OGDENSBURG (NY)
WWNY - 7 News [Watertown NY]
September 15, 2022
By Diane Rutherford
Documents sent from the Roman Catholic Diocese of Ogdensburg to the Vatican have reached the pope.
That’s according to John Bellocchio, a nationally known advocate for survivors of clergy sexual abuse.
Bellochio is accusing Cardinal Timothy Dolan, archbishop of New York, of covering up clerical sexual abuse and trying to shield money from lawsuits filed by victims of clergy sexual abuse.
Last month, Bellochio asked Ogdensburg Bishop Terry LaValley to forward the allegations to Vatican officials and civil authorities in New York. According to Bellochio, LaValley told him the documents have formally reached Pope Francis.
Now that the pope has received the documents, he could decide to put LaValley in charge of investigating the cardinal.
“Now that it has been transmitted to the Holy See, the investigation almost certainly has to begin. It has never not happened when the documents are accepted by the Holy See. Timothy Dolan has done irreparable damage to victims and the Church, he must resign, and I think this demonstrates that even the Church sees the writing on the wall. He faces two prospects: early retirement or removal from ministry,” Bellochio wrote in an email.
Dolan’s spokesperson with the Archdiocese of New York said the accusations are false.
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