ABUSE TRACKER

With a civil lawsuit and criminal charges against enablers, maybe some Southern Baptist leaders will finally learn a lesson.

At Pawleys Island Community Church in South Carolina, church leaders allowed a convicted child sex offender to regularly interact with kids.

When it came to light last week, church leaders performed a spiritual-sounding song-and-dance to try to justify their recklessness, but parents weren’t having it. Bravo.

Pawleys Island Community Church is affiliated with the Southern Baptist Convention, the largest Protestant faith group in the nation, and it sits in an affluent town with gated neighborhoods and high-end golf courses. So, don’t imagine that this is just a one-off aberration at some podunk church. It’s not. Pawleys Island is a prominent church, and its story illustrates some of the egregious patterns within the SBC… except this time, ordinary people are fighting back.

(And for what it’s worth… there are a LOT of…

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The long-awaited reforms seek to introduce stricter penalties for sexual crimes in the Chinese-ruled city

Hong Kong NGO worker Jessie recalled freezing in panic when she said she was sexually assaulted by an acquaintance one summer, unable to resist while he proceeded without her consent.

Years later, she testified against him, but rather than feeling empowered, she felt “oppressed and helpless” as she watched the man walk free under decades-old laws Hong Kong is now seeking to overhaul.

“The defence lawyer asked: ‘why didn’t you fight back at the time, bite or hit him?’” she told AFP, adding that the court failed to consider she had been unable to resist the assault due to fear.

The judge ruled the defendant may have “honestly but mistakenly believed” that she consented. He was acquitted despite never testifying.

“I never realised our laws were so backwards,” said Jessie, who is in her 30s.

…

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Victims group rejects meeting with presidential advisers

Victims of sexual abuse within Portugal’s Catholic Church have rejected a meeting with presidential advisers after President António José Seguro appears to have declined receiving them himself. They have told Expresso that only the head of state can help address what they have described as an unjust compensation process.

After waiting months for a response to their request for an audience with President António José Seguro, the association Coração Silenciado, representing victims of sexual abuse within the Catholic Church, claims it has, for the first time, been refused a direct meeting with the country’s head of state.

Instead, members were invited to meet two presidential advisers – an offer thay have  declined, arguing that only the president himself has the authority and moral influence needed to address their concerns.

“We felt they were trying to patch things up,” António Grosso, a member of the association’s leadership, told Expresso….

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The department announced the latest leadership shakeup and shared a list of reforms at its Youth Rehabilitation and Treatment Centers.

The man overseeing Nebraska’s state-run youth facilities is out of a job as the ripples of a sex abuse scandal at its Kearney center reached the highest level yet.

Four former state employees have been arrested on allegations they sexually abused teens at the Youth Rehabilitation and Treatment Center in Kearney. In at least two teens’ cases, staff knew about the allegations for months but didn’t tell key figures in their juvenile court cases.

The Department of Health and Human Services fired YRTC-Kearney’s top administrator in March. Now, DHHS has ousted her former boss.

The department announced on Wednesday that it had made “a leadership change,” installing a new senior administrator to oversee its Youth Rehabilitation and Treatment Centers in Kearney, Hastings and Lincoln.

“As…

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A Jersey Shore Catholic retreat center was ordered to pay millions of dollars to a woman who said she was sexually abused there as a teenager, marking the first verdict in a series of lawsuits involving two clergy members.

A Cape May County jury awarded the woman $3 million over allegations that she was abused while volunteering at the Marianist Family Retreat Center in Cape May Point during the 1970s.

The retreat center has been named in five lawsuits filed since 2021 by women accusing John Sheehan, a priest, and Albert Koch, a religious brother, of sexually abusing them as children between 1974 and 1982.

Neither Koch nor Sheehan was named as a defendant.

The jury’s verdict came after a trial held earlier this month that included testimony from the woman, who is only identified in court documents as “Jane Doe RP.”

The woman…

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A 90-year-old former Christian Brother, jailed in 2023 for the sexual abuse of primary school students in Kilkenny in the 1970s, has been found guilty of sexually abusing boys in St Patrick’s CBS primary school, Portarlington, Co Offaly, in the early to mid-1980s.

Liam Coughlan, who appeared by video link from prison during a trial that started last week in the Circuit Criminal Court, Portlaoise, Co Laois, had pleaded not guilty to multiple counts of indecent assault against nine former students who attended the school on Patrick Street, Portarlington.

On Friday, the jury took just an hour to find Coughlan guilty on all of the 31 counts they were asked to consider.

After the verdict, Judge Keenan Johnson praised the complainants who were in court and said they could take pride in the fact that their voices had now been heard. At least one of the men was crying.

During the trial…

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Pope Leo XIV has accepted the resignation from the pastoral governance of the diocese of Huacho (Peru) presented by Monsignor Antonio Santarsiero Rosa, O.S.I., as reported this Tuesday by the Holy See Press Office. The decision comes just over a month after the prelate turned 75, on June 13, the age at which canon law requires bishops to submit their resignation to the Pope. The Vatican statement offers no explanation regarding the acceptance of the resignation and makes no reference to the complaints that have come to light in recent months.

A resignation after months of controversy

The acceptance of the resignation comes three months after InfoVaticana revealed a complaint of alleged sexual abuse of a minor and a deacon against the prelate. Following the publication of the information, the Peruvian Episcopal Conference announced that Santarsiero was temporarily stepping down as secretary general of the episcopate to facilitate the clarification…

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A notice in the church bulletin at the Cathedral of SS. Peter & Paul in Providence caught Patrick Wall’s eye in early June.

A former Benedictine priest and advocacy consultant specializing in canon law, Wall says he has seen similar notices before.

“In the 44 prior Roman Catholic bankruptcies in the United States, that was one of the precursors. That they did a reorganization. …
They started the consultation process. It looks very inert,” said Wall, an advocacy consultant with the national law firm Grant & Eisenhofer, which filed the first federal lawsuit in Rhode Island on behalf of a Georgia resident who alleges he was abused by a priest as a child in Central Falls and plied with gifts, candy and home-cooked meals.

The notice might seem innocuous to the average parishioner. It announces that Bishop Bruce Lewandowski has established a “new one time program” for a diocesan consultation with parish…

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The senior priest has led one of the nation’s best-known Black Catholic parishes since 1981 and recently saw multiple unsubstantiated accusations.

Fr Michael Pfleger, the senior pastor of St. Sabina Catholic Church on the South Side of Chicago, has been removed from ministry pending investigation of a new child sex abuse allegation. Four previous accusations in recent years have not been substantiated.

The 77-year-old priest, who has led the church since 1981, announced the news personally on social media on July 11, noting that the accusation came from an adult woman who says she attended St. Sabina Academy in the 1990s.

“First, this is an absolute lie,” Pfleger said of the allegation, noting that he believes it is connected to a pattern of false allegations.

“I believe this is another attempt and another attack by those who have sought to destroy me for…

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The Rev. Michael Pfleger ‘strongly denied’ the allegation, which comes after archdiocesan reviews with outside investigators cleared him of four previous accusations of decades-old abuse.

The Rev. Michael Pfleger, a well-known anti-gun activist priest, has been accused of child sexual abuse and removed from ministry while the allegation is investigated, the Archdiocese of Chicago announced on Saturday (July 11). Pfleger “strongly denied” the allegation, which comes after archdiocesan reviews with outside investigators cleared him of four previous accusations of decades-old abuse, which were all found in the last five years to be unsubstantiated.

Pfleger, 77, is the longtime pastor of St. Sabina Parish, a predominantly African American parish, and he has been at the helm of several prominent, sometimes controversial, activism campaigns. Last month, he called on President Donald Trump to restore gun violence prevention funding to the City of Chicago and told Trump to “shut up,” referring to a social media…

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Catholic order with a record of child abuse could be subject to hundreds of redress claims worth up to $65m

Australian taxpayers could be forced to cover up to $65m in payouts to hundreds of abuse victims when a failing arm of the Catholic church disappears, new court documents reveal.

Last month, the Christian Brothers, a Catholic order with a shocking record of child abuse, informed a court it was going broke and would not be able to afford to pay out survivors.

The move has affected hundreds of cases brought either through the civil courts or through the government-run national redress scheme, which allows survivors to seek capped amounts of compensation without going to court.

An actuarial report detailing the state of the Christian Brothers finances was released to the media on Monday, alongside other court documents.

The report reveals there are currently 340 redress claims involving the Christian Brothers,…

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Survivor advocates are renewing calls for the Roman Catholic Diocese of Providence to release internal records after a man reported an allegation of childhood sexual abuse involving the late Rev. Raymond C. Theroux.

According to an attorney, the man alleges that Theroux sexually abused him twice inside the rectory of St. John Vianney Parish in Cumberland, Rhode Island, around 1996. The impacted individual was approximately 9 years old at the time of the alleged misconduct.

Theroux served at St. John Vianney for 28 years and died in December 2024. The Diocese of Providence said it had not been notified of an allegation or lawsuit involving him when contacted about the advocates’ claims. The reported allegation comes as Rhode Island gives childhood sexual abuse survivors a limited opportunity to bring certain civil claims that may previously have been blocked by filing deadlines.

Theroux Was Not Included in the Attorney General’s Report

In…

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The status hearing for Acadia Parish Catholic priest Korey Lavergne, accused of indecent behavior with a juvenile, has been postponed until next week.

