ABUSE TRACKER

INDONESIA
Vatican Radio

Nearly 70 of priests of Ruteng Diocese in eastern Indonesia have sought the mediation of the Vatican to help resolve a bitter dispute with their bishop, whom they accuse of misappropriating more than US$100,000 in church funds.

Representatives of the priests, accompanied by a bishops’ conference official met Apostolic Nuncio Archbishop Antonio Guido Filipazzi on June 16, seeking his help for a complete overhaul and transparency from Bishop Hubertus Leteng regarding how things are run in the diocese. The move comes after dozens of priests in the diocese on Catholic-majority Flores Island quit their posts in protest against their bishop.

Father Alfonsius Segar, one of the priests who met Arch. Filipazzi, told UCANEWS that the Holy See’s representative to Indonesia, has promised to help resolve the dispute. “He will immediately take this issue up with the Vatican,” Father Segar said. The priest also said the nuncio will send someone to the diocese to appraise the situation. “We are looking forward to a swift Vatican decision on this,” Father Segar added.

Meanwhile, Indonesia’s Ambassador to the Holy See, Antonius Agus Sriyono told Vatican Radio he was currently observing the crisis in Ruteng Diocese, but if “requested” he was ready “to become a mediator” of his government with the Vatican.

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NEW YORK
Legislative Gazette

Written by THOMAS GIERY PUDNEY, assistant editor on June 21, 2017

Activists pushing for the long-contested Child Victims Act were left wondering the motives of lawmakers after a week in which Gov. Andrew Cuomo introduced and then questioned the chances, of his own program bill.

“The advocates feel his office hoodwinked us by appeasing victims with his program bill and than appeasing Cardinal Dolan and the church by killing his own bill,” said Gary Greenberg, founder of Fighting for Children Public Action Committee. “I say to this Governor Cuomo: shame on you!”

Greenberg is referring to comments made by Cuomo on a conference call with the press on Friday, two days after introducing his own program bill, that he “was not optimistic,” about its passage in the Senate.

“Cuomo needs to get back to Albany and pass a Child Victims Act,” added Greenberg. “He has disappeared from Albany the last few weeks, the governor has the power to stop 150 kids a day from being sexually abused in New York.”

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FLORIDA
ClickonOrlando

SANFORD, Fla. – A rabbi accused of molesting and impregnating a 15-year-old girl has been arrested, the Sanford Police Department said.

Investigators arrested Lloyd Haughton for sexual assault on a minor living in the custody of Haughton.

The Sanford Police Department said it was notified March 31 by the 15-year-old girl that Haughton had been molesting her for the past two years.

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FLORIDA
WESH

SANFORD, Fla. —
Sanford police arrested a rabbi for allegedly sexually assaulting a minor.

Authorities said a 15-year-old girl contacted them in March, telling police Lloyd Haughton, a rabbi affiliated with the Synagogue Beth Israel on Maple Avenue, had been molesting her for the past two years.

The victim told police Haughton touched her inappropriately.

When confronted and questioned about the incidents, police said Haughton denied all allegations.

In late April, investigators were informed by the victim’s mother that the victim was pregnant with Haughton’s child.

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FLORIDA
WFTV

[with video]

SANFORD, Fla. – A Sanford rabbi was arrested Wednesday on charges he molested a 15-year-old girl over the course of two years before impregnating her earlier this year, investigators said.

The investigation into Lloyd Haughton, who is affiliated with the Synagogue Beth Israel on South Maple Avenue, started on March 31, when the girl told police about the alleged abuse.

Officers questioned Haughton, who denied the allegations, the Sanford Police Department said in a media release.

Less than a month later, the girl’s mother contacted police and told them that her daughter was pregnant and claimed Haughton was the father.

The girl terminated her pregnancy, but the Florida Department of Law Enforcement determined Wednesday that Haughton was the biological father of the fetus, investigators said.

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FLORIDA
Orlando Sentinel

Michael Williams

ASanford rabbi is accused of molesting and impregnating a 15-year-old girl who lived in his custody, according to the Sanford Police Department.

On March 31, authorities say, they began investigating Lloyd Haughton — a rabbi affiliated with Synagogue Beth Israel in Sanford, a Messianic congregation — after the victim told police that Haughton had been molesting her for the past two years.

On April 25, the victim’s mother told police that the 15-year-old was pregnant by Haughton, police said.

A blood test confirmed that Haughton was the father.

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ARGENTINA/ITALY
Le Monde

[Pope accused of protecting priests suspected of pedophile acts in Argentina and Italy]

Le scandale provoqué par la révélation des viols subis par des dizaines d’enfants sourds et muets dans un institut religieux d’Argentine éclabousse jusqu’au pape François.

LE MONDE | 19.06.2017

Par Christine Legrand (Mendoza (Argentine), envoyée spéciale, avec Jérôme Gautheret à Rome)

Le pape François a-t-il ignoré plusieurs alertes sur la présence, dans un institut pour enfants sourds-muets en Argentine – son pays d’origine –, de prêtres qui avaient été accusés de pédophilie lorsqu’ils officiaient pour le même institut en Italie ?

C’est ce qu’affirment des avocats représentant des enfants qui disent avoir été victimes d’agressions sexuelles dans l’institut catholique Provolo de Mendoza, au pied de la cordillère des Andes, à 980 kilomètres à l’ouest de Buenos Aires.

Selon Carlos Lombardi, conseiller de la Fédération des survivants des abus sexuels ecclésiastiques, le réseau L’Abuso, une association de victimes de pédophilie, avait fourni dès 2014 – quelques mois après l’élection au Vatican du pontife argentin Jorge Mario Bergoglio, le 13 mars 2013 – une liste de quinze prêtres qui auraient quitté l’institut Provolo de Vérone (Italie), la maison mère de l’établissement de Mendoza, après avoir été impliqués dans des scandales d’agressions sexuelles.

En savoir plus sur http://www.lemonde.fr/enquetes/article/2017/06/19/en-argentine-et-en-italie-un-scandale-de-pedophilie-entache-l-eglise_5147049_1653553.html#2Uxy14mZsqZTeDRc.99

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ITALY/FRANCE/ARGENTINA
La Croix

An Italian association of sexual abuse victims is seeking to prove that the Pope ignored several alerts to the presence of pedophile priests at an institute for deaf-mute children in Argentina, his country of origin.

Marie Malzac

Did Pope Francis cover up for pedophile priests at the Provolo Institute, an establishment for deaf-mute children in Mendoza at the foot of the Andes, 980 km to the west of Buenos Aires?

This question was raised by the French newspaper Le Monde on Monday, June 19, following accusations relating to the pope earlier over the matter of several days by an Italian association, the Federation of Survivors of Ecclesiastical Sexual Abuse.According to the Federation, Pope Francis was aware of the background of several priests suspected of having abused children in Italy who were later sent by their superiors to the Provolo Institute in Argentina.

These priests, who were arrested in November 2016, are now in prison.According to a document uncovered by the “L’abuso” network and other victims’ associations, the Vatican was made aware several times of the actions of the 14 priests from the Verona region. Moreover, at that time, Pope Francis was no longer in Argentina but at the Vatican since the first report dates to 2014.

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UNITED KINGDOM
Premier

Thu 22 Jun 2017
By Marcus Jones

The Archbishop of Canterbury has issued an unreserved apology after admitting the Church of England colluded and concealed the abuse committed by Bishop Peter Ball.

The Church has released the findings of an independent review into its handling of the abuse.

The review, titled ‘An Abuse of Faith’ was launched after Ball was sentenced in 2015 to 32 months’ in prison after admitting the abuse of 18 children between 1977 and 1992.

He was released from prison earlier this year having served half his sentence.

The review by Dame Moira Gibb found the Church failed to respond appropriately while the Archbishop of Canterbury at the time, Lord Carey, didn’t listen to survivors of abuse.

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UNITED KINGDOM
Associated Press

LONDON (AP) — The head of the Church of England has said that the institution “colluded” with and helped to hide the long-term sexual abuse of young men by one of its former bishops.

Justin Welby, the Archbishop of Canterbury, made the statement Thursday as the church published a review of how it handled the case of former bishop Peter Ball, who was convicted and imprisoned in 2015 after pleading guilty to offenses including two counts of indecent assault.

Welby said the report was “harrowing reading” and that the church didn’t help those who were brave enough to come forward.

The report said Ball’s conduct “caused serious and enduring damage to the lives of many men,” and that “the church at its most senior levels and over many years supported him unwisely.”

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UNITED KINGDOM
Forest of Dean and Wye Valley Review

Thursday, 22 June 2017 By Mark Elson

THE Bishop of Gloucester, the Right Rev Rachel Treweek, says she is “greatly shocked and distressed” by the findings of an independent report into disgraced church leader Peter Ball.

‘An Abuse of Faith’, produced by Dame Moira Gibb, claims that senior figures in the Church of England “colluded” to cover up evidence of former Gloucester bishop Ball’s abuse of boys as young as 12.

The former Archbishop of Canterbury Lord Carey is among those criticised in the report, which was commissioned by the church after Ball was jailed for 32 months in October 2015 for misconduct in public office and indecent assault. Ball was freed last February having served 16 months.

He was first reported to Gloucester Police by novice monk Neil Todd and others in 1992, but no charges were brought against him after police reportedly received supportive phone calls from MPs, former public school headmasters, magistrates and even a Lord Chief Justice.

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NORTHERN IRELAND
Belfast Telegraph

By Staff Reporter
June 22 2017

Victims of historical child abuse in Northern Ireland have been told they will not receive promised financial compensation for at least another 10 months because of the political crisis.

Many have been left devastated to discover that no provision was made in the 2017/18 budget to cover the scheme.

Politicians have been advised by the head of the Civil Service that, with no working Executive, it is unlikely any financial redress will be made before April 2018.

Financial payments were promised to victims more than a year ago.

Politicians have warned that many have been left suicidal or facing financial ruin as the current Stormont impasse means that the findings and recommendations of a four-year inquiry into State and Church abuse have still not been presented to the Assembly. The report, which was published just days before the Assembly collapsed in January, promised victims State-backed compensation payments of up to £100,000.

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UNITED KINGDOM
Christian Today

James Macintyre 22 June 2017

The Church of England ‘colluded’ with the former bishop Peter Ball over his abuse of young boys and men, a new independent report into Ball’s case states.

The report, Abuse of Faith by the respected former social worker Dame Moira Gibb is damning of the Church’s handling of the 84-year-old former Bishop of Lewes and Gloucester, who was jailed for 32 months in October 2015 after admitting a string of historical sex offences against 18 teenagers and young men.

The report has led to apologies from two former Archbishops of Canterbury, George Carey and Rowan Williams, over how they handled the allegations against Ball.

Following Ball’s conviction, Justin Welby, the current Archbishop of Canterbury commissioned the report into Ball, who was released from jail in February after serving 16 months.

‘This report considers the serious sexual wrongdoing of Peter Ball…who abused many boys and men over a period of twenty years or more. That is shocking in itself but it is compounded by the failure of the Church to respond appropriately to his misconduct, again over a period of many years,’ Dame Moira writes in the report’s foreword.

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UNITED KINGDOM
Telegraph

Olivia Rudgard, religious affairs correspondent
22 JUNE 2017

Senior church figures “colluded” with a disgraced bishop to cover up evidence of his sex offences, a report has found.

The report, the result of a year-long enquiry by Dame Moira Gibb, found that senior figures “trivialised” the actions of the disgraced bishop and sought to protect its reputation by covering up evidence of further abuse.

Former Archbishop of Canterbury Lord Carey has been heavily criticised by a damning report which condemns the Church of England over its handling of the case of bishop Peter Ball, who was convicted of sex offences in 2015.

The former bishop of Lewes and Gloucester admitted abusing boys as young as 12. He was released from prison earlier this year.

