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	Bishop Kicanas Defends His Handling of Mccormack Case Catholic Culture November 12, 2010 http://www.catholicculture.org/news/headlines/index.cfm?storyid=8263 The vice-president of the US bishops’ conference has denied that he ignored evidence of sexual abuse while he served as rector of a Chicago seminary. Bishop Gerald Kicanas of Tuson, Arizona, told the National Catholic Register that he had never heard reports that Daniel McCormack had been guilty of sexual abuse when he supervised McCormack’s study at Mundelein seminary. After his ordination, McCormack would face charges of molesting more than 20 boys. Because Bishop Kicanas is a heavy favorite to be elected president of the US Conference of Catholic Bishops at the upcoming meeting of the episcopal conference, Tim Drake of the National Catholic Register questioned whether the bishop’s support for McCormack’s ordination, in spite of early evidence of sexual misconduct, would cause embarrassment for the US bishops. Responding to queries from Drake, Bishop Kicanas said: At no time while McCormack was a seminarian at Mundelein did I receive any allegation of pedophilia or child molestation against him. The bishop did admit that he had received reports of McCormack’s involvement in homosexual activities, but an inquiry concluded with the judgment that these episodes were “experimental and developmental,” and would not affect McCormack’s ability to live a celibate life. Bishop Kicanas said that his words had been taken out of context in a November 2007 Chicago Sun-Times story about McCormack, in which the bishop had been quoted as saying: “It would have been grossly unfair not to have ordained him.” He insisted: “I would never defend endorsing McCormack’s ordination if I had had any knowledge or concern that he might be a danger to anyone, and I had no such knowledge or concern.”
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