ABUSE TRACKER

JOHNSTOWN (PA)
Tribune Democrat

May 14, 2019

By Dave Sutor

Politics, religion, law and finances were all linked in the process that led to the creation of compensation funds for victims of clergy sexual abuse in seven of Pennsylvania’s Roman Catholic dioceses.

For years, when priests, parishes and dioceses faced allegations of abuse, the matters were often handled in secret – with victims being required to accept non-disclosure agreements as part of settlements.

But then, in 2018, the Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General released a grand jury report that provided details about how at least 300 priests allegedly abused thousands of children across six of the commonwealth’s dioceses.

In response, the Philadelphia Archdiocese and dioceses in Pittsburgh, Erie, Scranton, Allentown, Harrisburg and Greensburg opened their own individual compensation funds with the goal of providing financial assistance to victims. Erie Bishop Lawrence Persico, when announcing his diocese’s program earlier this year, said he wants the fund to “provide some measure of justice, closure and validation for the terrible acts that victims endured.”

Harrisburg Bishop Ronald Gainer called his diocese’s fund an acknowledgment that “terrible abuses did occur.”

But some victims advocates have pointed out that the dioceses only started the funds after the coverups were publicly exposed and when legislators began considering changing the state’s statute of limitations to include a two-year window during which victims could file civil claims for assaults that occurred in the past.

“Victims deserve to get compensation, but what is a better scenario is if the statute of limitations gets lifted and there gets to be a window of opportunity for old cases to come forward,” said Judy Jones, a Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests regional leader.

“We mostly think the church officials want to do the compensation thing so that people won’t sue. The reason they don’t want them to sue is not so much about the money. They don’t have trouble spending parishioners’ money. It is they don’t want to go to trial.”

Differences by diocese

Seeking compensation can be both straightforward and nuanced, according to individuals who have dealt with the process.

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JOHNSTOWN (PA)
Tribune Democrat

May 14, 2019

By Dave Sutor

Camille Biros and Kenneth Feinberg are arguably the most influential people involved in the process of financially supporting victims of child sexual abuse perpetrated by Roman Catholic priests in Pennsylvania.

The two attorneys from Washington, D.C., administer compensation funds for the Archdiocese of Philadelphia and the dioceses of Pittsburgh, Erie, Scranton and Allentown. They determine what – if any – money victims receive.

But Biros and Feinberg play another role – beyond merely financial decisions – as their reputation is used to assuage concerns that the dioceses might be controlling the decisions. They have handled numerous high-profile funds, including ones related to the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks and Boston Marathon bombings.

Harrisburg and Greensburg compensation funds are being administered by Commonwealth Mediation and Conciliation Inc. from Massachusetts, while Altoona-Johnstown is the only diocese in the state without a fund.

“I’m not familiar with the Massachusetts fund administrators,” said Richard Serbin, a Blair County attorney, who has represented victims of clergy sex abuse in Pennsylvania for decades. “But Feinberg and Biros I do not feel – given their reputation – that they would allow the dioceses to control the day-to-day decisions.”

Biros described herself and Feinberg as “totally independent.”

“They hire us with the understanding that we’re going to run these programs, and we’re going to make these determinations, and we’re going to offer amounts of money that we deem to be appropriate,” Biros said. “And they have really nothing to say about it. That’s the agreement.”

But “nevertheless, the diocese has a great deal of control,” according to Serbin.

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KIANA (ALASKA)
Anchorage Daily News/Pro Publica

May 16, 2019

By Kyle Hopkins

Village Police Officer Annie Reed heard her VHF radio crackle to life in the spring of 2018 with the familiar voice of an elder. I need help at my house, the woman said.

Reed, who doesn’t wear a uniform because everyone in this Arctic Circle village of 421 can spot her ambling gait and bell of salt-and-pepper hair at a distance, steered her four-wheeler across town. There had been a home invasion, she learned. One of the local sex offenders, who outnumber Reed 7-to-1, had pried open a window and crawled inside, she said. The man then tore the clothes from the elder’s daughter, who had been sleeping, gripped her throat and raped her, according to the charges filed against him in state court.

Reed, a 49-year-old grandmother, was the only cop in the village. She carried no gun and, after five years on the job, had received a total of three weeks of law enforcement training. She had no backup. Even when the fitful weather allows, the Alaska State Troopers, the statewide police force that travels to villages to make felony arrests, are a half-hour flight away.

It’s moments like these when Reed thinks about quitting. If she does, Kiana could become the latest Alaska village asked to survive with no local police protection of any kind.

An investigation by the Anchorage Daily News and ProPublica has found one in three communities in Alaska has no local law enforcement. No state troopers to stop an active shooter, no village police officers to break up family fights, not even untrained city or tribal cops to patrol the streets. Almost all of the communities are primarily Alaska Native.

Seventy of these unprotected villages are large enough to have both a school and a post office. Many are in regions with some of the highest rates of poverty, sexual assault and suicide in the United States. Most can be reached only by plane, boat, all-terrain vehicle or snowmobile. That means, unlike most anywhere else in the United States, emergency help is hours or even days away.

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SACRAMENTO (CA)
News & Review

May 16, 2019

By Stephen Magagnini

During his more than 35 years in the ministry, Sacramento Bishop Jaime Soto has never shied away from controversy, always standing up for what he believes is right, whether he’s fighting for immigration reform or a more inclusive view of all Catholics regardless of sexual orientation.

The 63-year-old cleric again finds himself in the eye of a spiritual storm—of sexual abuse revelations breaking over Sacramento and the rest of the Catholic world.

“Every week it seems that there are new revelations about the depth and horror of the scourge of sexual abuse,” Soto told SN&R last week. “I am committed to confronting this ugly past. We failed to protect you as children, we failed to tell you the truth as adults.”

On April 30, Soto released a list of 44 priests and two deacons who have been credibly accused of sexual abuse of minors and young people in the Diocese of Sacramento.

The list covered incidents between 1955 and 2014 “and is a necessary reckoning for our local church,” Soto said. None of the priests identified are still working for the diocese; many have died.

Based on a comprehensive outside review of nearly 1,500 clerics throughout the diocese, the victims who reported being sexually abused include 39 girls, 91 boys or young adults and three men.

The Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests has been urging Soto to issue such a list, which includes photos of clerics, their whereabouts and full work assignments

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NEW YORK (NY)
America Magazine

May 16, 2019

When the Vatican summit on clerical sex abuse concluded in February, the editors of this magazine argued that its effectiveness would be demonstrated by what happened after it was over. Would it prove more than a public-relations exercise? Would the searing testimony of abuse survivors send bishops home determined to undertake the work of accountability and reform? Would Pope Francis actually deliver the “concrete measures” he indicated were forthcoming? Not all of these questions can be fully answered yet. But just three months after the summit’s conclusion, Francis has proved that at least his own words were not empty promises, handing down Vos estis lux mundi (“You Are the Light of the World”), a motu proprio that establishes universal laws for reporting and investigating sex abuse.

The first section of the document states that bishops, priests, and members of religious orders must report to church officials both abuse and the cover-up of abuse. This applies to the abuse not only of minors, but also of vulnerable adults, including those forced “to perform or submit to sexual acts” through threats or “abuse of authority”—a clear reference to seminarians preyed on by those with power over them. The motu proprio takes effect this month, and within a year, “public, stable, and easily accessible” systems for submitting reports of abuse must be instituted in dioceses where they do not currently exist.

The document also provides protections for those who report abuse. Any retaliation or discrimination against whistleblowers is prohibited. The document underscores that reporting abuse does not violate “office confidentiality,” and that those who submit a report have no obligation to “keep silent” about their claims.

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ST. LOUIS (MO)
Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests

May 16, 2019

As a SNAP Leader in Philadelphia and one who works very closely with survivors of clergy sex abuse here in Pennsylvania, I am appalled at the remarks made on a social media platform of the Pennsylvania Catholic Conference towards Ms. Carolyn Fortney. The comment lacked professionalism, public opinion etiquette, and good taste, as well the promoted Catholic principles. We stand in solidarity with Carolyn and all other survivors and advocates who have felt insulted or besmirched by the posting.

This remark demonstrates the continued disdain that Catholic lobbyist employees have for survivors fighting for justice and for their lives. No survivor should ever be treated with such disrespect, ever, especially after already suffering harm from the Church. The Pennsylvania Catholic Conference should apologize publicly to Carolyn, and take formal disciplinary action on the person responsible.

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PHOENIX (AZ)
3TV/CBS 5

May 15, 2019

By Dennis Welch

As children, Tim Lennon and Mary O’Day were sexually abused by members of the Roman Catholic Church.

Now they are lending their voices to a fight at the Arizona Legislature over a childhood sexual assault bill.

Written by Sen. Paul Boyer, the proposal grants victims more time to sue their abusers in civil court.

The current law bars survivors from suing after they turn 20 years old.

Boyer proposes giving them seven years after they disclose as adults to file a civil claim. That could happen decades after they were abused.

“We have to give children their voice. Whether they are 12 or 42, the child still needs a voice,” O’Day said Wednesday at the Capitol.

Her comments came a week after Boyer made a dramatic stand on the Senate floor.

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Get Religion blog

May 16, 2019

By Richard Ostling

Numbers make news. Think of how many articles will report breathlessly on U.S. political polls between now and Nov. 3, 2020. And numbers created “the biggest American religion story of the past decade,” says analyst Mark Silk, referring to the increase in “nones” who tell pollsters they have no particular religious identity.

This is news: A new Gallup report says a severe religious recession began to build right around 2000.

What explains this turn-of-the-century turn? Journalists with Gallup numbers in hand should run this puzzle past the experts in search of explanations.

Gallup combines data from 1998–2000, compared with 2016–2018. A topline finding is that Americans reporting membership in a house of worship hit an all-time low of 50 percent by last year, which compares with a consistent 68 percent or more from 1937, when the question was first asked, and all the way through the 1990s. The era since 2000 mingles that loss with declining worship attendance and the “nones” boom.

Since your audiences are already transfixed by the 2020 campaign, consider this detail from Gallup’s internals. Comparing 1998-2000 with 2016-2018, church membership reported by Republicans slipped from 77 percent to 69 percent, but among Democrats plummeted from 71 percent to 48 percent, a remarkable 23 percent drop. (Independents went from 59 percent to 45 percent.) How come

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KANSAS CITY (MO)
Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests

SNAP: “Give elsewhere until there’s honesty”

Bishop still hiding abusers’ names, group says

“At least reveal the living abusers NOW,” it argues

Two more publicly accused KC area clerics are ‘outed’

“For the safety of kids, stop stalling” victims beg prelate

Current and former church staff must call law enforcement, SNAP says

WHAT
Holding signs and childhood photos at a sidewalk news conference, clergy sex abuse victims and their supporters will
–‘out’ two more publicly and credibly accused priests who spent time in KC MO,
–urge Catholics to donate elsewhere until their bishop releases a list of such abusers.

They will also urge current and former KC area church staff to call the Missouri attorney general and the Kansas Bureau of Investigation – because of on-going probes of clergy sex crimes and cover ups in both states – with any information or suspicions they may have about clergy sex crimes and cover ups.

WHEN
Thursday, May 16 at 1:30 p.m.

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ROME (ITALY)
Crux

May 16, 2019

By Elise Harris

A lawyer representing a Peruvian archbishop who last month withdrew criminal complaints against two journalists says that a delay in dropping the second case is due to a procedural issue, not because they are backtracking on the decision.

On April 24, Archbishop Jose Antonio Eguren Anselmi of Piura announced he was retracting a criminal complaint of aggravated defamation that he had launched against journalist Paola Ugaz last summer. Under Peruvian law, a private citizen can make a complaint of defamation that triggers a criminal investigation and, possibly, trial.

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WASHINGTON (DC)
Governing

May 16, 2019

By Nichole Manna

The Catholic Diocese of Dallas has not been forthcoming in sharing information about priests accused of sexually abusing children, police said Wednesday.

Search warrants were executed Wednesday morning and officers were at the diocese offices at around 7:30 a.m. in connection with their investigation into five priests: Edmundo Paredes, 70; Richard Thomas Brown, 77; Alejandro Buitrago, 77; William Joseph Hughes Jr., 63; and Jeremy Myers, 62.

The warrant says investigators believe all five men sexually assaulted children, but that the diocese has not shared all of its information about them.

In a statement, the diocese said it has been cooperating with the investigation and that it was never subpoenaed. The statement also said that officials in the diocese have given police the personnel files of the five priests named in the warrant and “has been involved in ongoing discussions with DPD investigators.”

However, a search warrant written by police says the diocese didn’t cooperate with the investigation. In one of the cases, the warrant says, a priest was asked by the diocese to investigate himself.

Maj. Max Geron of the Dallas Police Department said the investigation started in August 2018, when police received information from the diocese about allegations against Paredes and financial improprieties.

Geron said the department has interviewed victims, witnesses and suspects. However, the department has not been given a number of personnel files for priests who were flagged for sexual abuse, the warrant says.

Asked if the investigation involves new allegations, Geron said, “I won’t address the time frame for the allegations, but I will say they are new allegations that were made to us following the announcement of charges against Paredes.”

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HARRISBURG (PA)
Patriot News

May 15, 2019

By Ivey DeJesus

In recent years, the debate over reform of the state’s statute of limitations has overwhelmingly been framed against the clergy sex abuse crisis.

