ABUSE TRACKER

GALLUP (NM)
The Gallup Independent

Editorial

Friday, August 10, 2012

James S. Wall has lost his golden opportunity to be the kind of bishop the Diocese of Gallup sorely needs.

When Wall arrived here in 2009, he was widely welcomed by everyone – Catholics and non-Catholics alike. There was hope that Wall would clean up the troubled Gallup Diocese, address its important problems, heal its divisions, and institute a new policy of honesty and transparency. The Gallup chancery made much of the fact that Wall, a non-Indian, was born on the Navajo Nation and lived there briefly as a baby – as if that would somehow make him a good bishop of this diocese.

But after more than three years, it is clear Wall has fallen short of all those hopes. The Gallup Diocese still needs an internal cleaning, it’s still facing the same problems it faced when Wall arrived, its divisions are still unhealed, and Wall’s chancery has demonstrated less honesty and transparency than the chancery of the late Bishop Donald E. Pelotte.

On a personal level, Wall is a nice guy who rides mountain bikes, talks sports, and offers warm handshakes and hugs like any good politician. But the Diocese of Gallup needs more than just a nice guy or a good politician as its bishop. It needs a strong spiritual leader with real moral courage.

Through Wall’s actions and inaction, it is clear he is neither a strong leader – spiritually or otherwise – and he has shown no moral courage. Instead, he has failed to fulfill a long line of broken promises.

• Soon after he was installed as bishop, Wall issued a news release promising to conduct a thorough review of the Gallup Diocese’s personnel files to determine which clergy, living or deceased, were sexual abusers. He promised to make public the results of that review and publish the names of abusers on the diocesan website. Wall has failed to fulfill that promise.

• Wall also promised to make public the results of the investigation into accused abuser John Boland, which he has failed to do. Wall is reportedly now trying to laicize Boland, a move that doesn’t sit well with Gallup priests who believe Boland’s rights were trampled by Wall’s backdoor, under-the-table deals with alleged victims.

In a September 2009 interview, Wall said the “best practice” in facing clergy abuse allegations is to make public announcements in all the priest’s former parishes to help other abuse victims come forward.

Wall has had the opportunity to make those announcements, but he – has failed to do so.

• For more than two years, Wall has repeatedly refused to answer media questions about Thomas R. Maikowski, Gallup’s reigning dysfunctional priest who has brought a series of scandals to the diocese.

Wall has turned a blind eye to Maikowski’s countless ethical and boundary issue violations and ignored the many complaints lodged against Maikowski by devout Catholic parents and community members. Apparently, Wall believes Maikowski’s church in Page, Ariz. is a throwaway parish that deserves the “pass-the-trash” treatment.

Wall has also not fulfilled any of the promises made by the previous chancery, such as the promise to report newly made allegations against living priests to local law enforcement. Had Wall tumed over the Boland allegations to Arizona law enforcement officials, Boland’s guilt or innocence might have legitimately been determined. Instead, Wall placed Boland on ice in a house in Gallup for more than a year and then allowed Boland to flee back to Ireland.

• Wall also has not fulfilled the Gallup Diocese’s 2005 promise to conduct a “search and rescue mission” to locate and assist victims of clergy abuse, particularly Native American victims on the seven Indian reservations located within its boundaries: Hopi and White Mountain Apache in Arizona, Acoma, Jicarilla Apache, Laguna,and Zuni in New Mexico, and the Navajo Nation in both states. When three Navajo men came forward with their allegations, the Gallup chancery didn’t offer them any assistance nor did it request an investigation by the Navajo Police or FBI. Instead, diocesan attorneys battled the Native abuse victims in tribal court for several years before finally signing monetary settlement agreements with them. Wall presumably, on the advice of his attorneys, couldn’t even muster an apology to the victims.

But like the politician that he is, Wall excels at empty promises and superficial gestures. With the upcoming canonization of Blessed Kateri Tekakwitha, the first Native American woman to be named a Roman Catholic saint, Wall is busy trying to “honor” Native Americans.

Last month Wall celebrated a special Mass on Tekakwitha’s Feast Day. In October, he will lead a pilgrimage group, including some local Native American Catholics, to Tekakwitha’s canonization
in Rome. Those Native people who accompany Wall on the trip should be wary that they don’t allow themselves to be exploited like the Natives that were hauled back to Spain as curiosities by Columbus.

If Wall sincerely wanted to honor Native Americans in the diocese, he would fulfill the promises he made when he became bishop: He would be good to his word, stand up for what is right, and tell the
truth about the diocese’s abuse victims – mostly Hispanic boys from devout Catholic families and Native children living near reservation missions. And Wall would actually try to live out the teachings of Jesus, who leveled his harshest criticism at the hypocritical religious leaders of his day.

But after three years, it is clear that isn’t going to happen. Wall doesn’t have the moral courage or strength of character to buck the pricey advice of his diocesan lawyers or the dubious advice of the inner circle he inherited from Pelotte.

With his friendly politician’s demeanor, empty promises, and superficial gestures, Wall is a man who truly missed his calling by being born at the wrong time. Had Wall been born a century earlier, he
could have negotiated treaties with unsuspecting Indian tribes. Those treaty negotiators were just like Wall: smooth-talking nice guys making empty promises to vulnerable people – and just following the orders of their superiors back East.

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UNITED STATES
Lifesite News

by Hilary White, Rome Correspondent

Mon Aug 13, 2012

ROME, August 10, 2012 (LifeSiteNews.com) – So, the LCWR had their meeting in St. Louis last week and as we all know, the main item on the agenda was how they are going to respond to the Vatican’s “attack,” requiring them to submit to a mandated reform. We know this because the media coverage has been relentless, outrageously biased and unilateral, and ubiquitous.

The sisters’ main ally in their media blitz has been National Catholic Reporter, which has run virtually non-stop coverage since April. NCR has brought with them the usual posse of journalistic southpaws riding shotgun: the US Jesuit magazine America, the Huffington Post and the New York Times, who have been happy to reproduce the sisters’ press releases more or less unchanged.

But this past week, one group of people that is normally an MSM favourite, is getting a bit of cold shoulder from reporters. SNAP, the Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests, has been picketing the sisters’ meeting, demanding “dialogue” over their allegations that sisters sexually molested young people in their care, back in the days when they still ran schools and orphanages.

Steve Thiesen, SNAP’s Director in Iowa posted to the SNAP website a veritable litany of charges against LCWR, detailing, with dates, the number of times the sisters have refused to talk to the “nun survivors,” refused to allow them to attend meetings, refused to participate in the USCCB’s clean-up efforts, ignored requests for dialogue and attempted to cover up the allegations of abuse. When NCR did cover the protest, LCWR luminaries interviewed deftly deflected and minimized the allegations.

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ITALIEN
Goldbericht

Auch die katholische Kirche muss in Zukunft Immobiliensteuern zahlen, wenn sie Gewinne macht – die Bischöfe sind nicht begeistert. Die Regierung Monti schafft Steuerbegünstigungen der katholischen Kirche ab und zieht sich damit den Unmut italienischer Bischöfe zu. Auch die Kirche müsse ab 1. Jänner 2013 die Immobiliensteuer IMU bezahlen, beschloss das Fachleutekabinett um den italienischen Premier Mario Monti. Kirchengebäude auf italienischem Territorium, die Gewinne generieren – wie von kirchlichen Orden verwaltete Unterkünfte für Pilger, Geschäfte mit religiösen Souvenirs oder Pfarreikinos – seien nicht mehr wie bisher von der Immobiliensteuer befreit, beschloss der Ministerrat in Rom.

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BELGIEN
Kath.net

Hintergrund der Stellungnahme ist die Aufnahme einer Komplizin von Dutroux in einem Frauenkloster.

Brüssel (www.kath.net/ KNA)
Die belgischen Bischöfe betonen angesichts des Kloster-Unterschlupfs von Michelle Martin ihre Solidarität mit den Dutroux-Opfern. Die Aufnahme der Komplizin und Ex-Frau des Kinderschänders Marc Dutroux durch die Ordensschwestern von Malonne bei Namur schmälere diese Haltung nicht, erklärte der Vorsitzende der Belgischen Bischofskonferenz, Erzbischof Andre-Joseph Leonard, am Freitag in Brüssel. Die belgischen Bischöfe stünden im Fall von Kindesmissbrauch klar auf der Seite der Opfer und ihrer Angehörigen. Dies habe nach wie vor oberste Priorität.

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DEUTSCHLAND
Schafsbrief

Kommentarschaf: “Offenbar bestätigen sich jetzt die Ermittlungen der Staatsanwaltschaft in der Drohbrief- und Missbrauchsaffäre in Köllerbach. Ist Dechant Klaus Leist (Pfarrer St. Wendel) tiefer verstrickt als bisher angenommen?

Pressemitteilung:

Drohbriefe aus dem Pfarrhaus

Der Pfarrer der saarländischen Wallfahrtskirche St. Wendel hat offenbar einem Kollegen Drohbriefe geschickt. Hintergrund sind Mißbrauchsfälle von Priestern an Minderjährigen, die der betroffene Kollege zur Anzeige gebracht hatte.

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DEUTSCHLAND
Heute

[mitt Video]

von Britta Spiekermann

Alle reden über den Euro. Schon seit Monaten. Dabei passiert in diesem Land doch noch so viel mehr. Das zeigt die Sommerserie auf heute.de: Was der Euro verdrängte. Das Thema heute: Missbrauch.

Die Orte sexuellen Missbrauchs hatten viele Namen: Canisius-Kolleg, Kloster Ettal, Odenwaldschule, um nur einige zu nennen. Die Fälle erschütterten. Die Politik reagierte wie so oft in Krisensituationen mit Runden Tischen. Gleich drei Ministerinnen zeigten sich federführend. Justizministerin Leutheuser-Schnarrenberger, Familienministerin Schröder und Bildungsministerin Schavan. Die Ziele: Aufklärung, Entschädigung, längere Verjährungsfristen, Prävention. Nun ist es merkwürdig still geworden um das Thema “sexuellen Missbrauch”. Was ist bis heute geschehen?

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DEUTSCHLAND
Gegen Missbrauch e.V.

Deutschland – Nun schon über mehrere Monate hinweg scheint es für die Öffentlichkeit nur noch eine medienwirksame Problematik zu geben: Die „Eurokrise“. Der „Euro“ scheint das Problem des „sexuellen Missbrauchs“ von der Bildfläche verdrängt zu haben, so dass dieses offenbar kaum noch thematisiert wird und es seltsam still geworden zu sein scheint.

Das Bekanntwerden von zahlreichen Fällen von sexuellem Missbrauch im Jahr 2010 erschütterte die Öffentlichkeit zutiefst, die Politik reagierte in dem gleich 3 Ministerinnen sich federführend dieser Krise mit Hilfe der neu gegründeten Institution „Runder Tisch“ annehmen sollten.