The report found that Lord Carey wrote to Peter Ball’s twin brother Bishop Michael Ball in 1993, after Peter Ball had accepted a caution for gross indecency, saying he believed he was “basically innocent”.

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UNITED KINGDOM
The Guardian

Harriet Sherwood Religion correspondent

Thursday 22 June 2017

Senior figures in the Church of England colluded for a period of 20 years with a disgraced former bishop who sexually abused boys and men, a damning independent report has found.

The archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, said the report on the church’s handling of former bishop Peter Ball made “harrowing reading”.

“The church colluded and concealed rather than seeking to help those who were brave enough to come forward. This is inexcusable and shocking behaviour,” he said.

“To the survivors who were brave enough to share their story and bring Peter Ball to justice, I once again offer an unreserved apology. There are no excuses whatsoever for what took place and the systemic abuse of trust perpetrated by Peter Ball over decades.”

Two former archbishops of Canterbury, George Carey and Rowan Williams, apologised to the victims of Peter Ball after being criticised for their failures in relation to him.

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UNITED KINGDOM
Church of England

The first thing I want to say at the start of this Press Conference is that I am truly sorry that as a Church we failed the survivors of the abuse perpetrated by Bishop Peter Ball. Having read the report I am appalled and deeply disturbed by its contents. As Dame Moira says in her foreword, Peter Ball abused boys and men over a 20 year period and as a Church we colluded, we failed to act and protect those who came forward for help. There are no excuses.

The Church of England commissioned this review so we could learn from it and this detailed account of what went on provides a clear picture both of Peter Ball’s abusive actions and our
woeful response.

Whilst this is about moving forward – making the Church a safer place for all in 2017 and beyond – nevertheless we have taken very seriously the comments and criticisms in the report of some senior church figures and where appropriate have taken further action. Relating to this it was very disappointing to hear about a leak of a private letter this morning from the Archbishop to Lord Carey, when the focus should be on the survivors.

As the Lead Bishop for Safeguarding I am hugely conscious of the importance of the first recommendation that our bishops must take steps to demonstrate our individual and collective accountability for the safety and protection of all within the church.

In his statement the Archbishop of Canterbury makes it very clear that he is taking a lead on this, as Dame Moira recommends, working with me and the National Safeguarding Team. Every bishop has therefore been sent the report this morning and it is now online for everyone to read.

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UNITED KINGDOM
Church of England

22 June 2017

An Abuse of Faith, the independent report by Dame Moira Gibb into the Church’s handling of the Bishop Peter Ball case, has been published today. Peter Ball was convicted in 2015 of misconduct in public office and indecent assaults against teenagers and young men. The report was commissioned by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, following the conviction.

In her foreword Dame Moira states:

“This report considers the serious sexual wrongdoing of Peter Ball, a bishop of the Church of England who abused many boys and men over a period of twenty years or more. That is shocking in itself but is compounded by the failure of the Church to respond appropriately to his misconduct, again over a period of many years. Ball’s priority was to protect and promote himself and he maligned the abused. The Church colluded with that rather than seeking to help those he had harmed, or assuring itself of the safety of others.

We were asked to consider changes necessary to ensure that safeguarding in the Church is of the highest possible standard. The Church has made significant progress in recent years in its understanding of abuse. We have no doubt that the Church has a genuine commitment to meeting its responsibilities towards the victims of abuse. However we can see how difficult it is to make change across the complex structures of the Church. Progress has been slow and continuing, faster improvement is still required. It is the leadership of the Archbishops and Bishops which will determine whether change is effective.”

The report has 11 recommendations for the Church focusing on a range of issues including focusing on getting the right support in place for survivors, the leadership of bishops, strengthening guidance, reviewing the Archbishops’ Lists and the effectiveness of our disciplinary measures with regards to safeguarding related cases.

Receiving the report on behalf of the Church, Bishop Peter Hancock, the CofE’s lead safeguarding bishop, said: “I am truly sorry that as a Church we failed the survivors of Peter Ball; having read the report I am appalled and disturbed by its contents; as Dame Moira says in her foreword Peter Ball abused boys and men over a 20 year period and as a Church we colluded, we failed to act and protect those who came forward for help. There are no excuses. We accept all the recommendations and are working to action them.

“For the survivors, it may feel this is all too late. I am personally aware from my meetings with individual survivors in the course of my work that they live with the effects of this abuse for their whole life. I once again offer them my wholehearted apology. This Report affirms the direction and steps that we have taken to improve the consistency, robustness and rigour of our practice, but progress has been too slow. It has taken longer than it should have done, but we are absolutely committed to implementing Dame Moira’s recommendations and my role as lead bishop is to ensure this happens.”

Statement from Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby

“Abuse of Faith makes harrowing reading: the Church colluded and concealed rather than seeking to help those who were brave enough to come forward. This is inexcusable and shocking behaviour and although Dame Moira notes that most of the events took place many years ago, and does not think that the Church now would conduct itself in the ways described we can never be complacent, we must learn lessons. I fully endorse the recommendations in the report and will ensure that the House of Bishops addresses how we can implement these as soon as possible, working with the National Safeguarding Team. For the survivors who were brave enough to share their story and bring Peter Ball to justice, I once again offer an unreserved apology. There are no excuses whatsoever for what took place and the systemic abuse of trust perpetrated by Peter Ball over decades.”

If you are affected by this report and want to talk to someone in the Church, your local diocese has a safeguarding adviser or team who can be contacted via the relevant diocesan website. Alternatively, please email the National Safeguarding Team at safeguarding@churchofengland.org. If you want to talk to someone outside of the Church of England you can call the CCPAS helpline on 0303 003 11 11

Notes

Full statement from Bishop Peter Hancock read at press conference

October 2015

Archbishop commissions independent review of Peter Ball case
https://www.churchofengland.org/media-centre/news/2015/10/archbishop-commissions-independent-review-of-peter-ball-case.aspx

Statement on sentencing of Peter Ball
https://www.churchofengland.org/media-centre/news/2015/10/statement-on-the-sentencing-of-peter-ball.aspx

Feb 2016

Dame Moira Gibb announced as Chair of independent review into Peter Ball case
https://www.churchofengland.org/media-centre/news/2016/02/dame-moira-gibb-announced-as-chair-of-independent-review-into-peter-ball-case.aspx

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UNITED KINGDOM
Independent

Tom Batchelor @_tombatchelor

The Church of England “concealed” evidence of child abuse by a former bishop stretching over two decades, archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby has said, following a major independent review.

The report, Abuse of Faith, found senior figures in the church “displayed little care” for the victims of disgraced Peter Ball, who was jailed for 32 months in October 2015 after admitting carrying out a string of historical sex offences against teenage boys and young men in the 1970s, ‘80s and ‘90s.

Dame Moira Gibb, its author, said the Church’s “failure to safeguard so many boys and young men still casts a long shadow”.

“Ball’s priority was to protect and promote himself and he maligned the abused,” the report said.

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CANADA
VICE News

By Rachel Browne on Jun 21, 2017

In an attempt to protect young and vulnerable parishioners from abuse, the Catholic Church of Montreal will start fingerprinting all priests before they work with children.

New rules announced this week will require priests to provide digital fingerprints, and expands on a pilot project called “Responsible Pastoral Ministry” launched within 10 churches in the city last year that imposed screening processes for those working and volunteering within the diocese. All churches in the jurisdiction will have to follow these rules, which prohibits an adult from being alone with children, by 2020.

“If someone would like to do something wrong or abuse anyone, knowing there’s all this filtering, they won’t ask to become volunteers in our church,” Bertrand Montpetit, a pastor at a church in Dollard-des-Ormeaux, told reporters.

It’s all a response to allegations of rampant sexual abuse of children at the hands of Catholic priests in Montreal — and around the world.

In March, a 55-year-old Montreal priest was charged with multiple accounts of sexual assault and touching of three children. Father Brian Boucher was very involved with activities at the church, including assisting youth during confirmations and first communions. The Archdiocese of Montreal denounced any violence within the church.

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WASHINGTON
Daily Sun

By John Fannin Wednesday, June 14, 2017

GRANGER — Area residents are still in shock over a local priest’s dismissal following allegations of sexual abuse.

The Rev. Gustavo Gomez Santos, 51, served Our Lady of Guadalupe Parish, 604 E. Ave., and offered Spanish-language mass in Mabton. He was removed from ministry in the Roman Catholic Church, Yakima Diocese.

Bishop Joseph Tyson said the action was taken because the allegation of sexual abuse of a minor “… was determined to be credible,” Tyson said.

“The whole situation is bad for the victims, the priest, the whole church,” said Al Ramos, who attends mass in Zillah. “It’s bad for everybody.”

Gomez Santos was placed on leave May 5 after Yakima County Sheriff’s Office detectives shared an interview with a 21-year-old former Mattawa resident who reported he had been fondled by the priest five or six years earlier, while the priest was serving as pastor of St.

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NEW YORK
Spectrum News

By Sarah Blazonis
Updated Wednesday, June 21, 2017

AMHERST, N.Y. — It can take decades for people who were sexually abused as children to reach a point where they’re ready to come forward and tell their story.

Thomas Travers says he was a boy when he tried to report what happened to him.

“I came forward when I was that age. I was told I was a liar. I was told that what happened to me did not happen, that a priest would never do that to a child,” said Travers.

He was 48 before he was ready to talk again — 25 years too late to take legal action. Right now, state law sets the statute of limitations on child sex abuse civil actions at the victim’s 23rd birthday.

“An age limit of 23 is both unrealistic and archaic. People who are abused as children, studies show more often than not, repress those memories, and they can resurface as late as someone’s 40s, 50s,” said attorney William Lorenz, Jr.

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NORTHERN IRELAND
Belfast Telegraph

By Allan Preston
June 22 2017

A west Belfast school has been criticised for multiple weaknesses in its child protection measures after three pupils complained when a priest invited to the school asked them sexual questions in confession.

An independent review – ordered by De La Salle College’s Board of Governors in January – detailed several flaws in how the school dealt with the childrens’ complaints.

This included delays in reporting complaints to police, poor record keeping, and a lack of understanding of child protection issues.

The report centres on a visit by a Dublin priest to De La Salle College during May 2013, and of alleged inappropriate sexual conversations with three children.

The pupils complained separately to school authorities in June 2013, September 2014 and March 2015.

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GUAM
The Guam Daily Post

Mindy Aguon |For The Guam Daily Post Jun 22, 2017

A former Guam resident filed a civil lawsuit in the District Court of Guam yesterday alleging he was sexually abused by a priest “more than 100 times” beginning on his 7th birthday.

Now residing in Oregon, the plaintiff, using his initials J.A., sued the Archdiocese of Agana, alleging he was subject to three years of sexual molestation and rape by father Ray Techaira, who is now deceased.

Techaira was the priest assigned to the Nino Perdido y Sagrada Familia Catholic Church in Asan where J.A. and his family regularly attended Mass and volunteered their services at the parish, court documents state.

In 1984, J.A. was helping his grandfather wipe down the church pews when Techaira allegedly instructed the boy to go to the Asan rectory because the priest wanted to give the boy a birthday gift.

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GUAM
KUAM

[with video]

Updated: Jun 22, 2017

By Krystal Paco

It appeared prayers were answered weeks ago when parties expressed optimism for out-of-court settlement for dozens of clergy sex abuse cases.

Today, it appears these talks – at least for those cases filed by attorney David Lujan – have come to a screeching halt.

Late this afternoon, the attorney filed yet another $5 million lawsuit against the Archdiocese of Agana.

The latest lawsuit names a new priest and parish.

He kept his secret because it would make him a “good Catholic.”

Or at least that’s what Father Ray Techaira would tell J.A. after he was sexually abused.

J.A. marks the 78th victim to file suit against the Archdiocese of Agana.

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GUAM
Pacific Daily News

[with video]

Haidee V Eugenio, heugenio@guampdn.com June 22, 2017

A 14th Guam priest is accused of raping and sexually molesting a boy more than 100 times in the 1980s, starting on the boy’s seventh birthday, in a lawsuit filed Thursday, June 22.

