By Brian Scheid
Norwich (CT) Bulletin
March 17, 2002

Norwich, CT - Since 1991, the Diocese of Norwich has turned over the names of each diocesan employee accused of sexual abuse to the proper authorities, according to diocese spokeswoman Jacqueline Keller.

Keller took issue with information reported in an article in Saturday's Norwich Bulletin that the Most Rev. Daniel A. Hart, bishop of Norwich, "stopped short" of undertaking measures like those recently taken by leaders of other Catholic churches throughout the country to examine church files and make public the names of accused abusers.

"All records have been turned over to the authorities," Keller said. "Any accused abuser has been made public already."

But, the diocese's policy is different from measures recently taken by other dioceses.

On Thursday in the Diocese of Bridgeport, the Most Rev. William Lori said he would review the files of all 285 priest and 86 deacons in the diocese to ensure that no clergy pose a threat to children. Lori said he would create an advisory board of psychologists, physicians and legal experts to deal with sexual misconduct in the clergy.

In February, the Diocese of Manchester, N.H., which covers all of that state, gave prosecutors the name of 14 priests accused of sexual misconduct since 1962.

Keller said the diocese had no plans to change its policy.

"Why would you change a policy that the state's attorney says is fine?" Keller asked. "We don't have a file full of people's names."

"The Norwich policy is in accordance with civil law," she said. "All records, all records have been turned over to the authorities as they've happened. If there's a problem, we're ahead of the times."

In 1991, the diocese established a "zero tolerance" policy for all diocesan employees accused of abuse. Under the policy, since 1991 any complaint of child sexual abuse received by the diocese's internal affairs office would be reported to the Office of the State's Attorney and the Department of Children and Families.

In a pastoral letter that was read and distributed in the diocese's 84 churches this weekend, Hart apologized to anyone who has been sexually abused by someone representing the church.

"I can neither excuse nor explain it, but I am sorry and I ask forgiveness," Hart wrote.

It was the second letter Hart wrote since the clergy sexual abuse scandal erupted in the Archdiocese of Boston, where Hart served as auxiliary bishop before coming to Norwich in November 1995. More than 200 people claim to be victims of clergy abuse throughout the Boston Archdiocese, according to the Boston Globe.