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	Diocese Praised in Final Audit By Kathryn Marchocki New Hampshire Union Leader January 27, 2009 http://www.unionleader.com/article.aspx?headline=Diocese+praised+in+final+audit&articleId =422ef652-38dd-423c-a7cc-d670e7ea257f CONCORD – An independent audit of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Manchester shows the church made such dramatic progress in enacting child protection policies and practices that more than six years of court-ordered state oversight may come to an end, the state's top law enforcer said yesterday. "I'm pleased to announce in this final audit that there have been significant and dramatic improvements by the diocese since the agreement was signed in December of 2002," state Attorney General Kelly A. Ayotte said. Ayotte released results of the fourth and final audit that international auditing firm KPMG LLP has done of the diocese. Annual audits are mandated as part of the agreement the diocese struck with the state to avoid criminal prosecution for its handling of alleged child sexual abuse by priests from the 1940s through the 1980s. The audits measure the diocese's compliance with its child protection policies and procedures and those set down in the agreement. Ayotte singled out the "remarkable and commendable" progress made in the last two audits, which she said inspires confidence the diocese will maintain its commitment to continue its programs after the agreement ends. "We believe the diocese has created a program designed to protect children which is sustainable into the future, which was the goal of the agreement," Ayotte said. "It is now up to the leadership of the dioceses, its parishioners -- many of whom are parents -- and other members of the diocese to continue their commitment to this program in the future," she added. End of oversight The diocese has until Feb. 9 to develop an action plan that addresses areas auditors found need further attention. If the diocese's response is satisfactory, Ayotte said her office's direct oversight over the diocese will expire pursuant to the court agreement. Either party can petition the court within 30 days to extend the agreement, she said. "We see it as sustainable," Manchester Bishop John B. McCormack said of the diocese's programs. "It's part of us as a church to be committed to this. We developed the policy. We developed the program. We want to protect children in every way possible," he said by telephone. But a leader of a lay reform group said she fears the end of state oversight over diocesan affairs could lead to a return to secrecy. "I'm greatly heartened by the progress that has been made ... My concern is that it always has to be done at the end of a legal gun," New Hampshire Voice of the Faithful Survivor Support Chairman Carolyn B. Disco said. "I would like to believe the change of heart has been genuine, not strategic," Disco added. Even if state oversight ends, the diocese still would face criminal, and possibly, civil sanctions if it failed to report suspected child abuse to law enforcement as required by law, Ayotte said. But the diocese would be under no legal obligation to continue other child protection programs enacted under the agreement. They include: conducting criminal background checks on all diocesan clergy, staff and volunteers; requiring they be trained in the diocese's child protection policies; and maintaining a computerized database tracking their status. "I don't think that would happen quietly if they were to dismantle those," Ayotte said. She said her office would alert the public to any such development and expects concerned parishioners also will be watching. Staying vigilant "All those people have to stay vigilant," said Darren J. Donovan, a partner with KPMG LLP who conducted the four audits. "The apparatus that exists today should start functioning on its own to deliver on those things, not because the law requires it, but because it's the right thing to do," Donovan added. The agreement also created multiple layers of oversight within the diocese regarding the reporting and investigation of alleged child sexual abuse -- from parish volunteers trained in child protection policies to the new diocesan compliance coordinator to the office of ministerial conduct. "The more people that have this kind of information, the less likely that ... all these people are just going to say, ?We'll just turn a blind eye to this,' which is what happened in the past," Senior Assistant Attorney General N. William Delker said. Creating a computerized database that tracks criminal background screening and training of all diocesan personnel; having safe environment coordinators in every parish, school and camp; and a full-time, diocesan-wide compliance coordinator backed up by support staff are among the improvements Ayotte cited. She also said she is pleased the diocese formally incorporated within its written policy that it immediately remove from ministry any accused offender pending an investigation of the allegation. While this has been the diocese's practice, she requested it be part of its formal written policy. Some deficiencies The final audit still noted several deficiencies. They include a "very serious communication gap" between the office of ministerial conduct's delegate and the compliance coordinator, who was not given the name of accused offenders or where the alleged abuse occurred, Ayotte said. Ayotte also noted some safe environment coordinators had not read the diocese's child protection policies. She also said steps must be taken to ensure the immediate entry of a person's restricted status in the database, with no one able to override the restriction. Once state oversight is over, Ayotte called on the diocese to have annual audits done by a subcommittee of the diocesan review board that is independent of the child protection program. The bishop wrote the attorney general yesterday that he already has addressed or currently is addressing these points. The Dec. 10, 2002 agreement between the state and diocese in part calls for the diocese to submit to annual audits through Dec. 31, 2007. Audits didn't get under way until 2005 because the diocese took its dispute over their scope to court. The court ruled in the state's favor and the first audit report was released the next year. A judge set this Saturday as the deadline to release results of the final audit. The state and diocese equally split the audit's total $445,000 cost. Despite the audit's findings, a national group that supports survivors of clergy sexual abuse said the fundamental cause of the clergy sexual abuse crisis hasn't changed. "Remember, Catholic officials were forced to adopt these policies and did so begrudgingly and belatedly, under tremendous external pressure. The real measure will be how they handle abuse reports when they are under even less scrutiny," said David Clohessy of St. Louis, national director of the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, also known as SNAP. "Less oversight of the diocese will make kids more vulnerable to abuse and secrecy in the church," he added.
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