Father Ray Techaira allegedly raped and sexually molested the boy from 1984 through 1987, the lawsuit filed in the District Court of Guam says. Techaira is now dead, according to the lawsuit.

The plaintiff, identified in court documents only as J.A. to protect his identity, is now 40 years old and is living in Oregon.

J.A., represented by attorney David Lujan, demands a jury trial and $5 million in minimum damages.

The alleged rape and molestation happened mostly at the Nino Perdido y Sagrada Familia Catholic Church in Asan, the lawsuit says.

“From approximately 1984 through 1987, around the ages of 7 through 10, J.A. was sexually molested and raped by Techaira more than one-hundred times,” the lawsuit states.

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UNITED STATES
WBHM

[with audio]

Posted 06-21-2017 by Kelly McEvers

This story includes content some readers may find disturbing.

Who killed Sister Cathy Cesnik? The Baltimore nun and school teacher was murdered in 1969, and in the Netflix documentary series The Keepers, her students tell a troubling story of abuse by priests, alleged police complicity and a possible cover-up by the Catholic Church.

Jean Wehner is one of those students. She attended Archbishop Keough High School in the late 1960s. Wehner tells NPR that she was “systematically abused, manipulated, raped, conditioned by [school chaplain] Joseph Maskell for a good year and a half before any of this with Sister Cathy happened.”

Wehner buried her memories of the abuse, and they stayed buried until 1992, when she began to remember things — like telling Cesnik about what was happening to her. After their conversation, Cesnik transferred to a different school, then disappeared. She was found dead nearly two months later. Her murder remains unsolved.

Wehner believes Cesnik may have been killed for knowing too much, but Maskell always maintained his innocence in both the killing and any abuse allegations. (He died in 2001.) The Archdiocese of Baltimore denied that there was any cover-up, but they have paid nearly $500,000 in settlements to 16 people (including Wehner) who accused Maskell of sexual abuse.

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SCOTLAND
Carluke Gazette

Heart-rending allegations of decades of maltreatment at Lanark’s former Smyllum Orphanage featured in the very first sitting of what will be a marathon inquiry into historical child abuse in Scotland.

Nearly four decades after the institution closed its doors, the now-ageing former occupants of the orphanage finally had their long-awaited day in court as the Scottish child abuse inquiry got under way in Edinburgh last week.

But it is understood that there is anger among those who term themselves ‘survivors’ of Smyllum Orphanage at some of the evidence given at the hearing by members of the religious order that ran the institution, the Daughters of Charity of St Vincent de Paul.

There were audible groans from the public benches at their claims that Smyllum’s punishment and medical records could not now be found despite a search of the order’s archives.

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SCOTLAND
BBC News

The three-year limit on survivors of childhood abuse suing for damages is to be scrapped by MSPs.

The move will allow victims of abuse dating back as far as 1964 to seek compensation for their injuries though the civil courts.

Victims currently have just three years from the date of their injury – or from their 16th birthday – to bring a court action.

The limit will be removed by the Limitation (Childhood Abuse) Bill.

The bill is likely to be unanimously approved when MSPs vote in the Scottish Parliament later.

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UNITED STATES
Lexington Herald-Leader

BY MIKE RIVAGE-SEUL

You really ought to see “The Keepers.” It will scare the hell out of you — especially if you’re a Catholic. The Netflix docuseries in seven parts tells the story of an unsolved murder of a young Catholic nun in Baltimore. The apparent perps were two Catholic priests.

I watched the film with one of my sisters who had attended Catholic schools for 12 years. “The Keepers” became our point of discussion for our two days together. Its portrayal of the cynical use of religion to exploit innocent children had us discussing Catholic schools, the pedophilia scandal, confession, outdated church teachings in general — and especially the exclusion of women from church leadership.

We found ourselves sympathizing with those (including close friends and relatives) who have left the church as irredeemably corrupt. No wonder, we agreed, “former Catholics” represent the second largest religious “denomination” in the country (with 22.8 million), behind members of the official Catholic church at 68.1 million.

“The Keepers” investigates the murder of Sister Cathy Cesnik, a high school English teacher, who disappeared shortly after confronting authorities about widespread sexual abuse at the prestigious Keough Girls’ High School in Baltimore. Two chaplains there used the confessional to identify young females who would be vulnerable to their sexual depredations. Eventually they ended up sharing their victims with school outsiders, including police officials.

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TEXAS
Hay Free Press

Members of the Lone Star Fugitive Task Force arrested a Buda man who works as an east Austin assistant pastor on indictments of sexual assault of a child in Hays and Nueces Counties.

Ruben Garcia, 59, of Buda, was arrested by the Task Force June 12 and was booked into the Hays County Jail. Garcia is being held on $300,000 bond.

Garcia, who was on the run for the past two months, was the subject of an arrest warrant stemming from a 2015 sexual assault of a child investigation by the Nueces County Sheriff’s Office, according to the release.

A Hays County Grand Jury indicted Garcia in April on two separate counts of sexual assault of a child, along with one count of indecency with a child by sexual contact. Those indictments stemmed from an investigation that began in early 2016.

According to the release, Task Force officers established surveillance at the Betania Baptist Church on Tillery Street in east Austin. Garcia worked as an associate pastor at the church.

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TEXAS
Fox San Antonio

SAN ANTONIO – A church youth leader was arrested and charged with fondling a child who later told a school counselor about the alleged incidents.

According to court documents, the child told the counselor that the youth leader, identified as Omar Roman Salas, 25, undressed and touched him at a home a few months ago.

During the second incident in early May, the alleged victim claimed Salas performed a sex act on him.

The counselor called the victim’s mother and she confronted the church pastor, who told police Salas had admitted to fondling the victim.

Salas is charged with sexual assault of a child. The church where he led a youth group is not named in court papers.

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TEXAS
San Antonio Express News

Four San Antonio men were arrested Tuesday on charges of sexual assault of a child in connection with four separate cases of abuse.

Omar Roman Salas, 25; Johnny Gonzales, Jr., 30; Brandon May, 30; and Kenneth Perez, 36, are the accused suspects in the cases.

All four men were booked into the Bexar County Jail on Tuesday evening. Salas and Gonzales are being held on $50,000 bail each, May and Perez on $75,000 bail each.

Salas, a youth minister at a local church, is accused of fondling and sexually assaulting a 14-year-old boy that goes to the same church. The first incident allegedly occurred sometime in April, when the victim spent the night at Salas’ home.

The second incident occurred around May 5 or 6, again while the victim was spending the night at Salas’ house. The victim told Salas he was uncomfortable with what happened the first time and didn’t want it to happen again, according to police records. Salas allegedly assaulted the boy anyway.

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IRELAND
Irish Times

David Raleigh

A former Christian brother who would “lick” his pupils ears while sexually abusing them in class, has been found guilty by a jury of 15 counts of indecent assault.

James Treacy (75), with an address at Ashford Close, Swords, Dublin, showed no emotion as a jury at Limerick Circuit Court found him guilty, by unanimous decision, of abusing three male victims.

The court heard evidence from the victims, who were aged ten years old and in fifth class at the time.

The victims said he would abuse them in front of one another while he taught a “military style” class. His modus operandi, the court heard, was to place his hands down the front of the boys trousers and fondle their privates.

One victim told the court: “It was a military style class. What I mean by that is that we had to be neat and clean; Our hair had to be cut and we had to clean our ears, and if you’re ears weren’t clean, he would actually lick your ears.”

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NEW YORK
Roman Catholic Diocese of Brooklyn

I am announcing a significant new step in the ongoing effort of the Diocese of Brooklyn to address the wounds of those sexually abused by members of the clergy. It is called the Independent Reconciliation and Compensation Program (IRCP). It is one more way our diocese, which serves Brooklyn and Queens, can acknowledge the harm that was done by those who were priests or deacons and show our solidarity with survivors. Our Program is modeled after the program recently launched by the Archdiocese of New York. Compensation decisions will be made by Kenneth R. Feinberg who administered numerous high-profile compensation programs, including the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund, the compensation fund for the victims of the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, served as a mediator for sexual abuse cases for Penn State University and administered many other corporate and charitable independent compensation programs. Mr. Feinberg will have total independence in his decisions.

Throughout my time as a diocesan bishop, first in Camden and then in Brooklyn and Queens, I have met with more than 50 survivors. It is difficult to hear about the pain caused by the criminal behavior of members of the clergy. I am well aware that no amount of money will ever heal the scars of abuse, but this program is a concrete expression of our contrition and our desire to make amends. We hope it will help with the healing process and bring survivors some element of healing.

The Diocese of Brooklyn will continue all of our past efforts to support survivors. Those efforts include paying the cost of therapy provided by independent professionals who are unaffiliated with the Church, offering various support groups, providing monthly prayer groups, and holding our annual Mass of Hope and Healing.

Four years ago, survivors of clergy abuse in the Diocese of Brooklyn formed a “Survivors Advisory Committee.” This program, along with all of our outreach efforts, has been discussed with this group of survivors. I will continue to listen to and be guided by these survivors in developing new ways to respond to the needs of victims.

I wish to assure every parishioner and every donor to our diocese in Brooklyn and Queens that not a penny of their contributions or bequests will go toward compensating victims of abuse. The Diocese will take out a loan to cover for the cost, and pay it back with rental income. The Diocese will not use money given by the faithful to support parishes, schools, charitable works, ministries, apostolates, or the Generations of Faith fundraising campaign. The financial burden will rightly be felt by the central diocesan administration.

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NEW YORK
The Worthy Adversary

June 21, 2017 Joelle Casteix

And the corpse of the New York Child Victims Act isn’t even cool yet.

Brooklyn Bishop DiMarzio (pictured above) has issued a written statement announcing an Independent Reconciliation and Compensation Plan mirroring that of Cardinal Dolan’s IRCP across the river.

These plans compensate victims for the child sex abuse they suffered, while keeping documents, evidence, and some wrong-doers names secret.

The plan will also be administered by Kenneth Feinberg.

This Brooklyn announcement was the world’s best unkept secret. Victims from Brooklyn have been getting calls from the diocese for months.

And considering the dirty deals that just went down in Albany with the death of the Child Victims’ Act, survivors and advocates were pretty sure that “promises were made.” Perhaps these plans were part of those promises.

I have met with Ken Feinberg (and brought a crew of experts much smarter than I am) in order to do due diligence about the Archdiocese’s plan and its execution. I’ve also watched the roll-out of Phases One and Two.

– See more at: http://theworthyadversary.com/4578-breaking-diocese-of-brooklyn-announces-dolan-esque-compensation-plan#sthash.xxOLwYtM.dpuf

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NORTH CAROLINA
Associated Press

BY MITCH WEISS AND HOLBROOK MOHR
ASSOCIATED PRESS

The Associated Press and the Charlotte Observer filed legal motions Wednesday to gain access to documents and lift a gag order in the case of a North Carolina minister accused of orchestrating the beating of a congregant to expel his “homosexual demons.”

The motions filed by the news outlets are related to the case of Brooke Covington, a minister at Word of Faith Fellowship in Spindale, North Carolina. She is charged with kidnapping and assaulting Matthew Fenner in the church’s sanctuary.

Covington is accused of urging others to slap, punch and choke Fenner for nearly two hours in January 2013 in a practice known as “blasting,” which involves intense screaming meant to drive out devils.

Judge Gary Gavenus declared a mistrial June 6 after the jury foreman brought unauthorized documents into deliberations. The judge sealed those documents and issued a gag order preventing witnesses, prosecutors, defense attorneys and jurors from discussing the case.

One of the news organizations’ motions, filed in Rutherford County Superior Court, called the gag order “a blanket, unconstitutional prior restraint on speech which would effectively and improperly curtail public discussion of this case by anyone with knowledge of the case.”