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SALINA (KS)
Roman Catholic Diocese of Salina

Written by Bishop Edward Weisenburger

Friday, 10 August 2012

Approximately three months ago Reverend Allen Scheer was charged with a misdemeanor crime of sexual battery. Earlier today Father Scheer pled no contest to the lesser crime of misdemeanor battery. It grieves me to learn that Father Scheer may have undertaken an activity that was illegal as well as inconsistent with our faith. However, I appreciate his acceptance of responsibility.

It is my hope that the Church can be a source of healing for anyone who may have been harmed by this incident. Father Scheer will be provided emotional and spiritual assistance. Father Scheer’s possible return to ministry will be determined in time following evaluation by healthcare professionals and Diocesan leadership.

Without minimizing the importance of the issues it is significant to recall that our Church found its origins among men who each, in his own way, betrayed the Lord. And yet, with repentance and God’s grace, we sinners continue to be made into saints. In that spirit I ask the prayers of all that this act of justice may be balanced with forgiveness, healing, and renewal.

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SALINA (KS)
Saline Journal

8/13/2012
By the Salina Journal

A Salina priest who was scheduled for trial this week on a misdemeanor charge of sexual battery pleaded no contest Friday to a lesser charge of misdemeanor battery, according to a statement on the Catholic Diocese of Salina’s website.

The Rev. Allen K. Scheer was scheduled for trial Wednesday in Saline County District Court.
Scheer, a priest at Sacred Heart Cathedral, was accused of inappropriately touching an adult male “with the intent to arouse or satisfy sexual desires” on April 12 in the man’s central Salina residence, according to court records.

“It grieves me to learn that Father Scheer may have undertaken an activity that was illegal as well as inconsistent with our faith,” wrote Bishop Edward Weisenburger, in a statement on the website. “However, I appreciate his acceptance of responsibility.”

Weisenburger wrote that it is his hope that the church can be a source of healing for anyone who might have been harmed by the incident.

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UNITED STATES
United States Conference of Catholic Bishops

Archbishop J. Peter Sartain made the following statement regarding the LCWR on August 10, 2012:

The Holy See and the Bishops of the United States are deeply proud of the historic and continuing contribution of women religious to our country through social, pastoral and spiritual ministries; Catholic health care; Catholic education; and many other areas where they reach out to those on the margins of society.

As an association of women religious, the LCWR brings unique gifts to its members and to the Church at large. This uniqueness includes sensitivity to suffering, whether in Latin America or the inner-city; whether in the life of an unborn child or the victim of human trafficking.

Religious women have made a lasting contribution to the wellbeing of our country and continue to do so today. For that they deserve our respect, our support, our thanks and our prayers.

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VATICAN CITY
The Irish Times

A Vatican magistrate today ordered Pope Benedict’s former butler to stand trial on charges of aggravated theft for leaking documents alleging corruption in the Vatican.

In a 35-page document on the case that has rocked the Holy See since Paolo Gabriele was arrested last May, the Vatican also charged a computer expert who worked in the Vatican bureaucracy with involvement in the case, the first mention of a second man.

The layman, named as Claudio Sciarpelletti, was also ordered to stand trial, although on lesser charges of aiding and abetting a crime. …

According to the document, Mr Gabriele told investigators he had acted because he saw “evil and corruption everywhere in the church” and wanted to help root it out “because the pope was not sufficiently informed”.

In a section that referred to Mr Gabriele’s state of mind, he told investigators that after he had started copying documents and leaking them, “I reached the point of no return and could not control myself anymore”.

He continued: “I was sure that a shock, perhaps by using the media, could be a healthy thing to bring the church back on the right track”.

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VATICAN CITY
Telegraph (United Kingdom)

The Pope’s private butler stole a raft of private documents from the Pontiff’s own office as part of a campaign to rid the Vatican of “evil and corruption”, it was claimed on Monday as a judge ordered him to stand trial.

By Nick Pisa, Rome
3:20PM BST 13 Aug 2012

Paolo Gabriele, a 46-year-old father-of-three who had served Benedict XVI for almost six years, will face trial later this year, accused of “aggravated theft”.

It also emerged that Claudio Sciarpelletti, a Vatican IT expert, who works within the Holy See’s Secretariat of State – whose name had not been disclosed before – was charged in connection with the leaking of the documents, although he faces a lesser accusation of aiding and abetting.

The details of the decision by investigating judge Piero Antonio Bonnet were disclosed in a 35 page document which outlined the case against the duo.

According to the document, a 100,000 euro cheque belonging to the Pope was recovered from Mr Gabriele’s apartment during the investigation, as well as a gold nugget and a 1581 Italian translation of Virgil’s classic poem Aeneid by Annibale Caro, both of which were gifts to the Pontiff.

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CITTA DEL VATICANO

PROCEDIMENTO PENALE PRESSO IL TRIBUNALE DELLO STATO DELLA CITTÀ DEL VATICANO NEI CONFRONTI DEL SIGNOR PAOLO GABRIELE: REQUISITORIA DEL PROMOTORE DI GIUSTIZIA E SENTENZA DI RINVIO A GIUDIZIO PRONUNCIATA DAL GIUDICE ISTRUTTORE , 13.08.2012

REQUISITORIA DEL PROMOTORE DI GIUSTIZIA

SENTENZA DI RINVIO A GIUDIZIO PRONUNCIATA DAL GIUDICE ISTRUTTORE

REQUISITORIA DEL PROMOTORE DI GIUSTIZIA

UFFICIO DEL PROMOTORE DI GIUSTIZIA

Prot. N. 8/12 Reg. Gen. Pen.

All’Illustrissimo
Signor Giudice Istruttore
SEDE

REQUISITORIA DEL PROMOTORE DI GIUSTIZIA

Sommario: 1) Rapporti della Polizia Giudiziaria e perquisizioni regolarmente autorizzate; 2) Prosecuzione delle indagini in istruttoria formale; 3) Pluralità di reati ed ordine della loro trattazione nell’istruttoria; 4) Fatti costituenti furto aggravato contestati a Gabriele Paolo; 5) gli artt. 46 e 47 del codice penale ed il problema dell’imputabilità del Gabriele; 6) La relazione peritale del Prof. Roberto Tatarelli e quella del secondo perito Prof. Tonino Cantelmi; 7) La responsabilità del Gabriele; 8) Fatti costituenti reato contestati allo Sciarpelletti Claudio e sua responsabilità; 9) Richieste del Promotore di Giustizia.

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VATICAN CITY
Reuters

By Philip Pullella and Naomi O’Leary

VATICAN CITY | Mon Aug 13, 2012

(Reuters) – A Vatican magistrate on Monday ordered Pope Benedict’s former butler to stand trial on charges of aggravated theft for leaking documents alleging corruption in the Vatican.

In a 35-page document on the case which has rocked the Holy See since Gabriele was arrested last May, the Vatican also charged a computer expert who worked in the Vatican bureaucracy with involvement in the case, the first mention of a second man.

The layman, named as Claudio Sciarpelletti, was also ordered to stand trial, although on lesser charges of aiding and abetting a crime.

The Vatican said it was not clear when the trial would be held but it would not be before the end of September.

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CITTA DEL VATICAN
La Repubblica

[con i video]

Paolo Gabriele, l’aiutante di camera del Papa arrestato il 23 maggio con l’accusa di aver sottratto documenti dall’appartamento di Benedetto XVI è stato rinviato a giudizio. Con lui anche un analista programmatore della segreteria vaticana, Claudio Sciarpelletti. A casa del maggiordomo del Papa sono stati ritrovati, insieme ai documenti e oggetti di valore, anche un assegno di 100 mila euro destinato al Pontefice e una copia preziosa dell’Eneide. Le indagini non finiscono qui. L’analisi di Marco Ansaldo

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VATICAN CITY
Deutsche Welle

Pope Benedict XVI’s former butler and an accomplice have been ordered to stand trial for stealing and leaking confidential papers. The scandal is the latest to afflict the Roman Catholic Church.

The former butler, 46-year-old Paolo Gabriele, is accused of “aggravated theft” in a case that has come to be known as “Vatileaks.”

Judge Piero Bonnet also charged an analyst and programmer in the Vatican state secretariat with complicity.

If found guilty, Gabriele could face up to six years in prison. The Vatican says the trial will not take place until October at the earliest.

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VATICAN CITY
BBC News

The former butler to Pope Benedict XVI will stand trial for stealing confidential papers and leaking them to the press, a magistrate has ruled.

Paolo Gabriele was arrested in May after police found confidential documents at his Vatican flat.

He has been charged with aggravated theft while another Vatican employee, a computer analyst, faces complicity charges.

The Vatican says it is continuing to investigate the leaks.

Mr Gabriele told investigators he acted because he saw “evil and corruption everywhere in the church”, according to Reuters.

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VATICAN CITY
ABC News (Australia)

The Vatican has ordered the former butler of Pope Benedict XVI to stand trial for theft and leaking confidential papers in a scandal that has embroiled the Holy See.

The Vatican says former butler Paolo Gabriele stole a $100,000 cheque made out to the Pope.

Another man, identified as computer expert Claudio Sciarpelletti, has also been charged with complicity over the scandal that saw the leaking of confidential Vatican papers to an Italian journalist.

Gabriele faces up to six years in prison. The Vatican has said the trial will not take place until October at the earliest.

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KANSAS CITY (MO)
KMBZ

[Justice for Bishop Finn]

[with audio]

The website is called, Justice for Bishop Finn, and it’s owner says there’s another side to the story. The bishop and the Kansas City-St Joseph Diocese will be tried on criminal charges next month for alleged failure to properly report the actions of former priest Shawn Ratigan.

He pleaded guilty to five child pornography counts recently. Theresa Lynn says the bishop dealt with Ratigan appropriately. “He was removed from his ministry, he was put away where he could not be with other children and he was worked with because he had mental issues,” says Lynn.

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VATICAN CITY
WTVR

By Richard Allen Greene

(CNN) — Pope Benedict XVI’s butler will be charged with aggravated theft over the leaking of hundreds of secret papers from the pope’s personal apartment to an Italian journalist, a Vatican spokesman announced Monday.

A second man, Vatican IT expert Claudio Sciarpelletti, will be charged with aiding the butler, Paolo Gabriele, according to the Rev. Federico Lombardi, a Vatican spokesman.

Gabriele, one of the pope’s closest personal assistants, was arrested in May on suspicion of passing the papers to an Italian journalist.

The scandal has rocked the Catholic Church hierarchy.

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VATICAN CITY
The Associated Press

By FRANCES D’EMILIO, Associated Press

VATICAN CITY (AP) — A Vatican judge on Monday ordered the pope’s butler and a fellow lay employee to stand trial in the scandal of pilfered documents from Pope Benedict XVI’s private apartment.

