Abuse Charges Brought against Chilean Priest

Santiago Times
August 28, 2013

http://www.santiagotimes.cl/chile/human-rights-a-law/26649-abuse-charges-brought-against-chilean-priest

A Santiago court formalized Tuesday the charges against an Irish-born Catholic priest accused of molesting two young girls.

John O’Reilly now faces two charges of sexual assault for his alleged abuse of two girls who at the time were 6 and 10 years old, respectively. O’Reilly’s accusers say the abuse took place in 2007, while the priest was still serving as the chaplain and spiritual director of Colegio Cumbres — a private school in the affluent Santiago borough of Las Condes.

During the hearing, prosecutors presented a psychiatric evaluation performed on O’Reilly that said he suffered from a "social adaptation deficit" and recommended that, regardless of the case's outcome, he not be allowed to continue to work with children.

Though prosecutors managed to formalize charges against O’Reilly, they failed in their bid to have him taken into custody leading up to the trial.

O’Reilly stepped down from his duties at the Colegio Cumbres in July 2012 after the allegations against him surfaced.

The priest spoke briefly to journalists upon his arrival at the court yesterday, maintaining his innocence.

"Whatever God wants," the priest responded when asked about his thoughts on facing possible prison time. "We all have to be respectful of that. Whatever God wants."

More than 50 people showed up to the hearing at the Fourth Southern Metropolitan Court in Santiago to support O’Reilly.

“I am very grateful to God and to all my friends that have always accompanied me,” O’Reilly said. “I pray often for the [victims’] families, and especially for the girls.”

The supporters were linked with the priest’s former school and the Legion of Christ, a group of Catholic priests to which O’Reilly is a member, made infamous by a sexual abuse scandal involving its founder.

O’Reilly spoke out against the abuse in that case, which forced Legion of Christ founder Marcial Maciel to step down in 2009.

““[Maciel] can no longer serve as a role model for us,” O’Reilly said at the time. “Right now, it is necessary to distinguish between the Legion and the deplorable actions of its founder … We have a lot of respect for our superiors, so this has been very painful for us.”

The O’Reilly case is one of several sexual abuse scandals involving clergymen in Chile, the most famous of which forced the retirement of Fernando Karadima, who was found guilty of sexually abusing young boys in his care throughout his career spanning four decades.