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ITALIA
Rete L’Abuso

Stando ai servizi della tv italiana, si direbbe che Bergoglio goda di una popolarità a dir poco straordinaria: semplice, alla mano, bonaccione, pronto a farsi delle belle e sonore risate, appare proprio come un nonnino universale, un vicino di pianerottolo, un buon parroco di campagna, se non addirittura un rivoluzionario dei costumi vaticani senza precedenti storici. L’apparenza inganna, mai proverbio fu più vero e potremmo constatarlo tutti se soltanto la stampa facesse parlare anche i suoi detrattori. Lo prova un sondaggio realizzato dalla Rete L’Abuso fondata e diretta da Francesco Zanardi e incentrato proprio sulla sua persona: Giorgio Bergoglio alias papa Francesco.

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AUSTRALIA
The Australian

June 22, 2017

JUSTIN BURKE
JournalistSydney
@justinburke

For Sydney teacher Denise ­Imwold, the recent true-crime ­series The Keepers was a traumatic viewing experience.

The seven-part documentary, aired on Netflix, focuses on the unsolved 1969 murder of Sister Cathy Cesnik, a teacher at a Baltimore high school. Ms Imwold was taught English and drama by Cesnik at the school in the years ­immediately preceding her death.

“After watching the first four episodes, I got an emotional hangover,” she said. “Sister Cathy was my teacher, and seeing the school corridors I had walked up and down so many times, and the faces I knew, I felt like I’d gone in a time warp, thinking: did all this ­really happen?”

The series explores the theory that Cesnik was killed to ensure her silence about students being sexually abused at the school by Father Joseph Maskell, who died in 2001. Jean Wehner, a classmate of Ms Imwold’s younger sister, is featured claiming that Maskell took her to see Cesnik’s body in the woods and telling her: “You see what happens when you say bad things about people?”

While Netflix refuses to confirm viewing figures, the low-key series is believed to have been in the top 10 most streamed shows alongside Orange is the New Black and House of Cards.

Ms Imwold says she had no notion of sexual abuse going on at the school, known as Keough, but she remembered Cesnik, then in her early 20s, as a passionate teacher and a gifted writer.

“Six months before she died, she directed me in a production of The Sound of Music; the irony was she was basically in the same position as the character Maria, about to embark on a leave of ­absence from the convent.”

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UNITED STATES
Movie Pilot

By Emily Browne, writer at CREATORS.CO
Twitter: @emrbrowne

Major spoilers for The Keepers ahead. Proceed with caution.

If you haven’t binge-watched Netflix series The Keepers yet, stop what you’re doing right now and get on it — but come back when you’re done! For those that have finished the seven-episode series, you are probably now in the same boat as me, hitting up Google, Reddit and Facebook for any of the latest developments in the Sister Cathy Cesnik and Joyce Malecki murder cases. The series — which delves into Cathy’s brutal murder, as well as the alleged sex abuse which took place at Keogh High School in the 1960s — broke open a 40-year-old cold case, primarily thanks to two retired former Keogh students who were determined to discover the truth about Sister Cathy’s death.

What followed was monolithic power structures being weakened by the voices of victims determined to seek justice some 30 years later. In 1992, “Jane Doe” came forward with testimony stating that she was taken to see Sister Cathy’s body by her primary abuser Father Joseph Maskell. It was there that he threatened her, saying “See what happens when you say bad things about people.” As the case unfolded, more and more was revealed about the possible suspects, as well as events leading up to the discovery of Sister Cathy’s body in January 1970. However, the series failed to solve the case entirely, but that doesn’t mean it’s over. Since the completion of The Keepers, there have been further intriguing updates which add yet more depth to this gripping case.

1. Maryland’s Statute of Limitations Has Been Extended

In Episode 7, ‘The Conclusion’, we saw survivors of Maskell’s crimes (as well as other sex abuse victims) attempt to pass a bill which would extend the statute of limitations past the age of 25. The bill finally passed this year, and from July 1, 2017, victims in Maryland have until the age of 38 to sue their abusers. This is obviously a huge step in the right direction for those suffering with repressed memories, and will hopefully see more victims feel empowered to come forward in future.

2. The Exhumation of Maskell’s Body

Just before The Keepers hit Netflix, Father Joseph Maskell’s body was exhumed to test his DNA against that which was found at the original crime scene. As DNA is so much more advanced now than it was in 1970, Baltimore Police were able to conclude that the (assumed) cigarette butt found at the scene of the crime did not match Maskell’s DNA. While this is an important update, the series all but ruled out Maskell as the murderer, instead looking at two other men who were far more likely to have carried out the crime itself. Whether there are plans to test the DNA against either of them is unclear.

3. There Is A Brand New Facebook Group Moderated by Gemma Hoskins

The Justice For Sister Catherine Cesnik and Joyce Malecki Facebook page — which featured heavily in the series as a way to connect amateur sleuths and possible victims — was closed down a few days after The Keepers aired. The site was inundated with requests, and Hoskins told the Baltimore Sun that, “It was necessary to close the page temporarily due to a traffic jam and a technical glitch.” However, there is a brand new Facebook group open to everyone called The Keepers Official Group — Justice for Catherine Cesnik and Joyce Malecki where information pertinent to the case can be discussed and shared. The group currently has 82,000 members.

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NEW YORK
Village Voice

by LAUREN EVANS

JUNE 21, 2017

The Child Victims Act will not be voted on this legislative session, despite a monumental push from survivors and lawmakers, and even a program bill from Governor Andrew Cuomo.

Senate Majority Leader John Flanagan confirmed to reporters yesterday that the bill was done for the year. “It’s under discussion, but the senate is not going to be taking that bill up,” he said.

Advocates of the CVA had high hopes that this would be the year the bill — a version of which has existed since 2006 — would finally get passed, particularly after one Republican, State Senator James Tedisco, signaled his support for it. Earlier this month, the legislation passed the state assembly for the first time since 2008, and last week Cuomo introduced his own version that matched the assembly’s.

The act, though, has powerful detractors. The Catholic Church has worked diligently to keep the bill from passing, fearing a deluge of costly lawsuits. The Boy Scouts of America shelled out $12,500 per month since February to the lobbying firm of a former state senator in an effort to have it killed.

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NORTHERN IRELAND
Belfast Telegraph

June 21 2017

Victims of historical child abuse in Northern Ireland have been told they will not receive promised financial compensation for at least another 10 months because of the political crisis.

Many have been left devastated to discover that no provision was made in the 2017/18 budget to cover the scheme.

Politicians have been advised by the head of the civil service that with no working executive, it is unlikely any financial redress will be made before April 2018.

Financial payments were promised to victims more than a year ago.

Victims have warned that many have been left suicidal or facing financial ruin as the current Stormont impasse means that the findings and recommendations of a four-year inquiry into state and church abuse have still not been presented to the assembly.

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GUAM
The Guam Daily Post

Louella Losinio | The Guam Daily Post

“The archdiocese confirms that Monsignor James Benavente has submitted his resignation as delegate of coadjutor archbishop for church patrimony.” – Statement from the Archdiocese of Agana

Monsignor James Benavente has resigned as delegate of the coadjutor archbishop for church patrimony of the Archdiocese of Agana.

“The archdiocese confirms that Monsignor James Benavente has submitted his resignation as delegate of coadjutor archbishop for church patrimony. The archbishop is praying for Monsignor James and has not made any decision on the resignation at this time,” according to an official statement from the archdiocese.

Benavente is the second recent church official to step down from his post. On June 18, Monsignor David C. Quitugua also resigned as a member of the College of Consultors.

“Archbishop Byrnes withdrew Quitugua’s membership in the College of Consultors in light of the current climate in the Church on the island,” the archdiocese stated. “He extends prayers to Monsignor David.”

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SCOTLAND
Scotsman

CHRIS MARSHALL

21 June 2017

A religious order has apologised for “systemic failures” which allowed paedophile priests to abuse boys at a residential school.

The Scottish Child Abuse Inquiry heard safeguarding measures put in place by the Christian Brothers at St Ninian’s school in Fife fell “well short” of what would be expected today.

Last year two former teachers were jailed for a total of 15 years after being convicted of the physical and sexual abuse of boys in their care.

Appearing before the inquiry in Edinburgh on behalf of the Christian Brothers, Michael Madigan said the congregation acknowledged with “deepest regret” that children had been abused.

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CANADA
APTN National News

Paul Barnsley
APTN Investigates

After he published his research in 2013 exposing medical experimentation on students at residential schools involving withholding of certain foods, the invitations started coming in for Dr. Ian Mosby.

“A lot of communities wanted me to come and explain to people myself, in person,” he said, during an interview in Toronto.

Mosby heard repeatedly that former students felt vindicated by his findings.

“People have been telling these stories of experimentation, of abuse, of all sorts of things that have now been documented by historians like myself. But people could have believed what survivors were saying a long time ago, and I think we would be a lot further than we are right now,” he added.

The stories he heard about more recent events involve complaints about how survivors were treated under the Independent Assessment Process (IAP), the system created under the Indian Residential Schools Settlement Agreement to compensate survivors for sexual or severe physical abuse.

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WEST VIRGINIA
WCPO

PAULA CHRISTIAN
Jun 21, 2017

David Harper was 10 years old when a Catholic priest and family friend allegedly woke him in the middle of the night in a rectory bedroom and raped him.

For nearly two decades, Harper, now 35, told no one about what allegedly happened on his trip with Robert “Father Bob” Poandl to Spencer, West Virginia in August 1991, where Poandl celebrated Mass as a visiting priest and Harper served as altar boy.

When his allegations emerged years later, Poandl, of the Fairfield-based Glenmary Home Missioners, was charged and convicted in U.S. District Court in Cincinnati of taking a minor across state lines for sexual activity. He was sentenced to 7.5 years in prison.

Now as Poandl, 76, is being treated for life-threatening kidney cancer at a federal medical center in Butner, North Carolina, he is seeking to overturn that conviction.

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GUAM
KUAM

Updated: Jun 19, 2017

By Krystal Paco

In simple terms, Coadjutor Archbishop Michael Byrnes says, “We have maxed out our credit cards and payment is due.”

Positive news to report, however, as he announces the Archdiocese’s financial advisors have developed an acceptable plan to bring the Church back to good economic health. While the plan won’t be unveiled until coming weeks, he says, “We will all need to make sacrifices, big and small… I firmly believe we will emerge as a stronger church and Archdiocese.”

He also stresses that no parish or school funds are being used to pay for the Archdiocese’s legal fees as a result of over 70 clergy sex abuse lawsuits. The pastoral letter was printed in a recent Umatuna Si Yu’os, the official newspaper of the Archdiocese of Agana.

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NEW YORK
Post-Star

ALBANY — The leader of the New York state Senate says his chamber will not vote this year on a measure loosening the statute of limitations for molestation.

Republican Senate Leader John Flanagan of Long Island announced his decision to reporters on Tuesday without explanation.

The proposal would have given victims more time to file civil lawsuits or seek criminal charges against their abusers. It also would have created a one-year window for past victims to file civil suits.

Victims now have until they turn 23 to sue, but supporters say it often takes far longer for victims to report their abuse.

The bill was supported by the Assembly and Democratic Gov. Andrew Cuomo but faced strong opposition from the Catholic Church and other institutions.

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NEW YORK
The Journal News

Jon Campbell , jcampbell1@gannett.com June 20, 2017

ALBANY – A bill to extend the statute of limitations for child sex abuse crimes will not get a vote in the state Senate before lawmakers leave town this week, according to the Senate’s Republican leader.

Majority Leader John Flanagan, R-Suffolk County, told reporters Tuesday that the Senate would not take up the Child Victim’s Act, which supporters have pushed as a way for abuse survivors to seek charges or civil cases after they’ve grown older.

“It’s under discussion, but the Senate is not going to be taking that bill up,” Flanagan said after exiting a meeting with Gov. Andrew Cuomo and legislative leaders.