The indictment accused Paolo Gabriele, the butler under arrest at the Vatican since May, of grand theft.

While the Vatican had insisted throughout the investigation that Gabriele was the only person under investigation, the indictment also orders trial for Claudio Sciarpelletti. He is a layman in the Secretariat of State office and is charged with aiding and abetting Gabriele.

The scandal has embarrassed the Vatican, exposing infighting at high church levels, primarily involving Italian prelates.

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AUSTRALIA
ABC News

By state political reporter Alison Savage

Retired Supreme Court judge Frank Vincent will head the legal team conducting a parliamentary inquiry into child sex abuse by religious groups in Victoria.

The inquiry, being conducted by the Victorian Parliament’s Family and Community Development Committee, will examine the ways religious groups and churches handle complaints about sexual abuse.

Frank Vincent, QC, has been appointed senior legal adviser to the inquiry and will be assisted by an experienced lawyer seconded from the Public Prosecutions Service.

A government spokesman says Mr Vincent has “bipartisan respect and will bring extensive expertise to this task.”

The former South Australian police chief, Mal Hyde, will be the inquiry’s senior adviser on policing matters.

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AUSTRALIA
The Age

August 13, 2012

Retired Supreme Court judge Frank Vincent will be the senior legal adviser to the parliamentary inquiry into how churches handled complaints of sexual abuse, the state government has announced.

Victims and advocates who have been critical of the inquiry’s scope, the short time allowed for its investigation and the resources allocated to it will have some of their fears allayed by such a senior appointment.

Respected on both sides of politics, Mr Vincent was a judge of the Court of Appeals for nine years, conducted two formal inquiries — including into the office of the Director of Public Prosecutions — and was a consultant to the Australian Law Reform Commission.

The government also announced that former South Australian police commissioner Mal Hyde will be senior adviser on investigative and policing-related matters. Mr Hyde has 45 years’ experience as a police officer, including as a deputy commissioner of Victoria Police.

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UNITED STATES
The Olympian

Editorial

While the Boy Scouts of America was spending time and resources to justify its exclusion of gays, it appears the organization has been ignoring a much bigger and more serious problem.

In a news story last week, it was revealed that “men suspected of molestation allegedly continued to abuse Scouts, despite a blacklist meant to protect boys from sexual predators,” according to internal BSA documents reviewed and reported by the Los Angeles Times.

Describing an indefensible scenario not unlike the child abuse scandal that rocked the Roman Catholic Church, the Times said the documents showed suspected sexual predators stayed within the Boy Scouts even after BSA officials were informed of the allegations.

Just as some abusing Catholic priests moved from parish to parish, these predators apparently

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ALABAMA
The Wetumpka Herald

Posted: Monday, August 13, 2012

Kevin Taylor – Copy Editor

A convicted sex offender and former Elmore County youth pastor is scheduled to face more charges of sexual abuse later this month in Madison County.

Former youth pastor at Bethel Assembly of God John Anthony Astorga, 37, faces three counts of sexual abuse in Madison County.

His arraignment date is scheduled for Aug. 23 and his trial date is scheduled for Aug. 27.

Astorga was convicted of two counts of sexual abuse in Elmore County and sentenced to 36 months in prison last week by Judge Ben Fuller.

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LOUISIANA
San Antonio Express-News

LAKE CHARLES, La. (AP) — A Calcasieu Parish grand jury has indicted a former priest on charges accusing him of sexually abusing three boys between July 1, 1986, and July 1, 1991.

Mark Broussard, 56, was charged Thursday on two counts of rape, three of molesting a juvenile, two each of aggravated sexual battery and aggravated oral sexual battery, and one of sexual battery, The American Press (http://bit.ly/PeuuaF) reported.

He was booked on 224 counts. The ten in the indictment were the first brought before a grand jury.

Broussard is being held at the Calcasieu Correctional Center in lieu of $3.4 million bond.

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LOUISIANA
KLFY

A former priest from Lake Charles has been indicted on ten counts of sexual abuse against children.

A Calcasieu Parish grand jury indicted Mark Broussard on charges accusing him of sexually abusing three boys between 1986 and 1991 while serving in two different churches.

The fifty six year-old was charged Thursday on two counts of rape, three counts of molesting a juvenile, and five counts of sexual battery, aggravated sexual battery or aggravated oral sexual battery.

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BELGIE
Humo

Michelle Martin, de ex van Marc Dutroux, kan binnenkort vrijkomen – onder strikte voorwaarden. Martin diende vorige week een verzoek voor vervroegde vrijlating in. Humo kon in 2003 de hand leggen op een aantal politieverhoren. U kunt het volledige verslag hier opnieuw lezen.

– Hallo?
– Frédéric?
– Ja.
– Frédé, het is mama. Ik kom niet naar huis vanavond.
– Ik dacht het al.
– Luister, in principe kom ik morgen terug. De politiemannen moeten mij nog van alles vragen, maar maak je geen zorgen, het komt allemaal goed. Het duurt lang want de meneer hier moet alles met de typemachine noteren, zie je?
– Ja.

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BELGIUM
The American Conservative

By Rod Dreher • August 4, 2012

George Conger at Get Religion draws attention to a riveting story from Belgium. The wife of the notorious pedophile murderer Marc Dutroux has been released early from prison, and has been taken in by the Poor Clare nuns. Excerpt from the AP account:

The ex-wife of a notorious pedophile who aided her husband’s horrific abuse and murder of young girls – and who let two children starve to death while her husband was in jail – was approved Tuesday for early release from prison, infuriating the victims’ parents and reopening a dark chapter in Belgian history.

Michelle Martin, who is now 52, received a 30-year prison term in 2004 for not freeing girls her then-husband Marc Dutroux held captive behind a secret door in their decrepit, dirty basement in Marcinelle, 40 miles south of Brussels.

Dutroux, 55, is serving a life term for kidnapping, torturing and abusing six girls in 1995 and 1996, and murdering four of them.

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UNITED STATES
dotCommonweal

August 11, 2012

[Navigating the Shifts – Leadership Conference of Women Religious]

Posted by Mollie Wilson O’Reilly

The presidential address Pat Farrell, OSF, delivered yesterday to the 2012 assembly of the Leadership Conference of Women Religious is online for you to read: “Navigating the Shifts.” (That link will take you to a page where you can download the .pdf.) It’s prayerful, thoughtful, calm — about what you’d expect, in other words, given the sisters’ responses to controversy in recent months. Not reactionary, but still strong. Here are some significant passages, which to me are good reminders of what it is Catholics have come to admire so much about the sisters, and of what’s valuable in their particular form of witness to life in Christ:

There is an inherent existential tension between the complementary roles of hierarchy and religious which is not likely to change. In an ideal ecclesial world, the different roles are held in creative tension, with mutual respect and appreciation, in an enviroment of open dialogue, for the building up of the whole Church. The doctrinal assessment suggests that we are not currently living in an ideal ecclesial world.

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ALABAMA/KENTUCKY
WKYT

[with video]

MOBILE, Al. (WKYT) – A woman in Alabama says a former Kentucky pastor accused of having sex with an underage member of his congregation and his wife were trying to offer childcare in their home.

WKYT has been tracking the story of Jeremy Caraway since last year.

He was indicted on eight sexual abuse charges after police say he had sex with a 14-year-old girl at Loyall Church of God in Harlan.

A woman in Mobile, Alabama says she was searching Craigslist for childcare for her special needs son.

That’s where she found Monica Caraway.

“She had a husband that was a preacher. She was talking about how she had a good Christian family. She had kids of her own. This woman seemed the nicest of the nice,” said the Alabama mother of a special needs child.

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MONTANA
Great Falls Tribune

This week eight more people joined a lawsuit claiming the Roman Catholic Diocese of Helena knew or should have known that clergy were committing sexual abuse.

That’s not surprising. Attorneys are aggressively working to give victims the opportunity to join class action suits, spreading the word with letters to pools of people that may include victims and running newspaper advertisements.

Abuse, including sexual abuse, within the Catholic church is no longer a poorly kept secret, as many of such lawsuits allege was the case in the past.

Worldwide closet doors swung open, victims told their stories and in some cases, perpetrators of the crimes went to jail.

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SOMERVILLE (MA)
Wicked Local Somerville

Somerville —

A Somerville priest accused of sexually abusing a child 7 years ago has been cleared of the charge by the Archdiocese of Boston, but he will no longer minister at his old parish.

The Metropolitan Tribunal of the Archdiocese of Boston concluded claims of sexual abuse involving John E. McLaughlin of St. Benedict’s in East Somerville were “unsubstantiated,” according to a press release. McLaughlin was placed on administrative leave in 2005 and is now assigned the status of Senior Priest, which essentially means he is retired, according to Archdiocese spokeswoman Kellyanne Dignan.

The press release states that “Cardinal Seán O’Malley recognized that this matter took an unusually long time to adjudicate and prays for all persons impacted by these matters.” Dignan said the Archdiocese has examined more than 1,000 claims of abuse since 2002.

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BELGIE
De Redactie

In een opiniestuk voor onze website uit Paul Marchal, de vader van An, zijn frustraties over de nakende vrijlating van Michelle Martin. “Die vrouw is een psychopate”, zegt hij. Marchal voelt zich als gelovige zwaar teleurgesteld in de katholieke kerk, het hoofd van het katholiek onderwijs en de CD&V. “Ik ben katholiek opgevoed maar weet het nu niet meer”, luidt het.

Voor Paul Marchal is het feit dat Martin überhaupt al vervroegd vrij kan komen, zeer moeilijk te verteren. “Martin is weliswaar een recidivist maar vreemd genoeg is ze dat voor het gerecht niet omdat ze voor twee “verschillende” rechtbanken werd veroordeeld, begrijpe wie begrijpen kan. Dus kan ze vervroegde vrijlating vragen na één derde van haar straf.”

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BELGIUM
De Redactie

The father of one of the victims of the sex-killer Marc Dutroux has expressed his disgust at plans by a monastery of the Order of Saint Clare to offer a home to Dutroux’s former wife Michelle Martin if she is released from prison. Jean Lambrecks is the father of Eefje Lambrecks, who was kidnapped by Dutroux and his gang while she was holidaying with her friend An Marchel in the West Flemish resort of Ostend in August 1995.

The bodies of An and Eefje were found in September 1996 in the garden of a property belonging to Dutroux in Jumet, near Charleroi (Hainaut).

An Marchal’s father Paul has called the decision to offer Michelle Martin a home “bizarre” as it was taken so quickly and was made public by the Bishops.

On Wednesday Paul Marchal and his wife Betty visited the monastery in the hope of convincing the nuns to change their minds. After his meeting, Mr Marchal told journalists that there would vote on the issue.

