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	Bishop Lauds Policies Aimed at Sexual Abuse By Jim Reagen Watertown Daily Times May 1, 2010 http://www.watertowndailytimes.com/article/20100501/NEWS05/305019979 OGDENSBURG — The Roman Catholic Church and other religious institutions need to adopt the kind of sweeping policies created by U.S. bishops in 2002 to address instances of sexual abuse by priests, according to Ogdensburg Bishop Terry R. LaValley. Speaking at a Friday morning news conference, Bishop LaValley said much good came eight years ago, at the peak of the sex-abuse scandals, when the U.S. Conference of Bishops instituted a systemwide set of policies aimed at addressing accusations of sexual abuse and preventing future incidents of abuse by screening and educating those involved with the church at all levels. The program is a model for agencies of all kinds, both religious and secular, since it is aimed at ensuring the church offers a safe place for children and families, he said. Recent scandals in Ireland and elsewhere across the globe are prompting church leaders in those countries to look at the program already adopted by the U.S. Conference of Bishops, he said. Bishop LaValley stressed that the harm and pain caused by the sex abuse scandal "will not go away." But he said he hopes that the healing will continue and stressed that the church has worked hard to create a "safe environment for children and families." "By virtue of our own failings," he said, today the U.S. Catholic churches have created model policies and programs, "not only for the church, but for other institutions."
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