PHILADELPHIA (PA)
Observer-Reporter
Associated Press
PHILADELPHIA – The leaders of the Philadelphia Archdiocese – including two former archbishops – actively concealed sexual abuse by priests for decades, but no criminal charges can be brought against the church or its priests because of the constraints of state law, according to grand jury findings released Wednesday.
Following the nation's longest-running grand jury probe into priest abuse, the scathing report documents assaults on minors by more than 60 priests since 1967, and alleges that former archbishops Cardinal Anthony Bevilacqua and Cardinal John Krol covered up the abuse.
"To protect themselves from negative publicity or expensive lawsuits – while keeping abusive priests active – the cardinals and their aides hid the priests' crimes from parishioners, police and the general public," the report stated.
State laws, including legal time limits, prevented prosecutors from filing charges, the report said. The grand jury also explored the possibility of charges against the archdiocese, but said the organization could not be prosecuted because it is an unincorporated association rather than a corporation.