On Wednesday about a dozen victims of convicted serial predator pediatrician Johnnie “Jack” Barto lent their voices to that effort.

In a press conference held at the Capitol Rotunda, the victims, along with state Sen. Katie Muth (D-Montgomery), reiterated long heard arguments for the reform of the state’s child sex crime laws. Muth is a co-sponsor of Senate Bill 540, which calls for broad reform, including elimination of criminal statutes and a two-year retroactive window to allow time-barred victims to file civil suits.

Muth vowed to work across the aisle in the Senate to engender support for the bill, which currently has 18 co-sponsors. The freshman senator said victims of all ages need and deserve the protection of the law, adding that her bill would provide victims a choice between pathways to healing, including lawsuits.

“We are failing,” Muth said. “We are failing to give victims a reason to come forward.”

Attorney General Josh Shapiro who led the grand jury investigation into the Catholic Church in Pennsylvania as well as prosecuted Barto, has endorsed SB 540.

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ROME (ITALY)
Crux

May 16, 2019

By John L. Allen Jr.

When I started covering the Vatican back in the 1990s, Italian journalist Vittorio Messori was a legend. He was the author of the 1985 Ratzinger Report, the book that made the future Pope Benedict XVI a global lightning rod, as well as Crossing the Threshold of Hope with Pope John Paul II in 1994.

Messori is an epigrammatic guy, and I remember him talking once about stories on the Church no journalist could ever report. Among them, he said, was the story of how many atrocities in human history have been prevented by the sacrament of confession – that unique moment when, in absolute privacy, a priest has the chance to speak heart-to-heart with someone, potentially turning their life around.

The memory comes to mind in light of a bill currently being debated in the California Senate, SB 360, which would effectively shred the seal of the confessional by eliminating an exemption to the state’s mandatory reporting law for “penitential communication.” California is not the only venue in which such a proposal is in the air – both Chile and Argentina, for instance, are other examples.

The bill’s sponsor, Democratic Senator Jerry Hill of San Mateo, claims it’s necessary because “the clergy-penitent privilege has been abused on a large scale, resulting in the unreported and systemic abuse of thousands of children across multiple denominations and faiths.”

To state the obvious, Hill’s assault on the Church is a natural byproduct of its well-chronicled failures on the clerical sexual abuse crisis, including the fallout from the Pennsylvania Grand Jury report last year as well as the scandal surrounding ex-cardinal and ex-priest Theodore McCarrick.

The fact the Church has brought all this on itself, however, doesn’t mean every punitive measure one can imagine is necessarily a good idea – and there are multiple reasons to conclude that Hill’s proposal is a spectacularly bad one.

The list begins with the obvious and egregious violation of religious freedom the bill represents. The sacrament of confession is a core element of the Catholic faith, and no state should ever be in the position of dictating doctrine to a religious community.

One might also mention that targeting the Catholic Church ignores the broader context of child sexual abuse.

Recently, the Schools Insurance Authority in California commissioned an audit on the potential impact of another bill currently in the legislature that would make it easier to sue public schools for child abuse. The audit used a baseline 2017 estimate from the U.S. Department of Justice that 10-12 percent of children in public schools suffer sexual misconduct by an employee at some point K-12, and estimated that under the terms of the bill the losses of the California system due to such claims could grow from $813 million over the past 12 years to $3.7 billion.

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DALLAS (TX)
CBS 11

May 15, 2019

By Erin Jones

A Dallas-based attorney who represents survivors of sexual abuse believes the investigation of alleged sex abuse by clergy shows why statewide, the statute of limitations needs to be extended for child victims.

One piece of legislation could make that happen.

“I represent a number of survivors of clergy abuse in the Catholic Church,” attorney Michelle Simpson Tuegel said.

She said most of these clients are in their 50s and 60s, waiting decades to talk about what happened to them and seek justice.

The statute of limitations for child sex abuse would start counting the years from the age of 18, just like what’s seen in current Texas law.

“There’s a lot of pressure to keep things silent,” Monica Baez said.

Baez said she was abused by a Houston priest as a toddler. His name is in a list of priests credibly accused of abuse.

“It’s very intimidating,” Baez said. “It’s very scary. Shameful. You don’t know if anyone is going to believe you because you’ve tried. It’s very emotional and you just want to hide.”

“I think particularly when you’re talking about abuse connected to someone’s religion – a religious institution, their faith, that makes it even harder to disclose,” Tuegel said.

Tuegel said that’s why she’s calling on Texas lawmakers to vote in favor of House Bill 3809, which would extend the civil statute of limitations from 15 to 30 ye

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NEW YORK (NY)
Daily News

May 15, 2019

By Trevor Boyer

A 98-year-old retired Catholic priest accused of possessing child pornography will never be fit to stand trial so charges against him should be dismissed, his lawyer argued in a motion filed on Wednesday at Bronx Supreme Court.

Monsignor Harry Byrne resides at St. Lawrence Friary Infirmary in Beacon, N.Y., and requires total care for all his basic needs, according to the filing. If accepted, the motion would dismiss the 74-count indictment that the priest faces.

“He is irreversibly infirm,” his attorney, Marvin Ray Raskin, told the Daily News. “There’s a lot of hope for rehabilitation, but there’s no practical expectation.”

Byrne was an activist priest who worked to create affordable housing in the Bronx and Manhattan, and he remained outspoken on church issues even after his retirement in 1996.

He faces 37 counts of possessing an obscene sexual performance by a child and another 37 counts of possessing a sexual performance by a child. He turned himself into police on Oct. 31, 2017, and pleaded not guilty.

Byrne “had dozens of photographs on his computer of girls 8 to 14 years old performing sex acts with men or posing naked,” Bronx District Attorney Darcel Clark said in announcing his indictment in 2017.

Prosecutors charged that Byrne used internet search engines to find the pornography online. The illegal images were found in a forensic sweep of the priest’s computer by the NYPD Computer Crimes Squad, officials said.

In a July 2010 blog post, Byrne railed about the Catholic Church’s mishandling of the pedophile priest crisis.

“Bishops … quietly reassigned miscreants and thereby exponentially multiplied the number of victims,” he wrote. “In the U.S., not one cover-up bishop has been arraigned before church authorities for his part in the scandal.”

Byrne, who was chancellor of the Archdiocese of New York from 1968 to 1970, was living at the St. John Vianney Center for Retired Priests in the Riverdale section of the Bronx. The probe, which was started five months prior to his indictment, was based on complaints from the home, officials said at the time.

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DALLAS (TX)
Dallas Morning News

May 15, 2019

By Jennifer Emily and Cassandra Jaramillo

An affidavit Dallas police used to obtain a search warrant Wednesday to raid Dallas Catholic Diocese offices laid out allegations against five priests and suggested the church subverted police efforts to obtain more information.

The affidavit, signed by Detective David Clark, who is working full-time on sex abuse allegations within the Diocese, sought to seize Diocese records because the church hadn’t handed over all the records it had about allegations against the priests.

All five priests are on the Diocese’s list of 31 “credibly accused” priests, which the church released in January. That list included only accusations against priests that the Diocese concluded were credible after a review by former law enforcement officials and the Diocean Review Board.

But the records handed over to police were not complete, Clark wrote.

The accused priests could not be reached for comment and none have been arrested. One priest previously said he should not be included in the credibly accused list.

Here is a look at the allegations, according to the affidavit:

Edmundo Paredes
Dallas police began investigating a sexual abuse allegation into Edmundo Paredes, 70, after the Diocese told police a victim came forward in August. A warrant was issued for Paredes’ arrest in January. But the details of the allegations by a former altar server were not public until Wednesday in the affidavit.

Three others had previously accused Paredes of sexual abuse and he was included in the list of 31. But police had said the accusers did not want to pursue criminal charges.

Paredes is believed to have fled, possibly to his native Philippines.

The fourth accuser told the Diocese that Paredes sexually assaulted him in the 1990s, when the alleged victim was an altar server at St. Cecilia’s Church, the affidavit says. The boy also attended the church’s school.

The affidavit says Paredes “groomed him by taking him and other altar servers out to eat between Masses and bought them things” after they met in 1991.

In 1994, when the victim was a juvenile, the sexual assaults began: The victim told police “Paredes touched him on his genitals and Paredes placed his mouth on [his] genitals.”

Police interviewed several parishioners, office staff members and priests, all of whom corroborated that Paredes brought “several juveniles” into the rectory during evenings and weekends.

The affidavit also states that “some office staff members met with now-retired Chancellor Mary Edlund, in 2006, regarding their concerns over Paredes having juveniles inside the church offices and inside his residence.”

According to the affidavit, Edlund told Clark that Paredes’ file should contain information about the 2006 meetings.

“That file did not contain any information regarding the 2006 meeting between parishioners and Chancellor Edlund,” Clark wrote in the affidavit.

Instead, Clark wrote that he found only notes that appear to have been written by Edlund, which said, “Outcry from adult, send to CPS. … won’t hear back … letter better than online entry.”

In the affidavit, Clark says Child Protective Services officials “had no knowledge of ever seeing the letters” the Diocese says it sent concerning abuse allegations.

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DALLAS (TX)
NBC DFW 5

May 15, 2019

By Noelle Walker

When Monica Baez saw news of the police raid on the Catholic Diocese of Dallas she had a thought.

“Oh, another one,” Baez said. “It’s overwhelming.”

Baez said she was a toddler in the 1970s when she first became a victim of clergy abuse. Her alleged abuser was not in Dallas, but part of the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston.

“It was awful. He was a monster,” Baez said. “I knew that it was something wrong because it was painful. He forced… it was child rape. I call it child rape. I call it was it is.”

Baez said she was glad to see police outside three Diocese of Dallas properties Wednesday morning, where they executed search warrants looking for records of sexual abuse related to five priests.

“Because who’s protecting the children? How can an institution tell on itself? They’re not,” Baez said. “It is unbelievable how it’s still happening.”

Baez said she thought similar raids should be conducted globally.

The Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests (SNAP) issued a statement Wednesday about the Dallas raid.

“We applaud Texas law enforcement officials for raiding the “secret archives” of the Catholic Diocese of Dallas. We are glad that police and prosecutors are taking the issue of clergy abuse in Texas seriously and are not just relying on the promises of church officials.

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MENDOZA (ITALY)
LifeSiteNews

May 7, 2019

By Martin M. Barillas

An elderly Catholic priest, apparently in an Italian hospital, was caught in an undercover video laughing and joking about his own sexual assault of boys — along with assaults of other priests — at a diocesan home for deaf-mute children.

The 2017 video shows Italian Father Eligio Piccoli recounting unapologetically — almost boastfully — how he abused boys.

“I lost my head and grabbed him from behind,” he said.

With gestures, Piccoli simulated sodomitic acts that priests and other religious allegedly committed with minors. In one instance, Piccoli pointed at the undercover journalist as if to humor him about homosexual rape.

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TRENTON (NJ)
NJ.com

May 13, 2019

Monday, May 13, 2019 – Trenton – Senator Joseph Vitale holds a press conference in the Statehouse Annex on legislation he sponsored to expand the statute of limitations for sexual assault survivors being signed into law. Michael Mancuso | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com

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ST. LOUIS (MO)
Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests

May 15, 2019

A support group for clergy abuse victims want a voice in compensation programs being set up by California Catholic officials.

Leaders of SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, are writing to the firm headed by Ken Feinberg requesting the opportunity to meet soon regarding church-designed and run compensation programs, like the one announced yesterday by six other California dioceses.

The group is critical of any process designed to support and help survivors that does not also include survivor input and experiences. “Let us share our experiences to help create a program that will benefit survivors instead of hurt them,” SNAP says in their letter.

SNAP plans to write soon to the other six California bishops who have already announced the outlines of such a program. They are Los Angeles, Fresno, Orange, San Bernardino, San Diego and Sacramento. The Diocese of Santa Rosa has also announced plans for their own compensation program. The remaining five dioceses that have not yet announced plans are Oakland, San Jose, Monterey, Stockton and San Francisco.

A copy of SNAP’s letter is below:

Dear Mr. Feinberg,

We are advocates and survivors of clergy sex abuse. We organize to support others who have experienced abuse and advocate for change that will protect children and help victims of sexual abuse heal.

We have recently learned about the proposed compensation program you are helping church officials at six of the twelve California dioceses design. We write to you today to urge you to include survivors in this process as you work out the details of this proposed program.

In the past, many survivors in our network have leapt at the opportunity presented by compensation programs, believing that participation in the program will lead to a validation of their abuse, a heartfelt apology, and a chance at justice. And all too often, those survivors have come away feeling like little more than variables in a calculation, with the compensation program being less of a healing process and more of an algorithmic one. Critically, in some of these cases survivors have even been barred from bringing cases against their abuser forward or made to sign non-disclosure agreements.

Given this history, we respectfully submit that the same Catholic hierarchy that got us into this mess is now paying to get themselves out of this mess, with the real intent of continuing to cover up their own past and present complicity. And those prelates got us into this mess, in part, by reserving all the decision-making power to themselves, which they’re now replicating by hiring your team and designing these programs with apparently little or no input from experienced survivor organizations like ours.

So we plead with you and ask that you and your team meet with us soon, before any more of these programs are devised, and let us share with you how survivors might best be served – and not be re-victimized – by these plans. We have, unfortunately, too much experience in this arena. Let us share our experiences to help create a program that will benefit survivors instead of hurt them.

