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	Sentinel Editorial: New Hampshire Concludes Its Audits of the Roman Catholic Church Keene Sentinel February 5, 2009 http://sentinelsource.com/articles/2009/02/05/opinion/sentinel_editorial/free/id_341254.txt New Hampshire’s attorney general says the Roman Catholic Diocese of Manchester is almost off the hook. Kelly Ayotte says the diocese has taken significant remedial action to warrant an end to court-ordered state oversight of its activities regarding child sexual abuse. “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,” Ayotte said at a press conference last week. Barring any further developments, and pending a few final requests made by the attorney general, this report will conclude one of the most disturbing social, emotional and legal controversies in New Hampshire history. Just seven years ago, then-attorney general Philip McLaughlin was publicly considering whether he should prosecute church officials for a pattern of child abuse crimes committed by priests and for cover-ups by church leaders dating at least to the 1940s. U.S. Catholic bishops had promised to tell the police about any future allegations of wrongdoing, but McLaughlin countered that the bishops’ “pledge of good faith is no reason for the law-enforcement people of this state to say now we have no problem.’’ Eventually, after a church appeal to the state Supreme Court was rejected, the state and the diocese struck an agreement to avoid criminal prosecution. The church would be subjected to a series of four intrusive compliance audits, the last of which has just been concluded. Along the way, damning information was disclosed. A 2003 report released under then-attorney general Peter Heed included charges that the diocese had knowingly and repeatedly endangered children. In 2006, an audit prepared for Ayotte complained that a “lack of internal control and oversight (had) created several significant gaps.” So the 2009 conclusion can be considered a breakthrough. “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. But she added this note of caution: “It is now up to the leadership of the diocese, its parishioners — many of whom are parents — and other members of the diocese to continue their commitment to this program in the future. ... We are confident the diocese will continue to report allegations of sexual abuse as required by law, and I think they are aware, if they don’t, what the consequences are.” With those warnings to all concerned, the state and the Roman Catholic Church conclude an exceptionally painful period. This is hardly a case of all’s well that ends well, but circumstances seem to have evolved in the right direction.
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