September 22, 2005

Cullen portrayed unflatteringly in priest abuse report

ALLENTOWN (PA)
The Morning Call

The portrait of Allentown Bishop Edward Cullen painted in a Philadelphia grand jury's scathing report on the priest abuse scandal is a mix of sympathetic utterances and episodes of bureaucratic blindness and ineptitude during his tenure as a top administrator in the Philadelphia Archdiocese.

Cullen was a top aide to Philadelphia Cardinal Anthony Bevilacqua, who is accused of covering up repeated child abuse allegations by priests.

Cullen was named in a grand jury report released Wednesday as instructing an assistant never to tell abuse victims that he believed them. The claim was denied by Cullen's office, saying the reference was to a specific case.

Posted by kshaw at September 22, 2005 06:30 PM