We have no illusions of stopping top-down, church-run compensation programs. But they can be better designed to make sure the needs of survivors, both long term and short term, are met. And they can be designed to better expose wrongd

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WASHINGTON (DC)
Catholic News Agency

May 15, 2019

The appropriations committee of California’s state senate will hold a hearing Thursday on a bill that would require priests to violate the seal of confession if they became aware of allegations of child abuse or neglect while celebrating the sacrament of penance. Critics say the bill would deny Constitutional religious liberty protections, and that there is no evidence it would actually prevent child abuse.

The bill, California SB 360, requires clergy members to report to law enforcement knowledge or suspicion of child abuse or neglect, “including when the clergy member acquires the knowledge or reasonable suspicion of child abuse or neglect during a penitential communication.”

Clergy in California are already required to report knowledge or suspicion of child abuse in most circumstances, though penitential conversations like sacramental confession are exempted, as are other kinds of privileged conversations, among them those covered by attorney-client privilege.

The bill’s sponsor, California state Senator Jerry Hill (D-Calif. 13), has claimed that “the clergy-penitent privilege has been abused on a large scale, resulting in the unreported and systemic abuse of thousands of children across multiple denominations and faiths.”

The senator has claimed that such abuse has been revealed through “recent investigations by 14 attorneys general, the federal government, and other countries.” Hill’s office declined to respond to requests from CNA for clarity or specific instances of the abuse cited.

Archbishop Jose Gomez of Los Angeles said in a May 15 column that Hill’s claim is “simply not true. Hearings on the bill have not presented a single case — in California or anywhere else ­— where this kind of crime could have been prevented if a priest had disclosed information he had heard in confession.”

“SB 360 claims to solve a crisis that does not exist,” Gomez said.

While priests are forbidden from disclosing the contents of sacramental confessions under any circumstances, and face excommunication for doing so, few believe Hill’s bill would prevent child abuse.

California Catholic Conference executive director Andy Rivas told Angelus News May 15 that “there is no evidence that forcing priests to disclose what is learned in the confessional would prevent a single case of child abuse.”

If penitents report being abused, several priests told CNA, they are generally asked to discuss the matter with the priest-confessor immediately after confession has ended. When such conversations take place after confession, clergy members in California are already required by law to report them.

The bill is not the first time Hill has taken issue with internal Church practices. In 2015, he signed a letter urging San Francisco’s Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone to end an archdiocesan requirement that Catholic school teachers live in accord with the moral teachings of the Catholic Church.

The letter said the requirement had “a divisive tone, which stands in stark contrast to the values that define the Bay Area and its history.”

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DALLAS (TX)
CNN

May 15, 2019

By Ray Sanchez and Rosa Flores

Maj. Max Geron of the special investigations division said the raids are related to five new allegations of sexual abuse that emerged after police issued an arrest warrant for a priest named Edmundo Paredes, who was previously assigned to St. Cecilia’s parish in Dallas.

The parish was one of the locations searched on Wednesday, along with the diocese headquarters and a storage facility, Geron said.

“In addition to the allegations against Mr. Paredes, detectives are investigating at least 5 additional allegations of child abuse against other suspects,” Geron told reporters.

“These investigations stem from additional allegations made after the case against Mr. Paredes
became public.”

In August, the diocese informed parishioners at St. Cecilia of allegations of sexual abuse by Paredes, the former pastor. The alleged criminal offenses occurred more than a decade ago, church officials said.

The raid comes as the church — both in the United States and around the world — wrestles with a fresh wave of scandals that have spurred criminal investigations, roiled the faithful and damaged the institution’s moral credibility.

The raids took the diocese by surprise since church officials have been cooperating with authorities for months, according to Catholic Diocese of Dallas spokeswoman Annette Gonzales Taylor.

“We feel like we were being transparent,” Gonzales Taylor told CNN.

The diocese was not subpoenaed, she said.

The search warrants were executed at various properties Wednesday, including the pastoral center and administrative offices, Taylor said.

Taylor said police were looking for files of priests who were on a list released by the diocese earlier this year of clergy who had been the subject of credible accusations.

In January, every Catholic diocese in Texas released the names of all priests, deacons and other clergy members accused of sexually abusing children in the past decades.

At least 298 clergy members across the state have faced “credible abuse” allegations going back to the 1940s, according to the lists compiled by the 15 Texas dioceses.

Leading the number of clergy members accused is the Archdiocese of San Antonio — the largest one in the state — with 56 priests and other clergy listed. Next is the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston and the dioceses of Dallas, El Paso and Amarillo.

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[Priest prosecuted for abusing preschoolers released from prison]

ARGENTINA
Telefe Noticias

May 14, 2019

Tras la difusión de las denuncias que lo involucraban en orgías con el portero y la preceptora de un jardín parroquial de San Pedro, el cura fue apartado de la parroquia San Roque. Pero el Obispado de San Nicolás está a cargo de los honorarios de su defensa.

El cura Tulio Mattiussi, de 58 años, que había sido detenido en diciembre pasado junto al portero del Jardín de Infantes “Belén”, de la localidad bonaerense de San Pedro, luego de que la Justicia constatara denuncias de abuso a nenes de esa institución que dirigía el sacerdote y acusara a ambos de abuso sexual agravado, fue liberado hace una semana. El auxiliar Anselmo Ojeda, en cambio, sigue detenido.

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[Survivors of Marist abusers criticize Celestino Aós]

CHILE
BioBioChile

May 14, 2019

By Yessenia Márquez and Nicole Martínez

Este martes los sobrevivientes del Caso Maristas se reunieron con el administrador apostólico de Santiago, Celestino Aós. Este encuentro terminó con un balance poco positivo por parte de las víctimas y se señaló que se ha alejado de su discurso inicial.

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[12 years in prison for Franciscan who abused and paid a minor and a disabled person]

SANTIAGO DE COMPOSTELA (SPAIN)
El País

May 15, 2019

By Silvia R. Pontevedra

La Audiencia de Lugo concluye que José Quintela, fraile en el Camino de Santiago, se aprovechó de la “precaria situación personal, familiar y económica” de la muchacha

La chica de 16 años declaró ante la Guardia Civil que el fraile le daba dinero antes, durante o después del sexo, y que la cantidad dependía de la afluencia de visitantes y peregrinos que llegasen al Santuario do Cebreiro (Pedrafita, Lugo), mítica puerta a Galicia del Camino Francés a Santiago. José Quintela Arias, la cara amable que recibía a los caminantes en el templo prerrománico, ha sido condenado por la Audiencia de Lugo a 12 años de prisión y otros 10 de libertad vigilada por abusar de L. de forma continuada y del primo discapacitado de esta en una ocasión. También de elaborar material pornográfico utilizando a la menor para ello, de lo que quedaron sobradas pruebas en su teléfono móvil: desde la cría desnuda y adornada de flores de Pascua en la sacristía hasta el pene del religioso envuelto en billetes de 50 euros.

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[Cardinal Salazar admits Colombian Church is lagging in investigations of clergy sex abuse]

COLOMBIA
El Tiempo

May 14, 2019

By Martha Soto and Jose Alberto Mojica

El cardenal Rubén Salazar descarta una epidemia, pero admite que hasta ahora arrancan indagaciones.

El máximo jerarca de la Iglesia católica, cardenal Rubén Salazar, admitió, en entrevista con EL TIEMPO, que están rezagados en las investigaciones de casos de sacerdotes pederastas y violadores. Y, aunque no tiene cifras en la mano, aseguró que no cree que el problema sea tan grave como se ha registrado en otros países.

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[Pederasty, the shame of the Church, coming to light in Colombia]

COLOMBIA
El Tiempo

May 14, 2019

Hay apenas 57 procesos penales contra sacerdotes por pederastia, la mayoría en Antioquia.

En una celda de la cárcel de Villahermosa, Cali, está recluido William de Jesús Mazo Pérez, párroco en 2009 de la iglesia de Nuestra Señora de la Candelaria, quien paga 33 años por violar a cuatro niños. Y en la cárcel de Manizales permanece Pedro Abelardo Ospina Hernández, párroco de Filadelfia, Caldas, en el 2008, condenado a 21 años por abusar sexualmente de un joven con trastorno mental moderado.

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[Vatican investigates claims of sexual excess within religious community]

COLOMBIA
El Tiempo

May 15, 2019

Vaticano indaga al Seminario del Pueblo de Dios. Iglesia local dice que en Valledupar no pasó nada.

Un equipo élite de investigación canónica, coordinado directamente desde el Vaticano, tiene abierto un expediente con alcances en territorio colombiano. En efecto, desde la casa matriz de la Iglesia católica se ordenó investigar el proceder de una congregación religiosa que, entre otras cosas, profesaba el sexo libre entre monjas y sacerdotes bajo el precepto de que la sexualidad es el reflejo carnal del amor.

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WARSAW (POLAND)
Reuters

May 14, 2019

Poland announced plans on Tuesday to tighten sentences for child sex abuse, just days after the country’s politics were upended by a documentary on paedophilia in the Catholic Church, closely allied to the nationalist ruling Law and Justice party.

In just three days since it was posted on YouTube, more than 11 million people have viewed the documentary “Just Don’t Tell Anyone”. It shows Poles confronting priests they said abused them as children, and presents allegations that known paedophiles were shifted between parishes.

The documentary has led to a swift public outcry, with lawyers and journalists calling for the police to launch criminal investigations.

The issue has erupted in the run-up to a European parliamentary election in which issues of sexuality and religion have played a prominent role. Law and Justice (PiS) portrays the Catholic faith as a key element of national identity. Liberals argue that the Church has come to wield too much power.

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[“They turned their backs on us for accusing the priest who raped my daughter”]

BOGOTA (COLOMBIA)
El Tiempo

May 14, 2019

Una familia del Cauca lucha para que se haga justicia en el caso contra el párroco Arcángel Acosta.

La historia familiar de Flor Liliana Yatacué Viscunda siempre ha estado atada a la Iglesia católica de Miranda, Cauca. Ella tiene 33 años y vive de una pequeña empresa en la que vende empanadas precocidas, hielo y pulpa de fruta en el barrio El Ruiz.

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DALLAS (TX)
Dallas Morning News

May 15, 2019

Dallas police officers on Wednesday morning executed a search warrant at the Dallas Catholic Diocese’s offices in Oak Lawn.

Police have not specified a reason for the raid, but said they’d give more information at an 11 a.m. news conference. A police spokesman said warrants will be executed at various diocese offices throughout Dallas.

The Dallas diocese on Wednesday did not immediately return calls seeking comment.

The raids come as the Catholic Church locally and worldwide continues to deal with its sex abuse crisis and allegations of cover-ups. As part of a transparency effort, all Catholic dioceses in Texas —including Dallas — in January published lists of clergy members “credibly accused” of sexual abuse of minors since 1950.

Dallas Catholic Diocese officials said they had a team of former law enforcement investigators comb through its files to compile the list of 31 names.

That announcement followed the August revelation that Edmundo Paredes, the longtime pastor at St. Cecilia Catholic Church in Oak Cliff, was credibly accused of molesting three teenage boys in the parish over a decade ago. Diocese officials said Paredes also allegedly stole from the church.

The Dallas diocese confirmed it had reached a financial settlement with the three male accusers, the details of which were confidential.

But in January, Dallas police — which assigned Detective David Clark to investigate sex-abuse allegations against Dallas clergy members — issued an arrest warrant for the former Oak Cliff priest after a new accuser emerged.

Paredes had gone missing, but it was believed he had fled to his native country of the Philippines, Burns told parishioners during services at St. Cecilia.

Church officials have in recent months called for potential victims to first contact police and have said they are cooperating with law enforcement investigations. But advocates for sex-abuse victims have remained skeptical of the church, which has had a long history of cover-ups.

After Wednesday’s raid, advocacy group Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, or SNAP, released a statement saying they “applaud Texas law enforcement officials” for the raid.

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PHILADELPHIA (PA)
Philadelphhia Inquirer

May 15, 2019

By Maria Panaritis

Do not for a moment buy the adage that justice is blind. Not in Pennsylvania. Not this week.

After a stunning change to New Jersey law that became official on Monday, and an equally stunning change to New York law in February, justice for sexual assault victims in Pennsylvania now is a second-tier matter, denied by politics and the poor luck of geography.

The divide is stark. It is absurd. And it is — make no mistake — entirely a product of Republican leadership of the House and Senate in Pennsylvania.

Were you raped as a child by a Pennsylvania priest or schoolteacher? If you want justice, then you had better hope it happened in New Jersey or New York. Only those states, under groundbreaking laws, allow civil action for abuse that happened years ago. It is why a Philadelphia man on Monday announced he is suing the Camden Diocese for alleged clergy abuse in Ventnor, N.J.

If, however, you were violated by a Pennsylvania priest or teacher somewhere between Erie and Philly, your only legal option is to shut up and move on. The men who control the House and Senate have chosen to bow to bishops and insurance underwriters rather than stand for the children damaged for life by abusers.

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ALBUQUERQUE (NM)
Channel 4 News

May 14, 2019

By Chris Ramirez

Many have seen the advertisements on TV and Facebook from groups of lawyers offering to help survivors of clergy sex abuse in New Mexico.