The new date is set for Thursday, July 23. The hearing was initially set for June 12 but was moved to allow for a new judge to preside over the case. Judge David Smith recused himself due to personal connections to the church and to avoid any concern of bias.

Lavergne was arrested Jan. 17, and pleaded not guilty to all charges March 20.

Judge Scott Privat is the new judge who will take over the status hearing and possibly set new dates to move the case forward.

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Portsmouth Abbey School, a Catholic boarding and day school run by Benedictine monks in Portsmouth, Rhode Island, has confronted sexual abuse allegations twice in recent years, separated by decades. One case involved monks accused of abusing students between 1959 and the early 1980s. The other involved a teacher accused of abusing a student beginning during her sophomore year at the school. Together, they show how institutional failures to protect children can repeat themselves across generations.

An Investigation Confirms Decades-Old Abuse by Monks

In August 2017, Portsmouth Abbey released the findings of an investigation by the law firm Debevoise & Plimpton, which the school and monastery commissioned to review allegations of sexual abuse within the monastic community. The investigation found credible allegations of sexual abuse by two former monks, Father Bede Gorman and Father Geoffrey Chase, dating back as far as 1959 and continuing into the early 1980s. Both men were…

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In the spirit of transparency and full cooperation with law enforcement authorities, the Diocese of Buffalo wishes to provide the following background concerning the status of Jeffrey Nowak as a suspended priest of the Diocese and further details relating to his removal from active ministry:

In 2019, the Diocese was advised of numerous complaints about Rev. Nowak.  None of the complaints included any allegation of inappropriate sexual contact, possession of child pornography or sexual abuse of a minor.  However, given clear evidence of inappropriate conduct of Jeffrey Nowak with adults, then-Bishop Richard Malone removed him indefinitely from active ministry in 2019.  The Diocese further required Rev. Nowak to engage in professional counseling which he repeatedly failed to do. In 2020, then-Apostolic Administrator Bishop Edward Scharfenberger reviewed Rev. Nowak’s circumstances and decided to remove him from the Office of Pastor of Our Lady Help of Christians through a process required by canon law, despite…

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A one-person show about surviving clergy abuse is coming to Western Massachusetts later this month and its performer says what happens after the curtain falls is just as important as the play itself.

“Unreconciled,” written and performed by Jay Sefton, is rooted in his own childhood experience growing up outside of Philadelphia. He said he was cast to play Jesus in an eighth-grade passion play directed by a parish priest who was later defrocked and named in a grand jury report for sexual abuse of minors.

Humor and hope alongside heavy subject matter

Sefton said he understands why some audiences may hesitate to attend a show on this topic, but said the goal is connection, not shock.

“I think the humor is the thing that surprises people and also the hopefulness,” Sefton explained. “It can be intimidating to come and see a solo show about clergy abuse and so lots…

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A priest identified as Enrique “N” has been arrested for alleged sexual abuse of a minor girl based on a preliminary investigation. The Archdiocese of Mexico has initiated a canonical investigation.

The Mexico City attorney generalʼs office announced the arrest of a priest from the Archdiocese of Mexico accused of aggravated child sexual abuse against a 17-year-old girl and stated that a judge has already initiated criminal proceedings against him.

Obtuvimos la vinculación a proceso de Enrique “N” por su probable participación en el delito de pederastia agravada, en perjuicio de una adolescente.

La investigación inició a partir de la denuncia presentada el 4 de junio de 2026 por la madre de la adolescente, quien refirió haber encontrado en el teléfono celular de su hija conversaciones de contenido sexual con un contacto identificado como “Winnie Poo”. La víctima manifestó que dicho contacto correspondía a Enrique “N”, identificado como sacerdote,…

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Pawleys Island Community Church pastor could not be reached to answer questions about Power of Attorney

A registered sex offender accused of violating his probation by working near children answered his door, but not WMBF’s questions on Thursday.

70-year-old Warren Spence Perry, of Murrell’s Inlet, was arrested on July 14. The Georgetown County Sheriff’s Office said Perry violated his probation by doing volunteer work at Pawleys Island Community Church, which also runs an elementary school, preschool, and nursery.

Perry was convicted of Sexual Exploitation of a Minor in 2023 for a crime committed in 2020.

WMBF has contacted the South Carolina Department of Probation, Parole, and Pardon Services to inquire why Perry’s probation officer did not know of his activities at PICC, but has not received a response yet.

Perry declines to answer questions

WMBF reporter Sydney Ryan knocked on Perry’s door Thursday to ask why he worked near children…

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The Monterey County Sheriff’s Office has arrested a Hollister man for sexually assaulting at least four children, and authorities believe there could be additional victims.

Emmanuel Marchica, 51, of Hollister, was arrested and booked on July 10, 2026, on charges of lewd or lascivious acts with a child, sexual penetration of a child, oral copulation of a child, and annoying or molesting a child, according to a spokesperson for the sheriff’s office.

On July 5, a report of ongoing sexual abuse of a child was made to the sheriff’s office. Investigators followed up by interviewing witnesses and subsequently identified several other victims, according to the sheriff’s office.

Based on the evidence, authorities said there was enough to book Marchica into the Monterey County Jail.

The investigation uncovered victims whose disclosures date back to 2012. Based on this and other evidence gathered, the spokesperson said there is reason to suspect there…

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A former Mississippi educator is in custody after police say she had sexual relations with a student.

Olivia Marie Smith has been charged with sexual battery and enticement of a child to meet for sexual purposes.

Smith previously worked as a teacher at Ocean Springs Middle School, where she won “Teacher of the Year” in 2022, and was most recently assistant principal at Oak Park Elementary.

Investigators with the Ocean Springs Police Department said they were first informed of the situation by Ocean Springs School District officials on June 20.

The district said it was “deeply saddened” to hear about the charges being filed against one of its former employees but said it was fully cooperating with the investigation.

“After being tipped off about potential inappropriate behavior taking place involving an employee, OSSD immediately notified OSPD and Mississippi Child Protective Services,” the district shared in a statement. “OSSD has been…

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Members of St. Sabina Catholic Church are standing by their pastor, Fr. Michael Pfleger, and they’re demanding that the Archdiocese make some changes to how it handles sexual abuse allegations after the priest was accused of wrongdoing for the third time.

“While we fully recognize the church’s sacred responsibility to take every allegation seriously, and to ensure that every person who comes forward is heard with compassion, dignity and respect, we can no longer remain silent about the devastating impact of a process that has repeatedly demonstrated itself to be fundamentally unjust to those who are accused,” said church leader Felicia Chase, standing with about two dozen church members in the basement at St. Sabina.

She said it is “unjust and unnecessary” for the Cardinal to publicly announce that an allegation has been made and to remove the priest before there has been an investigation, without taking into account how…

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Leaders and parishioners at Saint Sabina Church are calling for the reinstatement of Father Michael Pfleger and demanding the Archdiocese of Chicago reform its investigation policy, days after the senior pastor was removed from the church amid sexual abuse allegations. 

Pfleger is being investigated for an accusation of sexual abuse against a girl when she was a student at Saint Sabina School between 1993-95, the senior pastor said in a July 11 statement. 

The Archdiocese of Chicago asked Pfleger to step aside from his role at the parish and live off campus while the accusation is investigated, Cardinal Blase Cupich previously wrote in a letter to parishioners.

“We do not presume the truth or falsity of an allegation until the process is complete and our Independent Review Board has made a recommendation that I accept,” Cupich wrote in the letter. “Only by conducting a thorough and impartial review…

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An independent review has concluded that the Church of England repeatedly failed a survivor of alleged sexual and spiritual abuse by clergy, finding that both its initial response to her disclosures in 2001 and a later national safeguarding investigation left her “further traumatised”.

The review, commissioned by safeguarding charity Thirtyone:eight and carried out by Kevin Crompton, examined complaints made by Jane Chevous, co-founder of Survivors Voices and vice-chair of the Church of England National Safeguarding Panel. She has waived her right to anonymity. 

The complaints concern the Church’s handling of allegations against two former priests and senior clergy after they were first reported in the Diocese of Southwark in 2001. The events the complaints refer to occurred between 1979 and 1992.

While acknowledging improvements in safeguarding practice over the past two decades, the review concluded that the Church’s processes are not sufficiently survivor-centred or trauma-informed. It calls for significant reforms…

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CHURCH deacon John Grant smiled benevolently as he dished out soup to the homeless.

As a prominent member of the Baptist Church, nobody blinked an eyelid when he offered men a temporary place to live in his £500,000 home in leafy Muswell Hill, London.

But behind the scenes, wolfish Grant had already been grooming and abusing vulnerable young men for years – and The Sun can today reveal that the church KNEW he was a sex offender.

Grant, 77, who also ran youth clubs, even told church bosses he had a problem – but they suggested he get counselling instead of going to the cops.

Now police fear he could have victims all over the UK after his abuse went on for more than four decades.

The detective who finally brought him to justice said: “This was textbook grooming.

“His church work facilitated his offending.”

Grant’s twisted crimes only came to…

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A Terre Haute man faces a charge of sexual misconduct with a minor following his arrest on Wednesday.

The Terre Haute Police Department arrested Tracy Hamilton, 62, after detectives said they became aware of the allegations earlier in the week.

According to court documents, Hamilton is a pastor.

Through their investigation, police said they learned Hamilton was involved in an ongoing sexual relationship with an underage girl.

Hamilton was charged with sexual misconduct with a minor.

