. in Spain. It has taken two years, it follows the example of transparency set in motion, for example, in the Church of France, Ireland or Germany, and began as a result of the information from EL PAÍS and other media. “We feel shame, pain and regret,” declared Antonio España, provincial of the order at the presentation of the report in Madrid.]

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NEW ORLEANS (LA)
WVUE-TV

January 19, 2021

By Kimberly Curth

Attorneys for alleged church sex abuse victims are fighting to get the deposition of an accused pedophile priest unsealed. Those lawyers claim the Archdiocese of New Orleans concealed almost all of Lawrence Hecker’s crimes from law enforcement.

In a new court filing, lawyers for the alleged church sex abuse survivors say “there is more than ample evidence and ‘support’ that both Hecker and the Archdiocese concealed multiple felonies perpetrated by Hecker against children.”

“They clearly can show, I think, that Hecker was a multiple offender and that they knew about it, that the Archdiocese did, and covered it up. The Archdiocese is trying to deny that and I think the plaintiff wants to show, with this deposition, that they are in fact covering it up and talking out of two sides of their mouth,” said Fox 8 Legal Analyst Joe Raspanti.

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ARIZONA
AZ Mirror

January 19, 2021

By Jerod MacDonald-Evoy

A federal lawsuit accuses the Tucson Diocese and Los Angeles Diocese of violating Arizona’s racketeering laws by burying allegations that some priests sexually abused children and moving those priests from parish to parish instead of turning them over to law enforcement.

This is the second major case of its kind after a recent change to state law gave sexual abuse victims more time to take their abusers and the organizations that protected them to court. A pair of lawsuits have been making their way through Arizona court aimed at the Corpus Christi Diocese alleging abuse by a priest who was moved to Arizona by the Diocese there.

The suit aimed at the Tucson and Los Angeles Dioceses was filed at the end of the window of opportunity on Dec. 31, 2020.

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ARIZONA
12news.com

January 19, 2021

By Adriana Loya

After a six-month investigation, Tempe Police arrested 48-year-old Mario Rodriguez-Ramirez on child sexual abuse accusations.

Editor’s note: An earlier version of this story misstated the charges the suspect was facing. He is facing one felony charge.

A man known in his community as being devoted to God is now facing child abuse allegations.

A six-month investigation led Tempe police to the arrest of 48-year-old Mario Rodriguez-Ramirez, a man who was once a pastor.

Police say the abuse began in 2015, when the little girl was 9 years old.

Rodriguez-Ramirez took the victim and two other children to Kiwanis Park in Tempe, police say.

There, he allegedly hugged and kissed the girl when she reached the ground after going down the slide, police say.

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TUCSON (AZ)
KVOA-TV, Channel 4

January 19, 2021

By Lupita Murillo

It is a shocking case of child sexual abuse the News 4 Tucson Investigators reported about last month.

A Bisbee father has been accused of abusing his own children and showcasing the acts on the dark web.

Since the accusations surfaced, claims have been made against the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints by Tucson attorney, Lynne Cadigan.

She represents some of the victims. Cadigan claimed church leaders knew about the abuse and did not report it to police.

A 19-page document was just filed in Cochise County in response to an 87-page civil complaint filed in November by Cadigan.

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GREECE
The Guardian

January 20, 2021

By Helena Smith

Action brought by sailor Sofia Bekatorou likely to end patriarchal country’s taboo on discussing treatment of women

When the Olympic gold medallist Sofia Bekatorou appears before a public prosecutor on Wednesday to reveal the sexual abuse she allegedly endured at the hands of a senior sport official, all of Greece will be watching.

For the sailing champion who shot to fame in the 2004 Athens Olympics, the court proceedings will mark the official end of the fear she says has kept her silent for more than two decades. But as she paves the way for more women to speak out, she will lift the veil on a subject considered so taboo in Greece it was never previously aired in public.

“In her person I’ve encountered all those women who have been abused either verbally or physically,” said the country’s first female head of state, Katerina Sakellaropoulou, after meeting the Olympian at the presidential palace on Monday. “I hope her brave revelation will blow like a rushing wind and sweep any hypocrisy, any cover-up attempt, away.”

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ENGLAND
Express and Star

January 20, 2021

By James Vukmirovic

An independent review of all past safeguarding cases related to Church of England churches in the region wants to ensure that survivors’ voices are heard.

All dioceses nationally are taking part in the Church of England’s Past Cases Review 2 including the Diocese of Lichfield, which is home to more than 500 churches in Staffordshire, Stoke-on-Trent, Shropshire and the Black Country.

Lichfield Diocese was also one of seven dioceses identified as needing to carry out further work to provide an updated and comprehensive version of the first Past Cases Review published in 2010.

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IRELAND
Echo Live

January 20, 2021

By Colette Sheridan

Young women today have no idea what life was like in Ireland as recently as the 1970s, so says Colette Sheridan in her weekly column

IN town last Wednesday, with half an hour to kill while my new phone was being synched up, I decided to pop into St Peter and Paul’s Church to light a candle for my late parents.