When the Archdiocese of Santa Fe declared bankruptcy, it brought a new deadline for lawsuits and a limited pool of money for sex abuse claims. Now, groups of out-of-state lawyers are setting up shop here.

Clergy sex abuse claims against the Archdiocese of Santa Fe must be submitted by June 17. After that, there’s no guarantee that sex abuse survivors will get any kind of payout from the church.

Chris Ramirez with 4 Investigates looked into one group called “New Mexico Sex Abuse Lawyers” that’s making a lot of noise to collect clients and tap into that money. The group is representing about 70 victims of clergy sex abuse.

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WARSAW (POLAND)
Associated Press

May 15, 2019

Poland’s opposition lawmakers demanded Wednesday that a ruling party member be excluded from parliament’s work on new laws to curb sex abuse of minors, alleging he had tried to justify the actions of a priest convicted of pedophilia.

The conservative government said this week that the penalty for child sex abuse must be increased following recent revelations about such abuse by priests. Parliament is to debate the government draft Wednesday.

A documentary containing harrowing testimony by men and women of being molested and raped by priests when they were children aired (when) on YouTube, triggering soul searching in the nation’s influential Catholic church.

Opposition lawmakers say prosecutor Stanislaw Piotrowicz, who is head of the parliament’s justice commission and lawmaker for the ruling pro-church party, should be excluded from parliamentary debate and voting on the law. They claim he had in the past tried to play down the actions of a priest who later was convicted and handed a suspended prison term for inappropriately touching and kissing small girls.

Parliament officials said that the new law will not be sent to the commission he presides over for debate.

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NEWCASTLE (AUSTRALIA)
The Herald

May 15, 2019

By Nick Bielby

Former Hunter priest David O’Hearn will face a trial in July over child sex charges levelled at him last year.

O’Hearn, who remains in custody following previous convictions for child sex offences, was charged with the fresh counts by Strike Force Georgianna detectives last March.

In Newcastle district court on Tuesday, his legal representative said there was no prospect of resolution without proceeding to trial.

The court heard there was one complainant in the matter, which related to alleged child sex offences in Lake Macquarie in 1994.

The Herald reported last November that O’Hearn pleaded not guilty to nine counts of aggravated indecent assault – under authority.

On Tuesday, Judge Roy Ellis scheduled the trial to begin on July 17.

The trial is expected to run for eight to 10 days.

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SAN BERNARDINO (CA)
San Bernardino Sun

May 14, 2019

By Joe Nelson and Scott Schwebke

Six Catholic dioceses in California, including those in San Bernardino, Orange, and Los Angeles counties, have formed a compensation program for victims of clergy sexual abuse that allows them to settle claims privately, outside the courts, the California Catholic Conference announced Tuesday.

The voluntary program will be available to any person who has been sexually abused as a minor by priests from the dioceses of San Bernardino, Orange, Los Angeles, Fresno, Sacramento and San Diego.

As an alternative to litigation, victim-survivors can choose to meet with two mediators, in private and without an attorney if preferred, to potentially settle their claims. The mediators, Kenneth Feinberg and Camille Biros, will review the claims and determine who should be compensated and the amount offered.

Settlements will occur within 90 days and be determined by the mediators, with no church interference, according to the California Catholic Conference, which is the public policy arm of the Catholic Church in the state.

Feinberg and Biros are mediators for similar victim compensation programs involving Catholic dioceses in Pennsylvania, New York, New Jersey and Colorado. The two attorneys also have represented the families of victims of the 9/11 terrorist attacks and the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, considered to be one of the largest petroleum spills ever.

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MEDELLIN (COLOMBIA)
Colombia Reports

May 15, 2019

By Adam Veitch

Colombia’s Catholic Church is facing around 100 criminal investigations involving sexual abuse, the religious institution’s leader admitted Wednesday.

Cardinal Ruben Salazar admitted to the ongoing criminal investigations in an interview with El Tiempo, but downplayed the gravity of the sexual abuse claims, saying that sexual abuse by priests is “not an epidemic.”

The national church leader promised an investigation into historical child sex abuse in Colombia “as soon as we have a sufficiently qualified team and the resources to carry it out.”

The Catholic Church’s history of abuse in Colombia
Despite evidence to the contrary, Salazar told El Tiempo that there was no culture of covering up child abuse within the hierarchy of the Catholic Church.

knowing the bishops in this country as I do, I can tell you that no point has it ever been our desire to obscure the facts

Over the past few years, several cases of abuse have come to light in which church authorities in Colombia have been at best negligent in ensuring the welfare of young victims, and at worst complicit in endangering it.

Journalists reporting on these abuse cases suffered harassment allegedly orchestrated by church leaders.

One particular practice employed by the church hierarchy has been that of transferring priests facing child abuse accusations rather than reporting them to legal authorities.

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BROOKYLN (NY)
The Tablet

May 15, 2019

By Jorge I. Dominguez-Lopez

My friend and I were at Citi Field on a cool Friday evening. He is not religious, but the Mets were ahead 8-0 in the first inning, and he was ready to believe in miracles. He was in a good mood. Then, out of the blue, he asked me, “What about the Vatican’s new guidelines against sexual abuse? Shouldn’t they have just one simple rule, namely, ‘call 911’?”

He was referring to the “Vos estis lux mundi” (You Are the Light of the World), Pope Francis’ “motu proprio,” or edict, establishing norms for the universal Church against sexual abusers or those who cover up such crimes. It establishes procedures similar to those put in place in the United States by the Dallas Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People in 2002.

For almost a year now, our secular press has been commenting on the grand jury report from Pennsylvania and on other reports of sexual abuse by clergy. Usually, the press fails to note two important facts.

First, the lists of accused priests covers many decades. For example, in February when the Diocese of Brooklyn published a list of credibly accused clergy, the headline in The Tablet was “Diocese of Brooklyn Releases Names of Credibly Accused Clergy,” and the subhead read, “Comprehensive List Dates Back 166 Years.” But many newspapers didn’t mention that detail, and so readers were led to believe that the 108 priests on the list were involved in recent cases.

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ST. LOUIS (MO)
Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests

May 14, 2019

We are grateful to Bishop Robert Brennan for his public show of support for survivors of clergy abuse and for calling for civility and understanding in cases of clergy sex abuse. There is power in public statements from church leaders and we are glad that Bishop Brennan chose to use his in this way.

Now that Bishop Brennan has spoken out publicly, we hope that he will continue to use his power on behalf of survivors and take steps to show other priests and parishioners how best to publicly respond and react to allegations against one of their priests.

We have sent a letter to Bishop Brennan, thanking him for his efforts and laying out what further steps we believe he can take that will result in a more informed, civil, and safer environment for all. A copy of our letter is below:

Re: Pastoral Response to Allegations of Clergy Sexual Abuse

Dear Bishop Brennen:

We wanted to thank you for your public words regarding the statements made by attorney Kyle Humphrey on behalf of your priest, Msgr. Craig Harrison. We truly appreciate your acknowledgement of the hurt that the lawyer’s remarks caused victims of Catholic sexual abuse.

Now that multiple victims have come forward, we ask you to go further. Since Mr. Humphrey is a parishioner and Msgr. Harrison is one of your clergymen, we urge you to use your power and authority to put an end to the “ugly, mean spirited, dismissive and unacceptable” language being used in the media.

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JOHNSTOWN (PA)
New Castle News

May 15, 2019

By Brent Addleman

Although the widespread impact of clergy sexual abuse in Pennsylvania Catholic churches came to light just last year, veteran Pittsburgh litigator Alan H. Perer has been representing victims for nearly two decades.

Perer, of SPK – the law firm of Swensen & Perer, located in downtown Pittsburgh, has been working cases against the Pittsburgh Diocese dating back to the early 2000s, long before an August 2018 Pennsylvania grand jury report detailed an extensive history of sexual abuse committed by clergy members within six dioceses, including Pittsburgh.

“I have been doing this for 17 years,” Perer said. “It has been very rough. A lot of cases earlier, we ran into the statute of limitations. We have been fighting this battle for a long time.

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WASHINGTON (DC)
Catholic News Service

May 14, 2019

Auxiliary Bishop Robert Barron of Los Angeles said his new book addressing the Church’s sexual abuse crisis and urging Catholics to “stay and fight for the body of Christ” comes from his “pastor’s heart.”

“It is simply my statement coming out of my whole life as a Catholic — 33 years as a priest, almost four years as a bishop,” he said in a podcast posted on YouTube May 13, the release date of his book “Letter to a Suffering Church: A Bishop Speaks on the Sexual Abuse Crisis.”

“It was my pastor’s heart that wanted to say something to the people of God,” added the bishop.

The book was published by Word on Fire Catholic Ministries, which was founded by Bishop Barron. He gave an overview of the 125-page book in the podcast with Brandon Vogt, Word on Fire’s content director.

In both the podcast and the book’s preface, Bishop Barron strongly emphasized he is speaking for himself and that the new volume is not an official statement of the U.S. bishops.

It is his attempt, he explained, to respond to the pastoral needs of Catholics demoralized by the abuse crisis and who are grieving over what it is doing to the Church. He said he wants to give them encouragement and hope and show “that there is a clear path forward for us today.”

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SAN FRANCISCO (CA)
San Francisco Chronicle

May 14, 2019

By Celia Wexler

Pope Francis’ new rules on sexual abuse have been called “revolutionary,” “groundbreaking” and “exhaustive.”

But will the pope’s mandates, issued on May 9, actually bring about the reforms that Catholics so desperately want?

On paper, the pope scored a home run. Not only is every priest and member of a religious order required to report abuse or the cover-up of abuse, the pope includes misconduct toward minors and also harms to any adult considered vulnerable to clerical intimidation. That category includes seminarians, nuns and those with mental or physical disabilities.

All dioceses also will have to develop a “public and easily accessible” system for victims to submit complaints. Those who report misconduct cannot be retaliated against, and abuse victims cannot be silenced.

But here’s where the rule breaks down: The Vatican puts the responsibility for investigation of abuse in the hands of the bishops, the very people who have done such a terrible job over the past century.

Marie Collins, an Irish abuse survivor who resigned from the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors, put it this way: “[K]eeping it all within the church has been the problem all along, and this is just really continuing that.”

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ST. LOUIS (MO)
Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests

May 14, 2019

Changes are needed because survivors of child sex abuse can take decades to come forward

The statutory amendments proposed would allow more victims an opportunity to have their claims heard in court

Revealing these ‘hidden predators’ and their enablers helps to protect boys and girls today

Senator who sponsored the bill has delayed state budget approval until his measure is heard

WHAT
At a news conference, a legislator and child sexual abuse (CSA) survivors will advocate for the reform of state laws limiting the ability of victims to have their day in court.

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LOS ANGELES (CA)
Angelus News

May 14, 2019

By Pablo Kay

The Los Angeles Archdiocese today joined five other California dioceses in a new private compensation program that will be available to any person who has been sexually abused as a minor by diocesan priests.

In a letter to Los Angeles Catholics, Archbishop José H. Gomez said the new program would expand the Church’s efforts to provide pastoral care and financial support to victim-survivors of abuse.

“We have been providing pastoral care and financial support for victim-survivors here in the Archdiocese for many years,” Archbishop Gomez said. “We will continue to do so. But we also understand that some victim-survivors are reluctant to come to the Church for assistance. Our hope with this new program is to give these people a chance to seek redress and healing through an independent program.”

The new Independent Compensation Program for Victim-Survivors of Sexual Abuse of Minors by Priests is independent from Church control, according to a statement issued by the California Catholic Conference.

The Conference said the program will be run by Kenneth R. Feinberg and Camille S. Biros, nationally respected leaders in private compensation programs.

Feinberg and Biros have been working with the California bishops since late last year to design and administer the program, which will be similar to ones the pair has established for dioceses in New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Colorado.

The new program will be overseen by an independent board that includes former California Governor Gray Davis and business leader and former Administrator of the U.S. Small Business Administration, Maria Contreras-Sweet.

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SCRANTON (PA)
Times Tribune

May 14, 2019

The Diocese of Scranton has announced that it has paid 17 victims of clergy child sexual abuse almost $2.2 million during the first 90 days of a special initiative to compensate survivors, according to a report by the Standard-Speaker of Hazleton. The diocese launched its program Jan. 22.

In all, more than 100 individuals, including 54 people who had not previously reported abuse to the diocese, submitted claims to the Independent Survivors Compensation Program during the period, the diocese said.

The diocese said fund administrators Kenneth Feinberg and Camille Biros completed their review of about two-thirds of those claims and sent determination letters containing compensation offers totaling $3.64 million to 31 survivors, including the 17 people who accepted and received just under $2.2 million.

The other 14 claimants have not indicated if they will accept the offers, the diocese said. No offers have been rejected.

Of the 54 individuals who have come forward with allegations of abuse that were not previously known to the diocese, 51 have been accepted into the compensation program and one remains under consideration, the diocese said.

The Diocese of Harrisburg announced that its Survivor Compensation Program enrollment period ended Monday. The program opened on Feb. 12 and was open for 90 days. Settlements will be offered on or before June 28. The Harrisburg diocese is not involved in the process of determining who is eligible for settlements and the amounts.

The diocese previously stated that funding for the program will come in the form of a loan from the Priest’s Retirement Fund, other existing diocesan assets and “hopefully from insurance proceeds.”