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A Stearns County judge has dismissed four of five felony charges against Joseph Paul Herzing, a Catholic priest and Milaca resident, but ruled that a third-degree criminal sexual conduct charge may proceed.

In an omnibus order filed June 15, District Court Judge Ole Tvedten granted Herzing’s motion to dismiss one count of stalking and three counts of threats of violence, finding they were barred by Minnesota’s three-year statute of limitations.

Prosecutors agreed those charges could not proceed.

The remaining charge, third-degree criminal sexual conduct, stems from an alleged incident on or about Dec. 7, 2021.

Prosecutors allege Herzing engaged in sexual penetration with the woman while acting in what Minnesota law defines as a prohibited occupational relationship — a member of the clergy providing religious or spiritual advice, aid or comfort in private.

The court noted that, under Minnesota law, the charge has no statute of limitations.

Herzing’s attorney, Paul…

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ngry church members confronted their pastor during a heated meeting after learning that a registered sex offender had been volunteering at Pawley’s Island Community Church and around children, despite restrictions meant to keep him from being alone with minors.

Church volunteer Warren Perry was convicted in 2023 of sexual exploitation of a minor for a crime committed in 2020, according to the Georgetown County Sheriff’s Office.

During the meeting, Pastor Don Williams said Perry’s conviction had been known within church leadership for years.

“Mr. Perry’s conviction was known to me, to several leaders within our church, to our church staff, and to the leadership of the PICC,” Williams said.

Williams also said authorities were aware Perry was volunteering on the campus, which includes a school, and that the church had provided restrictions.

“The county was aware that he was volunteering on our campus, which includes…

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The limited information released by authorities and religious leaders in Mexico City makes it harder for other potential victims to come forward.

Unlike what happened almost simultaneously in Buffalo and Chicago in the United States, the Catholic Church in Mexico City still bets on opacity.

By the time the authorities in Mexico City informed about the arrest, the alleged culprit’s name had been removed already from the sole Catholic official database publicly available.

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On Wednesday, July 15, the Mexico City attorney’s office released a statement providing some detail on the arrest of a Catholic priest only identified, per the Mexican code, as Enrique “N.”

A few minutes before, Spes Viva, a Mexican human rights advocacy NGO that helps some victims of clergy sexual abuse in their cases, released a short statement of their own, where they offered a bit more detail about the identity of the arrested priest.

Although it also…

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A technical issue prevented progress in the case against a suspended Londonderry priest charged with child sex offences when it came before court today.

Edward Gallagher (59) is currently in custody at Maghaberry Prison.

Gallagher was arrested and charged after he was confronted by a group of people outside a hotel in Derry on April 17 last year.

The former parish priest and curate in the Diocese of Derry currently faces a number of charges alleged to have been committed between April 2 and April 17, 2025.

He is charged with attempting to sexually communicate with a male he believed to be under the age of 16.

He also faces charges of possessing an indecent image of a child; possessing an extreme pornographic image; making and distributing or showing indecent images of a child; causing unknown children to watch a third person engaging in sexual activity; and sexually communicating with…

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The diocese also will seek to remove Father Jeffrey Nowak from the clerical state.

The Diocese of Buffalo, New York, has cut a priest off from financial support and is seeking his removal from the clerical state after federal investigators accused him of “abhorrent criminal conduct,” the diocese said this week.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of New York said in July that Father Jeffrey Nowak of Lackawanna, New York, had been arrested and charged with both the receipt and possession of child pornography.

Nowak had been placed on administrative leave by the diocese in 2019 amid allegations that he had sexually harassed a seminarian. Bishop Michael Fisher, who was appointed to the diocese in 2021, subsequently told Nowak that his priestly faculties in the diocese would not be reinstated and that he would advise other bishops not to accept Nowak in their own dioceses.

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Would you be satisfied if you knew the priest that violated your brother or sister, classmate, neighbor or extended family was given a pass, not reported to authorities in the criminal justice system?

Key Points:

• Wisconsin’s Attorney General launched an investigation in 2021 into sexual abuse by clergy and faith leaders.
• Survivors and advocates are awaiting the public release of the investigation’s findings.
• The author, a survivor and psychotherapist, has been involved in training investigators for the case.
• The article calls for transparency and accountability from religious institutions and support from the community.

For the past five years, I have been active in supporting and participating in Wisconsin attorney general’s Clergy and Faith Leader Abuse investigation. AG Josh Kaul opened the investigation in April 2021 to investigate ongoing sexual abuse committed by clergy and faith leaders as well as the mishandling of the…

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Bishop Antonio Santarsiero Rosa denied accusations of sexual abuse that surfaced in April. He submitted his resignation as bishop when he turned 75 in June and the pope accepted it as of July 15.

On July 15, Pope Leo XIV accepted the resignation of Antonio Santarsiero Rosa as bishop of the Diocese of Huacho, Peru, which he has led since 2004.

The resignation was accepted as Santarsiero turned 75, the age at which the Code of Canon Law requires bishops to submit their resignation to the pope. The decision comes just over three months after allegations of sexual abuse and psychological mistreatment against the prelate came to light.

The Holy See Press Office stated only that “the Holy Father has accepted the resignation” without providing further details.

Accusations against Santarsiero

In April, the Spanish news outlet InfoVaticana reported on the accusations, contained in a…

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In March, Rhode Island Attorney General Peter Neronha published a report identifying 72 clergy members credibly accused of child sexual misconduct in the Diocese of Providence.

The late Fr. Raymond Theroux, who served at St. John Vianney Parish in Cumberland for 28 years, was not on the list – but is now the focus of a renewed effort by victims advocates to get the Catholic diocese to release its “secret archive.”

Attorney Mitchell Garabedian says that a man recently reported to him that he had been sexually abused by Theroux twice in the Cumberland rectory.

Theroux was the brother of former Vicar General Monsignor Paul Theroux, who was a diocesan spokesman on clergy sexual abuse cases from 2005 to 2010. The vicar represented the diocese during mediation of what would ultimately become a $13.5-million settlement of 36 sexual-abuse lawsuits in 2002, according to reports at the time in The Providence Journal.

…

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Last May, congress passed the Take It Down Act, requiring websites to remove “nonconsensual intimate visual depictions” of identifiable individuals. This includes both real and AI-generated content.

But this law only addresses content publication, not the various ways in which it may be created or stored. And as AI models become increasingly more advanced, legislators are having a hard time keeping up.

Gaps in the law

Just months before that bill became law, a Wisconsin district court ruled to protect the right to private possession of AI-generated child sexual abuse materials.

Yes, you read that correctly.

The ruling states it is legal to possess such materials if they are (1) synthetic — that is, does not contain images generated from actual children — and (2) not distributed outside one’s home. The actual production of such materials is not protected by law, although its legality remains hazy.

In making this decision, the court…

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Catholic anti-trafficking advocates urged Congress to pass legislation strengthening prevention efforts, expanding survivor protections, and combating online exploitation.

Catholic sisters, survivor advocates, and lawmakers gathered on Capitol Hill Tuesday to urge Congress to quickly pass bipartisan legislation they say would strengthen protections for victims of human trafficking and help prevent future exploitation.

Hosted by the Alliance to End Human Trafficking and the National Advocacy Center of the Sisters of the Good Shepherd, the July 14 congressional briefing focused on the need to reauthorize federal anti‑trafficking programs through fiscal 2029 and pass legislation to impose requirements on social media platforms to reduce harms to minors.

Sponsor Rep. Chris Smith, R‑New Jersey, titled his human trafficking bill the Frederick Douglass Trafficking Victims Prevention and Protection Reauthorization Act of 2025 (H.R. 1144), and the measure is next up for House consideration. A separate bill,…

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An Elkins pastor accused of soliciting a minor appeared in Randolph County Circuit Court for his arraignment Tuesday.

Kevin Jones, 34, was arraigned on four charges — soliciting a minor via computer, distribution of material depicting minors in sexually explicit conduct, delivery of a controlled substance and distribution of a hemp-derived product to a person under 21.

Jones was arrested in October 2025. He was investigated by the Mountain Region Drug and Violent Crime Task Force.

During Tuesday’s court proceedings, the judge ordered that Jones is not allowed to access a cellular device as the case continues, and it was stated in court that the allegations involve messages sent through Snapchat to a minor.

Court officials set Jones’ pre-trial hearing for Sept. 3 at 1 p.m. Trial dates were also scheduled for Oct. 13, 14 and 15 at 9 a.m.

Monongalia County Prosecuting Attorney Gabrielle Mucciola has been named as…

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Yesterday, the Toledo City Council voted 8-2 to remove the honorary street sign bearing the name of Monsignor Jerome Schmit, despite staunch opposition from the Catholic Diocese of Toledo. The vote culminates a crusade begun more than 20 years ago by the family of Sister Margaret Ann Pahl and survivor advocate Claudia Vercellotti, who believed that evidence uncovered at Father Gerald Robinson’s 2006 trial for Sister Margaret Ann’s murder showed that Monsignor Schmit interfered with the original investigation. The Abuse Survivors Coalition (ASC) applauds the long-awaited action of the City Council.

David Lorenz, a member of the ASC Operations Team and an ASC MD Contact, said, “There is simply no reason to honor a priest who, by all accounts, acted to protect Father Robinson from prosecution for murdering Sister Margaret Ann. Ultimately, Father Robinson was found guilty. It is a common reaction by the Catholic…

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The defendants in a civil suit that alleges unchecked bullying of a student at Our Lady of Mount Carmel Catholic School in Carmel have requested a judge reconsider a decision to allow the adult plaintiffs to use a pseudonym. 