Versions of the bill have bounced around at the Capitol for more than a decade, but none have yet to make it through both houses of the Legislature.

The Assembly approved a version of the bill on June 7 that would allow abuse victims to seek criminal charges until they turn age 28, up from the current 23.

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NEW YORK
New York Daily News

BY
GLENN BLAIN
KENNETH LOVETT
NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
Updated: Tuesday, June 20, 2017

ALBANY — State Senate Republicans once again turned their backs on child sex abuse victims.

Senate Majority Leader John Flanagan responded “yes” when asked Tuesday afternoon if the Child Victims Act is done for the year.

“It’s under discussion, but the Senate is not going to be taking that bill up,” Flanagan told reporters.

Flanagan killed the bill’s chances a day after the hopes of survivors for a vote before the legislative session’s scheduled end on Wednesday were raised by Sen. James Tedisco, of Schenectady, who became the first Senate Republican to come out in favor of the Child Victims Act.

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GUAM
Pacific Daily News

Haidee V Eugenio, heugenio@guampdn.com June 21, 2017

Monsignor James L.G. Benavente has resigned as delegate to the archbishop for church patrimony, a post he held since Oct. 1.

The position has oversight over properties of the Archdiocese of Agana, working with the reconstituted Archdiocesan Finance Council.

“I write this letter to let you know that after much prayer and reflection I have decided to tender my letter of resignation as Delegate to Coadjutor Archbishop for Church Patrimony,” Benavente said in a June 16 letter addressed to Archbishop Michael Jude Byrnes.

The letter does not cite a reason for the resignation.

Benavente, when sought for comment, said he resigned from the post on his own.

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NEW YORK
CBS 8

by Caitlin Nolan – Inside Edition

It took a made-for-TV movie, a friend recognizing there was something wrong and almost a decade of passed time to give Kathryn Robb the courage to finally talk about the man she says abused her.

It was another five years before she spoke about him again, finally sharing what a relative did to her for years after she went to bed in their Long Island home.

“It’s like a flood, and you’re drowning in the truth of it, and you have to shut it off,” Robb, 57, told InsideEdition.com. “It comes in layers.”

For Steve Jimenez, from Brooklyn, N.Y., four decades of therapy went by before he felt he could confront the Catholic Church about the sexual abuse he endured at the hands of a Xaverian brother in the 1960s.

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CANADA
CTV

New rules on how Catholic priests, staff and volunteers interact with some the most vulnerable people in the archdiocese — such as children — are being rolled out in Montreal.

Under the new rules, no adult working with the church can be alone with a child. Church members who work closely with minors, the sick or the elderly will be required to be fingerprinted and undergo police background checks.

The updated code of ethics comes after a one-year pilot project involving 10 parishes. The new rules take effect by 2020 and will include all 194 Montreal parishes within the archdiocese, which includes Laval, Repentigny, and L’Assomption.

Father Betrand Montpetit, a Montreal priest of 28 years, says the new rules are an important step forward.

“We want to have more credibility also, and the confidence, you must earn it,” Montpetit told CTV Montreal.

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NEW YORK
Times Union

By Matthew Hamilton on June 20, 2017

Though he said discussions continue, state Senate Republican Majority Leader John Flanagan said after leaving the governor’s office on Tuesday afternoon that the Senate will not take up the Child Victims Act legislation.

That bill, which would extend the time during which young victims of sexual abuse could bring a case against their abuser, has passed the Assembly and has the support of the governor. Senate Independent Democratic Conference Leader Jeff Klein, who is one of those negotiating the sticky end-of-session legislation, has a bill that is slightly different than the one pushed by the Assembly and Cuomo.

“It’s under discussion, but the Senate is not going to be taking that bill up,” he said when asked to clarify that the bill is dead for the year.

Klein said Child Victims Act has not been discussed on Tuesday.

Leaders also are continuing to discuss mayoral control of New York City schools. Klein expressed hopes for a two-year extension of mayoral control, though Flanagan said leaders are not yet close on a deal.

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CANADA
CBC News

The Catholic Church of Montreal will expand its pilot project that bars priests and church volunteers from being alone with children and requires them to provide digital fingerprints to work with vulnerable populations.

Around 10 churches have been taking part in the pilot project, which was launched last fall. All churches will now have to follow these rules by 2020.

The rules apply to those occupying roles deemed as “high risk” in the diocese’s 194 churches and ministries — working with minors, the sick and the elderly — and also include mandatory police background checks.

“In terms of whether or not we were going to (implement the plan), that wasn’t even in question. We’re going. This has to happen,” said Bishop Thomas Dowd, auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Montreal.

“The Catholic Church has to be the safest place for the vulnerable.”

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VATICAN CITY
Catholic News Agency

Vatican City, Jun 20, 2017 / 12:37 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- In an unexpected move in the Holy See’s ongoing financial reform, the Vatican announced on Tuesday the resignation of Libero Milone, General Auditor of the Holy See, effective immediately.

The brief Vatican statement simply said that Libero Milone had offered his resignation, and that the Vatican had accepted it.

The lack of reason given for the resignation has some speculating that it is another part of the ongoing, internal conflicts of Vatican financial reform.

Milone’s resignation comes as a surprise because of the emphasis the Vatican placed on the importance of his position when it was created. …

During his time as General Auditor, Milone’s personal computer was hacked, and he also clashed with the Administration of the Patrimony of the Apostolic See, the treasury of the Vatican. Milone showed his commitment to maintaining the separation of powers of his office when he declined an offer in April to become part of the Board of Directors of the Italian public broadcasting service Rai, saying that he wanted to maintain his independence in the Vatican.

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VATICAN CITY
National Catholic Register

Libero Milone had only been in the new post two years during which time he faced a number of challenges, including resistance to more rigorous audits.

Edward Pentin

The Vatican has announced that Pope Francis has accepted the resignation of the Holy See’s auditor general, Libero Milone.

In a statement released today, the Vatican said by “mutual agreement” the Dutch-born financier’s “collaborative relationship” with the Holy See ended yesterday, but did not give any reasons.

It added that the search for his replacement would begin “as soon as possible.” Milone was the first auditor general after the position was set up by Pope Francis in 2014 and the office given statutes the following year.

His departure is surprising as just three months ago, he reportedly said he had no regrets since accepting the assignment in 2015. On the contrary, he said he was ready to go “all the way with great enthusiasm” and that he was “highly motivated by the privilege of being available to the Pope.”

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UNITED STATES
Religion and Politics

By Lilly Fowler | June 20, 2017

David Clohessy often looks as if he’s on the verge of tears when he talks about survivors of sexual abuse. When his vivid blue eyes start to well up, he’ll reach for his glasses and wipe his eyes. He comes across as emotional, but sincere and well-intentioned. We sit at a coffee shop near his home in Maplewood, a neighborhood of St. Louis. Clohessy is recovering from minor surgery and wears a cast on one foot. He says since his resignation in January from the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, or SNAP, he’s focused on his health. The sexual abuse crisis within the Catholic Church consumed Clohessy for nearly 30 years. Now his own organization is under fire for alleged malfeasance.

Barbara Blaine, a lawyer and former social worker who is an abuse survivor herself, founded SNAP in 1988 in Chicago. Clohessy joined the organization in 1991, and it became one of the premiere advocacy groups for victims of sex abuse. The group operated in obscurity until the Boston Globe’s Pulitzer-prize winning series on sexual abuse in the Catholic Church ran in 2002. After that, SNAP’s phones wouldn’t stop ringing.

Both SNAP and Clohessy have received widespread media coverage over the years. SNAP makes a cameo in Spotlight, the 2015 Oscar-winning film about the Globe investigation. Clohessy has garnered high-profile media coverage, including a New York Times profile and appearances on Oprah, 60 Minutes and Good Morning America. Today SNAP boasts 25,000 members, but foes and friends alike are unsure if the organization will be able to survive its latest scandal.

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MISSOURI
St. Louis Post-Dispatch

AP

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. • The former music director of a Springfield church has been indicted on child pornography charges.

The U.S. attorney’s office says the indictment was returned last week and unsealed Monday after Craig Wieneke, of Springfield, was arrested and made his initial court appearance.

The indictment alleges that Wieneke, 31, received and distributed child pornography over the Internet from November through April, when Ridgecrest Baptist Church in Springfield fired him because the FBI, police and the Greene County Sheriff’s Department were investigating.

Executive pastor Wayne Barron told the Springfield News-Leader that Wieneke didn’t work with children for his job.

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ARIZONA
The Republic

[with video]

Jerod MacDonald-Evoy, The Republic | azcentral.com June 20, 2017

Chandler resident Francis Charfauros, 49, wanted to be a priest when he was younger, but he said an encounter with Father Jack Niland when he was 14 and living on the small Pacific island of Guam changed that.

Charfauros is now one of many who have brought lawsuits against the Roman Catholic Archbishop of Agana in Guam for alleged sexual abuse that went on at the rectory there.

The lawsuit alleges that Niland molested Charfauros while he was living at the rectory in 1982 during a sleepover at the Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church rectory in the Guam village of Agat.

Charfauros is the 67th person to file a Guam clergy sex abuse lawsuit in local and federal courts after the statute of limitations was lifted late last year. Charfauros filed his suit in federal court in May.

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NORTHERN IRELAND
Amnesty International

We write as victims and survivors of institutional child abuse, which we suffered in children’s homes across Northern Ireland over many decades.

Today (June 20 2017) marks six months since the publication of the report of the Historic Institutional Abuse inquiry.

We welcomed its main findings – that the State was responsible for widespread and systemic failings, which left us as vulnerable children to suffer physical, sexual and mental abuse in supposed “care” homes.

But six months in, with no devolved government ministers in position to act on the report, its recommendations for apologies, a redress scheme and support services for victims, have gathered dust on Stormont’s shelves.

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INDONESIA
Catholic Register

BY CATHOLIC NEWS SERVICE
June 20, 2017

RUTENG, Indonesia – A group of priests in Indonesia’s Ruteng Diocese appealed to the Vatican to intervene and resolve a dispute with their bishop, whom they accuse of misappropriating more than $100,000 in church funds.

Representatives of the priests, accompanied by a bishops’ conference official, met Archbishop Antonio Filipazzi, the outgoing apostolic nuncio in Indonesia June 16 to call on the Vatican to help them achieve their demand that Bishop Hubertus Leteng heed their calls for an overhaul of how the diocese is run.

The move came after dozens of priests in the diocese on Catholic-majority Flores Island quit their posts in protest against their bishop.

Father Alfonsius Segar, one of the priests who met with the nuncio, told ucanews.com that Archbishop Filipazzi has promised to help resolve the dispute.

“He will immediately take this issue up with the Vatican,” Father Segar said.
The priest also said the nuncio will send someone to the diocese to appraise the situation.

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VATICAN CITY
DNA

Tue, 20 Jun 2017

Reuters

The Vatican’s first auditor-general, who was appointed two years ago in a move aimed at ensuring transparency in the finances at the headquarters of the Roman Catholic Church, has resigned, the Vatican said on Tuesday.

A brief statement gave no reason for the resignation of Libero Milone, saying merely that he had presented it on Monday to Pope Francis and that the pontiff had accepted it.

It said Milone’s relationship with the Vatican, where he had been expected to serve until 2021, had been concluded “by mutual accord”.

A search for a new auditor-general will begin soon.

Milone, a 68-year-old Italian who is a former chairman and CEO of the global auditing firm Deloitte in Italy, could not be immediately reached for comment.

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AUSTRALIA
7 News

[with video]

AAP on June 20, 2017

A month after getting legal advice on whether to charge Cardinal George Pell over historical child sex allegations, Victoria’s highest-ranking police officer says a decision is “imminent”.

Chief Commissioner Graham Ashton told ABC radio Cardinal Pell’s lawyers will be told first, once a decision is made whether to charge him.

“A decision is imminent,” Mr Ashton told ABC this morning.