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MASSACHUSETTS
BishopAccountability.org – Assignment Record

Summary of Case: Ordained for the diocese of Springfield, MA in 1946, Harrington became a priest of the Worcester diocese when Springfield split in 1950. He held a masters degree in social work and was assistant director, then director of Catholic Charities for many years. He was elevated to auxiliary bishop in 1968, then bishop of Worcester in 1983. He retired in 1994 and died in March 1997. In a 2005 lawsuit Harrington was accused, along with six other priests and bishops, of having sexually abused an 11-15 year old boy in the 1950s. His accuser was a nephew of one of the other accused priests. The Springfield and Worcester dioceses defended Harrington and stated that there was no evidence to support the claims in their records.

Ordained: 1946
Ordained Bishop: July 2, 1968
Retired: 1994
Died: March 23, 1997

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UNITED STATES
Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests

For at least eight years, victims of child molesting nuns and members of SNAP have repeatedly urged America’s largest organization of nuns to expose the truth about child sex crimes and cover ups by women religious. But the LCWR (Leadership Conference of Women Religious) continues to essentially rebuff us and them.

Now more than ever, since they’re being attacked by bishops like we have been (and are being), nuns should be sympathetic to our plight. It grieves us to have to keep prodding them to take long-overdue, simple steps to protect the vulnerable and heal the wounded. But how can we do otherwise?

Contact: Steve Thiesen, Iowa SNAP Director and SNAP Board Member
Phone: 319-231-1663
Email: ltreggiefan@cs.com
(abused by Sister Josephine Schmitz, aka ‘Sister Mary Phillip’)

■2002 – LCWR refuses to participate in USCCB’s “Policy for the Protection of Children”
■ April 5, 2002 – LCWR issues statement on clerical abuse
■ August 24, 2002 – LCWR National Board issues statement on sexual abuse
■June 12, 2004 – Nun survivors meet for the first time in Denver at SNAP Conference

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MISSOURI
Berger’s Beat

August 10, 2012 11:57 am | Author: Jerry Berger

It’s not often that a candidate can portray his or her opposition as “soft” on child molesters. It’s even more rare when a Democrat can do that against a Republican. But that’s what incumbent Claire McCaskill, a former prosecutor, can now do with her challenger, Rep. Todd Akin. The Hill newspaper reports that Akin “voted against the creation of a national sex offender registry and against reauthorizing a program that assists runaway and homeless children.” He was one of just 52 in the first case and one of just 14 in the second case. Both measures passed by wide margins with strong bipartisan support. . .In the sweltering heat this week, at a sidewalk news conference outside the Millennium Hotel downtown (where 900 nuns were meeting), members of SNAP disclosed a previously private $16,000 settlement with a Catholic religious order. It stemmed from child sex abuse allegations against a local nun. A St. Louis area man says he was molested by Sr. Gretchen when he was in second grade at a north St. Louis county parochial school. The victim was repped by attorney Ken Chackes of Clayton.

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AUSTRALIA
WA Today

August 12, 2012

Peter FitzSimons

Since taking up the cause of the need for a Royal Commission to investigate church abuse of minors over generations, I have been stunned – and I mean stunned – by readers’ letters detailing in a horrifying manner their own sexual abuse at the hands, and worse, of priests.

Within the public domain, the articles that have most amazed me have been penned by the crusading Newcastle Herald journalist Joanne McCarthy, who has documented the case of the now deceased priest, Denis McAlinden, one of those at the heart of the two police strike forces – Georgiana, which continues to gun for the paedophile priests, and Lantle, which has gone for the clergy who have covered up the crimes of the priests.

After arriving in Australia in 1949, at the age of 26, McAlinden targeted little girls aged four to 12, and his victims likely ran into the hundreds. This was known to his diocese.

Despite that, on October 19, 1995, McAlinden was assured by the then Maitland-Newcastle bishop, Leo Clarke, that if he agreed to a quick, secret defrocking: ”Your good name will be protected by the confidential nature of this process,” despite, ”your admission to Father Brian Lucas and other evidence. A speedy resolution of this whole matter will be in your own good interests as I have it on very good authority that some people are threatening seriously to take this whole matter to the police.”

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UNITED STATES
Religion Dispatches

Post by Anthea Butler

The Leadership Conference of Women Religious (LCWR) has offered a response to the Vatican’s Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith’s April 18th scathing critique of the organization. In response to the CDF’s censure, the LCWR says it will continue discussion but “will reconsider if forced to compromise the integrity of [their] mission.”

During the meeting this week in St Louis, the nuns experienced a tremendous outpouring of support from lay Catholics, who stood with signs outside the meeting in St Louis showing their support. Franciscan Sr. Pat Farell instructed the sisters to be “fearless” in their response to the Vatican, and the end of her speech as she stepped down from her office was a phrase she learned in Chile during the Military dictatorship. “They can crush a few flowers, but they cannot hold back the springtime.”

It is probably going to take a spring storm of sustained measure to stop the CDF and the Archbishop Peter Sartain of Seattle appointed to oversee the CDF mandate to carry out reforms in the LCWR. New President Franciscan Sr. Florence Deacon will lead the LCWR during this time. She will have to forge a path to keep the organization intact, while dealing with clerics who would rather watch and censure than engage in dialogue.

As a Church Historian, I applaud this move. Anyone with an eye towards church history knows that sometimes groups can talk forever to the Vatican and hold them at bay, as long as no one is frog marched into a courtroom or prison.

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MILWAUKEE (WI)
SNAP Wisconsin

Statement by Peter Isely, SNAP Midwest Director and John Pilmaier, SNAP Wisconsin Director
CONTACT: 414.336.8575

Archbishop Jerome Listecki is currently recovering in a local hospital following a procedure to widen one of his arteries. Victim/survivors of clergy sexual abuse in the Archdiocese of Milwaukee and SNAP leaders wish the Archbishop a quick and speedy recovery. Archbishop Listecki was appointed Milwaukee’s eleventh archbishop in November of 2009, and since that time we have had strong disagreements with him over his handling of the clergy sexual abuse crisis in the Milwaukee archdiocese. Despite our differences we sincerely hope that he is able to return home from the hospital soon and is restored to health as quickly as possible. Our thoughts are with him, his family, and the Catholics of the archdiocese at this time.

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UNITED STATES
Pope Crimes & Vatican Evils…

Paris Arrow

There is no need to feel sorry for Benedict XVI and the Vatileaks because his henchmen in the States are even more ruthless, they have infiltrated again SNAP’s Conference this year, read news updates below. The Vatican and John Paul II and Benedict XVI have proven themselves to be amoral in the latter half of the 20th century as they covered-up the JP2 Army-John Paul II Pedophile Priests Army and their henchmen Bill Donohue of the Catholic League and Dave Pierre of The Media Report in the USA will go to any length to defend them as the biggest Opus Dei Golden Cows who must be worshipped by Catholics who must “Pray, Pay, Obey” them.

And they will bully any Catholic who dare defend the victims of the JP2 Army. So who do Goliath-Bill Donohue and Pied Piper Dave Pierre attack but the core group the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAP) and for the second year in a row they sent spies so that they can bully the speakers of SNAP Conference via the Catholic League and The Media Report proving that they too have no morals just like their amoral Masters the Vatican and the Popes, read our related article.

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HAMMOND (IN)
NW Times

By Bill Dolan bill.dolan@nwi.com, (219) 662-5328

CROWN POINT | The FBI has confirmed it is investigating whether the teenage girl who is reported to have had an affair with a former pastor of the First Baptist Church of Hammond is a minor.

Robert Ramsey, FBI supervisory senior resident agent, said Tuesday the investigation will look into whether Jack Schaap transported the female church member across state lines for illegal sexual activity and whether she was below the federal age of consent, which is 18 years old.

There are allegations Schaap and a female visited a Cook County Forest Preserve. Forest Preserve police said last week they have not been approached by anyone to investigate the matter.

Church spokesmen said last week the girl involved in the situation is 17 years old. They said a church board of deacons dismissed Schaap, leader for 11 years of its 15,000-strong congregation, over the matter and have been cooperating with legal authorities.

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MILWAUKEE (WI)
WTMJ

MILWAUKEE- Milwaukee Archbishop Jerome Listecki is in the hospital Friday night after having heart surgery.

TODAY’S TMJ4 reports the archbishop had a stent put in to widen one of his arteries after having chest pains Thursday night.

A spokesperson told TODAY’S TMJ4 the 63-year old archbishop is recovering and is expected to be released sometime this weekend. The archbishop apparently drove himself to the hospital Thursday night and had the procedure on Friday. …

Among those wishing the archbishop well is the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAP).

The organization issued a release saying: “Our thoughts are with the archbishop…And we wish him a speedy recovery.”

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ST. LOUIS (MO)
The New York Times

By LAURIE GOODSTEIN

Published: August 10, 2012

ST. LOUIS — The leaders of the nation’s largest group of nuns sidestepped a confrontation with the hierarchy of the Roman Catholic Church, announcing Friday that they would “dialogue” with the archbishop appointed by the Vatican to take over their group, but not “compromise the integrity” of their mission.

Sister Pat Farrell, the departing president of the nuns’ group, the Leadership Conference of Women Religious, said at a news conference that the members of her organization wanted to be “recognized as equal in the church,” to have their style of religious life “respected and affirmed,” and to help create a climate in which everyone in the church can talk about “issues that are very complicated.”

“Their expectation is that open and honest dialogue may lead not only to increasing understanding between the church leadership and women religious,” the nuns said in a statement, “but also to creating more possibilities for the laity, and particularly for women, to have a voice in the church.”

Some Vatican officials have already indicated exasperation with the nuns’ insistence on perpetual dialogue. They say that church doctrine is not open for dialogue. Cardinal William J. Levada, an American who until June was in charge of the church’s doctrinal office, called the nuns’ approach a “dialogue of the deaf.”

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ST. LOUIS (MO)
Washington Post

By Michelle Boorstein, Published: August 10

American nuns on Friday backed away from a direct confrontation with the Vatican, saying they want a respectful “open dialogue” with Rome about disputes over gender, human sexuality and authority.

The decision by the Silver Spring-based Leadership Conference of Women Religious, which represents 80 percent of American nuns, came at the end of an intense annual conference in St. Louis this week, where about 900 women met to decide how to respond to an April report by the Vatican saying the group had strayed dangerously far from orthodoxy and the pope and needs to be “reformed.”

The women considered generally accepting the report, rejecting it and becoming an independent Catholic organization (rather than an actual office of Rome), or finding some middle ground.

In a statement Friday, the women said that members want to pursue dialogue with the three-bishop team appointed by the Vatican to approve their conference speakers, literature and training programs.

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UNITED STATES
Huffington Post

Sister Mary Ann Walsh

U.S. Catholics’ satisfaction with bishops leaped from 51 to 70 percent in the last decade, according to the Pew Forum. That’s impressive, though it is hard to imagine a lower point than 2002, when Catholics saw a flood of news on clerical sexual abuse of minors. To copy Queen Elizabeth’s description of 1992, when one of her sons divorced and Windsor Castle erupted in flames, 2002 was the church’s Annus Horribilis.