Attorneys for the Roman Catholic Diocese of Lafayette-In-Indiana; Trudy Schouten Young, diocese superintendent of schools; the Rev. Richard Doerr, OLMC pastor; OLMC Principal Timothy Fletcher; and OLMC Assistant Principal Deanna Cotter filed the motion to reconsider June 30. 

The lawsuit, filed by the student’s parents, accuses OLMC officials and the diocese of failing to adequately address and prevent intensifying harassment of their son that became sexual in nature. The parents are identified as James Doe and Julie Doe in the suit. 

The defendants argue that pseudonymity is an “extraordinary, disfavored exception” and that the plaintiffs’ seeking media coverage of the case is a contradiction to “any desire for privacy.” 

“They demanded publicity,…

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The Catholic Diocese of Maralal has announced sweeping new rules for priests following the suspension of seven clerics accused of violating Church law.

In what Bishop Hieronymus Joya described as the first disciplinary action of its kind in the diocese, the seven priests were relieved of their priestly and pastoral duties pending investigations.

The priests are accused of abusing ecclesiastical authority, administrative negligence, and financial mismanagement.

The suspensions were announced alongside a raft of reforms aimed at strengthening accountability, discipline, and governance within the diocese.

In a detailed four-page letter, the bishop expressed frustration over what he described as years of mismanagement and a lack of cooperation since he took over leadership three years ago.

According to Bishop Joya, preliminary investigations uncovered serious concerns that warranted the suspension of the priests.

“If things are not addressed per the Catholic rules and regulations, we will seek the government’s intervention so that…

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The Bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Maralal, Hieronymus Joya, has suspended seven priests over alleged violations of Church law. In a major shake-up, the first of its kind in the diocese, the priests have been relieved of their priestly and pastoral duties pending investigations into allegations of abuse of ecclesiastical power, negligence of administration, and financial mismanagement. As Emily Chebet reports, the Diocese of Maralal has also announced new appointments and introduced a series of stricter regulations aimed at strengthening accountability and governance within the Church.

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For almost seven years, Jeffrey Nowak has not been allowed to practice as a priest for the Diocese of Buffalo after he was accused in 2019 of harassing a former seminarian and inappropriate contact with children.

Over that period of inactivity, Nowak has been investigated twice by the FBI for allegedly accessing websites with photos and videos of sexually exploited children, and last week he was arrested and charged by federal agents with receipt and possession of child pornography.

Through all of this, the Diocese had continued to pay Nowak “a modest monthly stipend”, which a spokesman said is required by Canon Law, an internal system of regulations that govern its operations and discipline. As of Wednesday, the Diocese said, “In light of the abhorrent criminal conduct recently alleged by federal investigators, the Diocese is no longer providing any financial support to Rev. Nowak, who remains incarcerated pending his trial.”

The…

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A 47-year-old woman is accused of witnessing the alleged abuse and failing to report it.

A pastor at a Thibodaux church has been arrested in Terrebonne Parish on charges including felony sexual battery and cruelty to juveniles as authorities investigate allegations of physical and sexual abuse involving children, authorities said. 

The Terrebonne Parish Sheriff’s Office identified 57-year-old Thomas J. Tucker III of Houma as a suspect in the case. Investigators also arrested 47-year-old Sharotta Lewis of Houma, accusing her of witnessing the alleged abuse and failing to report it.

The investigation began after child abuse allegations involving Terrebonne Parish juveniles were reported to the Louisiana Department of Children and Family Services, according to the sheriff’s office. Detectives with the Special Victims Unit and child protection investigators conducted interviews and gathered evidence.

Authorities say Tucker identified himself as a pastor with Outcast of Society Ministries in Thibodaux, where some of the…

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The Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas has been informed by the Priestly Fraternity of Saint Peter (F.S.S.P) that the Archdiocese of Omaha recently received an allegation concerning Reverend Eric Flood, F.S.S.P, involving alleged misconduct with a minor occurring more than twenty years ago. This allegation was immediately reported to law enforcement, in accordance with mandatory reporting requirements.

Consistent with the Archdiocese’s commitment to the protection of children and persons in vulnerable situations, and pending the outcome of investigations by civil authorities and the Archdiocese of Omaha, Father Flood has been temporarily withdrawn from the public exercise of priestly ministry, including celebrating Mass and other public ministerial duties. This administrative measure is intended to protect all parties, including Father Flood, and should not be interpreted as a determination regarding the allegation. No conclusion has been reached, and Father Flood is entitled to the presumption of innocence and to a fair…

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The Diocese of Buffalo is providing new details about a priest who was arrested on child sexual abuse charges.

Last week, federal agents arrested Fr. Jeffrey Nowak, 46, of Lackawanna, after they seized multiple devices inside his home that contained sexually explicit videos and pictures of children.

In 2019, the diocese said it received numerous complaints regarding Nowak, claiming he was inappropriate with adults. Then-Bishop Richard Malone suspended Nowak that year and required him to get counseling, which the diocese says he never did.

In 2021, now-Bishop Michael Fisher told Nowak he would not consider reappointing him to active ministry. The diocese claims that no allegations they received mentioned Nowak was involved children, and therefore the diocese had no grounds to petition the Vatican to remove Nowak from the clerical state against his will.

The diocese says that, as required by canon law, some level of financial support must be…

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Federal prosecutors say a Buffalo priest charged in a child pornography case also allegedly shared the Payton Gendron manifesto.

We’re hearing more details about a Western New York priest who remains in custody after appearing in federal court on child pornography charges.

Jeffrey Nowak, 46, a priest in the Diocese of Buffalo, was arrested and charged with receipt and possession of child pornography. 

According to the criminal complaint, Nowak was placed on administrative leave in August 2019 following allegations of inappropriate contact with children and harassment of a seminarian. Investigators say an email address allegedly linked to Nowak was identified as an email address that accessed a New Zealand cloud-based digital storage and file-hosting site that had photos and videos files of sexually exploited children. 

A spokesperson for the US Attorney office confirmed to 2 On Your Side that prosecutors said in court on Monday…

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Nowak has been charged with child porn possession

In light of the arrest of Jeffrey Nowak, a pastor on administrative leave, the Buffalo Catholic Diocese issued the following statement on Wednesday:

“In 2019, the Diocese was advised of numerous complaints about Rev. Nowak. None of the complaints included any allegation of inappropriate sexual contact, possession of child pornography or sexual abuse of a minor. However, given clear evidence of inappropriate conduct of Jeffrey Nowak with adults, then-Bishop Richard Malone removed him indefinitely from active ministry in 2019.

“The Diocese further required Rev. Nowak to engage in professional counseling, which he repeatedly failed to do. In 2020, then-Apostolic Administrator Bishop Edward Scharfenberger reviewed Rev. Nowak’s circumstances and decided to remove him from the Office of Pastor of Our Lady Help of Christians through a process required by canon law, despite the fact that he was on indefinite leave.

“For a brief…

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The Michigan Court of Appeals ruled Tuesday that a childhood sexual abuse lawsuit against Grace Christian Reformed Church of Grand Rapids can proceed in Kent County Circuit Court.

The suit, which also specifically names the Christian Reformed Church in North America and a number of its related entities as defendants, had previously been dismissed by the Kent County Circuit Court in 2024 on the grounds that the statute of limitations on the claims at hand had expired. 

Marian Ippel, the plaintiff in the case, is suing over instances of alleged sexual abuse that occurred from 2006 to 2007, when she was three to four years old. At that time, Michigan law stated that, because she was a minor, she had until she turned 19 to file suit. 

The lawsuit was not filed until 2024, when Ippel was 21 — but in 2018, Michigan updated its statute of limitations for sexual abuse…

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The Diocese of Burlington, Vermont’s former bishop says there was “nothing nefarious” about the intent to shield diocesan assets from potential lawsuits.

A sworn deposition, filed as part of abuse lawsuits in the Diocese of Burlington, Vermont’s federal bankruptcy proceedings, alleges that the former bishop of the diocese asked a job applicant if she would be willing to help shield diocesan finances from a potential abuse settlement.

The prelate himself, meanwhile, told EWTN News that there was “nothing nefarious” in such a proposal, which he said was meant to protect Church assets from additional lawsuits while the diocese was already paying out settlements to abuse victims.

Celeste Heinonen claims in a July 9 court statement that she interviewed for the position of chief financial officer at the Diocese of Burlington in 2020. During that interview she said she spoke to then-Burlington Bishop Christopher Coyne, who she said brought up the topic…

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In short:

A former Gippsland primary school teacher is standing trial in the Latrobe Valley County Court after being charged with child sexual abuse offences dating back to 1999.

Prosecutor David O’Doherty told the jury Nicole Anne Jones, formerly Nicky Cravino, groomed the boy and sexually assaulted him over a lengthy period.

What’s next?

The trial is expected to run for about two weeks.

A Victorian primary school teacher allegedly groomed, indecently assaulted and made a boy sexually penetrate her in the late 1990s, a jury has heard.

Warning: This story contains detailed descriptions of alleged child sexual assault.

Nicole Anne Jones, formerly known as Nicky Cravino, is charged with 19 counts of indecent act with a child under 16 and one count of sexual penetration of a child under 16.