Bishop Ronald W. Gainer announced said the diocese will release a final report on how many survivors it was able to support.

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PITTSBURGH (PA)
Tribune-Review

May 14, 2019

Priests are people, too.

They do good things and bad things and sometimes very bad things. They make sacrifices and they make mistakes. Priests are no more likely to lie, cheat, steal or hurt someone than a teacher or a banker, a barber or a chef.

The statewide — and to be honest, global — Catholic church sex abuse issue has not reached the breadth and scope that it has because priests are evil. They aren’t, or at least, they are no more evil than any of the rest of us.

The problem was the organization. It was the protection. It was the lies.

It wasn’t that no one reported child sex abuse for 70 years. They did. It wasn’t that parents didn’t demand something be done. They did. It wasn’t that investigations were not conducted. They were.

It was that all of it was kept in the dark.

In the months since the grand jury report release that detailed decades of abuse and cover-up, the dioceses of Pennsylvania have adamantly pushed a message of change. These things wouldn’t happen again. There were policies. There were procedures. There were protocols and safeguards.

It’s hard to live in a world without any crime and abuse because we live in a world filled with people. What we need is a world where we try to stop it when we can and deal with it where we must. Both demand transparency and honesty. Those seem hard to find after so much secrecy.

Then this week both Pittsburgh and Greensburg dioceses released information on newly accused priests just days apart. In Pittsburgh, the diocese suspended a priest from ministry while it investigates allegations of inappropriate contact with women. In Greensburg, law enforcement is investigating new allegations of abuse of a minor 15 years ago.

The difference this time is that nothing was stuck in a file and locked in a box. The situations are being addressed openly.

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BELFAST (NORTHERN IRELAND)
Belfast Telegram

May 14, 2019

By Gareth Cross

Calls have been made for an increase to payments offered to survivors of historical institutional abuse.

In January 2017 an inquiry led by Sir Anthony Hart found widespread and systemic abuse in children’s homes across Northern Ireland.

The Historical Institutional Abuse Inquiry studied allegations of abuse in 22 homes and other residential institutions between 1922 and 1995.

Sir Anthony recommended a tax-free lump sum payment for all survivors ranging from £7,500 to £100,000.

However, the vast majority of respondents to an Executive Office consultation on the findings disagreed that the “standard” compensation amount should begin at £7,500, with the majority saying £10,000 would be a more appropriate amount.

The Executive Office launched the consultation in November 2018 and received 562 responses.

More than one-third of them came from victims and survivors of abuse.

Some 82% of respondents recommended higher redress payments and 69% of those think compensation should reflect the number of childhood years spent in abusive institutions.

One respondent described the £7,500 standard payment as “derisory”.

“No amount of compensation can undo or repair the damage inflicted,” they wrote. “Nevertheless there ought to be a tangible figure that in some way reflects the loss of a childhood; £10,000 is not an awful lot but at least it’s a start. Nothing less.”

One of the key issues raised by respondents was a proposal that victims would not be entitled to apply for compensation if they had previously been compensated for the same matter.

The majority proposed that those who had already received compensation should be allowed to have it reviewed and receive any difference awarded.

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WARSAW (POLAND)
Reuters

May 13, 2019

Polish Nobel Peace Prize laureate Lech Walesa has urged the Catholic Church to prevent further sexual abuse of children by members of its clergy after a new documentary film showed his priest to be one of the accused.

The film “Just don’t tell anyone”, which shows people confronting priests with accusations that they abused them as children, has attracted nearly 7 million views since it was posted on YouTube on Saturday. It presents allegations that known pedophiles were shifted between parishes.

One of the clergymen featured was Franciszek Cybula, who served as Walesa’s priest for 15 years – from 1980 when he co-founded the trade union Solidarnosc which helped bring about the fall of Communism, through to his becoming Poland’s first democratically elected president in 1990 and until his term ended in 1995.

“It is sad for me that I found out that my chaplain, my confessor, was behaving so badly,” Walesa was quoted as saying by Polska The Times daily on Monday.

Poland is one of Europe’s most devout countries and Catholic priests enjoy a high level of social prestige. Nearly 85 percent of Poland’s 38 million-strong population identify as Roman Catholics and around 12 million attend mass every Sunday.

But Poland has not escaped the sexual abuse scandals that have battered the Catholic Church’s reputation around the world along with accusations of senior clergy concealing or mismanaging cases.

In March the Polish Catholic Church published a study saying that between 1990-2018, its officials received reports of sexual abuse by clergy of 625 children since 1950, over half of them aged 15 or younger.

“The church is all of us, we should pray for priests, and the senior clergy – I repeat – must take action,” Walesa was quoted as saying.

The documentary by director Tomasz Sekielski has reignited the debate about sexual abuse in the church just as Poland gears up for European Parliament elections on May 23-26.

Election campaigns have been marked by a focus on religion and sexuality amid tensions between liberals who feel the church wields too much power in Poland and ruling nationalist Law and Justice (PiS) party, which considers the Catholic faith as a key element of national identity whose influence must be protected.

PiS party leader Jaroslaw Kaczynski promised harsher sentences for child abuse on Sunday.

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GALLUP (NM)
Associated Press

May 14, 2019

A former Gallup priest listed as a credibly accused abuser by New Mexico’s three Catholic dioceses has died.

The Gallup Independent reports the Albuquerque Franciscan province confirmed last week the Rev. Diego Mazon died in November 2018.

The Franciscan province did not issue a public announcement about Mazon’s death since both the Diocese of Gallup and the Diocese of Las Cruces listed Mazon as a living credibly accused abuser.

Mazon was removed from ministry at Gallup’s St. Francis Parish after an adult woman leveled a complaint against him. She alleged the Franciscan friar sexually abused her when she was a child in Roswell.

The Archdiocese of Santa Fe and the Franciscan Province of St. John the Baptist of Cincinnati, Ohio, Mazon’s original religious order, settled with the woman in 2006.

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WOODBRIDGE (NJ)
NJ Advance Media

May 14, 2019

By Rebecca Everett

When Justin Hoffmann was 9 years old, his best friend was a priest in his late 60s. They spent time together almost every day.

But reflecting on that relationship Tuesday, a day after filing a lawsuit alleging the late Rev. Brendan Sullivan sexually abused him over the course of five years, Hoffmann said it wasn’t until 2017 that he realized, “it wasn’t a friendship.”

“When you’re with an authority figure when you’re young, you don’t know if something that they’re doing is right or wrong and I certainly shouldn’t have been expected to know,” Hoffmann, now 29, said at a press conference in Cherry Hill with his lawyers.

Hoffmann, who was an altar boy with Sullivan at the former St. James Parish in Ventnor, filed a lawsuit against the Roman Catholic Diocese of Camden Monday and its former bishop accusing them of not preventing the alleged abuse. The abuse, which allegedly included inappropriate touching and indecent exposure, started in 1996 when Hoffmann was 7 and lasted until 2001, the suit claims.

Hoffmann calmly described Tuesday how he rationalized Sullivan’s actions.

“While they seemed playful and kind of like just messing around when I was a kid — it seemed O.K. When I look back on the things he was doing, it’s like gross negligence,” he said. “I’m like, O.K., how did I get myself into this position.”

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ALBANY (NY)
Times Union

May 12, 2019

By Brendan J. Lyons

A former custodian who has been accused of systematically raping boys at a Catholic elementary school in Albany in the 1970s had allegedly done the same thing years earlier while serving as a priest with a seminary in the Midwest, where he attended college.

Interviews with his former employers and alleged victims, and records obtained by the Times Union, indicate that Eugene Hubert Jr. — a U.S. Army veteran who died in 1997 — also immersed himself in maintenance jobs at various schools for nearly 30 years, including at least two Catholic grade schools in Albany.

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ST. LOUIS (MO)
Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests

May 14, 2019

The California Catholic dioceses have announced their plans to create a compensation fund for survivors of clergy abuse. While we appreciate the gesture, we hope that survivors in California will carefully consider their options before signing on.

We believe that the best way to expose wrongdoing and enforce accountability is for crimes to be made public and for punishment and compensation to be meted out by courts, not the institutions that allowed the wrongdoing to happen in the first place. Survivors deserve a chance to have their day in court and shed light on their abuse, and that can only happen when statutes of limitations are reformed, civil windows are opened, and bishops are held accountable in courts of law.

Removing a survivor’s right to sue – as is common in compensation programs – can prevent them from forcing using legal tools in the future that can compel dioceses to release information or correct misinformation. This is especially important as right now there is a bill right now in the California Assembly that will open up a new “window to justice.”

But this announcement also comes with hope that, as the bishops work together to hammer out the details of this compensation program, that they will allow survivors to have a voice in the process. If California’s bishops are serious about creating a compensation program that is to the best benefit of survivors, they should seek to meet with survivors who have had experience with litigation and compensation to help refine and improve this compensation program.

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INDIANA (PA)
Indiana Gazette

May 14, 2019

By Patrick Cloonan

A priest who formerly served in Indiana County has been removed from his ministry in the Fay-West area south of Greensburg and relieved of all parish duties pending an investigation of an allegation.

“The diocese received an allegation of sexual abuse of a minor against Fr. Andrew Kawecki dating back 15 years,” the Roman Catholic Diocese of Greensburg stated Monday night.

“As per diocesan policy the allegation was phoned into the PA ChildLine, and the appropriate district attorney was contacted,” the statement continued. “The investigation is now in the hands of law enforcement.”

From 2002 to 2004 Kawecki, a native of Gdansk, Poland, served as pastor of the Church of the Resurrection, which serves Ernest, Clymer, Glen Campbell, Heilwood and Rossiter in northern Indiana County.

Indiana County District Attorney Patrick Dougherty this morning said the matter has not been referred to his office because the accusations are not connected with Kawecki’s service in the Clymer parish.

“A credible allegation does not mean it has been substantiated or proven,” the diocese stressed. “This announcement in no way implies Father Kawecki is guilty.”

He was transferred to St. John the Baptist parish in Scottdale, Westmoreland County, where he served as pastor, and St. Joseph parish in Everson, Fayette County, where he served as administrator.

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SANTIAGO (CHILE)
Crux

May 14, 2019

By Inés San Martín

When the entire Chilean bishops’ conference presented their resignations to Pope Francis in Rome last year amid a massive scandal involving clerical sexual abuse and cover-up, Celestino Aos Braco had been a bishop of a small diocese for just four years.

As it turns out, it was scant preparation for the job the pope gave him in March: Apostolic administrator of the Archdiocese of Santiago, the capital of Chile and the eye of the local church’s storm.

Santiago is home to two of the country’s most infamous pedophile priests: Fernando Karadima and Cristian Precht, both of whom were expelled from the priesthood last year.

Aos spoke with Crux on May 4th, soon after the local church had signed a deal of cooperation with the Chilean prosecutor’s office – a deal that was rescinded by national prosecutor Jorge Abbott a few days afterwards.

Among other things, Aos said that comments from Francis last year about a “culture of cover-up” among the Chilean bishops led to impressions that all prelates in the country were equally guilty, an image he called “painful” and “unfair.”

Aos also discussed why he chose not to give communion to the faithful who wanted to receive it while kneeling down, even though it’s a practice allowed by the Vatican. He also spoke about his meeting with Cardinal Sean O’Malley of Boston while the two were in Rome in April.

What follows are excerpts of Aos’s conversation with Crux. The first part of that conversation is available here.

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CHERRY HILL (NJ)
Cherry Hill Courier-Post

May 14, 2019

By Jim Walsh

A Catholic priest, previously accused of sexually abusing a child at a parish in Atco, now is alleged to have molested an altar boy at a Ventnor church, according to a lawsuit filed Monday against the Diocese of Camden.

The suit claims a Philadelphia man, Justin Hoffman, was among multiple victims of the late Rev. Brendan Sullivan, who served at 10 parishes and two Catholic high schools between 1960 and 2004.

Hoffman accuses the diocese and a former leader, Bishop Nicholas DiMarzio, of failing “to warn or otherwise protect children of the diocese of Camden” from Sullivan, who’s described as a “serial molester and sexual abuser.”

A representative of the diocese could not be reached for immediate comment Tuesday morning.

The diocese in February included Sullivan’s name on a list of 57 clergymen credibly accused of sexual abuse of minors.

According to the lawsuit, Sullivan, who was determined no longer eligible to be a priest in 2010, “acknowledged the substantiated allegation of prior abuse” of a 14-year-old boy at Assumption Church in Atco.

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WOODBRIDGE (NJ)
NJ Advance Media

May 13, 2019

By Susan K. Livio

Todd Kostrub of Surf City started coming to the Statehouse in Trenton seven years ago to publicly share the dark secret that took him years to admit: His parish priest started raping him when he was a 7-year-old altar boy.

Kostrub said he revisited the shame and terrors of his memories to convince state lawmakers that survivors like him “deserve a taste a justice,” by expanding the window of time they get to sue their abusers in New Jersey. The law allowed childhood victims just two years past their 18th birthday to file a claim.

On Monday, Kostrub joined nearly 100 of fellow advocates at the Statehouse once again, this time to celebrate the enactment of the broadest statute of limitations law in the country for child and adult victims of rape.

Kostrub said he has hired a lawyer and is ready to savor whatever justice he can find.