Causes of the uptick may be many: steadfastness, action in a crisis and the bishops’ courage to walk forth when they probably would have preferred to hide in a hole. Steadfastness in troubled times means serious leadership.

The Pew Forum measured current satisfaction with bishops against feelings a decade ago when the bishops faced the fact that sexual abuse of minors by clergy was a horrific reality in the church. The news had been simmering but broke out big time in Boston in January 2002. Six months later a few thousand media showed up at the bishops’ June meeting in Dallas to see how the bishops would fix the problem.

To their credit, the bishops acted. They developed the Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People, a 17-article promise to forthrightly confront child sexual abuse. They set up review boards comprised primarily of lay people to evaluate reported cases. They launched a massive educational campaign for professional staff and volunteers who work with minors and educated the minors themselves on appropriate interaction between themselves and adults. They established a compliance audit system for the Charter.

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TEXAS
KXXV

By Danielle Skinner

FREESTONE COUNTY–In Fairfield, East of Waco, a preacher is accused of doing the unthinkable– having a sexual relationship with a 15-year-old girl.

36-year-old Anthony Lynn Thibodeaux is a preacher at Fairfield Missionary Baptist Church in Fairfield. According to the Freestone Co. sheriff’s office he was arrested at his Mexia home for sexual assault and indecency with a child. It’s devastating for church members to hear such allegations about their pastor.

“This is very very disturbing, ” said church member Troy Lee Solmon. “I just don’t know which way we are going to go now but I feel like we will work it out.”

Solmon grew up with strong ties with Fairfield Missionary Baptist. He says he’s known the Pastor, Anthony Thibodeaux for several years, and he’s given the church a bad name before.

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MASSACHUSETTS
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Boston

(Braintree, MA) August 10, 2012…The Archdiocese of Boston today made the following statement regarding Reverend John E. McLaughlin:

“The Archdiocese of Boston today announced that a trial conducted at the Metropolitan Tribunal of the Archdiocese of Boston regarding an allegation of sexual abuse of a minor against Father John E. McLaughlin has concluded the charge to be unsubstantiated. Fr. McLaughlin was placed on administrative leave in 2005 following the Archdiocese’s receipt of a complaint of sexual abuse of a minor which was alleged to have occurred in the 1980s. Fr. McLaughlin is no longer on administrative leave and has now been assigned the status of Senior Priest, restricted. His restriction involves other matters not related to children.

Fr. McLaughlin’s ministry, beyond sacramental celebrations with members of his family, will be exercised with the permission of the Vicar General and Moderator of the Curia of the Archdiocese of Boston. In reaching this decision, Cardinal Seán O’Malley recognized that this matter took an unusually long time to adjudicate and prays for all persons impacted by these matters.”

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MASSACHUSETTS
Boston Globe

Derek Anderson
Globe Correspondent / August 11, 2012

The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Boston said Friday that a local priest was assigned to senior priest status with restrictions after charges against him of sexual abuse of a minor were ruled “unsubstantiated.” The Rev. John E. McLaughlin was placed on administrative leave in 2005 after a report of alleged sexual abuse in the 1980s. The new restrictions involve the priest’s ministry only being exercised with permission of an oversight unit of the archdiocese, with the exception of “sacramental celebrations with members of his family,” a statement from the archdiocese said.

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CONNECTICUT
CT Post

Michael P. Mayko

Updated 6:00 p.m., Friday, August 10, 2012

HARTFORD — Lawyers seeking hundreds of millions of dollars for 23 Haitian street boys who claim they were sexually abused by Fairfield University alumnus Douglas Perlitz asked a federal judge late Thursday to reassign the cases because of his Jesuit ties.

U.S. District Judge Robert Chatigny, who’s presiding over the case, has a law degree from Georgetown University, which is operated by the Society of Jesus’ Maryland Province. The Society of Jesus’ New England Province is one of the defendants in the case.

Mitchell Garabedian, a Boston lawyer who heads the plaintiffs’ legal team, requested that the cases be assigned to U.S. District Judge Janet Bond Arterton in New Haven.

Arterton handled Perlitz’s criminal case and sentenced Perlitz to 19 years and seven months in prison for traveling overseas to engage in sex with a minor.

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ST. LOUIS (MO)
Leadership Conference of Women Religious

At the annual assembly of the Leadership Conference of Women Religious (LCWR) held in St. Louis, MO, August 7-10, the more than 900 participants planned their response to the doctrinal assessment of the organization by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith (CDF).

LCWR 2012 Assembly Press Release – 8-10-12

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ST. LOUIS (MO)
National Catholic Reporter

Aug. 10, 2012
By Joshua J. McElwee

ST. LOUIS — The organization which represents the majority of U.S. Catholic sisters said Friday afternoon it would continue discussions with church officials regarding a Vatican-ordered takeover, but “will reconsider” if it “is forced to compromise the integrity of its mission.”

The statement by the Leadership Conference of Women Religious, which represents some 80 percent of U.S. sisters, came at the end of the group’s annual assembly, held this week in St. Louis.

The sisters were responding to an April 18 mandate by the Vatican’s Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith that ordered the group to revise and place itself under the authority of three U.S. bishops.

Reading aloud from a prepared statement, which came after approval from the 900 sisters gathered at the assembly, LCWR’s president, Franciscan Sr. Pat Farrell, said LCWR membership wanted to use the occasion of the Vatican order “to explain to church leaders LCWR’s mission, values and operating principles.”

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UTAH
The Salt Lake Tribune

By Aaron Falk
The Salt Lake Tribune

A jury Friday convicted a fake marriage counselor of sexually abusing a woman during their sessions.

The 3rd District Court jury returned the guilty verdict on one count of forcible sexual abuse, but jurors could not reach a decision on an identical charge involving another woman’s allegations.

Tenorio faces up to 15 years in prison when he is sentenced on the single count in October.

Earlier this week, two women from the same LDS church testified they were referred to Arturo Tenorio, 59, by their bishop for marriage counseling. The sessions soon turned sexual, they said, as Tenorio made comments that made them uneasy, and eventually started touching the women.

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NEW HAMPSHIRE
Keene Sentinel

By Kaitlin Mulhere Sentinel Staff

A former Rindge police officer and employee of the Conval Regional School District was arrested Thursday morning and charged with attempted felonious sexual assault on a teenage girl.

John Vargas-Cifrino, 35, of Chesham Road in Harrisville is accused of touching the victim’s genitalia and breasts while she pretended to be asleep, according to an affidavit prepared by Keene police detective Jennifer M. Ramey. The incident took place in May and the alleged victim, who knew Vargas-Cifrino, was between 13 and 16 years old, the affidavit said. …

Acting Rindge Police Chief Frank C. Morrill said the department received a complaint about Vargas-Cifrino late Saturday night and began an internal investigation on Sunday in accordance with the department’s policy. According to the affidavit, Vargas-Cifrino talked about the alleged incident with a priest, who then notified Rindge police.

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UNITED STATES
BishopAccountability.org – Assignment Record

Summary of Case: A Michigan native, Joseph Keith Symons was ordained in 1958 for the St. Augustine diocese, where he became a member of the diocesan Tribunal and an Episcopal Vicar. Symons was known for recruiting young people to the church and for his progressive outreach programs. He directed several camps for children, one of which he had founded. When the diocese split in 1968, Symons ministered for the diocese of St. Petersburg. He held numerous chancery positions in his new diocese. While serving as St. Petersburg’s Chancellor in the early 1970s, he accepted into the diocese a known perpetrator of sexual abuse of children; Symons quietly left cash for the mother of two of that priest’s victims when she confronted him years later. He denied knowing the priest was a perpetrator. Symons was elevated to Auxiliary Bishop in 1981, and was appointed Bishop of Pensacola-Tallahassee in 1983. In 1990 he became Bishop of Palm Beach. In 1995 Symons admitted to having sexually abused a boy years earlier, after the victim came forward; Symons said he this was his only victim and was allowed to remain in ministry. Another man disclosed sexual abuse as a child by Symons in 1998. Symons resigned several days later and admitted to having sexually abused five boys early in his career. Bishop Symons returned to his home state of Michigan where he lived in a convent and led adult spiritual retreats.

Ordained: 1958
Ordained bishop: March 19, 1981.

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FLORIDA
Palm Beach Post

By Daphne Duret
Palm Beach Post Staff Writer

WEST PALM BEACH —

A 64-year-old Belle Glade community leader and clergyman is on suicide watch following his attempt to swallow a handful of pills Thursday after a jury convicted him of lewd and lascivious battery, promoting the sexual performance of a child and other charges that could land him in prison for up to 80 years.

The Rev. James Richard Harris’ suicide attempt punctuated a three-day trial in his case on charges that he molested a 15-year-old boy, directed him to perform lewd acts on camera and in a separate incident taped two teens having sex at his house.

Palm Beach County Sheriff’s deputies who tackled Harris in the Palm Beach County courtroom Thursday afternoon said that he told them that he would be “in heaven” by the day’s end.

Instead, Harris woke up Friday morning an inmate at the Palm Beach County Jail, where he is on a level of suicide watch so high that sheriff’s deputies thought it too risky to bring him to court Friday while defense attorney Christopher Haddad argued his claim that jurors in Harris’ trial this week should not have been allowed to view the videos in the case.

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FLORIDA
New York Daily News

By Philip Caulfield / NEW YORK DAILY NEWS

Friday, August 10, 2012

A Florida pastor convicted of sex crimes against a 15-year-old boy gobbled a handful of pills after receiving his sentence on Thursday in an apparent courtroom suicide attempt.

West Palm Beach court deputies immediately pounced on Rev. James Harris and wrestled him to the ground while ordering him to spit out the suspected poison pills.

“Oh, my God, it’s cyanide,” the Palm Beach Post quoted a group of court interns whispering, as the officers worked to subdue the convicted sex fiend.

The 64-year-old Belle Glade minister was eventually wheeled from the courtroom in a stretcher, handcuffed, barefoot and with his white shirt unbuttoned, according to photos shot by the Post.

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FLORIDA
Daily Mail (United Kingdom)

The coward’s way out: Dramatic moment ex-pastor tries to commit suicide by swallowing pills in court after he’s found guilty of sex acts involving teenagers

An ex-pastor who was found guilty of sex crimes against juveniles allegedly tried to commit suicide in court by swallowing several white pills after the judge told him he would be going straight to jail.

Rev. James Richard Harris, of Belle Glade, Florida, was accused of trapping his young victims by abusing his connection to Glades Central High School’s football program.

He was found guilty of performing two sex acts on a 15-year-old boy he had lured with promises of introductions to football scouts and trainers to further the teen’s chances of NFL stardom.