Sexual assault support lines:

• Men’s Referral Service: 1300 766 491
• Lifeline (24-hour crisis line): 131 114

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Pfleger is senior pastor at St. Sabina Church on South Side

Dozens of religious leaders from different denominations are publicly backing Father Michael Pfleger as the Archdiocese of Chicago investigates a new allegation of sexual abuse, the fifth such claim he has faced during his 45 years as a priest at St. Sabina Church.

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For decades, Pfleger has been a visible presence at demonstrations, marching and speaking out against issues he believes harm the community. In recent years, he has focused much of his activism on gun violence and on criticizing the policies of President Donald Trump. Those efforts have brought him into close collaboration with other Chicago-area religious leaders, many of whom are now speaking out in his defense.

“It hurts because he is one of the greatest civil rights leaders or our time,” said the Rev. Ira…

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Victims of Bill Kenneally are to receive compensation for the abuse they suffered, the Minister for Justice said, after the Taoiseach apologised “unreservedly” for a State “dereliction of duty”.

Kenneally, formerly of Summerville Avenue, Waterford city, died last month while serving a prison term after pleading guilty to 10 sample counts of indecently assaulting 10 boys at various locations in Waterford in the 1980s.

A Commission of Investigation, chaired by retired judge Michael White, examined the response of gardaí, Basketball Ireland, politicians and members of the Catholic Church to allegations of sexual abuse made against the former Waterford basketball coach.

It states his activities became known in Waterford to two senior Garda officers as well as a retired politician and senior clergyman in the late 1980s – with one complainant saying he raised the matter with gardaí when he was 14 as early as 1985.

But Kenneally was not brought to justice…

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Decision comes after years of effort from family and advocate and 11 Investigates documentary that covered Schmit’s role in Sister Margaret Ann murder investigation.

After years of debate and decades of advocacy by a leader of church accountability and the family of Sister Margaret Ann Pahl, Toledo City Council voted Tuesday to remove the honorary street sign bearing the name of Monsignor Jerome Schmit.

The vote was 8-2 to remove the sign, with Council President Vanice Williams and Councilman John Hobbs III voting no. 

The vote marks the end of a campaign that began more than 20 years ago as Pahl’s family and Claudia Vercellotti, the founder of the Ohio chapter of Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, sought to remove a street sign near Fifth Third Field that honored Schmit. They have argued that evidence uncovered after the 1980 murder showed he helped interfere with the…

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In a sworn statement, a 2020 chief financial job applicant claims the state’s largest religious denomination asked if she’d help “transfer its assets as quickly as possible so that it could file for bankruptcy.”

Two decades after the Vermont Roman Catholic Diocese aimed to protect local parishes from priest misconduct lawsuits by placing their estimated $500 million of holdings into trusts, a recent job applicant alleges the state’s largest religious denomination’s past and current bishops asked if she’d help shelter more funds.

Utah resident Celeste Heinonen was interviewing for the diocese’s post of chief financial officer in 2020 when she felt “shocked” and “sick to my stomach” receiving the inquiry, she said in a U.S. Bankruptcy Court declaration filed this month in the church’s Chapter 11 protection case.

The diocese created trusts in 2006 to shield local parish property and possessions for what it said were “pious, charitable or educational purposes”…

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A Chicago priest known for his longtime social justice ministry has been placed on leave, following an abuse allegation for an incident said to have taken place some three decades ago.

In a July 11 letter, Cardinal Blase J. Cupich of Chicago informed the archdiocese’s Faith Community of St. Sabina that senior pastor Father Michael L. Pfleger had been accused of the sexual abuse of a minor — a claim the priest has “strongly denied,” said the cardinal.

“The abuse is alleged to have occurred at St. Sabina more than 30 years ago,” said Cardinal Cupich. “In keeping with our child protection policies, I have asked Father Pfleger to step aside from ministry and live away from the parish while the allegation is investigated.”

The cardinal, citing the archdiocese’s child protection policies, said that “the allegation was reported to law enforcement authorities and the person making the allegation has been offered…

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In short:

A Tasmanian woman is suing former Archbishop of Hobart Julian Porteous and the state of Tasmania over allegations of sexual abuse by two others.

She has claimed they had a duty of care to protect her from the alleged abuse.

What’s next?

Both Archbishop Porteous and the state have denied or not admitted to the claims.

A woman is suing both the former Archbishop of Hobart and the state of Tasmania over allegations that she was sexually abused by a Catholic priest and a notorious paedophile.

In her statement of claim filed to the Supreme Court of Tasmania, it is alleged that the plaintiff was sexually abused by Father Bill Egan in 1999, and then by James Geoffrey Griffin in 2007 when he was working as a nurse.

WARNING: This story contains details of an alleged sexual assault of a child.

Sexual assault support services:

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The outcome of the canonical process will determine whether the case advances to further ecclesiastical proceedings or is ultimately dismissed

The Catholic Church has entered a delicate new chapter in its ongoing effort to address allegations of misconduct with transparency and due process after Cardinal Cristóbal López Romero, Archbishop of Rabat, voluntarily stepped aside from his pastoral responsibilities while the Vatican conducts a preliminary investigation into accusations of sexual misconduct involving adult women.

The 74-year-old Spanish-born cardinal announced his decision on July 7, stressing that he is fully cooperating with the Holy See and firmly denying any criminal or abusive behavior. His temporary withdrawal reflects the Church’s established practice of allowing investigations to proceed without interference while safeguarding both the integrity of the inquiry and the rights of all those involved.

«I have committed neither assault, violence nor sexual harassment,» López Romero said in a brief statement to Spanish…

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Former Cheektowaga priest Jeffrey Nowak will be held in jail after he was arrested on child pornography charges last week, a federal judge ruled Monday.

Nowak was arrested last Wednesday after the FBI conducted a search at his Lackawanna home and found child pornography on a USB storage device as well as other electronics including a laptop, cell phone and iPad.

Nowak, who said mass at Our Lady Help of Christians in Cheektowaga, was placed on permanent leave by the Buffalo Diocese in 2019 amid allegations of inappropriate contact with children and sexually harassing a seminarian.

The judge ruled that Nowak would stay in jail due to the “nature and circumstances of the offense,” including “strong evidence against him,” which included an alleged confession to distributing child pornography and interviews where he allegedly made more confessions of guilt. The main reason, however, was Nowak’s alleged threats to offer up family…

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Prosecutors said Jeffrey Nowak threatened family members, shared images of children with others online and possessed child sexual abuse material as a judge ruled he poses a danger to the community.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e3FQoxUkNL4

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The Rev. Michael Pfleger has been here before. Accused without charges. Named and shamed before an investigation got off the ground.

The year was 2021. Two brothers accused Pfleger, the longtime pastor of St. Sabina Church, of inappropriate conduct decades earlier when he was in seminary.

In all, Pfleger has been accused four previous times and cleared each time following a months-long investigation.

He has now been suspended from ministry again. The Archdiocese of Chicago said a woman accused Pfleger of sexual abuse when she was a student at the church school in the mid-1990s.

PREVIOUS: Father Michael Pfleger accused of sexually abusing minor over 30 years ago

Pfleger strongly denies it, and said he wants a swift decision from the Cardinal.

“I do not intend to let this drag on and drain this church family. If it’s not over very soon, I will make a decision,” he wrote in…

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Dear Pope Leo:

Congratulations on receiving the Liberty Medal from the National Constitution Center on the eve of the United States’ 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. I was inspired by these words in your speech: “As every American knows . . . the path to building a society that would embody those high ideals of liberty and justice for all was not always easy and, in many respects, is still a work in progress. Indeed, the effort to realize this vision is one that must be taken up anew in each generation and in the face of ever new challenges.” While you speak next about safeguarding the gift of life from conception to natural death, I would like to turn your attention to the children of the United States. We have not yet established full “liberty and justice” for the victims of child sex abuse in…

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Archdiocese Announces Investigation Involving Fr. Eric Flood, F.S.S.P.

The Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas has been informed by the Priestly Fraternity of Saint Peter (F.S.S.P) that the Archdiocese of Omaha recently received an allegation concerning Reverend Eric Flood, F.S.S.P, involving alleged misconduct with a minor occurring more than twenty years ago. This allegation was immediately reported to law enforcement, in accordance with mandatory reporting requirements.

Consistent with the Archdiocese’s commitment to the protection of children and persons in vulnerable situations, and pending the outcome of investigations by civil authorities and the Archdiocese of Omaha, Father Flood has been temporarily withdrawn from the public exercise of priestly ministry, including celebrating Mass and other public ministerial duties. This administrative measure is intended to protect all parties, including Father Flood, and should not be interpreted as a determination regarding the allegation. No conclusion has been reached, and Father Flood is entitled to…

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The brother of an apostle for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints pleaded guilty in a federal court in Ohio on Thursday, admitting that he coerced and enticed a minor, an offense that carries a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years and up to life in prison.

Wade Christofferson, 73, admitted to coercing and enticing two minors under the age of 10 years old in Ohio and Utah. He also reportedly committed “hands-on sexual abuse of the child in Utah and the second victim in Ohio approximately 20 times,” according to a news release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Southern Ohio.

In November 2025, Wade Christofferson was booked into the Salt Lake County Jail on a warrant from the Federal Bureau of Investigation after police say he was overheard on a sexually explicit FaceTime call with a minor victim. He had also sent…

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Newly elected Southern Baptist Convention President Willy Rice has characterized the SBC’s clergy sex abuse crisis as a “hoax” and a “snipe hunt.”

Talk like that helped get Rice elected. Apparently, it was the message many Southern Baptists wanted to hear.