“This is joy,” he said, hours after Gov. Phil Murphy signed the new statute of limitations legislation into law. “But I would trade anything in my life not to be here, to never have been a victim.”

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MINNEAPOLIS (MN)
The Associated Press

May 13, 2019

Five victims of sex abuse by Catholic priests plan to sue the Vatican and are demanding to know the names of thousands of predator priests they say have been kept secret.

Attorney Jeff Anderson plans to file his lawsuit on Tuesday.

The plaintiffs include three brothers who were abused by former priest Curtis Wehmeyer as recently as 2012 in St. Paul, Minnesota. Wehmeyer pleaded guilty to criminal sexual conduct and child pornography in connection with his contact with two of the boys, who were 12 and 14.

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PITTSBURGH (PA)
AP/KDKA

May 13, 2019

A priest with the Roman Catholic Diocese of Pittsburgh has been placed on administrative leave while officials investigate claims that he had “inappropriate contact” with adult women.

The decision regarding Fr. James Young was announced in a May 4 letter from Bishop David Zubik that was distributed this past weekend in the church bulletins of St. Ferdinand in Cranberry Township, St. Gregory in Zelienople and Holy Redeemer in Ellwood City.

Fr. Young is a member of the ministry team for the merged parishes.

Many members of those congregations say their faith remains strong, and this won’t impact the way they serve their church families or their communities.

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[Suspended priest accused of child sexual abuse in Illapel]

CHILE
El Día

May 10, 2019

By EFE (news agency)

Desde el obispado instaron a cualquier persona que disponga de antecedentes o pruebas sobre la denuncia o cualquier otra a que se ponga en contacto con ellos.

Desde el obispado de Illapel se suspendió al presbítero Renato Riveros después de ser informados que el sacerdote fue acusado ante la Fiscalía Nacional de presuntamente haber cometido abusos sexuales a un menor, según informó la diócesis a través de un comunicado.

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[Opinion: Causes and responsibilities of sexual abuse in the Catholic Church]

CHILE
El Mostrador

May 12, 2019

By Pablo Torche

En la práctica, la Iglesia Católica ha tendido a “normalizar” los abusos, concibiéndolos como una conducta sexual fuera de lo prescrito, pero sin percibir del todo su carácter deshumanizante, las gravísimas consecuencias que trae para la víctima ni el grado de perversión que revelan. Esta perspectiva puede explicar también que se hayan tratado de presentar como comportamientos excepcionales o aislados, lo que evidentemente constituyen patrones de conducta cada vez más consolidados. La única razón que se me ocurre para explicar esta grotesca confusión se relaciona con la visión misma de la sexualidad que sostiene la iglesia, lo que podría constituir una tercera línea explicativa de los abusos, sobre la que se ha discutido menos.

Las estremecedoras declaraciones de Marcela Aranda sobre la pesadilla que vivió a manos del sacerdote jesuita, Renato Poblete, renuevan la urgencia por tratar de comprender, al menos identificar, las razones o condiciones que hicieron posible estos horribles hechos. ¿Cómo puede entenderse que tantos hombres, que se supone debían consagrar su vida a Cristo, hayan incurrido en este tipo de abusos, de forma tan sistemática, en algunos casos hasta llegar a construir verdaderas cofradías del mal al interior de la Iglesia Católica? Tratar de comprender puede ser un primer paso para prevenir, un fundamento para avanzar hacia un mundo sin abusos.

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[Military bishop details prosecution of five armed forces priests accused of abuse]

CHILE
La Tercera

May 13, 2019

By Javiera Matus

El presidente de la Conferencia Episcopal, Santiago Silva, dio cuenta de desconocidas investigaciones canónicas realizadas contra presbísteros. Además, aseguró que altos mandos de las Fuerzas Armadas fueron informados de estas situaciones.

Desconocidos antecedentes reveló el 27 de agosto de 2018 el presidente de la Conferencia Episcopal, el obispo castrense Santiago Silva Retamales. Su declaración en calidad de testigo se la entregó al scal sur Guillermo Adasme, quien investiga presuntos delitos sexuales de sacerdotes. Entre otras materias, contó que tuvo conocimiento de cinco presbíteros de las Fuerzas Armadas denunciados por presuntos abusos sexuales.

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[Óscar Contardo: “On the subject of sexual abuse, the Jesuits are the same as any other congregation”]

CHILE
The Clinic

May 9, 2019

By Alejandra Matus

El autor de “Rebaño” sostiene que la idea de la excepcionalidad de esta Congregación en cuanto a su conducta más abierta y cercana a los que sufren, moderna y tolerante con los temas valóricos, ha persistido gracias a sus redes de poder y en los medios, y no a una conducta distinta en el tratamiento de las denuncias.

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WASHINGTON (DC)
The Hill

May 13, 2019

By Zack Budryk

Five victims of clergy sexual abuse are suing the Vatican for the disclosure of thousands of predatory Catholic priests’ names, according to the Associated Press.

Plaintiffs in the lawsuit include three brothers who were abused by ex-priest Curtis Wehmeyer, who pleaded guilty to criminal sexual conduct and child pornography in St. Paul, Minn.

Internal documents indicated local church leaders were aware of Wehmeyer’s history of sexual misconduct when it installed him to lead St. Paul’s Church of the Blessed Sacrament in 2009, and a 2014 internal memo expressed worries that then- St. Paul Minneapolis Archbishop John Nienstedt’s judgment had been affected by his “social relationship” with Wehmeyer, the AP reported.

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PITTSBURGH (PA)
Tribune Review

May 13, 2019

By Jacob Tierney

A Diocese of Greensburg priest has been placed on leave as law enforcement investigates an allegation of sexual abuse of a minor, the diocese said.

Officials said they received the allegation Monday against the Rev. Andrew M. Kawecki. He served as pastor of St. Joseph Parish in Everson and St. John the Baptist Parish in Scottdale.

The allegation is in connection with an incident that allegedly happened 15 years ago, according to the diocese.

The diocese reported the allegation to the PA ChildLine.

“A credible allegation does not mean it has been substantiated or proven,” the diocese said in a statement. “This announcement in no way implies Fr. Kawecki is guilty.”

Kawecki was born in Gdansk, Poland. He was ordained in Greensburg in 1980.

He will remain on leave and will not participate in his parish duties until the investigation is complete.

Another pastor will be found for his parishes, according to the diocese.

“We know how important our actions and level of transparency are to survivors, parishioners and clergy,” the statement said. “That is why we are making this public announcement while the investigation is ongoing.

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ST. PAUL (MN)
Associated Press

May 13, 2019

By Amy Forleti and Michael Rezendes

Five men who say they were sexually abused by Roman Catholic priests when they were minors are planning to sue the Vatican and are demanding the names of thousands of predator priests they claim have been kept secret by the Holy See.

In a Monday news release announcing the lawsuit, St. Paul attorney Jeff Anderson said he wants to show that the Vatican tried to cover up actions by top church officials, including former St. Paul-Minneapolis Archbishop John Nienstedt. The lawsuit being filed Tuesday seeks the release of 3,400 names of priests who were referred to the Vatican for “credible cases of abuse.” That number was released by the Vatican in 2014.

The lawsuit comes less than a week after Pope Francis issued a groundbreaking new church law requiring all Catholic priests and nuns worldwide to report clergy sexual abuse and cover-ups by their superiors to church authorities. The law is part of a new effort to hold the

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WASHINGTON (DC)
Washington Post

May 13, 2019

Regarding the May 10 news article “Vatican issues decree requiring clergy to report allegations of sexual abuse”

The article credited Pope Francis with instituting a “sweeping new law.” Instead, the pope should be credited with “sweeping under the rug” child sexual abuse allegations.

The Catholic Church’s new rules mandate internal reporting to church authorities exclusively — not civil authorities. As long as reporting remains internal, abuse will continue. In the United States, sexual assault is a crime and should be reported to civil authorities for investigation and prosecution. Catholic clergy are not above U.S. law.

If a teacher sexually abused a child, the principal would remove the teacher and call the police. Why should we expect any less from a pope? Pope Francis needs to send a clear message to predators: “If you sexually abuse anyone in my church, you will be laicized, the police will be called, and we will cooperate fully in their investigation.” Until then, children and vulnerable adults will remain at risk.

As a society, we must not tolerate the protection of institutional reputations over the safety of children. That children are safe from sexual abuse in church is a very low bar to clear, and anything less is unacceptable.

Maureen Roden, Severna Park

The writer is a member of the board of Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests

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WOODLAND PARK NJ)
North Jersey Record

May 13, 2019

By Deena Yellin

New Jersey victims of sexual abuse will now have sweeping new abilities to sue their attackers, and it will be easier for them to seek damages from institutions such as churches that shielded the abuse.

Until now, survivors of sexual assault were prevented from taking their abusers to court because of the statute of limitations: Under New Jersey’s current law, survivors of sexual abuse have only two years to pursue litigation, and a victim of child sexual abuse has only until age 20.

After years of fighting, that changed Monday, when Gov. Phil Murphy signed a law that offers victims of child sexual abuse the ability to sue their abusers up until they turn 55, or within seven years of their realization that the abuse caused them harm.

In addition, victims previously barred by the narrow statute of limitations from suing their abusers and the institutions that protected them now have two years to file lawsuits seeking damages.

“Survivors of sexual abuse deserve opportunities to seek redress against their abusers,” Murphy said Monday after the signing. “This legislation allows survivors who have faced tremendous trauma the ability to pursue justice through the court system.”

New Jersey is the 11th state to pass such a statute of limitations bill, and the reform is pending in several other states. But New Jersey’s law is distinctive because the window lets those who were sexually assaulted as adults file lawsuits, said Pro

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WASHINGTON (DC)
Catholic News Agency

May 13, 2019

By Ed Condon

Pope Francis’ recently promulgated policy on sexual abuse allegations made against bishops, Vos estis lux mundi, offers a new and much expanded interpretation of what constitutes a canonical sexual crime by a cleric.

That interpretation has raised real questions about how the law is to be applied, at the Vatican and in diocesan chanceries.

The new policy recognizes as explicitly criminal the abuse of authority in coercive sexual relationships, a move called for often in the wake of the Theodore McCarrick scandal. It also offers a new definition for “vulnerable” adults, a legal category of persons who could be subject to criminally coercive abuse.

The universal law of the Church previously defined a “vulnerable adult” as one who “habitually lacks the use of reason.”

The new definition classifies a “vulnerable adult” as “any person in a state of infirmity, physical or mental deficiency, or deprivation of personal liberty which, in fact, even occasionally, limits their ability to understand or to want or otherwise resist the offense.”

That definition could seem to cover a very broad swath of situations, which would be quite distinct from each other. Some Vatican and diocesan officials have told CNA they are concerned that the potentially broad applicability of the new definition could cause unjust expectations, and uncertainty about how to proceed in individual cases.

Specifically, some worry that Vos estis could foster a sense that nearly any sexual act committed by a priest is expected be treated on a par with the sexual abuse of minors, and lead to his removal permanent removal from ministry.

In a Church committed to zero-tolerance for sexual abuse, the new definition for “vulnerable adult” could make clergy discipline a decidedly more complicated undertaking.

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MINNEAPOLIS (MN)
Associated Press

May 13, 2019

Five men who say they were sexually abused by Roman Catholic priests when they were minors are planning to sue the Vatican and are demanding the names of thousands of predator priests they claim have been kept secret by the Holy See.

In a Monday news release announcing the lawsuit, Minnesota attorney Jeff Anderson said he wants to show that the Vatican tried to cover up actions by top church officials including former St. Paul Minneapolis Archbishop John Nienstedt and former Cardinal Theodore McCarrick, who was found guilty by the Vatican of sexually abusing minors and adults and defrocked by Pope Francis. The lawsuit, which will be filed Tuesday, seeks the release of 3,400 names of purportedly abusive priests.

The plaintiffs include three brothers who were abused by former priest Curtis Wehmeyer as recently as 2012 in St. Paul, Minnesota. Wehmeyer pleaded guilty to criminal sexual conduct and child pornography in connection with his contact with two of the boys, who were 12 and 14.

Wehmeyer’s arrest led prosecutors to file criminal charges against the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis for failing to protect children. It also led to the forced resignation of Nienstedt, who came under fire for his handling of Wehmeyer’s case.

Internal church documents show that church leaders knew Wehmeyer had engaged in sexual misconduct when they promoted him to lead The Church of the Blessed Sacrament in St. Paul, Minnesota, in 2009. The behavior included at least two occasions when Wehmeyer solicited men for sex. Yet, church leaders did not warn parishioners about his past.

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CHARLOTTE (NC)
Charlotte Observer

May 13, 2019

By Bruce Henderson

The Catholic Diocese of Charlotte said Monday it will publish by year’s end a list of clergy members who have been credibly accused of child sexual abuse. Survivors of abuse have criticized the diocese for not doing so sooner.

In a statement, Bishop Peter Jugis said that the 46-county diocese welcomes new procedures announced last week by Pope Francis that require priests and nuns to report sexual abuse by clergy. The procedures, which will apply to the church worldwide, include some measures already in use in Charlotte, Jugis said.

Jugis hinted at a change of heart when it comes to publishing the names of accused clergy, as other U.S. dioceses have done but Charlotte’s has not.

“Through my discussions with abuse survivors, I have come to believe that a full airing of abuse from the past is crucial in the healing process for victims and for the entire Church,” his statement said.