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DEUTSCHLAND/POLEN
T-Online

Ein katholischer Priester ist in Polen tot aufgefunden worden. Die verbrannte Leiche des polnischen Geistlichen lag vor dem Grab seiner Familie im Dorf Lopiennik Nadrzeczny im Südosten des Landes, teilte die Staatanwaltschaft mit.

Gegen den 53-Jährigen lief ein Prozess wegen sexuellen Missbrauchs eines Messdieners im niederbayrischen Pocking in den Jahren 2004 und 2005. Zudem stand er nach Angaben der Ermittler im Verdacht, im polnischen Turka zwei Zehnjährige missbraucht zu haben.

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CANADA
CBC News

A former Anglican priest and Boy Scout leader in the northwest has pleaded guilty to another seven counts of sex-related crimes.

Ralph Rowe, 72, appeared in a Kenora court this week. The charges related to assaults between 1973 and 1986 that occurred in Fort Severn, Kitchuhmaykoosib Inninuwug, Wunnumin Lake and Kingfisher Lake.

Rowe was given a two-year conditional sentence and will be under house arrest between 6 p.m. and 6 a.m. daily. During those hours he cannot leave his residence. The court also imposed a lifetime ban on being in any public place where minors are likely to be present, such as parks and beaches.

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DEUTSCHLAND
netzwerkB

Offener Brief an:

Bundesministerin für Familie, Senioren, Frauen und Jugend
Dr. Kristina Schröder
Platz der Republik 1
11011 Berlin
Fax: 030 18555 4400

Sehr geehrte Frau Dr. Schröder,

Wir nehmen Bezug auf Ihr Schreiben vom 01.08.2012 in dem Sie uns mitteilen, dass es Ihnen nicht möglich ist, unseren Antrag auf Kostenübernahme im Rahmen der Unterstützung von Betroffenen-Initiativen zu unterstützen.

Zur Koordination der über 500 Opfervereine gründete sich am 20. August 2011 die Bundesinitiative der Betroffenen von sexualisierter Gewalt und Missbrauch im Kindesalter e.V. (BI) und wurde am 2. Dezember 2011 im Vereinsregister des Amtsgerichtes Charlottenburg eingetragen unter: 95 VR 31053 B. Anspruch war es, den aufwändigen Dialog zwischen den Betroffenen zu koordinieren und eine einheitliche Position der verschiedenen Betroffenenverbände für den Runden Tisch zu erfassen. Es dürfte klar sein, dass sich allein aus diesem Anspruch noch kein Alleinvertretungsanspruch der BI für die Betroffenen ergab. Ein halbes Jahr nach Gründung der BI steht die Einlösung des Anspruchs dieser Initiative mehr als in Frage. Gerade fünf Vereine sind noch Mitglied. Dennoch gilt die Initiative der Regierung als repräsentative Stimme der Betroffenen und wird nun mit mehr als 27.000 Euro finanziert.

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ROCHESTER (NY)
Democrat and Chronicle

A Rochester man who was molested by a local priest two decades ago is now facing child pornography charges.

Federal authorities allege that Paul Hearty, 36, had on his telephone images of infant boys and girls being molested. When 16 years old, Hearty was molested by the Rev. William Lum, a local priest who later pleaded guilty to misdemeanor sexual abuse.

Hearty appeared Friday in U.S. District Court in Rochester. His bail hearing is set for Aug. 27.

Both Hearty’s family and his attorney, Assistant Federal Public Defender Mark Hosken, declined comment this week.

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POLAND/GERMANY
The Express Tribune

WARSAW: A Polish Catholic priest accused of paedophilia in Germany and of similar crimes in his home country was found dead Friday, his body badly burned, at the foot of his family grave.

Identified only as Boguslaw P, he had been on trial in Poland for offences allegedly committed in 2004 and 2005 against a child in Pocking in the German state of Bavaria, where he had served as a priest.

He was also suspected of having committed criminal acts against two boys a decade ago in Turka, southeastern Poland.

“The body was identified by a friend,” Miroslaw Buczek, a prosecutor in Zamosc, eastern Poland, told AFP. He said a suicide could neither be confirmed nor ruled out.

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POLAND
NPR

by The Associated Press

WARSAW, Poland (AP) — A charred body was found at a cemetery in eastern Poland and is believed to be that of a priest suspected of pedophilia in Germany and in Poland, a prosecutor said Friday.

Deputy chief prosecutor in Zamosc, Miroslaw Buczek, said that authorities are 99 percent sure the body is that of the priest, identified only as Boguslaw P. Earlier this week prosecutors charged him with sexually abusing two teenage boys 10 years ago in his eastern Polish parish of Turka. The priest denied the charges, which could have brought a 12-year prison term. A court had ordered him to stay in his village and regularly report to the local police station.

The priest was also on trial in another Polish town, Krasnystaw, on charges of molesting an altar boy in Germany, where he worked in 2004 and 2005.

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DEARBORN (MI)
Press & Guide

By Jule Walker-Altesleben
Press & Guide Newspapers

DEARBORN — The Rev. Peter Petroske is scheduled to appear in 19th District Court at 1 p.m. Sept. 13 on charges of indecent exposure and operating under the influence of alcohol.

Petroske, the now-suspended head pastor at Sacred Heart Catholic Church, is to appear before Judge Richard Wygonik.

According to a police report, Petroske was naked when his vehicle was pulled over at about 11 p.m. Aug. 2 near Garrison and Howe streets in Dearborn. He also told the officer that he liked to drive naked.

“I was uhhh … hot … I like to drive around naked,” Petroske said, according to the report, then adding, “… I don’t know what to say. … I’m embarrassed.”

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POLAND/GERMANY
Expatica

A Polish Catholic priest accused of paedophilia in Germany and of similar crimes in his home country was found dead Friday, his body badly burned, at the foot of his family grave.

Identified only as Boguslaw P., he had been on trial in Poland for offences allegedly committed in 2004 and 2005 against a child in Pocking in the German state of Bavaria, where he had served as a priest.

He was also suspected of having committed criminal acts against two boys a decade ago in Turka, southeastern Poland.

“The body was identified by a friend,” Miroslaw Buczek, a prosecutor in Zamosc, eastern Poland, told AFP. He said a suicide could neither be confirmed nor ruled out.

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POLSKA
Kurier Lubelski

Ksiądz Bogusław P. może spędzić w więzieniu kolejne trzy miesiące. Prokuratura Rejonowa w Lublinie wystąpiła o areszt dla 53-letniego duchownego. Kapłan został zatrzymany pod zarzutem molestowania dwóch ministrantów. W Sądzie Rejonowym w Krasnymstawie przeciwko duchownemu toczy się już sprawa o molestowanie ministranta.

53-letni ksiądz Bogusław P. został zatrzymany przez policję i doprowadzony do prokuratury we wtorek rano.

– Potwierdzam, że w tej chwili trwają czynności z udziałem duchownego – mówi Beata Syk-Jankowska, rzecznik prasowa Prokuratury Okręgowej w Lublinie.

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AUSTRALIA
ABC News

Updated August 10, 2012

A former Victorian sex crimes squad detective says many clergy abuse victims are too scared to make submissions to a parliamentary inquiry.

Glen Davies is heading a forum in Ballarat next week to help people better understand the submission process.

A state wide inquiry was launched earlier this year after it was revealed more than 40 Victorians have committed suicide after being abused by clergy.

Mr Davies says many victims are worried about how their stories will be used.

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PHILADELPHIA (PA)
Philadelphia Daily News

Christine M. Flowers
Philadelphia Daily News

THE LAW is not always just. Sometimes, it can be downright spiteful.

Take the case of Monsignor William Lynn, the first (but probably not the last) high-ranking clergyman to be convicted of child endangerment.

To our knowledge, Lynn never laid a finger on an altar boy, never downloaded porn to his computer, and never did any of the other horrific things that we now know happened over the past few decades. But he is being held responsible for those who did those things, because he didn’t do enough to protect the innocent from in-house predators. I get that there is a desire to hold someone accountable for the pain and grief caused by ignorance and omission.

What I don’t get is how a law that was never intended to apply retroactively could be used to convict a man who had a right to due process. The D.A.’s Office stretched it to its definitional limit by applying it to a supervisor like Lynn, particularly since the law in effect when the defendant was supposed to have looked the other way never contemplated that kind of prosecution.

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BOSTON (MA)
NECN

[with video]

(NECN) – Last week, a Massachusetts rabbi, who served as an instructor at a school years ago in Brookline, plead guilty to four counts of child sex abuse.

Stanley Levitt could have gotten 40 years in prison. Instead, he was sentenced to 10 years probation.

Levitt’s victims were in court – and were outraged.

Mitchell Garabedian, an attorney specializing in sex abuse cases, is the advocate for one of the victims.

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KANSAS CITY (MO)
Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests

Posted by Barbara Dorris on August 09, 2012

A fish rots from the head down. No matter how well intentioned Ms. Valenti may be, she’s yet another Catholic lawyer hired by – and answering to – a reckless, deceitful and callous Catholic bishop. No matter how many new lawyers Bishop Finn hires, Bishop Finn still calls the shots.

We’re told that at least 42 Catholic employees were named in abuse complaints last year. But church officials are refusing to name them in this report. This is the same old secrecy, dressed up in fancy clothes by another new lawyer on the bishop’s payroll.

The Catholic hierarchy will claim these alleged wrongdoers are no longer on the job. Even if that’s true, it’s little consolation. They likely aren’t in jail or being carefully monitored so they may well be molesting children today. And unless parents, parishioners, the police and the public are told who they are, Catholic officials are continuing to put their selfish interests above the safety of others.

(Reminder – Fr. Shawn Ratigan was no longer on the job between December and May. Church officials claimed they were “monitoring” him. Yet he continued to hurt young girls during that time.)

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BELGIE
De Morgen

[mit video]

Michelle Martin staat sinds het begin van deze eeuw in contact met de Arme Klaren van Malonne. Dat zegt een van haar neven in het magazine Paris Match. Zo bezochten de zusters haar in de gevangenis. Bovendien werden meubels en andere spullen die ze bij de erfenis van haar moeder kreeg, in 2001 naar het klooster gebracht, aldus het familielid van Dutroux’ ex.

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BELGIE
De Morgen

[mit video]

Inge Ringoot

De zusters van het klooster van de Arme Klaren in Malonne, een deelgemeente van Namen, blijven bereid Michelle Martin op te vangen in het kader van haar voorwaardelijke vrijlating. Dat heeft Tommy Scholtes, de woordvoerder van de bischoppenconferentie, gezegd. .

Eerder vandaag zei Paul Marchal, de vader van de vermoorde An, dat de zusters hun beslissing zouden herbekijken en opnieuw zouden stemmen over de opvang voor Martin.