But just eight years ago, Rice was expounding a very different message.

In 2018, on his “Pastor’s Blog,” Rice published “Another SBC ‘Me-Too’ Story” in which he spoke out about church leaders who “fail in their responsibilities due to our unwillingness to reckon with difficult things.”

“In seeking to protect institutions,” he wrote, “we fail people, we fail Jesus and, ultimately, we fail those very institutions we love. Many of us may wish we could hear no more, but that is the very attitude that betrays us in the first place. We wish to be comfortable when what we need…

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A youth pastor at First Baptist Church of Folsom was arrested Friday (July 10) after investigators said he sexually abused multiple children during the 1990s, the St. Tammany Parish Sheriff’s Office said.

David Mercer, 72, was taken into custody Friday afternoon and is being held at the St. Tammany Parish jail.

Deputies also searched a residence owned by First Baptist Church of Folsom on Friday as part of the investigation.

Investigators believe there may be additional victims who have not yet come forward.

Anyone who thinks they may have been a victim of Mercer, or who has information that could help investigators, is asked to call the St. Tammany Parish Sheriff’s Office at (985) 898-2338 or contact their local law enforcement agency.

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Fr. Michael Pfleger, a priest in the Catholic Archdiocese of Chicago, has again been publicly accused of child sexual abuse this week. This is the 5th allegation of sexual abuse that has been made against the priest, the 4th for child sexual abuse. Fr. Pfleger has been removed from St. Sabina Parish while the accusation is being investigated and has vehemently denied the allegation.

The Archdiocese reportedly found “no evidence of wrongdoing” in the previous 4 accusations. Fr. Pfleger was twice removed from ministry during an investigation and then twice returned to St. Sabina. With this 5th allegation, the Abuse Survivors Coalition (ASC) wonders how many survivors need to come forward before their accusations are believed?

Studies have shown that false accusations of child sexual abuse are extremely rare. Even the 2004 John Jay study of the sexual abuse of children in the Catholic…

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Pfleger asked to step away from ministry, says ‘this is an absolute lie’

Saint Sabina parishioners are speaking out in support of Father Michael Pfleger after he was asked to step away from ministry.

The Archdiocese of Chicago is investigating a new allegation of sexual abuse of a minor against him.

Sunday morning, church members stood and applauded for Pfleger as a letter from the Archdiocese of Chicago was read. The letter noted that Pfleger strongly denies the allegation.

A woman claims the priest abused her when she was a child, more than 30years ago.

The woman is the fifth person to accuse Pfleger of sexual misconduct. He was cleared in previous investigations.

In the letter released Saturday by the Archdiocese of Chicago, Cardinal Blase Cupich said the alleged abuse was reported to have occurred more than 30 years ago at Saint Sabina Parish, 1210 W. 78th Pl., in Chicago’s Auburn…

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A former pastor and soccer coach pleaded guilty for child sexual abuse, the Erie County District Attorney’s Office said on Monday.

John A. Camardo, III, 47 and of Williamsville, pleaded guilty to one count of second-degree rape and one count of second-degree course of sexual conduct against a child, officials said.

According to authorities, Camardo engaged in sexual conduct with a victim under 15 years old between April and May 2024.

Between April 2025 and June 2026, Camardo engaged in two or more acts of sexual conduct with a second victim who was under age 13. Officials said Camardo was known to the victims, and both crimes took place in Amherst.

Camardo was a former executive pastor of The Chapel, which has locations in Cheektowaga, Getzville, Lockport and Niagara Falls. He also coached girls’ travel soccer for the Amherst Soccer Association as of 2023.

The Chapel said in a letter to…

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A Williamsville pastor has pleaded guilty to child sexual abuse, facing up to eight years in prison, according to the Erie County District Attorney’s Office.

A pastor from Williamsville has pleaded guilty to child sexual abuse.

RELATED: Former Buffalo priest appears in federal court following arrest in international child exploitation investigation

According to the Erie County District Attorney’s Office, John A. Camardo, III, 47, has been charged with one count of Rape in the 2nd Degree and one count of Course of Sexual Conduct Against a Child in the 2nd Degree.

Erie County District Attorney Michael J. Keane says between April 1, 2024 and May 31, 2024, Camardo engaged in sexual intercourse with a victim under the age of 15.

Keane also said Camardo engaged in two or more acts of sexual conduct with a second victim under the age of 13 between April 1, 2025, and June 20, 2026.

…

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These incidents allegedly happened between 1989 and 1995, says police

A Folsom, Louisiana man has been arrested by the Bossier Parish Sheriff’s Office (BPSO) after an investigation into multiple child sex offenses.

David Mercer, 72, of Folsom, Louisiana, was identified as the suspect in this case during the course of the investigation, says BPSO.

Detectives began investigating allegations involving, at this time, 4 child victims on June 29.

These incidents allegedly happened between 1989 and 1995 in Bossier Parish, says police.

It was confirmed by investigators that Mercer lived and worked in Bossier Parish when these offenses allegedly happened.

BPSO says Mercer was employed as a youth minister at Cypress Baptist Church of Benton, but resigned from that position in 1995.

Detectives went to Folsom, Louisiana, on July 10 and arrested Mercer without any problems with the help of the St. Tammany Parish Sheriff’s Office.

When he was arrested, detectives…

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A youth pastor at First Baptist Church of Folsom in Louisiana was arrested Friday, July 10 after investigators said he sexually abused multiple children during the 1990s, the St. Tammany Parish Sheriff’s Office said.

David Mercer, 72, was taken into custody Friday afternoon and is being held at the St. Tammany Parish jail.

Deputies also searched a residence owned by First Baptist Church of Folsom on Friday as part of the investigation.

Former member of Hannibal’s Fifth Street Baptist Church youth group Lacey Blue confirmed to WGEM News that Mercer was her youth pastor at the church in the 1990s. She said she was not a victim of Mercer, nor knows any of the victims who came forward.

Missouri court records do not show any charges against Mercer in Marion or Ralls County.

Investigators believe there may be additional victims who have not yet come forward.

Anyone who thinks they…

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David Mercer, 72, was arrested in Louisiana on Friday

A second church official has now confirmed that the sex abuse charges filed against youth pastor David Mercer are not related to his time serving in the same capacity at 5th Street Baptist Church in Hannibal between 1998 and 2000.

“David Mercer was taken into custody on Friday, July 10, 2026, for multiple criminal charges in Bossier Parish, Louisiana, during his time as a youth pastor at a church in Bossier Parish. These charges stem from his time at a church in the 1990s,” Pastor Will Robbins of the First Baptist Church in Folsom, Louisiana, said.

Mercer was a youth pastor at the Folsom church from 2023 to 2026. His Facebook page says he retired.

As Muddy River News first reported over the weekend, Pastor Tom Carpenter of 5th Street Baptist Church, 111 N. 5th Street, confirms that Mercer was once…

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Editor’s note: This story contains descriptions of alleged sexual assault against children.

The son of a Tacoma pastor has been charged with sexually assaulting two children in incidents dating as far back as 1997. When recently confronted with the allegations, he allegedly responded with, “Yes, but I’ve changed,” according to court records.

Prosecutors charged John Marchant Stabbert, 51, with four counts of first-degree rape of a child on June 22. Stabbert has been summoned for an arraignment on July 17, according to Pierce County Superior Court records. He has not been arrested.

Spokesperson for the Pierce County Prosecuting Attorney’s office, Adam Faber, told The News Tribune it’s “very common for sex cases to start with summons rather than an arrest or bench warrant” when asked why Stabbert hasn’t been taken into custody.

John Stabbert’s attorney, Donna Person Smith, declined to comment for this story. The News Tribune attempted…

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Rajshahi Diocese had suspended Prodip Gregory from priestly ministries after allegation surfaced in 2020

A court in northern Bangladesh has acquitted a Catholic priest nearly six years after he was arrested on charges of confining and raping a 15-year-old girl from the ethnic minority Santal community, charges that led to his suspension from priestly ministry.

The Women and Children Repression Prevention Tribunal in Rajshahi acquitted Father Pradip Gregory of charges of confinement and rape on July 12, according to the plaintiff’s lawyer, Munna Saha.

The court has yet to issue its full written judgment explaining the reasons for the acquittal.

Defense lawyer Abul Kashem told journalists the verdict had delivered justice to his client, describing Gregory as a victim of a conspiracy by a vested quarter aimed at tarnishing his reputation.

Saha said the victim had been denied justice and that they would appeal the verdict before the High Court.

…

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A yearslong investigation into sexual abuse allegations involving a traditionalist Catholic group with a large following in a northeast Kansas town has wrapped up, according to the state’s top law enforcement agency.

The Kansas Bureau of Investigation has sent its findings in the Society of St. Pius X case to the Attorney General’s Office, said KBI spokesperson Melissa Underwood.

“The SSPX investigations have concluded,” Underwood told The Star in an email. “We are awaiting charging decisions from the prosecutor.”

James Vogel, director of communications for the U.S. District of the Society of St. Pius X, did not respond to a request for comment on the investigation. The group’s U.S. headquarters is in Platte City, Missouri.

The update on the investigation comes as the Society of St. Pius X — a fraternity of priests that celebrates the Traditional Latin Mass and rejects the modernist reforms of the Second Vatican Council —…

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Pfleger said the allegation is an “absolute lie.” It is fifth accusation of sexual assault against the outspoken priest, with the previous allegations being investigated and not sustained by the archdiocese.