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WASHINGTON (DC)
Kath.net

[A recent annual report from the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the USA: About 80 per cent of the victims of sexual abuse by priests are male and the vast majority of victims is older than ten years.
The latest annual report of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the United States shows a link between sexual abuse in the Church and “deep-seated homosexual tendencies” among priests.]

Neuster Jahresbericht der katholischen Bischofskonferenz der USA: Etwa 80 Prozent der Opfer sexuellen Missbrauchs durch Priester sind männlich, in der großen Mehrheit älter als zehn Jahre.
Washington D.C. (kath.net/LSN/jg)

Der neueste Jahresbericht der katholischen Bischofskonferenz der USA zeigt einen Zusammenhang zwischen sexuellem Missbrauch in der Kirche und „tief sitzenden homosexuellen Neigungen“ bei Priestern.

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NORTHERN IRELAND
Belfast Telegraph

By Allan Preston
June 20 2017

Victims and survivors of institutional child abuse in Northern Ireland care homes have said plans to help them are “gathering dust” on Stormont’s shelves while those affected are “still denied justice to their death beds”.

In an open letter signed by 260 victims and survivors, the group spoke of their deep frustration that six months after the Historical Institutional Abuse Inquiry’s findings were published, no action was being taken.

In its report published in January, the Historical Institutional Abuse Inquiry recommended that the Stormont Executive “create a publicly funded compensation scheme”. The Executive was already well on its way to collapsing at this point, and ministerial decisions on compensation are still on hold.

The letter from the victims reads: “We welcomed its main findings — that the State was responsible for widespread and systemic failings, which left us, as vulnerable children, to suffer physical, sexual and mental abuse in supposed ‘care’ homes.

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FLORIDA
Tampa Bay Times

By Corey G. Johnson and John Romano, Times Staff Writers
Friday, June 16, 2017

TAMPA — The second coming of the Rev. Henry J. Lyons was not as celebrated or lucrative as his previous life.

The one-time leader of the largest black Baptist organization in America — toppled by infidelities and imprisoned on fraud charges — has kept a relatively low profile while running a century-old church in Hillsborough County the last dozen years.

Lyons no longer has the ear of the President of the United States, and his empire does not include the same luxuries as during his heyday in St. Petersburg in the 1990s.

Yet the final, uncomfortable hours of Lyons’ reign at New Salem Missionary Baptist Church have a disturbingly, familiar echo.

Church leaders have accused the 75-year-old Lyons of misappropriating funds for his personal benefit, and voted Thursday evening to remove him as pastor, ending what had once looked like a story of personal redemption.

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MASSACHUSETTS
Telegram & Gazette

By Dianne Williamson
Telegram & Gazette Staff

Susan Manter was watching coverage of the Bill Cosby trial last week when the man once hailed as “America’s Dad” left the courthouse in Norristown, Pa.

“We love you, Bill!” someone shouted from the crowd.

The Holden woman cringed. Late last month, she settled a civil case against a different kind of father, a Shrewsbury priest convicted in 2012 of beating her and ripping off her clothes during horrific counseling sessions that dragged on for three years.

The cases involving Cosby and the Rev. Charles Michael Abdelahad are different, of course. Outside the courtroom, Cosby has been accused by more than 40 women in claims dating back more than a half century, virtually his entire career. Father Michael was accused of abusing only Manter.

But both of these men were charismatic, powerful authority figures. Both were immensely popular. Both used their position to violate vulnerable women because they knew no one would believe the victims. And their respected status made it easier to discredit women already faced with the cultural incredulity that comes with cases of sexual assault.

“I watched that and had flashbacks,” Manter said Monday. “I could hear people saying, ‘I love you, Father Michael.’ There were crowds of people supporting him. I can relate to how people try to make the woman the bad guy.”

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NEW YORK
Saratogian

By Joseph Phelan, jphelan@digitalfirstmedia.com,, @jphelan13 on Twitter
POSTED: 06/19/17

ALBANY, N.Y.>> On Wednesday, the state Legislature is scheduled to end its annual session, and survivors of childhood sexual abuse, along with public officials, urged the Senate GOP to allow a discussion and vote on the Child Victims Act Monday morning.

“This is an issue that’s crying out for justice. People who have committed criminal acts, particularly heinous criminal acts against children, need to be held accountable,” said Albany Mayor Kathy Sheehan. “And we know if they are not, they continue to abuse, so simply because an individual reaches a certain age it’s not acceptable. It doesn’t give justice to the victim and it doesn’t keep the rest of us safe. It doesn’t protect the children of today, while it’s punishing the children of yesterday.”

Desirae Brown and her sisters were sexually abused by their father in different states. Brown and one of her sisters were abused in Utah and successfully prosecuted their father. He’s serving a 10 year to life prison sentence. Desirae’s sister Melody, however, was abused in New York. The statute of limitations for the crimes committed against her ran out by the time she was ready to prosecute. She was only 24.

Presently, current law allows adults, who suffered sexual abuse as children, up to the age of 23 to file a lawsuit against their sexual abuser. Earlier this month, a bill in the state assembly passed, allowing people up to the age of 50 to bring a lawsuit. The senate bill would eliminate the statute of limitations for prosecuting child sexual abuse crimes and filing civil lawsuits for damages against individuals, public institutions and private institutions related to child sexual abuse. It would also create a one-year revival period for previously time-barred civil actions, which alleged conduct representing the commission of certain sexual offenses committed against a child less than 18 years of age.

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UNITED STATES
Legal Examiner

Posted by Mike Bryant
June 19, 2017

A recent Centers for Disease Control and Protection(CDC) study, The Economic Burden of Child Maltreatment in the United States and Implications for Prevention, was both interesting and frightening. The CDC states that

… the total lifetime estimated financial costs associated with just one year of confirmed cases of child maltreatment (physical abuse, sexual abuse, psychological abuse and neglect) is approximately $124 billion.

The CDC notes the report looked at:

… confirmed child maltreatment cases – 1,740 fatal and 579,000 non-fatal—for a 12-month period. Findings show each death due to child maltreatment had a lifetime cost of about $1.3 million, almost all of it in money that the child would have earned over a lifetime if he or she had lived. The lifetime cost for each victim of child maltreatment who lived was $210,012, which is comparable to other costly health conditions such as stroke with a lifetime cost per person estimated at $159,846 or type 2 diabetes, which is estimated between $181,000 and $253,000.

A byproduct of Minnesota’s Child Victims Act has been our involvement in abuse cases that happened a very long time ago. So we witness the results of the devastation that hit peoples lives after they were abused. People in their 40 to 60’s that have suffered all sorts of challenges without any help at all. The Act has given them a chance at real justice that has been delayed too long.

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ITALIE/ARGENTINE
L’Express

[Pope Francis, who has advocated for zero tolerance of pedophilia, was he aware that priests of an institute for deaf-mute children in Argentina were already accused of sexual assaults on children when they officiated in the same institute in Italy. Obviously according to lawyers of children who say they have been victims of sexual assault and rape in the Provolo Catholic institute in Mendoza.]

Pope accused of protecting pedophile priests in Italy and Argentina

Une liste des violeurs présumés avait été établie et une lettre avait même été remise en mains propres au pape François par l’une des victimes.

Le pape François -qui prône la tolérance zéro en matière de pédophilie- était-il au courant que des prêtres d’un institut pour enfants sourd-muets en Argentine étaient déjà accusés d’agressions sexuelles sur mineurs lorsqu’ils officiaient dans le même institut en Italie? C’est évident, selon les avocats des enfants qui disent avoir été victimes d’agressions sexuelles et de viols dans l’institut catholique Provolo de Mendoza.

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SCHWEIZ
Blick

[The retired reformed pastor Wolfgang S. (68) from Biberstein AG has been in investigation since the end of March (BLICK reported). He is said to have sexually abused four of his grandchildren. Wolfgang S. has already admitted this in an official confession.]

ZÜRICH – Für eine Kinderkrippe in der Stadt Zürich ist der Superg-GAU eingetreten. Der langjährige Chef und Besitzer, Wolfgang S. (68), ist wegen sexueller Übergriffe auf Kinder in Untersuchungshaft.

Beat Michel

Der pensionierte reformierte Pfarrer Wolfgang S. (68) aus Biberstein AG sitzt seit Ende März in Untersuchungshaft (BLICK berichtete). Er soll vier seiner Enkelkinder sexuell missbraucht haben. Wolfgang S. hat das bereits in einem offiziellen Geständnis zugegeben. Übergriffe ausserhalb der Familie streitet er ab.

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SCHWEIZ
Blick

[Pastor abused his grandchildren. Once again a god-man is behind bars because of child abuse. Scary: Working with children is a common thread through his life.]

AARAU AG – Wieder wandert ein Gottesmann wegen Kindsmissbrauchs hinter Gitter. Beängstigend: Die Arbeit mit Kindern zieht sich wie ein roter Faden durch sein Leben.

Ralph Donghi und Beat Michel

Der pensionierte reformierte Pfarrer Wolfgang S. (68) aus Biberstein AG sitzt seit Ende März in Untersuchungshaft. Er soll vier seiner Enkelkinder sexuell missbraucht haben. Der Anwalt von Wolfgang S. bestätigte in der SRF-Sendung «Schweiz aktuell», dass sein Mandant ein Geständnis abgelegt hat.

Die Enkelkinder waren zwischen 6 und 14 Jahre alt. Angezeigt hat ihn die eigene Familie. Sein Sohn und seine Tochter wollten sich gegenüber BLICK allerdings nicht äussern.

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GUAM
Pacific Daily News

Haidee V Eugenio, heugenio@guampdn.com June 20, 2017

Monsignor David C. Quitugua resigned, effective June 18, as a member of Archbishop Michael Jude Byrnes’ team of advisors, known as the College of Consultors, according to the Archdiocese of Agana. Byrnes asked him to step down, the Archdiocese stated.

Quitugua had been on the advisory team less than two weeks, after being appointed June 7, and his removal comes after lobbying by the Concerned Catholics of Guam, which has expressed concerns about Quitugua allegedly abusing his authority as vicar general under Archbishop Anthony Apuron.

“The Archdiocese can confirm that Monsignor David C. Quitugua is no longer a member of the College of Consultors. He was asked to resign in light of the current climate in the Church on the island. It was effective June 18, 2017,” the archdiocese stated.

“I am very glad on behalf of all concerned Catholics on Guam, that David C. Quitugua resigned as a member of the College of Consultors,” said Concerned Catholics President David Sablan.

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SCOTLAND
Evening Times

Catriona Stewart @LadyCatHT
Columnist/reporter

SCOTLAND’S only child sexual abuse service for male survivors is struggling to keep up with demand.

Speak Out Scotland (SOS), based at Port Dundas, has just been awarded £146,595 from the Big Lottery Fund to help fund its work for the next five years.

But staff said their work is only the tip of the iceberg and the charity could be helping dozens of more men.

Julie Harkins, Project Development Worker, said: “It was really after the Jimmy Savile scandal broke that we started seeing more men come forward and now we also have the Scottish Child Abuse Inquiry so the topic is being discussed and brought more into the public consciousness.

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OREGON
The Register-Guard

By Jack Moran
The Register-Guard
JUNE 20, 2017

A federal grand jury has returned an eight-count indictment against a missionary worker from Coos Bay who is accused of molesting six underage boys while in Cambodia between 2005 and 2013.

Daniel Stephen Johnson, 39, pleaded not guilty to the charges during an arraignment hearing Monday in U.S. District Court in Eugene. Johnson appeared via telephone from a federal prison in Sheridan, where he’s being held while his case is pending.

One of the charges listed in the indictment, aggravated sexual assault, carries a minimum prison sentence of 30 years upon conviction.

Johnson was arrested in the case in December 2014, after authorities in Cambodia handed him over to a team of FBI agents who brought him to Oregon.

