PHILADELPHIA (PA)
Pittsburgh Catholic
by: Pittsburgh Catholic Staff
PHILADELPHIA — In a 76-page response, Philadelphia archdiocesan attorneys described a grand jury report on local clergy sexual abuse of children as “a vile, mean-spirited diatribe against the church” and “a sensationalized, lurid and tabloid-like presentation of events that transpired years ago, which is neither fair nor accurate.”
After a three-year investigation, the grand jury issued a 423-page report Sept. 21 that said retired Philadelphia Cardinal Anthony Bevilacqua, former bishop of Pittsburgh, and his predecessor, the late Cardinal John Krol, along with their top aides, “all abdicated their duty to protect children. They concealed priests’ sexual abuses instead of exposing them. ... There is no doubt that these officials engaged in a continuous, concerted campaign of cover-up over the priests’ sexual offenses.”
The archdiocesan response, however, said the content of the grand jury report “is nothing more than an attempt to convict in the court of public opinion those whom it does not indict in a court of law.”
After its investigation, the grand jury announced that no criminal actions would be filed as too many years had passed and applicable statutes of limitations had expired.