Father Michael Pfleger has been removed from his leadership position at Saint Sabina Parish as the Archdiocese of Chicago investigates another accusation of sexual assault against the outspoken priest.

Pfleger said he is being investigated for an accusation of sexual abuse against a girl when she was a student at Saint Sabina School between 1993-95, he said in a statement on Saturday.

The senior pastor at Saint Sabina, 1210 W. 78th Place, Pfleger has been asked to step aside from his role at the parish and live off campus while the accusation is being investigated, Cardinal Blase Cupich wrote in a letter to parishioners.

“We do not presume the truth or falsity of an allegation until the process is…

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In mid-May, as Washington school districts were deep into developing their budgets for the next academic year, around 130 received notices that their rates for the Washington Schools Risk Management Pool were going up. And not just by a little bit: by an average of 45%.

School districts contribute funds to the risk pool instead of paying for traditional liability insurance. Those dollars are pooled to pay for settlements or costly claims against individual districts, keeping rates more manageable for all.

The main driver of the jump in rates? A sudden increase in the cost of sexual abuse claims brought against districts.

In the last few years, the legal landscape has shifted in Washington for victims of sexual abuse in schools. Changes to statute of limitation laws in recent years have resulted in districts seeing claims from 20 or 30 years ago. A 2020 Supreme Court case also affirmed that…

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Exclusive: Records obtained by the Guardian show property owned by Catholic order used to house at least two brothers with horrific histories of child sexual abuse

Christian Brothers properties have been used to house convicted child sexual abuse offenders, including one brother who preyed on orphans and another who was kept in teaching positions for almost three decades after senior officials became aware of his offending.

The Christian Brothers prompted fury from survivors last month when it declared it was about to go broke, and could no longer afford to meet their claims in court.

Last week, the Guardian revealed that the order had kept nine convicted child abusers as brothers within its order, arguing there was a “Gospel imperative” to “care for all Brothers” and “the needy”, according to court documents.

The documents also show the Christian Brothers’ constitution requires it to provide financial support to current brothers, including by covering…

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Key Points

• The lawsuits were filed after a new state law created a two-year window for claims previously barred by the statute of limitations.
• Superior Court Judge Richard A. Licht will manage the cases and may select representative “bellwether” cases for trial.
• The lawsuits accuse the church of negligence and conspiring to cover up widespread abuse allegations.

A single judge will oversee the flood of lawsuits being filed alleging childhood abuse by Roman Catholic clergy in Rhode Island.

Superior Court Judge Richard A. Licht will be presiding over the 40-plus lawsuits that have come in since July 1,  the first day of the two-year “revival window” the legislature created for people alleging child sex abuse to file civil suits for claims that sometimes date back decades.

State lawmakers passed the measure, signed into law by the governor, opening an avenue…

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Edmund Rice Education Australia does not consent to being made a defendant, in case that has ‘high court written all over it’, Victorian judge hears

The entity that benefited from vast land and property transfers from the Christian Brothers will fight a move by abuse survivors to make it liable for compensation claims, triggering a potentially costly battle that has “high court written all over it”.

The Christian Brothers has a shocking record of clergy abuse – one of the worst of any Catholic church entity – and is facing hundreds of current and future abuse cases estimated to be worth $774m.

But the religious order last month told a court it was going broke and could no longer afford to meet the compensation claims, instead proposing a scheme where it would sell off its remaining 36 properties, worth about $217m, and divide the proceeds between a range of creditors,…

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Federal prosecutors say the investigation began after Scottish authorities alerted the FBI.

A former Buffalo priest who has been on permanent leave from ministry since 2019 appeared in federal court Thursday after his arrest in connection with an international child exploitation investigation.

According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of New York, Jeffrey Nowak was arrested Wednesday following an investigation that began in September of 2025. He is being held in U.S. Marshals custody and is scheduled to return to federal court Monday for a detention hearing.

Federal investigators allege FBI agents searched Nowak’s home and recovered multiple electronic devices, including folders containing child sexual abuse material.

The Diocese of Buffalo said Nowak has been on permanent leave since 2019.

According to federal prosecutors, the investigation began after Scottish authorities notified the FBI about Nowak. Investigators say the FBI received information involving a Telegram group…

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A Wisconsin woman is filing a civil lawsuit against the Milwaukee archdiocese after she survived sexual abuse from her fourth grade teacher in 2013.

52-year-old Kevin Buelow is currently serving a 26-year-prison sentence for sexually assaulting multiple young girls at St. Matthias Parish School in Milwaukee, then at Holy Apostles Catholic School in New Berlin.

The lawsuit claims leaders were warned about the sexual abuse but did not do anything.

The Milwaukee Archdiocese has said they are not able to comment on the pending litigation.

St. Matthias has also declined to comment.

Kevin Buelow, former teacher at St. Matthias Parish School in Milwaukee, then at Holy Apostles Catholic School in New Berlin. Image courtesy of the Wisconsin Department of Corrections:

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U.S. bishops continue to instruct Catholics to separate themselves from the schismatic Society of St. Pius X (SSPX) while urging the society’s members to return to full communion with the Catholic Church.

The Vatican declared July 2 that six prelates involved in the SSPX’s unauthorized July 1 episcopal consecrations incurred automatic excommunication. Despite repeated warnings, SSPX bishops consecrated four new bishops without a pontifical mandate — an act of open disobedience to the authority of the pope that carries automatic excommunication for the six bishops involved.

Lay faithful who formally adhere to SSPX are also considered schismatic and can incur excommunication by continuing to attend SSPX services after the Church’s formal pronouncement of a schism.

Various Catholic bishops with SSPX locations in their dioceses are explicitly forbidding Catholics from attending SSPX Masses, instructing them to avoid the now-illicit sacraments and to withdraw their children from SSPX-affiliated schools while also urging frequent attendees…

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Rev. Pfleger denied the allegations in a statement sent to NBC Chicago, calling them “an absolute lie.”

St. Sabina’s senior pastor Father Michael Pfleger was asked to step aside after the Archdiocese of Chicago received an allegation that he sexually abused a minor at the ministry, Cardinal Blase J. Cupich said in a letter to the church community on Saturday.

The abuse allegedly occurred at St. Sabina more than 30 years ago, Cupich said in the letter.

“In keeping with our child protection policies, I have asked Father Pfleger to step aside from ministry and live away from the parish while the allegation is investigated. Yet, you should know that Father Pfleger strongly denied the allegation,” Cupich said.

Rev. Pfleger denied the allegations in a statement sent to NBC Chicago, calling them “an absolute lie.”

“I have no memory of this girl nor do countless others who have been at…

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• A University of Notre Dame residence hall rector has been placed on leave following anonymous allegations of sexual misconduct.
• The allegations against the rector first appeared on an unaffiliated Instagram account in June.
• The university has launched an investigation but has not received any formal or first-hand complaints.
• Officials urge the public not to jump to conclusions as they seek to identify alleged victims and verify the claims.

A residence hall rector at the University of Notre Dame has been placed on leave and is under investigation by the university’s Office of Institutional Equity after anonymous allegations of sexual misconduct against her were posted on social media.

According to Notre Dame’s student newspaper, The Observer, the allegations are against the McGlinn Hall rector, who has held the position since August 2024 and has been on leave since June 29. The Observer says that…

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Father Michael Pfleger is facing an allegation of sexual abuse of a minor, Cardinal Blase Cupich, Archbishop of Chicago, announced Saturday.

This now marks the fifth person to accuse the South Side pastor of sexual misconduct. He was cleared from those previous claims and is now adamantly denying this latest accusation.

There was a relatively small crowd at St. Sabina in the evening for Saturday Mass. All of them told ABC7 that they stand with Father Pfleger.

In the letter released Saturday, Cardinal Cupich said the alleged abuse was reported to have occurred more than 30 years ago at Saint Sabina Parish, 1210 W. 78th Pl., in Chicago’s Auburn Gresham neighborhood.

“In keeping with our child protection policies, I have asked Father Pfleger to step aside from ministry and live away from the parish while the allegation is investigated,” the letter read in part. “Yet, you should know that Father…

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The University of Notre Dame is investigating anonymous allegations of abuse posted online regarding a campus rector of a women’s residence hall. 

The female rector is now on leave “pending the outcome of the investigation,” the university told OSV News in a statement July 8. 

“The University takes allegations of sexual misconduct seriously, particularly when persons in positions of authority may be involved, and is conducting an investigation,” it said.

OSV News has made several attempts to contact the rector through various channels, including by phone and by social media, but has not yet received a response. 

Following professional news standards, OSV News is not disclosing her name at this time due to the uncorroborated nature of the anonymous, social media-based allegations. An investigation has not yet determined the credibility of the allegations nor has the rector been charged with a crime.

The allegations emerged in a series of posts on…

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The investigation began after anonymous allegations surfaced on social media. University officials say no formal complaints have been made directly by alleged victims, and the rector denies any wrongdoing through her attorney.

On the heels of a recent external report detailing sexual abuse allegations against a former rector of a men’s dormitory, the University of Notre Dame has placed the supervisor of a women’s residence on leave while it investigates anonymous social media posts accusing her of sexual misconduct.

Elizabeth Greenop, who has served as the rector of McGlinn Hall since 2024, was placed on leave by the university on June 29, shortly after several posts purportedly written by dorm residents appeared on an online platform that shares anonymous stories of alleged sexual abuse from the Notre Dame community.