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CANADA
APTN National News

June 20, 2017

Paul Barnsley
APTN Investigates

As the Indian Residential Schools Settlement Agreement (IRSSA) nears completion, a potentially explosive case brought forward by a former national chief is slowly making its way to court.

Del Riley, who occupied the national chief of the Assembly of First Nations’ office from 1980 to 1982 – during the final days of negotiations that led to Aboriginal rights being enshrined in Canada’s newly-repatriated constitution – refused to participate in the IRSSA.

He saw the settlement agreement as too limited – so he hired the London law firm Harrison Pensa to sue the federal government and the Anglican Church of Canada.

Riley aims to expand the scope of the defendants’ liability as he seeks compensation for his time at the Mohawk Indian Residential School in Brantford, Ont.

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NEW YORK
WNYT

[with video]

June 19, 2017

ALBANY – Shaun Dougherty, a Long Island restaurant owner, and veteran, was molested by his parish priest when he was 10-years-old. The pain and anguish, he says, remains with him in adulthood.

“I died in 1980, mentally, in my soul,” Dougherty says, “I attempted to take my life. I swallowed over 300 pills in 1994.”

Dougherty was at the state Capitol Monday, along with other child sexual abuse survivors and advocates, urging passage of the Child Victim Act to eliminate the statute of limitations that’s currently set at 23, and allow survivors to file civil lawsuits against their abusers.

“There is no money amount we are going for, it’s not about that,” said Brinie Farrell, a former speed skater, who was abused by an Olympic teammate in Saratoga Springs when she was 15.

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NEW YORK
News 10

By Nick Perreault
Published: June 19, 2017

ALBANY, N.Y. (NEWS10) – For the second week in a row, victims along with local officials are asking senators to pass a bill that will help victims of sexual abuse press charges against their accusers.

The conference says they’ve supported legislation in previous years that protects children from sexual predators.

Both victims and local officials are still asking why the Senate has yet to take up a bill that would increase the time a victim has to file both criminal and civil lawsuits against their attacker.

“It doesn’t give justice to the victim and it doesn’t keep the rest of us safe,” Albany Mayor Kathy Sheehan said.

“The Republican majority conference has been a leader in taking a lead with those who prey on young people and sexual predators. I don’t know why this hasn’t passed,” Senator Fred Akshar said.

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NEW YORK
New York Daily News

BY
KENNETH LOVETT
NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
Updated: Monday, June 19, 2017

ALBANY — A GOP state senator broke ranks from his colleagues Monday — saying he’d vote for a bill to help child sex abuse survivors.

“If it comes to the floor, I’ll support any of the versions that are out there,” Sen. James Tedisco (R-Schnectady) told the Daily News. He urged state leaders to strike a deal before Wednesday’ scheduled end to the legislative session.

Child sex abuse, he said, “can cause psychological, mental and physical problems for a lifetime.”

His position was first reported by News10 in Albany.

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NORTH CAROLINA
WSPA

By Brianna Smith
Published: June 19, 2017

The Rutherfordton Police Department and the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigations is investigating the death of Robert Rape.

Rape was found in his backyard on Briarwood Circle Saturday June 17th, shot in the chest. Investigators say Rape was shot with a shotgun.

The police department says the investigation is ongoing and few details will be released.

Rape is the grandfather of Matthew Fenner, whose case against five Word of Faith Fellowship church members recently ended in a mistrial due to jury tampering.

A new hearing against Word of Faith Fellowship minister Brooke Covington is set to take place in September.

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PHILADELPHIA (PA)
Catholics4Change

JUNE 19, 2017 BY SUSAN MATTHEWS

Is there a new transparency issue? Why isn’t Father Louis Kolenkiewicz listed in the online Archdiocesan clergy directory? He is listed in the clerical appointments that went into effect today.

Father Kolenkiewicz is returning from a removal from ministry and his new gig as parochial vicar at the Basilica of SS. Peter and Paul prompted an article in the Philadelphia Inquirer. Given this, you’d think all the i’s wouldn’t have been dotted and t’s crossed. But as of 3pm today – his name does n

The clergy directory omission is important. Both priests and laity have come to rely on the directory as a source of information. For example, a bride may request a specific priest for her wedding. Her pastor may check the clergy list to see if the priest has full faculties. Some priests don’t want to enable those removed to falsely present themselves. They know these guys bring them down and I’m sure they resent the tarnish.

Child safety and victim advocates also routinely check this list to track information.

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AUSTRALIA
JWVictims

BY ALEXANDRA JAMES ON JUNE 19, 2017

During the first day of the Australian Royal Commission Inquiry into Jehovah’s Witnesses, victim “BCB” spoke very bravely of her sexual abuse at the hands of a local elder, Bill Neill. Click this PDF of the Transcript-(Day-147) of the Inquiry, or you can visit the ARC website here, to read her entire testimony; Barrister Stewart’s summary of her story begins on page 15147.

Recently, “BCB” contact me through this website and wanted to share more of her story and viewpoint. This is a very powerful statement of how such abuse can so easily happen in the religion of Jehovah’s Witnesses, one that I hope all readers will share:

*** ***
If you have never been a victim of child sexual abuse then of course you wouldn’t understand how difficult it is to talk about what is happening to you. Long before the abuse starts the perpetrator begins their grooming campaign. For example, the following circumstances were in place to enable an Elder to abuse me:

First, become an Elder in a religion where young children are taught from birth that it is God’s chosen religion, that God has a personal name of Jehovah whom everyone is encouraged to have a personal relationship with, and that the teachings of the religion are referred to by everyone as “the Truth”. Teach them that the Elders are chosen by Jehovah God’s Holy Spirit and must be deferred to in all matters of spirituality and morality.

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VATICAN CITY
Associated Press

BY FRANCES D’EMILIO
ASSOCIATED PRESS

VATICAN CITY (AP) — Pope Francis will visit Chile and Peru in 2018, the Vatican announced Monday.

The Holy See said Francis will visit Chile from Jan. 15-18, then head to Peru, where he’ll stay until Jan. 21. The cities on the Argentine-born pontiff’s itinerary include Santiago, Temuco and Iquique in Chile and Lima, Puerto Maldonado and Trujillo in Peru, with details of his schedule to be announced later.

Puerto Maldonado is the capital city of Peru’s Madre de Dios region, an epicenter of illegal gold mining, a lucrative business which feeds criminal activity such as sex trafficking, including of minors. Francis in his papacy has repeatedly denounced trafficking and the exploitation of children.

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CANADA
APTN National News

Paul Barnsley
APTN Investigates

Despite being exposed to the worst horrors of the Indian residential schools, Garnet Angeconeb refuses to give in to bitterness or anger.

Born on the Lac Seul First Nation near Sioux Lookout, Ont., he was taken from his family to the nearby Pelican Indian Residential School when he was six years old.

He stayed there from 1963 to 1969.

During that time, Angeconeb and 18 other boys were sexually abused by a dorm supervisor. His abuser was eventually convicted in 1996 and sentenced to four years in prison.

While Angeconeb battled through his “lost years” afterwards, dealing with alcohol problems and living through the criminal trial of his abuser, he managed to graduate from high school and then earn a journalism degree at the University of Western Ontario.

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GUAM
The Worthy Adversary

Fifteen Years After Dallas, A Seven-Part Series: Introduction
Fifteen Years After Dallas, Part One: The Altoona-Johnstown Grand Jury Report
Fifteen Years After Dallas, Part Two: Is There a Crook in the Diocese of Crookston?
Fifteen Years After Dallas, Part Three: A Priest Admits Abusing, Chicago Cardinal Does Nothing
Fifteen Years After Dallas, Part Four: Convicted Priest Deemed “Safe” by Oklahoma City Archbishop, Catholics Rightly Upset
Fifteen Years After Dallas, Part Five: Naughty Nienstedt and the Vatican Shred
Fifteen Years After Dallas, Part Six: A seminarian in Ohio attempts to buy babies. The Bishop? He pretends nothing happened
Fifteen Years After Dallas, Part Seven: Sister Cathy Turns Baltimore into a Troll

June 19, 2017

Joelle Casteix

This would have been Part Eight, except for one little loophole:

Guam/the Archdiocese of Agaña is NOT TECHNICALLY a member of the US Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB). The Archdiocese of Agaña is a member of the Episcopal Conference of the Pacific (CE-PAC).

Guam’s disgraced Archbishop Anthony Apuron (pictured above with the pope) used to attend USCCB meetings and the like, but I think he used the “buffet” approach when it came to what window-dressing reforms he would adopt and what he wouldn’t.

Now that the Archdiocese of Agaña is headed by Archbishop Michael Byrnes out of Detroit, I think that the bonds to the USCCB are going to become much stronger.

Onto my story:

The saga of Archbishop Anthony Apuron is long and horrific.

Catholics began protesting his financial mismanagement and mobster tactics, including improper financial dealings with a Catholic sect called the Neo-Catechumenal Way.

Then, multiple alleged child victims—who risked their reputations, their families’ well-being, and their livelihoods by coming forward and saying that Apuron abused them—came forward. They all said that Apuron sexually abused them.

Apuron is now subject of a Vatican tribunal that will do little more than, I believe, give him a slap on the wrist and allow him to live in hiding on the mainland (with a monthly retirement check) for the rest of his life.

Last year, Guam lawmakers passed a civil window that allows child sex abuse victims to use the civil courts to get accountability. Other victims came forward and exposed a web of child sex abuse and cover-up going back decades. This is the same law that that victims in New York are protesting and begging to have.

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AUSTRALIA
Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse

19 June, 2017

The Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse has released a new research report that identifies four dimensions of risk of child sexual abuse in institutional settings.

Professors Patrick Parkinson and Judy Cashmore from the University of Sydney were contracted by the Royal Commission to establish a means of differentiating between types of institutions in terms of level of risk of child sexual abuse according to their characteristics and the services they provide.

The research report, Assessing the different dimensions and degrees of risk of child sexual abuse in institutions, proposes situational, vulnerability, propensity and institutional risks as the four main dimensions.

* Situational risk provides potential perpetrators with the opportunity to be alone with a child or form relationships that involve physical contact or emotional closeness. This can lead to grooming and unlawful sexual behaviour. The research suggests that residential institutions of all kinds including juvenile detention, immigration detention centres, residential out-of-home care and boarding schools carry an elevated situational risk.

* Vulnerability risk arises from the characteristics of the children present in the institution. The research suggests that the main factors influencing vulnerability risk are the ages of the children, children with disability, children with prior experience of maltreatment and children with an incentive to remain silent.

* Propensity risk arises from a disproportionate clustering of adults with a propensity to abuse children or children with harmful sexual behaviours.

* Institutional risk takes into consideration characteristics of the institution that may make abuse more likely to occur and less likely to be identified and responded to effectively. The research suggests that these characteristics include institutions placing greater importance on the protection of reputation than on the wellbeing and protection of children. Other characteristics include a culture of not listening to and respecting children.

The report concludes that situational risk is a precondition for sexual abuse while vulnerability risk makes it more likely that a child will be targeted. The research suggests that an institution with a low situational risk can starve even the committed sex offender of opportunity or greatly increase the likelihood of detection.

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NEW YORK
Times Union

State lawmakers should not leave town this week without making a meaningful attempt to rein in the corruption that has plagued government in recent years. …

Child sexual abuse: For all the laws passed on punishing future sexual abuse, lawmakers have yet to let untold numbers of victims of past abuse seek justice. Recognizing that victims sometimes take years to come forward, the Assembly has passed legislation to extend the statute of limitations on civil and criminal cases of child sex abuse. Mr. Cuomo backs a similar measure. Senate Republicans, however, have bowed to pressure, especially from the Catholic church. They need to hear the pleas of victims who simply want their day in court.

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UNITED KINGDOM
Wirral Globe

Lynda Roughley

A former church organist who sexually abused a vulnerable young girl was put behind bars – 40 years after the offences.

