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	Abuse Audits Find Most Dioceses in Compliance, but Weaknesses Remain By Nancy Frazier O'Brien Catholic News Service April 11, 2011 http://www.catholicnews.com/data/stories/cns/1101429.htm WASHINGTON (CNS) -- Most U.S. dioceses are in compliance with the U.S. bishops' "Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People," but annual audits are uncovering problem areas and reports of boundary violations short of abuse, such as inappropriate hugging. An audit report released April 11 and covering the period from July 1, 2009, to June 30, 2010, showed that "management letters" had been issued to 55 of the 188 dioceses or eparchies participating in the annual compliance assessments by the Gavin Group. Those letters "offered guidance for performance improvement or highlighted potential problem areas," said William A. Gavin, president of the Gavin Group, in a letter to Archbishop Timothy M. Dolan of New York, president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, and Diane Knight, who chairs the National Review Board. The issues cited, "though not at a level to categorize the diocese/eparchy as noncompliant in a particular area, were identified as possibly doing so if not sufficiently addressed," said an introduction to the audit summary, which was released in conjunction with a report by the Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate on abuse-related statistics and costs in 2010. Two dioceses and seven Eastern-rite eparchies declined to participate in the audits.
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