As rector of McGlinn, Greenop has lived in the dorm of some 270 female undergraduates for the past two years, responsible…

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The lawsuit claims school leaders were warned but did nothing.

A Wisconsin woman is suing the Milwaukee Archdiocese, saying she survived sexual abuse at the hands of her fourth grade teacher in 2013.

Kevin Buelow is serving a 26-year prison sentence for sexually assaulting girls at St. Matthias Catholic School in Milwaukee and Holy Apostles School in New Berlin.

The lawsuit claims St. Matthias school leaders were warned about the abuse but “chose not to meaningfully investigate complaints,” “report Buelow to law enforcement” or “restrict his unsupervised access to children.”

The suit also says leaders violated church policies put in place after the sexual abuse scandal in the early 2000s.

“Rules are only as good as their enforcement and training and being followed,” said the victim’s attorney Jacob Goodman on Friday. “You can enact all the rules you want and if people aren’t trained on them and there isn’t a…

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Jury finds Eddy Noelsaint guilty on 4 counts of sexual battery

An Osceola County pastor faces decades in prison after a jury convicted him of repeatedly raping a woman who came to him seeking spiritual guidance.

Eddy Noelsaint, 54, was found guilty this week of four counts of sexual battery against a member of his church. The assaults occurred in 2022 after the woman joined his congregation and was assigned a “spiritual godmother” — Noelsaint’s wife — as part of her baptism.

The victim told investigators that Noelsaint first raped her while she was staying at his home as part of her spiritual revival. She said he gave her pills, then forced himself on her while she was unable to fight back. Noelsaint raped her again several months later, she told investigators.

State Attorney Monique Worrell thanked the victim for her strength throughout the process following the verdict.

…

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Oceanway Church Pastor Al Force has been asked by the church’s board to temporarily step away, as questions mount over how the church handled past concerns involving former volunteer John Goodman — concerns that resurfaced after Goodman’s recent arrest in a Marion County child predator sting.

RELATED | Former Oceanway Church leaders say arrested former volunteer coached, mentored children, contrary to church’s statement | Former Oceanway Church volunteer arrested in child sex predator sting was previously reported to DCF, church says

The church previously told News4JAX that an allegation involving Goodman was reported to the Florida Department of Children and Families (DCF), though the church did not specify when the report was made. During his Sunday remarks, Force said the incident was brought to the church’s attention roughly six and a half years ago. The church has said the incident did not occur on church…

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A former janitor from the Pullman School District will spend at least 26 and a half years in prison for child molestation and having sexually explicit pictures of children.

A judge sentenced Eric Robins this week.

He pleaded guilty to seven counts, agreeing to aggravating factors that allowed a judge to go above the standard sentencing range.

The Whitman County Prosecutor’s Office says the aggravating factor was that the Robins committed an ongoing pattern of abuse for a prolonged period of time.

The judge put in place a lifetime protection order, saying Robins can never contact the victim, identified only as Jane Doe.

“While no sentence can undo the trauma the victim endured, today’s outcome provides accountability for the defendant and an opportunity for Jane Doe to move forward,” said Whitman County Prosecutor Tess Scholl. ‘We hope this resolution allows the victim and her loved ones to focus on healing,…

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The Supreme Court of Maryland has agreed to hear the state’s challenge to the Child Victims Act in a case that could end hundreds of sexual abuse lawsuits and save the state and its taxpayers more than $1 billion, while denying some plaintiffs their day in court.

The state faces roughly 12,000 individual lawsuits filed under the Child Victims Act, a 2023 law that effectively eliminated time barriers for someone to file a claim in court of institutional sex abuse. The potential liability from those claims could equal nearly 15% of the state’s current operating budget by some estimates.

In their filing with the high court, the state’s attorneys argued that while the law lifted the limits on when a claim can be filed, it did not lift the ironclad immunity against lawsuits the state enjoyed prior to 1982.

“The Child Victims Act did not waive sovereign immunity as to…

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Father Jeffrey Nowak has been on administrative leave for nearly seven years, following allegations of inappropriate conduct with children.

A priest who has been on administrative leave for more than half a decade, in part over allegations of inappropriate conduct with children, has been charged by federal authorities with possession of child pornography, a U.S. attorney announced on July 8.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of New York said in a press release that Father Jeffrey Nowak of Lackawanna, New York, was arrested and charged with both the receipt and possession of child pornography.

The charges “carry a mandatory minimum penalty of five years in prison and a maximum of 20 years,” the attorney’s office said.

Nowak has been the subject of investigations by authorities as far back as 2019, when he was placed on administrative leave that year after a seminarian reported that the priest…

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U.S. Attorney Michael DiGiacomo announced today that Jeffrey Nowak, 46, of Lackawanna, NY, was arrested and charged by criminal complaint with receipt and possession of child pornography, which carry a mandatory minimum penalty of five years in prison and a maximum of 20 years. 

According to the criminal complaint, in August 2019, the defendant, a priest in the Diocese of Buffalo, was placed on administrative leave as an investigation was conducted following allegations of inappropriate contact with children and harassment of a seminarian. In December 2019, an email address linked to Nowak, pigboybuffalo@gmail.com, was identified as an address that accessed a New Zealand cloud-based digital storage and file-hosting website/application, which contained photos and videos files of sexually exploited children. In May 2021, the FBI conducted an investigation, executing a search warrant for the email address pigboybuffalo@gmail.com, however, no child pornography was found, and the investigation was closed in July 2023. 

…

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A priest with the Roman Catholic Diocese of Buffalo was arrested Wednesday and charged with receiving and possessing child pornography, according to the United States Attorney’s Office for the Western District of New York.

Jeffrey Nowak, 46, of Lackawanna, was placed on administrative leave in 2019 while the diocese investigated allegations of inappropriate contact with children and harassment of a seminarian, prosecutors said. An email address linked to Nowak was identified later that year as having accessed a New Zealand-based cloud storage platform that contained images and videos depicting the sexual exploitation of children.

The FBI investigated the email account in 2021 after obtaining a search warrant, but prosecutors said no child pornography was found at that time. The investigation was closed in July 2023.

Prosecutors said the case was reopened in March 2026 after the FBI’s Child Exploitation Operational Unit received a referral from law enforcement in Scotland involving…

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Father Jeffrey Nowak has been on administrative leave for nearly six years, following allegations of inappropriate conduct with children.

A priest who has been on administrative leave for more than half a decade, in part over allegations of inappropriate conduct with children, has been charged by federal authorities with possession of child pornography, a U.S. attorney announced on July 8.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of New York said in a press release that Father Jeffrey Nowak of Lackawanna, New York, was arrested and charged with both the receipt and possession of child pornography.

The charges “carry a mandatory minimum penalty of five years in prison and a maximum of 20 years,” the attorney’s office said.

Father Nowak has been the subject of investigations by authorities as far back as 2019, when he was placed on administrative leave that year after a seminarian reported that the priest had sexually…

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A CATHOLIC priest has been sentenced to over five decades in prison after a Malaga court found him guilty of drugging, sexually assaulting and secretly filming women over a four-year period. 

The 35-year-old priest known as ‘Father Fran’ was convicted of four counts of sexual assault, including one count of sexual abuse and four counts relating to the illegal recording of his victims. 

A judge ruled that the Velez-Malaga resident administered an unknown substance that caused women to lose consciousness before abusing them to ‘satisfy his desires.’

The man identified as Francisco J.C. has been sentenced to 52 years in prison for the sex crimes. 

In addition to the prison sentence, the court has also ordered Father Fran to pay compensation to each of the victims for the psychological harm they suffered.   

The Diocese of Malaga has been held secondarily liable for such compensation if he is unable to pay. 

…

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Jason Douglas Ford was a facilities coordinator for Midtown Fellowship’s Central Ministry Team, according to the church’s website.

Editor’s note: This story contains descriptions of child sexual abuse.

An employee of a Nashville church is one of two men arrested Tuesday by Metro Nashville Police after investigators allegedly found they shared videos depicting the sexual abuse of children.

In the first case, 34-year-old Jason Douglas Ford is charged with aggravated sexual exploitation of a minor after detectives conducted a seven-month investigation, per a police press release.

Police ask public for more information

Police say he is the facilities coordinator at Midtown Fellowship, and the church’s website lists a Jay Ford as a facilities coordinator for the Central Ministry Team.

“Anyone with information or concerns about his interactions around children is asked to contact detectives at 615-862-7540,” MNPD said.

WSMV4 has reached out to Midtown Fellowship to request a comment and…

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Safe Haven Ministries offers support for abuse survivors amid Kentwood assault, kidnapping case

[See original article for video]

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Key Takeaways

• Father Thomas Dente Kofi Manu was publicly identified in the Rhode Island Attorney General’s 2026 Report in connection with allegations of child sexual abuse;
• Survivors of clergy sexual abuse may have civil legal options against the institutions that enabled abuse. 

Who Was Father Thomas Dente Kofi Manu?

Father Thomas Dente Kofi Manu was ordained on July 15, 1973, and served as an extern (visiting) priest from Ghana. According to the Rhode Island Attorney General’s 2026 Report, he worked summer assignments at St. Mary Church in Bristol and officiated Mass on Prudence Island from approximately 1980 through 2007. 

Father Thomas Dente Kofi Manu was publicly identified on the Rhode Island Attorney General’s 2026 Report on Child Sexual Abuse in the Diocese of Providence. Little else is publicly known about his background. The Report states that he is believed to have died in 2023. 

The…

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