Bishop Sklba's Never Ending Excuses

By John Pilmaier
SNAP Wisconsin
July 2, 2013

http://03409bc.netsolhost.com/snapwisconsin/2013/07/02/bishop-sklbas-never-ending-excuses/

With today’s devastating document release of thousands of pages of abuse related files, the Archdiocese of Milwaukee, and especially Bishop Richard Sklba—who was called by former Archbishop Weakland his “go to guy” on all sexual abuse cases—is making the preposterous claim that his actions of leaving and putting pedophile clergy in parishes and schools was done “in the context of the time.”  Sklba specifically enjoys offloading his criminal responsibility for being Weakland’s second man to treatment “experts” who “advised” him at the time.

But in an open letter to Weakland in 1992 from the Division IV of the Wisconsin Psychological Association, the committee of state experts that work with sex offenders  (read the full 1992 story below) clearly shows this is utterly false.

“Since the early 1970s, there has been a general recognition among psychologists that pedophilia is a treatable mental illness, but that offenders should not be placed in environments where they could continue to abuse children,” the head of the APA group wrote at the time.  What Weakland and Sklba were doing was “like giving an alcoholic a job in a bar.”

Exactly.

Sklba’s fingerprints are spread over nearly a quarter of a century of child sex crimes.  Yet, he continues to hold a prominent role in the life of the Archdiocese, presiding at confirmations, masses at the cathedral, and living comfortably and well.

At a bare minimum, Sklba should gracefully bow out of public life in the Archdiocese like Weakland has, and be grateful he has not been prosecuted—as he should be—for criminal conspiracy.  And if he doesn’t do that — it’s time for his boss, Jerome Listecki, to do it for him.

SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, is the world’s oldest and largest support group for clergy abuse victims. We’ve been around for 23 years and have more than 10,000 members. Despite the word “priest” in our title, we have members who were molested by religious figures of all denominations, including nuns, rabbis, bishops, and Protestant ministers. Visit us at SNAPwisconsin.com and SNAPnetwork.org.

Abuse advice flawed, psychologists say

The Milwaukee Journal – Sunday, December 6, 1992

Author: MARIE ROHDE Journal religion reporter

Since the early 1970s, all reputable psychologists have

been saying that child sex abusers should not be returned to situations in which they could molest children again, according to a statement released recently by a prestigious group of psychologists.

That is contrary to the advice that Archbishop Rembert Weakland recently said he received in 1978, when he was told that a priest accused of sexually abusing a child could be treated and returned to parish work.

The priest, Father William Effinger , was removed in late

October as pastor of Sheboygan’s Holy Name Catholic Church amid new allegations. During a secretly taped conversation recently aired on television, Effinger admitted abusing a boy 23 years ago.

It’s like giving an alcoholic a job in a bar, said Leonard R. Narus Jr., president of Division IV of the Wisconsin

Psychological Association.

A committee of the group recently released a statement in response to the Effinger case. In an interview, Narus said his organization was afraid that were the archbishop’s comments taken as true, public safety would be in jeopardy because others might follow Weakland ‘s course.

Since the early 1970s, there has been a general recognition among psychologists that pedophilia is a treatable mental illness, but that offenders should not be placed in environments where they could continue to abuse children, Narus said.

“A licensed psychologist would have probably erred on the conservative side, to protect the public and, in this case, the priest who obviously found himself in great pain,” Narus said. Weakland “was not getting advice that was consistent with what the research literature was reporting.”

Weighing the Risks

The decision to assign Effinger to work as a parish priest should have been weighed against the likelihood of repeated offenses, Narus said.

“If that information did not get to Weakland , it was either because the person did not know it or withheld it. In any event, if that was a licensed psychologist, he or she would have been practicing outside his or her scope. Certainly this person would be ethically if not professionally liable for withholding that information if he or she had it. I don’t know if that person was licensed,” he said.

Weakland said he was unaware of the organization’s letter.

“I’m pleased that they would take an interest in this matter, but I don’t intend to carry on a debate in the press.”

He declined to give the names of those who gave him advice, saying he felt it would be inappropriate.

Psychologists are licensed by the state, and the licensing examination contains a section on ethics, Narus said.

“It is accepted practice that offenders not be placed in high-risk situations post-treatment,” according to the letter written on behalf of the psychologists. “Recommending that a sex offender be returned to an environment in which he held a position of influence over potential victims would be clearly inappropriate and would unnecessarily jeopardize public safety.”

Adept At Manipulation

There is a wide range of treatment for pedophiles, Narus said, and group therapy is a cornerstone. Sex offenders are the most proficient manipulators and, as the case of Jeffrey Dahmer proved, often fool even trained observers.

“The sex offender can look well and integrated in sessions with a therapist, particularly one who may not be experienced with those subtle manipulations,” Narus said.

Group therapy can be effective because group members can best identify attempts at manipulation.

The Catholic Church generally has used private, church-operated treatment facilities for priests with sexual and emotional problems. The methods and results of treatments used at these facilities have not been generally reported, according to several experts in the field.

Said Narus: “If they had large numbers of pedophiles that they were working with, I know the scientific community would welcome information based on that data base. That would be extremely helpful in terms of breaking that pattern, that cycle of behavior.”

Another member of Narus’ organization, Joan Kojis, has volunteered to serve on the board of directors for Project Benjamin, a program established by Weakland several years ago to address a broad range of issues involving sexual abuse.

Kojis said her husband, Tom Kojis, a minister with Bay View United Methodist Church, planned to begin a group for people who had been abused by members of the clergy.