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.

BRIDGEPORT (CT)
Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests

“He’s left 15 priests off his accused list,” they say, “including 11 who taught at Fairfield Prep.”
SNAP: “Help us get alleged predator out of classroom”
Despite settlement paid, ex-CT cleric now teaches school in NJ. CT’s 5-yr Statute of Limitations prevented criminal charges.
Group says Catholic officials must “beat the bushes” to find more victims

WHAT
Holding signs and childhood photos at a sidewalk news conference, clergy sex abuse victims and their supporters will disclose names and information about 15 publicly and credibly accused child molesting clerics who worked in and around Bridgeport but have been left off the list published by the Bridgeport diocese.

They will also challenge Bridgeport’s bishop to
–add these 15 names to his official ‘accused’ list,
–include photos, whereabouts and work histories of ALL accused clerics, and
–help education officials oust a former Bridgeport predator priest who is now a teacher.

WHEN
Monday May 13 at noon

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.

ST. LOUIS (MO)
Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests

May 13, 2019

Earlier this month, a Conroe County Grand Jury indicted allegedly abusive priest Fr. Manuel LaRosa Lopez. Today, that case moves forward.

We hope that this trial will encourage other survivors in Texas to come forward, make a report to law enforcement, and find independent sources of healing. We also hope that this trial sends the message that, while one case may be moving in Conroe County, more work is desperately needed throughout Texas to protect children and vulnerable adults and to support survivors of sexual violence.

We are encouraging Texans across the state to take three steps that can make a difference:

First, contact Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton and urge to him to follow in the footsteps of nineteen other attorneys general around the country and open an investigation into clergy sex abuse. AG Paxton can make a difference by opening a confidential hotline and email address that survivors can use to report their experiences. And while he is soliciting this information, AG Paxton should be passing information on to local district attorneys in an effort to find cases that can be prosecuted. Sample language can be found here.

Second, contact your county’s District Attorney and urge them to actively reach out to local communities, urging survivors to come forward and make a report of their abuse. District Attorneys can also encourage witnesses and whistleblowers to share any information they might have related to past or ongoing cases of clerical sexual abuse.

Finally, contact your state representatives and senators and urge them to create or sponsor legislation that will protect children, benefit survivors, and prevent future cases of abuse. For example, reforming statutes of limitations can help survivors find justice where none existed previously and can get important information about abusers into the hands of the public.
Similarly, representatives and senators can look to create legislation that would allow AG Paxton to convene a Grand Jury, something that has been effective in other places including most recently in Pennsylvania.

These elected officials are key to the creation and implementation of critical reforms that can help keep the vulnerable in Texas safer, create healing environments for survivors, and find justice for past crimes while preventing future ones. We hope everyone in Texas will

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.

ST. LOUIS (MO)
Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests

May 13, 2019

Charlotte’s Catholic bishop will has finally decided to follow in the footsteps of most of his brother bishops and release a list of clergy who have been publicly accused of abuse. Yet, for some reason, he was unable to commit to releasing the list promptly, only agreeing to do so “by the end of the year.”

While we are glad that Bishop Peter Jugis is finally taking this much belated and long overdue step, it is challenging to understand why it took so long to reach this decision. In his statement, Bishop Jugis says that he began the review process last fall: why then, can he not put a preliminary list out today and then continue to add and update as more information comes in? That would be the better thing to do, and more in line with the Church’s pledges to be “open and honest” about the clergy sex abuse scandal.

The longer information about abusers remains hidden, the less informed communities are and the greater the risk to the vulnerable. Most bishops around the country have already released names and other information to the public. Bishop Jugis should not need the rest of the year to follow suit and should be able to commit to more than this vague deadline.

When the bishop does release his list, we hope that it is the single-most comprehensive list of its kind in the country. The extra time needed by Church officials in the Diocese of Charlotte should let them ensure that their list contains not only names and current status and whereabouts, but also headshots, work histories for each of the accused, dates the allegations were received and detailed information on what steps Church officials in Charlotte took in response to those allegations.

It is also worth pointing out that in his statement Bishop Jugissays that any allegation he uncovers in his “comprehensive review” will be forwarded to the Lay Review Board for examination, yet makes no mention of police or prosecutors. Institutions cannot police themselves and the only way to get to the bottom of the clergy abuse scandal and determine who knew what, when they knew, and what they did with that information is by involving the secular professionals in law enforcement.

While we are glad that Bishop Peter Jugis is finally taking this much belated and long overdue step, it is challenging to understand why it took so long to reach this decision. In his statement, Bishop Jugis says that he began the review process last fall: why then, can he not put a preliminary list out today and then continue to add and update as more information comes in? That would be the better thing to do, and more in line with the Church’s pledges to be “open and honest” about the clergy sex abuse scandal.

The longer information about abusers remains hidden, the less informed communities are and the greater the risk to the vulnerable. Most bishops around the country have already released names and other information to the public. Bishop Jugis should not need the rest of the year to follow suit and should be able to commit to more than this vague deadline.

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.

ST. LOUIS (MO)
Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests

May 13, 2019

We commend Governor Phil Murphy, Senator Joseph Vitale, Assemblywoman Annette Quijano, NJ SNAP leader Mark Crawford, and the hundreds of survivors and advocates who made this dramatic reform of the statute of limitations (SOL) in New Jersey possible. The new law will be one of the best in the nation, granting all sexual abuse survivors the opportunity to access the justice system.

Previously NJ had only allowed child sexual abuse victims two years from their 18th birthday to file a lawsuit against their perpetrators and the institutions that protected them. The new statute will extend the civil SOL to age 55, or seven years after the victims discover the connection of their emotional and psychological harm to their sexual abuse. It also opens a two year ‘window to justice’ to allow those previously barred by the state’s extremely restricted SOL to take action. Finally, the new law extends the SOL for those who were sexually assaulted as adults from two years to seven years. These changes will help to bring accountability to any organization that harbors, conceals or protects those who sexually abuse children or vulnerable adults.

By taking this step today, New Jersey is providing an excellent example to other states of concrete legislation that can help survivors, create informed communities, and safeguard the vulnerable. We hope that legislators throughout the U.S. will seek opportunities to learn more and reform statutes of limitations laws or create “windows to justice” in their own states.

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.

CHARLOTTE (NC)
WCNC TV

May 10, 2019

As the Pope issues a new, groundbreaking law requiring Catholic priests and nuns to report sexual abuse and cover-ups by their superiors, we’re learning the name of yet another former Charlotte priest accused of past abuse.

Sex abuse attorney Jeff Anderson listed Father Eugene D. Corbesero’s name alongside more than 300 other publicly accused predators this week. The list shows Corbesero eventually left the Catholic Church but first spent three years at Our Lady of Consolation in Charlotte and St. Dorothy in Lincolnton.

The Diocese of Charlotte said the late former priest served from 1973 to 1976 but was technically a member of a religious order, not the diocese. 30 years later, he reportedly pleaded guilty in New Jersey for molesting a 12-year-old boy who was attending a sleepover at his house.

“I cannot speak to what prompted them to put his name on their list,” Patricia Guilfoyle said.

The new information surfaced after a survivor filed suit this week against bishops in New Jersey, as part of an effort to force them to release a list of all known predators. The Diocese of Charlotte has also so far refused to release list, which remains under consideration.

Corbesero joins a growing list of at least 15 publicly accused priests with ties to the Diocese of Charlotte, including the former chancellor Monsignor Mauricio West. He resigned in March after an adult student accused him of sexual misconduct while at Belmont Abbey in the 80s.

Survivors and advocates here continue to push for the diocese to release its own list of predator priests, not to just document history, but to make other possible victims aware who these people are, where they worked and when.

Just days ago, the Pope demanded more accountability and transparency moving forward, effective June 1.

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Get Religion blog

May 12, 2019

Clemente Lisi

A new decree by Pope Francis that now requires priests and nuns to report cases of abuse by other clergy — including any cover-ups by superiors such as a local bishop — is long overdue.

It’s so long overdue that one has to wonder why this wasn’t something put into practice by the church years ago.

Nonetheless, the pope’s attempt to finally create some accountability and transparency is well intentioned, although misguided given that it largely ignores the role of laypeople and relies primarily on clergy self-policing, something sex abuse victims and their families have long decried as part of the problem.

The new church law — known as Vos Estis Lux Mundi (You Are the Light of the World) — announced this week doesn’t require clergy to report these cases to civil authorities, such as the local police. That’s a big mistake. The primary responsibility of anyone who witnesses a crime is to alert authorities. In the case of predator priests, the Vatican has long argued that involving civil authorities could potentially endanger the lives of church officials in places where Roman Catholics are persecuted.

As a result, this papal decree gives bishops (and men above them like archbishops) lots of power and appears to be a contradiction of those same claims of clericalism the pope and his supporters in the Roman curia largely pointed to last year when confronted with allegations of sex abuse. The practice of policing oneself hasn’t worked well in the past for the church or any large secular or religious organization.

“People must know that bishops are at the service of the people,” Archbishop Charles Scicluna, the Vatican’s sex crimes prosecutor, told The Associated Press. “They are not above the law, and if they do wrong, they must be reported.”

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ROME (ITALY)
Crux

May 12, 2019

By John L. Allen Jr.

Now that the dust has settled a bit on Vos Estis Lux Mundi, a new set of papal norms governing both reporting and investigation into accusations of clerical sexual abuse and its cover-up released by the Vatican on Thursday, the overall reaction seems reasonably clear.

For most people, it can be expressed this way: So far as they go, these rules seem promising, but we need to see them applied in practice – because experience has shown that in the Catholic Church, as in virtually any other context, a law’s only as important as the will to enforce it.

Since that’s an “only time will tell” situation, here are three other quick thoughts on Vos Estis to chew on while the jury remains out.

Papal populism?
When the Vatican presented the norms to the media Wednesday, they turned again, as they almost always do on the abuse scandals, to the most credible voice they’ve got: Archbishop Charles Scicluna of Malta, formerly the Vatican’s top prosecutor on abuse cases and a man seen as the Elliot Ness of the Church on the issue, with an “untouchable” reputation for integrity.

One revealing moment came when Scicluna was surrounded by a scrum of Italian reporters, speaking in Italian for one of the country’s main broadcast outlets.

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.

FRESNO (CA)
Fresno Bee

May 10, 2019

By Yesenia Amaro

The Diocese of Fresno’s new bishop has denounced comments made by a priest’s defense attorney targeting alleged victims of sexual abuse, calling the statements “unacceptable.”

Rev. Joseph V. Brennan’s statement came Friday afternoon, two days after an advocacy group demanded he make a public apology over comments made by Bakersfield attorney Kyle Humphrey.

Humphrey is representing Monsignor Craig Francis Harrison after allegations of sexual abuse against the priest emerged in Firebaugh and Merced.

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.

WASHINGTON (DC)
Channel 4 News

May 11, 2019

By Christina Bravo and Melissa Adan

A San Diego woman who says she was abused by a clergy member as a girl is urging other local sexual abuse victims to file reports with the state so religious leaders may be held accountable.

Cynthia Ann Doe is speaking out for the first time about what she says Monsignor Gregory Sheridan did to her when she was five years old and a parishoner at St. Jude’s Shrine of the West in the 60s.

Sheridan was named last November by the Catholic Diocese of San Diego among a list of more than 50 abusive priests in San Diego and San Bernardino of whom the diocese said it had received a credible allegation involving sexual abuse of a minor.

During a press conference outside the church’s doors, Doe did not publicly detail the priest’s acts but urged other victims to come forward so that Sheridan and the Diocese of San Diego could be investigated by the California Attorney General’s office.

“Release yourself from the burden of the anger and the shame of what happened to you as an innocent child, it is not your fault and it is not too late,” Doe said.

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.

Patheos blog
May 10, 2019

By Michael Stone

Moral failure: Pope Francis issues new church law that sexual abuse must be reported to church officials, but not the police, not the state, not the secular authorities.

The BBC reports:

Pope Francis has made it mandatory for Roman Catholic clergy to report cases of clerical sexual abuse and cover-ups to the Church.

Many in the mainstream media are praising the new law as “groundbreaking.” And to be fair, it is a slight improvement. Previously church officials were not mandated to report sexual abuse, or suspected sexual abuse, to anyone. The new church law changes that. The BBC notes:

For the first time, clerics and other Church officials will be obliged to disclose any allegations they may have heard. Previously, this had been left to each individual’s discretion.

Yet the new law mandates that reports be made to church superiors, not the police, not the state, not the secular authorities. Reporting on the story The Guardian notes:

However, the church law does not require police to be notified. The Vatican has said that different countries’ legal systems make a universal reporting law impossible, and that imposing one could endanger the church in places where Catholics are a persecuted minority.

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.

GUAM
Pacific News Center

May 13, 2019

By Jolene Toves

An individual filed a complaint at the Superior Court of Guam, adding another case to the list of sexual abuse lawsuits against the Archdiocese of Agana.

Wishing to remain anonymous, the victim identified by the initials Z.S. had served as an altar boy at the Church of St. Jude in Sinajana since he was about seven years old.

When the victim reached the age of 15, he said Father David Anderson allegedly began touching, snuggling and groping him when he slept overnight in the convent.

According to the complaint, Father David would touch the victim inappropriately and would lay on top of the victim while he slept. The priest allegedly rubbed his genitals on the victim’s body causing “great shame and embarrassment to Z.S.