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BELGIE
RKnieuws

BRUSSEL (RKnieuws.net) – ‘Met hun beslissing om Michelle Martin, de ex-vrouw van Marc Dutroux, op te vangen in hun klooster in Malonne bij Namen hebben de zusters clarissen volkomen gehandeld in de geest van het Evangelie. De zusters,die al meerdere maanden met Martin contact hadden zodra er sprake was van een eventuele vervroegde vrijlating,hebben hun beslissing na rijp beraad en kennis van zaken genomen’.

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AUSTRALIA
Lawyers Weekly

The abuse and alleged cover-up of abuse by some clergy in the Roman Catholic Church warrants a transparent, national inquiry, not just another internal inquiry, writes Dr Andrew Morrison.

The appointment by the Roman Catholic Church of Tony Whitlam QC, retired Federal Court judge, to head an inquiry into its handling of the Father F affair does not make the inquiry adequate or acceptable.

Tony Whitlam QC is both honourable and able, and will no doubt do his best; however, the problems he faces are formidable.

Cardinal Pell has pointed out on a number of occasions that the authority of a bishop does not extend beyond his diocese. The inquiry is only by the Bishops of Armidale and Parramatta. They do not have the power to compel the attendance of clergy (or other persons) from outside their own diocese, and cannot even compel answers from clergy within their own diocese. They do not have power to require the production of documents from outside the diocese. It is noteworthy that, to date, St Mary’s Cathedral has declined to produce the records of the 1992 meeting (between Father F and Fathers Brian Lucas, Wayne Peters and John Usher).

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KANSAS CITY (MO)
20 Pounds of Headlines

The Ombudsman for the Kansas City Catholic Diocese says she checked into 79 cases of abuse, or suspected abuse in the Diocese in its first year of her operation, Ombudsman Jenifer Valenti was appointed to the newly created post a year ago by Bishop Robert Finn.

Finn created the position after the Fr. Shawn Ratigan sex abuse scandal rocked the Kansas City Diocese and led to calls for its Bishop Finn to step down. He remain at his post.

“This report shows my commitment to being open and honest”, Valenti told KMBC 9 news.

Valenti’s report says they looked at 20 claims of sexual abuse by priests, diocese employees or church volunteers.

Seven cases were ‘substantiated”, according to the report.

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ST. LOUIS (MO)
Time

By Associated Press | August 10, 2012

(ST. LOUIS) — At a pivotal national meeting, members of the largest group for American nuns have been weighing whether they should accept or challenge a Vatican order to reform.

The national assembly is the first since a Vatican review concluded the Roman Catholic sisters had tolerated dissent about the all-male priesthood, birth control and homosexuality, while remaining nearly silent in the fight against abortion. Officials at the Holy See want a full-scale overhaul of the organization under the authority of U.S. bishops.

The 900 sisters at this week’s meeting in St. Louis “are asking God to show us to the next best step we can take,” said Sister Mary Waskowiak, director of development for the Mercy International Association in Burlingame, Calif. The executives of the group have called the Vatican report flawed.

The Leadership Conference of Women Religious represents about 80 percent of the 57,000 American sisters. The rebuke from the Holy See, issued in April, prompted an outpouring of support for the sisters nationwide, including parish vigils, protests outside the Vatican embassy in Washington and a resolution in Congress commending the sisters for their service to the country. A spokeswoman for the nuns group said Thursday they had received more than 1,500 cards from supporters from around the world, some of which were placed on tables at the meeting.

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WASHINGTON (DC)
Equities

PR Newswire
WASHINGTON, Aug. 9, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ — Sister Mary Hughes of the Leadership Conference of Women Religious, an association representing about 80 percent of U.S. Catholic nuns, will discuss her organization’s dispute with the Vatican during a National Press Club Luncheon on Aug. 16 . The coalition’s national Assembly is taking place now through Aug. 10 in St. Louis. During this gathering, members are debating how to deal with a critical report issued this year by the Vatican, recommending that the nuns’ organization be overhauled by bishops — at the direction of the Holy See.

Sister Mary Hughes, past president of LCWR and Prioress of the Sisters of St. Dominic in Amityville, N.Y., will discuss the Leadership Conference’s mission and the results of its national Assembly event. In an interview on PBS last month, Sister Mary said there is a “profound sense of sadness” over the tension with the Vatican, but added that asking questions “does not mean we are against Church teaching.”

The Vatican began investigating LCWR over ecclesiastical and doctrinal issues and alleged radical feminism in 2008. The Vatican report released in April said the group was not speaking out strongly enough against abortion, gay marriage and the ordination of women. Many members of LCWR endorsed President Barack Obama’s health care reform plan in 2010.

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KANSAS CITY (MO)
KCUR

[the report]

[with audio]

By Steve Bell

The ombudsman for the people of the Kansas City-St. Joseph Catholic diocese to look into accusations of sexual abuse by clergy has released her first annual report. Jennifer Valenti received 79 reports of suspected sexual abuse and boundary violations in her first year of duty,

Almost half of of the total of 79 incidents reported involved suspected abuse in the home, according to the article published in the Catholic Key on Thursday. But ombudsman Jennifer Valentii says she did uncover 7 substantiated reports of church-relaed incidents of sexual abuse.

Valenti’s report says five persons that were named as abusers and that all of them were removed from whatever type of servivce.

But Valenti emphasizes that they weren’t all priests. Some were volunteers, she says, some members of religious orders. In cases where actual sexual abuse was suspected, she says law enforcement officials led any further investigation, but she, herself, looked into non-criminal cases of “boundary violations.”

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KANSAS CITY (MO)
Examiner

By Maria Sudekem
The Associated Press

Kansas City, MO —

The ombudsman appointed to investigate abuse allegations for the Catholic Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph said in a report Thursday that sexual abuse claims have been substantiated against five people, though it didn’t indicate whether those individuals were clergy, employees or someone outside the diocese.

Diocese ombudsman Jenifer Valenti said in the report that her office received 79 allegations of sexual abuse or inappropriate behavior, but nearly half involved people outside the diocese such as a school official calling to report the possible abuse of a student.

Since those cases were outside her jurisdiction, they were referred to civil authorities, administrative staff and caseworkers, according to the report. But the report didn’t clarify who those authorities or agencies were.

Valenti, a former Jackson County assistant prosecutor, didn’t return phone messages and an email Thursday seeking clarification on aspects of the report.

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KANSAS CITY (MO)
Fox 4

[with video]

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The ombudsman appointed by the Kansas City-St. Joseph Catholic Diocese in the fallout of a priest abuse case says that only a few of the allegations of sexual abuse or inappropriate behavior reported in the last year have been substantiated.

The report from diocese ombudsman Jenifer Valenti says that of those 40 allegations, 20 were reported cases of sexual abuse that involved clergy, diocese employees, religious orders or volunteers, and that only seven of those cases were substantiated, and involved five people.

Click here to read the report (PDF).

Valenti says that in each case, if a crime were committed then law enforcement was notified.

“In the past our members were encouraged to report abuse. But now our members are encouraged to know the warning sings of abuse and know what kind of behaviors are suspicious, and we’re asking people to report those so we can be proactive and look into those behaviors,” said Valenti.

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LOUISIANA
KPLC

By Cedric Haynes
By Elona Weston

LAKE CHARLES, LA (KPLC) –
The former Lake Area priest accused of sexually assaulting several children decades ago was indicted Thursday by a Calcasieu Parish grand jury on 10 sex-related charges.

Mark Anthony Broussard, 56, faces three counts of molestation of a juvenile, two counts of aggravated oral sexual battery, two counts of aggravated sexual battery, two counts of rape and one count of sexual battery.

Broussard was a priest at St. Henry Catholic Church in Lake Charles. He left the church in 1992 and relocated to St. Eugene Catholic Church in Grand Chenier. He resigned from the priesthood in 1994.

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UNITED STATES
Huffington Post

Tom Rastrelli

People don’t expect their priests and bishops to lie, but as Michelangelo Signorile’s recent post illustrated, clerics do lie. Some even make a virtue of it. I know this from experience, for I was ordained a Catholic priest on a lie.

In spring 2002 I walked with my spiritual director along the blacktop road encircling the seminary. He’d been my confessor and guide for two years, helping me discern God’s presence in all aspects of my life, intimate and mundane. Over our heads, a canopy of newborn leaves rustled in a sunny breeze, a welcome relief from the bitter fog that had engulfed the church and my vocational surety.

For the previous two months an unprecedented number of bishops and priests, starting with Cardinal Law of Boston, had fallen from grace for participation in the sexual abuse of children and the ensuing cover-up. Their duplicity was palpable in my knotted back and abdomen. In a few months I’d be ordained a priest. I didn’t want to do so on a lie.

“I’m coming out of the closet,” I said. …

When I’d applied for seminary, the director of seminarians — the priest who’d recruited me — explained that orientation didn’t matter, only celibacy. But on my intake interviews he’d told me to answer “yes” when the archdiocesan psychologist asked if I was attracted to women, and “no” when he asked if I was attracted to men. It was for the greater good, he said. Frightened of being cast out and ashamed of my true nature, I had lied as instructed.

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IRELAND
Huffington Post

Religiosity Plummets In Ireland And Declines Worldwide; Atheism On The Rise

By Dominique Mosbergen

Rocked in recent years by sex-abuse scandals and crises in leadership, the Catholic Church in the Republic of Ireland has been struggling to keep its members close.

But this week, a new global survey on faith and atheism has revealed that the crisis of faith in Ireland may be much worse than previously thought.

According to the poll released by WIN-Gallup International, the traditionally Catholic country has seen one of the steepest drops worldwide in religiosity.

The poll — which was based on interviews with more than 50,000 people selected from 57 countries — asked participants, “irrespective of whether they attended a place of worship, if they considered themselves to be religious, not religious, or an atheist.”

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KANSAS CITY (MO)
KCTV

[with video]

[the report]

By Chris Oberholtz, Multimedia Producer
By Heather Staggers, Reporter

KANSAS CITY, MO (KCTV) –
The newly appointed ombudsman for the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph to investigate reports of sexual abuse or sexual misconduct released her findings Thursday.

In her report, diocesan ombudsman Jenifer Valenti stated there were 20 reports of sexual abuse, seven of which were removed from public ministry or employment.

Two of the reports were cleared, and eight were found to be inconclusive. The report also found that an investigation is pending in one case while one another was removed and referred to religious order.

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KANSAS CITY (MO)
KOAM

[the report]

Posted: Aug 09, 2012

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) – The ombudsman for the Catholic Diocese of Kansas City reports getting nearly 80 reports in the past year alleging various types of abuse or suspicious behavior among clergy, volunteers and people unaffiliated with the diocese.

Jenifer Valenti says in the report released Thursday that of 79 allegations of sexual abuse, sexual misconduct or “boundary violations,” 20 cases involved clergy and 17 involved employees. Of the rest, 11 involved family members, seven were about volunteers, five were about religious orders and 12 involved unknown people.