Although not religious, I’ve taken to calling into churches for this purpose. And besides, Cork city is a ghost town these days with most retail outlets shut. So, with no opportunity to browse through rails of clothes, I was taking the spiritual route.

But then I backtracked because the Commission of Investigation into Mother and Baby Homes had just been published. How could I darken the door of a Catholic church given the appalling litany of abuse meted out by nuns (in cahoots with priests) on vulnerable young women whose ‘crime’ was to become pregnant ‘outside of wedlock.’ (The State was complicit too, beholden to well-heeled bishops who wielded enormous power.)

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KILKENNY (IRELAND)
Kilkenny People

January 20, 2021

By Mary Cody

Following the release of the commission’s report on Mother and Baby Homes last week, survivors of church and state abuse have organised an online open meeting to voice their concerns and frustrations.

Maureen Sullivan, Deirdre Wadding and Ray Noctor, who are all survivors of church and state abuse, will be speaking at it and all are welcome to virtually attend.

The meeting will take place on Thursday (January 21) at 7pm, it will be chaired by People Before Profit cllr Adrienne Wallace and can be viewed by following the link on her facebook page ‘@AdriennePBPA’.

Local woman Maureen Sullivan was one of the youngest girls to be put in a Magdalene Laundry.

Maureen was taken to a laundry in New Ross where there was “no schooling, just the laundry every day, from 6am to about 9pm, with cleaning duties in the evening and at weekends”. The women there were adults, many elderly.

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IRELAND
Irish Examiner

January 20, 2021

By Michael McHugh

Religious institutions have been willing to come forward to discuss compensating abuse victims, Stormont officials said.

First Minister Arlene Foster and deputy First Minister Michelle O’Neill are set to kick off negotiations before the end of next month with Catholic religious orders, the Church of Ireland and children’s charity Barnardo’s.

More intensive talks will follow with the organisations which ran residential homes where wrongdoing occurred.

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

IRELAND
Irish Times

January 19, 2021

By Marie O’Halloran

Greens Senator expects ‘full apology’ from Galway council over Tuam home use

Minister for Children Roderic O’Gorman has said he hopes local authorities will apologise for their roles and lack of action in addressing the abuse in mother and baby homes and county homes.

Green Party Senator Pauline O’Reilly said she expected Galway County Council to make a “full apology” at its next council meeting on January 25th and to state how it will attempt to make amends for holding meetings in the grounds of the Tuam mother and babies home.

Ms O’Reilly told the Seanad that “no one can tell me that those politicians did not know of the appalling conditions”.

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

BRISBANE (AUSTRALIA)
Brisbane Times

January 21, 2021

By Heather McNeill

The Catholic Church has made what is believed to be its highest ever payout to a victim of sexual abuse after church lawyers forced a 52-year-old man to give harrowing evidence in court about his rape by a priest in the 1970s.

Peter* will receive $2.45 million plus legal costs to compensate him for abuse by teacher and priest Bertram Adderley, who groomed and raped him between 1977 and 1980 when he was aged 10 to 12.

Lawyers involved in seeking restitution for victims of sexual abuse say they believe the settlement is up to $1 million higher than any payout previously awarded to someone suing the Catholic Church.

The church is facing hundreds of claims after a number of jurisdictions removed rules that prevented people going to court to seek compensation for historical sexual abuse, even if they had previously accepted payouts from church-run schemes such as the Melbourne Response.

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

RUMSON (NJ)
Rumson Patch

January 19, 2021

By Nicole Rosenthal

Fr. Thomas A. Rittenhouse is accused of sexually abusing a minor while assigned to the Rumson church from 1981 to 1982.

A priest who served for seven years at Holy Cross Church in Rumson was recently named in a sexual abuse complaint filed Tuesday against the Diocese of Trenton.

Fr. Thomas A. Rittenhouse was ordained in 1976 in the Diocese of Trenton and is accused of sexually abusing a minor while assigned to the Rumson church from 1981 to 1982.

He served at Holy Cross from 1981 to 1988.

“These survivors were betrayed by the Diocese of Trenton when they were left vulnerable to abuse, harm and immeasurable trauma,” said attorney Greg Gianforcaro in a news release.

“Today, the Diocese is pouring salt on the wounds by continuing to dodge accountability. These courageous survivors deserve better.”

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FLORIDA
adamhorowitzlaw.com (law firm blog)

January 16, 2021

In 2011, actor Gabriel Byrne disclosed that he’d been sexually abused by a Christian Brother in Ireland.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/jan/19/gabriel-byrne-child-sex-abuse

Now, he’s revealing that, years later, he called his abuser.

Gabriel Byrne phoned the priest he accused of sexually abusing him: ‘I wanted him to be terrified’

While we at Horowitz Law feel deep sympathy for Byrne (as we do all victims of childhood trauma), we beg you to NOT follow his lead.

Every survivor is different. Every survivor heals in different ways. And we at Horowitz Law aren’t therapists. Still, we urge you to resist the temptation to contact the man or woman who hurt you as a child.

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