While he told his parents about what Father Anderson did to him, they did not believe him. He said the sexual abuse continued until he stopped serving as an 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.

CHARLOTTE (NC)
WBTV

May 13, 2019

Peter J. Jugis, the bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Charlotte, announced on Monday that the Diocese welcomed new procedures for handling child sexual abuse cases recommended last week by Pope Francis.

These new procedures include new approaches to handling investigations and protecting the victims and whistleblowers involved in these situations.

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.

ROME
Crux

May 13, 2019

By John L. Allen Jr.

It’s now been almost a year since the latest wave of the clerical sexual abuse scandals in Catholicism erupted with news that the Vatican had removed then-Cardinal Theodore McCarrick from ministry following allegations deemed credible by a review board in the Archdiocese of New York.

How bad have things become over that year?

Well, one measure is this: Arguably the most prominent Catholic bishop in America, and by consensus the most talented natural communicator and evangelist among the current crop of U.S. prelates, felt compelled to bring out a new book today in which he urges, almost begs, rank-and-file Catholics not to just walk away.

“I have written this book for my fellow Catholics who feel, understandably, demoralized, scandalized, angry beyond words, and ready to quit,” writes Auxiliary Bishop Robert Barron of Los Angeles, known to millions of Catholics in America and around the world through his Word on Fire ministry and his “Catholicism” TV series.

“What I finally urge my brothers and sisters in the Church to do is to stay and fight-and to do so on behalf of themselves and their families, but especially on behalf of those who have suffered so grievously at the hands of wicked men,” Barron writes.

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.

WARSAW (POLAND)
The Associated Press

May 13, 2019

A new documentary revealing cases of sexual abuse by priests has deeply shaken Poland, one of Europe’s most Roman Catholic societies, eliciting an apology from the church hierarchy and prompting one cleric to leave priestly life.

“Tell No One,” a film financed through a crowdfunding campaign, was released on YouTube on Saturday. By Monday, the documentary had more than 8 million views.

It triggered soul searching in a country where there is no higher authority than the Catholic Church and its clergy.

“Why do priests commit such crimes? Why did the bishops not react as they should? Why, for years, did a conspiracy of silence prevail among the clergy?” journalist Andrzej Gajcy asked Monday on the news site Onet, voicing some of the uncomfortable questions confronting many Poles.

The primate of Poland has thanked the brothers who made the film, Tomasz and Marek Sekielski, for their “courage.”

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

UNITED KINGDOM
County Gazette

May 13, 2019

By Phil Hill

PRINCE Charles was “deceived” into supporting a paedophile bishop, it is claimed.

Peter Ball, who retired to Aller, near Langport, and is now in is late 80s, may have preyed on more than 100 boys and young men over decades.

A report concludes that the Church of England responded with “secrecy” to child abuse allegations against Ball, who was Bishop of Lewes, East Sussex, from 1977 to 1992 and Bishop of Gloucester in 1992.

He then resigned through ill health after accepting a caution – an admission of guilt – for one count of gross indecency.

The Prince of Wales was described as “misguided” for speaking in support of Ball to the Archbishop of Canterbury, while the Duchy of Cornwall was criticised for buying a property to rent to the disgraced priest.

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.

VATICAN CITY
The Associated Press

May 12, 2019

By Frances D’Emilio

Pope Francis has given the church 19 new priests, ordaining the men in an elaborate ceremony Sunday in St. Peter’s Basilica, as the credibility of the Vatican and many of its clergy is threatened by widespread scandals of pedophile priests and systematic efforts at cover-ups.

Fifteen of the seminarians ordained by Francis are Italian; the others are from Croatia, Peru, Haiti and Japan. The seminarians’ ages range from mid-20s to 46.

Wearing white robes, the seminarians stood in three rows before the central altar after replying, “Here I am,” as their names were called one by one. Francis, reciting a ritual formula, asked if they were worthy to become priests. Later in the ceremony, the seminarians prostrated themselves in a sign of obedience to church authority and to God, on a carpet in front of the altar.

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.

ROME
Crux

May 12, 2019

By John L. Allen Jr.

Now that the dust has settled a bit on Vos Estis Lux Mundi, a new set of papal norms governing both reporting and investigation into accusations of clerical sexual abuse and its cover-up released by the Vatican on Thursday, the overall reaction seems reasonably clear.

For most people, it can be expressed this way: So far as they go, these rules seem promising, but we need to see them applied in practice – because experience has shown that in the Catholic Church, as in virtually any other context, a law’s only as important as the will to enforce it.

Since that’s an “only time will tell” situation, here are three other quick thoughts on Vos Estis to chew on while the jury remains out.

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.

SANTIAGO (CHILE)
Crux

May 13, 2019

By Inés San Martín

Though arguably it’s not easy being a Catholic bishop anywhere in the world these days, few prelates probably have ever stepped into an inferno quite the way Bishop Celestino Aós Braco of Chile did in March.

Since 2014, Aós had been serving as the bishop of Copiapó, a relatively sleepy diocese in the northern part of the country. Two months ago, however, Francis tapped him to become the apostolic administrator of Santiago, the national capital, which has been ripped apart by clerical abuse scandals and accusations of inaction against the last two archbishops, Cardinals Francisco Errázuriz and Ricardo Ezzati.

Aós, a 74-year-old Capuchin, hasn’t been on the job long, and there’s no guarantee he’ll keep it – as apostolic administrator, in theory he’s only keeping the seat warm until a new archbishop is named.

He may have few of the benefits of the post, but he certainly has all its headaches. Early on, critics pounced on his record as the Promoter of Justice in the Diocese of Valparaíso, Chile, where in 2007 he found “implausible” a complaint of sexual abuse made by a former seminarian against a former rector of a seminary now regarded as having been one of the epicenters of Chile’s abuse crisis.

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.

HARRISBURG (PA)
CBS 21 News

May 12, 2019

Monday is the last day for sex abuse survivors to file any claims for a victim compensation fund through the Harrisburg Diocese.

The fund was launched back in February. It gave survivors four months to file any claims.

The church has put aside millions of dollars for victims who want a settlement.

Monday is the last day any victim who was involved with the diocese can make a claim.

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.

[Three priests investigated for sexual abuse in Michoacán]

MEXICO
Informador.Mx

May 9, 2019

Autoridades eclesiásticas señalan que se le da seguimiento puntual a estos casos, y prometen tolerancia cero

El arzobispo de Morelia, Carlos Garfias Merlos, señaló que en Michoacán se investigan tres casos de presunto abuso de sacerdotes a niñas.

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.

CAPE TOWN
Eyewitness News

May 13, 2019

By Monique Mortlock

The father of a girl who was harassed by a church elder says the Seventh Day Adventist Church in George failed to adhere to church policy on reporting sexual abuse cases.

A George man said he was dissatisfied with a response by his church following a South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) complaint over the handling of a sexual assault matter involving his child.

The father said he’d lost trust in the church’s leadership and opened a civil case against the institution.

He claimed the Seventh Day Adventist Church in George failed to adhere to church policy on reporting sexual abuse cases after his daughter and another young girl were harassed by a church elder a few years ago.

“They basically said the pastor reported the case, but they’ve never supplied a case number to verify that the pastor did report the case,” the father said.

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.

ROSARIO (ARGENTINA)
Crux

May 12, 2019

By Inés San Martín

A group of Argentine bishops currently in Rome to meet their countryman Pope Francis have acknowledged that “abuses of power as well as sexual abuses” have caused distrust in the Church, but also expressed concern over what they called the “continuous attacks on the pope” associated with the abuse crisis.

The bishops also said that the terms of a national debate over the legalization of abortion “did us Argentines a lot of wrong,” expressing surprise at the level of anger they encountered.

The words belong to Bishop Oscar Ojea, president of the Argentine bishops’ conference, and they were expressed in a letter the bishops of the Buenos Aires region gave to Francis on Friday during their ad limina visit to Rome.

Ojea wrote that with the passing of the years, it’s become evident to the bishops that they still have a “long way to go” to be able to live up to the responsibility of being a conference to which the pope once belonged, and which he once led.

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.

[Victims of abusive priests protest in front of clergy home in Flores]

ARGENTINA
TN

May 2, 2019

By Miriam Lewin

Son parte de una organización mundial. Denunciaron a los obispos argentinos que protegieron a curas pedófilos en sus diócesis.

La elección del lugar para dar una conferencia de prensa en plena calle es simbólica. Por eso, Ending Clergy Abuse, la ONG que busca terminar con el abuso del clero (de ahí su nombre), la eligió para enunciar un desafío al Papa Francisco junto a otros sobrevivientes de lo que el pontífice llamó” flagelo”.

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.

VATICAN CITY
The Associated Press

May 10, 2019

By Nicole Winfield

Pope Francis issued a groundbreaking new church law Thursday requiring all Catholic priests and nuns around the world to report clergy sexual abuse and cover-ups by their superiors to church authorities, in a new effort to hold the Catholic hierarchy accountable for failing to protect their flocks.

The law provides whistleblower protections for anyone making a report and requires all dioceses to have a system in place to receive the claims confidentially. And it outlines internal procedures for conducting preliminary investigations when the accused is a bishop, cardinal or religious superior.

Abuse victims and their advocates said the law was a step forward, but not enough since it doesn’t require the crimes to be reported to police and essentially tasks discredited bishops who have mishandled abuse for decades with policing their own.

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.

ROME
The Atlantic

May 12, 2019

By Emma Green

The leader of the Catholic Church has issued rules creating worldwide accountability for reporting allegations of abuse. But he still faces deep cynicism from the body faithful.

Before this week, the Roman Catholic Church had no global policy requiring priests and bishops to report and investigate allegations of sexual abuse. No formal measure held bishops accountable for misconduct and cover-ups, despite a number of high-profile, horrific cases of wrongdoing by the Church’s top leaders. With story after story exposing new abuses around the world, Catholics have grown cynical about the Vatican’s willingness to face the global sickness of sexual abuse, and many have abandoned the Church entirely.

On Thursday, Pope Francis took a significant step toward changing that.

The pope’s moto proprio, which will take effect in June and remain in place as an experiment for three years, is a definitive and concrete step forward for the Church, demonstrating that Pope Francis is taking sexual abuse seriously. The new law is not a panacea, however: It does not detail specific punishments for Church leaders who violate these norms, and it does not mandate the involvement of authorities outside the Church. After years of paralysis on this issue, the Church must grapple with the crisis of confidence among the faithful, along with skeptics who believe the Catholic Church is not capable of policing itself against abuses of power.

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.

SAN DIEGO (CA)
NBC Bay Area

May 10, 2019

By Christina Bravo and Melissa Adan

The Priest was named last November by the Catholic Diocese of San Diego among a list of more than 50 abusive priests in San Diego and San Bernardino of whom the diocese said it had received a credible allegation involving sexual abuse of a minor

A San Diego woman who says she was abused by a clergy member as a girl is urging other local sexual abuse victims to file reports with the state so religious leaders may be held accountable.

Cynthia Ann Doe is speaking out for the first time about what she says Monsignor Gregory Sheridan did to her when she was five years old and a parishoner at St. Jude’s Shrine of the West in the 60s.

Sheridan was named last November by the Catholic Diocese of San Diego among a list of more than 50 abusive priests in San Diego and San Bernardino of whom the diocese said it had received a credible allegation involving sexual abuse of a minor.

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 cases of sexual abuse shake Catholic Church – VIDEO]

CHILE
TVN

May 8, 2019

Conocimos la historia de Mario Montenegro, quien asegura haber sido abusado por un sacerdote en el Colegio Calasanz cuando él era un niño. Además, Isaac Givovich relató que fue violado en un colegio de los hermanos maristas cuando pequeño y que hasta el día de hoy ha afectado su vida.

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[How the Pope’s new rules affect Chile: priest do not have to report abuse to prosecutors]

CHILE
La Tercera

May 9, 2019

By María José Navarrete

El escrito tipica y penaliza canónicamente, por primera vez, los actos de encubrimiento, da un plazo de 90 días para las investigaciones y ja cómo abordar denuncias contra obispos.

“Los delitos de abuso sexual ofenden a nuestro Señor, causan daños físicos, psicológicos y espirituales a las víctimas, y perjudican a la comunidad”. Así comienza el documento, en forma de motu proprio, que hoy dio a conocer el Papa Francisco y que establece nuevas normas para enfrentar los casos de abusos en la Iglesia Católica.

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[Priest accused of harassing 5 students during confessions]

ARGENTINA
TN

May 9, 2019

Las víctimas tienen entre 12 y 15 años y asisten a un colegio de Dock Sud.

Un inesperado escándalo por acoso sexual estalló en el colegio Sagrado Corazón de Dock Sud. El acusado es un cura de unos 60 años que se habría amparado en la intimidad del momento de la confesión para abusar de por lo menos cinco alumnos. Una estudiante de 12 años fue la que sacó a la luz la conducta del religioso. Según su relato, estaba en plena clase cuando la llamaron para confesarse, aunque ella no lo había pedido. “Se sentó al lado de él y el hombre le tomó las manos, acercó su silla y comenzó a acariciarle las piernas. Las caricias no paraban, el cura le apretó las rodillas y comenzó a decirle que era muy linda y hermosa”, contó Mónica, su mamá, a Crónica.

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