The two-page report also says nine people were removed from “ministry, employment or volunteer service” over substantiated claims. The report doesn’t specify if any of those were clergy.

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KANSAS CITY (MO)
Roman Catholic Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph

Dear Members of the Diocese,

Just last year, Bishop Robert Finn made a series of promises to the people of our diocese. In his Five-Point Plan, he pledged to appoint an ombudsman and public liaison to fi eld and independently investigate reports of abuse, suspicious or inappropriate behavior (boundary violations), or sexual misconduct. His call for independence resonated with me. I immediately asked to be considered for this role.

As a mother of young children, my heart was invested in a just outcome for those among us who come forward to report abuse. As a lifelong Catholic, I believe that everyone shares in the responsibility to protect children and vulnerable adults. As a former team leader with the
Jackson County Prosecutor’s Offi ce, I wanted to offer my experience in investigating and prosecuting thousands of cases of physical and emotional abuse.

After meeting with Bishop Finn and asking and answering questions, I accepted the offer to become your ombudsman. I was assured that I had the authority and responsibility to consult with law enforcement or social services at any point in an investigation. My appointment gave me a responsibility to investigate your concerns – about a priest, an employee, or volunteer – whether it
occurred yesterday or decades ago. I promised to honor the trust you have placed in me by being open and honest about my work.

This report documents how I am keeping this promise.

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KANSAS CITY (MO)
The Kansas City Star

By GLENN E. RICE
The Kansas City Star

In her first year of the job, the ombudsman for the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph handled 79 reports of sexual abuse, sexual misconduct or suspicious behavior by clergy, lay staff, volunteers and people not affiliated with the diocese.

About a fourth of the cases involved allegations against people working or volunteering in diocesan activities, according to a report released today by Jenifer Valenti, the diocesan ombudsman and public liaison officer who previously worked as a Jackson County assistant prosecutor.

Bishop Robert W. Finn made the appointment in July 2011 as part of a five-point plan that the diocese offered as a response to lawsuits and allegations of sexual misconduct by clergy.

Her two-page report covers July 1, 2011, through June 30.

The 79 complaints involved 72 people, including 20 clergy, 17 lay employees, seven volunteers and five members of “religious orders.”

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DEARBORN (MI)
Detroit Free Press

By Jim Schaefer
Detroit Free Press Staff Writer

The pastor of a Catholic parish in Dearborn was completely undressed and told city police “I like to drive around naked” after he was pulled over last week on suspicion of drunken driving, according to the arresting officer’s report on the incident.

“I was, uh, hot … I like to drive around naked,” A Dearborn officer quoted Rev. Peter Petroske as saying after he was stopped at 11:18 p.m. on Aug. 2. Police said Petroske’s clothes were scattered across the inside of his Volkswagen Passat and he was allowed to get dressed before stepping out of the vehicle for sobriety tests.

“I don’t know want to say. I’m embarrassed,” police quoted the 57-year-old priest as saying.

The police report, obtained by the Free Press under a Freedom of Information Act request, said officers detected a strong odor of alcohol in the vehicle and that Petroske was unable to recite the alphabet or count backwards. A chemical test showed his blood-alcohol level was .09, just over the limit for drunken driving, the report said.

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DEARBORN (MI)
The Detroit News

By George Hunter and Christine Ferretti
The Detroit News

Dearborn— A Catholic priest accused of driving through the city in the nude while intoxicated last week told the officer who pulled him over that he liked “to drive around naked,” according to a police report.

The Rev. Peter Petroske, 57, who is now on administrative leave from his post at Sacred Heart Parish, was questioned by Dearborn Officer Robert Gafford after police were called at 11:18 p.m. Aug. 2 to the Garrison and Haigh area.

According to the report, Petroske had a blood alcohol content level of .09.

“I approached the driver’s side vehicle and observed Petroske to be completely naked. Petroske is attempting to grab clothing scattered around the vehicle,” according to Gafford’s report.

Gafford allowed Petroske to put on his clothes and began further questioning, inquiring about his nudity.

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NEW HAMPSHIRE
Berlin Daily Sun

Written by Melissa Grima

BERLIN — A local man with a claim of abuse pending against the Diocese of Manchester hopes that telling his story will help bring the focus of the church sex abuse scandal onto the victims rather than the abusers.

Frank Laferrier, a Berlin resident who grew up on the Seacoast, said he was raped by a priest as a young teen in Durham as he sought refuge at St. Thomas More Parish after running away from an abusive foster home. Laferrier said that although he has a claim pending with the diocese, he is coming forward to tell his story publicly because he believes Catholics “really need to see what was done to the victims.”

“I think if someone like me tells them what I went through, they would understand what the victims went through,” Laferrier said.

Careful to point out that he does not blame all Roman Catholics for the abuse he sustained, only the priest who did it, Laferrier said he recognizes that not all priests and parish leaders are like this. “I’ve met some really good people,” he said.

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ST. LOUIS (MO)
National Catholic Reporter

Aug. 09, 2012
By Joshua J. McElwee

ST. LOUIS — As Catholic sisters from across the country were sequestered in meeting rooms Wednesday to discuss broad issues of the place of women and men in the church, specifically their relationships with bishops following a harsh Vatican rebuke, five people stood outside the building.

Their focus was on issues sadly familiar to Catholics: Sexual abuse of minors, followed by denial and confusion.

For two of those standing outside the annual assembly of the Leadership Conference of Women Religious (LCWR), however, the alleged abusers didn’t wear clerical collars. They were Catholic sisters.

The group outside the LCWR assembly in the humid Missouri heat were representatives of the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAP), the leading advocate for victims of clergy sex abuse.

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UNITED STATES
Anti-Catholic League

By David Fortwengler

Two groups affiliated with the Catholic Church consider the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAP) so dangerous and evil that they are using the same warlike tactics as the CIA. Last year Bill Donohue of the Catholic League planted two of his troops surreptitiously into enemy-held territory when he had them register for and attend the SNAP National Conference in Washington, DC. This year Dave Pierre of the catholic bishop apology group The Media Report sent spies to take up positions inside the group that advocates for survivors child sexual abuse.

The Catholic League’s and The Media Report’s hatred of SNAP is so intense they are willing to use some convoluted version of the “just war theory” to infiltrate SNAP’s conference. Donohue claims the registration for the conference was open to the public so he believes his spies did nothing morally wrong or sinful by lying about their presence. The SNAP convention advertises its meeting as a gathering of survivors, their supporters and advocates. Since SNAP does not make attendees go to confession to explain their presence Donohue and Pierre believe their spies are entitled to lie about their motives and report on the inner workings of SNAP the same way the CIA spies on Al Qaeda and terrorist groups.

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KANSAS CITY (MO)
The Kansas City Star

By MARY SANCHEZ
The Kansas City Star

Today, the Kansas City-St. Joseph Diocese takes another step toward transparency and common sense.

The first report by the Catholic diocese’s new ombudsman will be released. Jenifer Valenti’s two-page report will outline allegations of sexual misconduct or suspicious behavior she has received in her first year, her assessments and the status of each case.

Less encouraging are filings in some of the legal proceedings against the diocese and Bishop Robert Finn. There, officials appear to be clinging to the excuse-making that helped create this horrible situation — the Rev. Shawn Ratigan guilty of child pornography charges and the diocese and Finn facing further legal troubles.

Understandably, the bishop’s legal team will use any viable argument to defend Finn in the civil suits and on the criminal misdemeanor charge of failing to report suspicions of child abuse.

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VATICAN CITY
Catholic Culture

The Vatican will announce on August 13 whether Paolo Gabriele, the Pope’s valet, will face trial for stealing confidential papal documents.

Gabriele’s lawyer has already conceded that it is unlikely his client will be cleared of all charges. Gabriele has insisted that he acted alone, and his motive was to help Pope Benedict XVI. His lawyer has said that a fuller explanation would emerge at his trial.

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UTAH
Deseret News

By Emiley Morgan, Deseret News
Published: Wednesday, Aug. 8 2012

SALT LAKE CITY — Arturo Tenorio was like a father to the two women he inappropriately touched while “counseling” them on their marriage problems, they testified Wednesday.

Both of the man’s alleged victims took the stand Wednesday on the first day of Tenorio’s trial in 3rd District Court. He is accused of using his reputation and influence in the LDS Church to gain work as a marriage “counselor” and then manipulating that trust to take advantage of two clients.

Tenorio, 59, is charged with two counts of forcible sexual abuse, a second-degree felony.

Both women said they were referred to Tenorio by their LDS bishop and their first few sessions with Tenorio also involved their husbands. Later, they said, Tenorio told them he needed to meet with them “one on one.”

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UTAH
KSL

MILLCREEK — A Sandy man has been charged with sexually abusing a mother and her daughter and biting the woman’s son in a sexual assault in their home.

The man was serving as branch president of an LDS Spanish-speaking branch in Midvale and was released from his church position after the incident, LDS church officials confirmed.

A 13-year-old girl told police that on May 8, “family friend” Efrey Antonio Guzman, 46, knocked on her door when she and her older brother were home alone. When Guzman learned that the brother was in the shower, “the defendant suddenly grabbed her, hugged her tightly and would not let her go,” charges filed in 3rd District Court state.

The teen said Guzman started kissing her and grabbed her buttocks, but left when her brother entered the room.

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SANDY (UT)
The Salt Lake Tribune

By Cimaron Neugebauer
| The Salt Lake Tribune
First Published Aug 08 2012

A church leader in Sandy was promptly released from his calling after allegedly biting another man’s penis and sexually abusing that man’s little sister.

Prosecutors charged Efrey Guzman, 46, of Sandy, on Tuesday in 3rd District Court for aggravated sexual assault, aggravated burglary, both first-degree felonies, and sexual abuse of a child and forcible sexual abuse, both second-degree felonies.

Guzman was an LDS branch president of a Latino congregation in Sandy. A branch is smaller than a ward.

In a statement from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, spokesman Scott Trotter wrote, “The church has zero tolerance for abuse of any kind. Mr. Guzman has been released from his church duties effective immediately and faces further church discipline following the legal process.”

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AUSTRALIA
The Leader

BY LINTON BESSER, JOANNE MCCARTHY

09 Aug, 2012

THE church prematurely terminated an investigation last year into the alleged failure of a top Catholic education official to take action over the sexual assault of an 11-year-old boy in the 1970s by a lay teacher.

A former principal of St Patrick’s at Sutherland, Brother Anthony Peter Whelan, had been accused by Robert Lipari of failing to take action against a science teacher, Thomas Keady, after he reported being molested by the man at a caravan park.

Shortly before being employed at the school, Keady had completed a three-year jail term in Victoria for child sex offences.

The church commissioned an investigation by the former NSW Police assistant commissioner Norm Maroney, who substantiated the 1976 assault, and the fact it was reported to another senior teacher at the school, Brother John Vincent Roberts.

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