Martyn Poole, who assisted at a church in Wallasey, denied molesting the girl, who was aged about 12, but was convicted after a trial.

A judge told 74-year-old Poole, “You befriended her, earning her trust and she came to look up to you as a father figure.

“You betrayed that trust on two occasions, sexually abusing her having invited her to your home when your wife and family were elsewhere.”

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BELIZE
The Reporter

By Marion Ali
Assistant Editor

A teacher at Eden Seventh Day Adventist high school in Santa Elena, Cayo, is under investigation by San Ignacio police and the Ministry of Education, on allegations of sexual misconduct with as many as four of his students.

One of the girls may have had an abortion or two over the last year and a half.

Reporter’s investigations have showed that the teacher, whose name we have withheld until the Ministry and the police have concluded their investigations, has been involved with one of the girls, now an 18-year-old third form student, for the past two years. The others, as we understand, are girls with whom he has had sexual encounters.

This newspaper has learned of the existence of text messages, purportedly exchanged between the student and the teacher, that pertain not only to them having a sexual relationship, but about her having undergone an abortion as well.

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NEW YORK
Times Herald-Record

By Chris McKenna
Times Herald-Record

MOUNT MARION – At age 60, Brian O’Leary is still deeply scarred from the sexual abuse a neighbor inflicted on him more than 40 years ago when he was growing up in Saugerties.

The perpetrator lived across the street and worked at IBM with O’Leary’s father.

For five years, he repeatedly assaulted the boy in his home and his car, a string of violations that began when O’Leary was only 12 and ended when he stopped his tormentor at age 17 – because he realized how badly he wanted to kill himself.

O’Leary was so traumatized that he told no adults about the abuse then and couldn’t bring himself to tell his parents until many years later.

His abuser died in Florida in 1984, unpunished for the crimes he committed and the emotional havoc O’Leary has carried for decades.

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NEW YORK
New York Daily News

BY
KENNETH LOVETT
NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
Updated: Sunday, June 18, 2017

Senate Deputy Majority Leader John DeFrancisco opposes opening a one-year legal window to revive old cases for child sex abuse survivors — yet he supports the concept for other victims.

The powerful Syracuse Republican opposes a bill designed to make it easier for child sex abuse survivors to seek justice, largely because of a provision that would give victims who can no longer sue under current law one year to bring cases.

At the same time, DeFrancisco is pushing legislation that would give patients the ability to bring medical malpractice cases beginning from when they discover the error, not from when the mistake occurred, which is current law. The bill has a provision to open a one-year window to revive old cases that are currently time-barred under current law.

DeFrancisco and other Senate Republicans also have routinely supported legislation every two years to extend the statute of limitations to soldiers exposed to Agent Orange between 1961 and 1975 — cases that would have otherwise been time-barred since 1985.

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AUSTRALIA/ISRAEL
JTA

June 18, 2017

MELBOURNE (JTA) – A Jewish woman who said she had been molested repeatedly by her former principal called on Israel to extradite the woman back to their native Australia.

Dassi Erlich, a 29-year-old mother of one who said that her alleged molestation by Malka Leifer had left her emotionally scarred, made the plea Sunday during a speech before approximately 200 participants of Melbourne’s Limmud conference of Jewish learning.

Leifer, who left Australia for Israel in 2008 shortly after molestation accusations against her surfaced, has skipped several extradition hearings in Israel because she had committed herself to psychiatric institutions for short periods, coinciding with her court dates. Leifer is wanted for questioning in Australia in connection with 74 charges of molestation, including rape, of several teenage girls, the ABC broadcaster reported.

In 2015, Erlich received one of the largest sexual abuse damage payouts in Australia’s history with the Victorian Supreme Court ordering the Adass Israel School pay her more than $750,000 for its failure to prevent the systemic abuse suffered by Erlich since she was 15. During her speech, Erlich said she had witnessed Leifer molest another girl, but “said nothing.”

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GUAM
The Guam Daily Post

Neil Pang | The Guam Daily Post

“The Catholics of Guam cannot trust or have confidence in the Chancery leadership with these clergymen still enjoying some position of authority within our Archdiocese and benefits from our contributions.” – David Sablan, president, Concerned Catholics of Guam

The Concerned Catholics of Guam is calling on the leaders of the Archdiocese of Agana to remove four priests and a deacon from administrative and ministerial duties within the church in order to “restore some trust in the leadership,” according to CCOG president, David Sablan.

Sablan said CCOG is calling for the removal of the following five men: David C. Quitugua, former vicar general; Adrian Cristobal, former chancellor for the Archdiocese of Agana; Alberto Rodriguez Salamanca, former vice chancellor; Edivaldo da Silva Oleveira former spokesman and an aide to Archbishop Anthony Apuron; and Deacon Frank Tenorio.

Sablan told The Guam Daily Post the five were closely involved with Apuron during his tenure as the highest authority within the Archdiocese of Agana.

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MARYLAND
The Worthy Adversary

Fifteen Years After Dallas, A Seven-Part Series: Introduction
Fifteen Years After Dallas, Part One: The Altoona-Johnstown Grand Jury Report
Fifteen Years After Dallas, Part Two: Is There a Crook in the Diocese of Crookston?
Fifteen Years After Dallas, Part Three: A Priest Admits Abusing, Chicago Cardinal Does Nothing
Fifteen Years After Dallas, Part Four: Convicted Priest Deemed “Safe” by Oklahoma City Archbishop, Catholics Rightly Upset
Fifteen Years After Dallas, Part Five: Naughty Nienstedt and the Vatican Shred
Fifteen Years After Dallas, Part Six: A seminarian in Ohio attempts to buy babies. The Bishop? He pretends nothing happened

June 18, 2017

Joelle Casteix

Netflix’s recent documentary, The Keepers, has been a blockbuster for true crime and documentary fans (it was the talk of CrimeCon).

A gripping tale of abuse, cover-up, and murder, the series tells the story of how a group of former students are trying to find justice for their teacher Sister Cathy Cesnik, a murdered nun from Baltimore.

Representatives from the Archdiocese of Baltimore—who play a large role in the series for their part in covering up the child sex abuse of numerous girls at Archbishop Keough High School and throughout the archdiocese—did not appear in the film and only agreed to answer questions in writing in the final episode.

After the film’s release and blockbuster success, the archdiocese, led by Archbishop William Lori, began trolling the filmmakers on social media. They used silly emojis and “spoiler alerts” in posts about Father Maskell, the serial abuser in the film. They even tried to create trending hashtags like #thekeeperstruth.

Then, instead of doing outreach, apologizing, finding new victims, or helping those who are suffering, they trolled the filmmakers on a Reddit AMA.

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GUAM
Pacific Daily News

Haidee V Eugenio, heugenio@guampdn.com June 18, 2017

Superior Court of Guam judges continue to recuse themselves from hearing Catholic clergy sex abuse cases, even as plaintiffs’ lawyers have started exploring the possibility of an out-of-court settlement.

Sixteen clergy sex abuse lawsuits have been filed in local court between March 7 and May 10.

The Archdiocese of Agana is a defendant in each case, along with some priests, the Capuchin Franciscans, or the Boy Scouts of America and its Aloha Council Chamorro District.

Seven local court judges have filed disqualification forms in some of these lawsuits as of early June, based on information from the Judiciary of Guam Administrative Office.

Former altar boy Anthony Flores’ lawsuit, the earliest filed on March 7, still has no scheduled hearing yet as judges cite potential conflicts of interest.

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NEW YORK
New York Post

By Melissa Klein June 17, 2017

A Greek Orthodox priest who enjoyed kinky “cake crush” romps with a parochial school principal may now be in hot holy water over hundreds of thousands of dollars in missing money and murky credit-card expenses.

A forensic audit of St. Spyridon Church in Washington Heights found financial irregularities, according to a preliminary draft of the audit obtained by The Post. The May 19 report labeled “for discussion purposes only” is not final.

Rental income from four church-owned apartment houses allegedly paid for $99,249 in credit-card bills racked up by the Rev. George Passias, but the auditors said they could find no documentation for what the money was spent on.

Passias, 68, was pastor of the church until he was forced to resign in September 2015 over his affair with Ethel Bouzalas, 47, a married parish school principal.

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NEW YORK
The Daily Gazette

Mark Mahoney | June 17, 2017

New York state lawmakers have left a lot of important matters until the last minute before they end this year’s legislative session later this week.

If they do anything, they need to pass the Child Victims Act and give victims of child sex crimes more time to get the justice they deserve.

The Assembly earlier this month passed a bill (A5885/S6722,S6575) that would do just that.

Child sex abusers have long been protected in New York by a relentlessly early statute of limitations that often does not give a traumatized victim enough time as an adult to remember and report the abuse.

Under current law, there is a five-year statute of limitations for bringing criminal charges in certain sex-related felony crimes involving minors.

Right now, the clock on that five years starts when the victim turns 18. The new law would keep the same five-year statute of limitations, but would start the clock when the victim turns 23 years old. That means victims could be 28 years old and still have charges brought. The clock on the 2-year statute of limitations on certain misdemeanor sex crimes would also start at age 23, giving victims another five years —until they reach age 25 — to bring charges.

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PENNSYLVANIA
Tribune-Democrat

By Dave Sutor
dsutor@tribdem.com

Thomas Venditti wants Roman Catholics who are outraged by the cover-up of child sexual abuse in the Diocese of Altoona–Johnstown and elsewhere to unite in an effort to remove pedophiles and their protectors from the institution.

So the Bolivar resident has formed the Faithful Catholics Against Pedophilia.

“We are Catholics who are offended that this has happened within our church,” Venditti said.

“We’re interested in seeing the Catholic Church cleansed of all pedophiles and all those who cover for pedophilia.”

The newly formed group is still small and mostly united through social media, including a Facebook page.

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ITALIA
Rete L’Abuso

[What is really doing the Vatican to eradicate from within violence against children?]

Cosa sta facendo davvero il Vaticano per sradicare dal suo interno la violenza sui bambini? I risultati di un sondaggio online di Rete l’Abuso mettono sotto accusa l’inerzia di Bergoglio, delle istituzioni italiane e della Conferenza episcopale.

di Federico Tulli

Appena eletto, papa Francesco ha messo in cima alla agenda pontificia la lotta contro la pedofilia. Dedicando a questo tema almeno un annuncio a settimana, non mancando mai di farsi fotografare con atteggiamenti affettuosi – a volte ricambiati, a volte no – in mezzo a dei bambini, emanando una serie di decreti volti ad accentrare in Vaticano tutte le indagini e le decisioni sui casi più scabrosi e ad avvicinare le norme della Santa Sede alle indicazioni della Convezione Onu sui diritti dell’infanzia e dell’adolescenza siglata nel 1991 e ratificata nel 2014.

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ITALIA
Il Sussidiario

[A sad story of pedophilia comes from Florence: A former catechist was sentenced to eight years in prison for the sexual abuse of two children who at the time were being prepared for First Communion.]

15 GIUGNO 2017 FABIO BELLI

PEDOFILIA, EX CATECHISTA CONDANNATO – Una triste storia di pedofilia arriva da Firenze: un ex catechista è stato condannato ad otto anni di reclusione per aver compiuto abusi sessuali su due bambine che, all’epoca dei fatti stavano effettuando con lui il corso di preparazione alla Prima Comunione. Inizialmente le piccole non hanno avuto il coraggio di denunciare i fatti, poi col passare degli anni e con le vittime ormai divenute adolescenti anni dopo, il ricordo del catechista che toccava le bambine nelle parti intime durante il periodo della Prima Comunione si è fatta insopportabile. Una delle due piccole si è recata dalle forze dell’ordine ed è successivamente partito un procedimento nei confronti del pedofilo cinquantenne, che è stato condannato a otto anni di reclusione. La sentenza è stata emessa in tribunale in assenza sia dell’uomo, sia della vittima che ha sporto la denuncia, che avrà ora diritto ad un risarcimento.

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