Catholic Church 'Knew about Coventry Paedo Priest in 1985'

By Tina Junday
Coventry Telegraph
May 7, 2012

http://www.coventrytelegraph.net/news/coventry-news/2012/05/07/catholic-church-knew-about-coventry-paedo-priest-in-1985-92746-30917444/


A LETTER has revealed the Catholic Church knew a paedophile priest had an "unwholesome relationship" with a man – 25 years before he was jailed for sexually abusing boys.

James Robinson, who worked as a priest in several parishes across the Midlands, including St Elizabeth's Church, in Foleshill, Coventry fled to America in 1985 – days after police were first alerted by a victim about being abused by the ex-priest when he was a child.

But in October that year, a letter – which has been obtained by the Sunday Mercury – was sent on behalf of the Archbishop of Birmingham, Maurice Couve de Murville to Reverend Monsignor John Rawden, Chancellor of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles.

It was written by Monsignor Canon Daniel Leonard, Vicar General of the Archdiocese, who made no reference to the shocking allegations of child sexual abuse against Robinson and later proven, in his correspondence.

Instead he wrote: "Father Robinson's work as a priest has been highly regarded ever since his ordination 14 years ago. He has shown considerable talent in recruiting groups of lay workers to assist in various capacities.

"For some reason he has always been interested in being a priest in the United States.

"Even as a student, he wanted to join the Diocese of Miami, but was not encouraged by the Archbishop of Birmingham at the time.

"Since his ordination he has regularly done summer vacation work in various American parishes and from time to time expressed a desire to join an American Diocese.

"The immediate reason for his being in the United States just now is that a few months ago he met a man with whom he had an unwholesome relationship about 13 years ago.

“We have no reason to believe that there has been any recurrence of this problem, but Father Robinson says that he would feel safer a long distance away and untraceable by this man.”

Robinson was jailed for 21 years at Birmingham Crown Court in October 2010.

The 74-year-old was found guilty of 21 charges of sexually abusing young boys over a period of 24 years between 1959 and 1983 - including the man referred to in Monsignor Canon Daniel Leonard’s letter, who gave key evidence against him.

Some of his victims, who are now in their 40s, 50s and 60s, were attacked after the “unwholesome relationship” referred to by the Vicar General.

The paedophile lived in California until 2009 when he was extradited back to the UK to stand trial.

Eight years after he was moved to Los Angeles he was defrocked when the Archdiocese of Birmingham wrote again to their Californian counterparts to tell them that Robinson had been accused of sex abuse and that he was being recalled to Britain. But the paedophile stayed in the US.

Archdiocese of Birmingham spokesman Peter Jennings said the Church had new policies to deal with allegations of abuse since the 1980s and that Archbishop Maurice Couve de Murville and Monsignor Canon Daniel Leonard, are now dead.

“The Catholic Church now has robust and effective policies and procedures in place to ensure that all allegations of abuse are reported to the police immediately.”