BishopAccountability.org
	Cardinal Hears Parents' Rage By Manya A. Brachear Chicago Tribune [Chicago IL] January 31, 2006 http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chi-0601310185jan31,1,1069208.story?page=2&coll=chi-newsnationworld-hed As authorities investigated a new allegation that a West Side priest repeatedly abused a minor, Cardinal Francis George on Monday night faced angry parishioners at the church the priest once led. "I'm sorry to be with you because this occasion is one that shames me certainly," George said. The crowd of more than 200 at St. Agatha Catholic Church hammered him with the same question again and again about the abuse allegations against Rev. Daniel McCormack that date back to 2000: Why didn't we know sooner? The emotional meeting came on the same day that another allegation against McCormack surfaced, at least the fifth in less than two weeks. The latest abuse occurred over the last 24 months and happened repeatedly, said Jeff Anderson, the lawyer for the latest alleged victim. Neither Anderson nor law enforcement officials would rule out the possibility that some of the alleged abuse took place while McCormack was being monitored by the Chicago Catholic Archdiocese. The archdiocese appointed a priest to monitor McCormack's contact with children at the rectory after the first allegation was made against him in August. It was not immediately clear where the latest alleged abuse by the West Side priest took place, and Anderson declined to provide the details. On Monday night, George made himself a target for criticism at his meeting with parishioners at St. Agatha. "I am truly sorry that you had as a pastor someone accused of molesting small children," he said. Several at the meeting said they felt angry and betrayed by the way the archdiocese handled the allegations against McCormack. "Right now, I have a trust issue with the archdiocese. And if you don't have a trust issue, you should. I need my answers, sir, I really do," said Tara Rice, 37, a parent of children at Our Lady of the Westside Catholic School, housed inside St Agatha "Why was Dan McCormack still here?" Mary McLauren, who oversees the after-school program, said that she repeatedly saw young boys knocking on the rectory's back door during the fall, when McCormack was meant to be monitored. "He did not do what you told him to do," she screamed at the cardinal. "I am hurting. I pray that the Lord will forgive me for not speaking out earlier." George once again said that the archdiocese had not received an allegation in August, only a notification from law enforcement that McCormack had been questioned. On Monday, Anderson said that the family of the alleged victim came to him this past weekend and that he only met with the child briefly. Chicago police spokeswoman Monique Bond said Anderson informed the Child Advocacy Center of the alleged abuse and that police and the Cook County state's attorney's office were informed through the center. Sources with knowledge of the case said police and prosecutors were interviewing the boy and his mother Monday, and they were attempting to sort through the new allegations. Investigators expected to interview witnesses who might be able to corroborate the claims in the coming days, the sources said. John Gorman, a spokesman for the Cook County state's attorney, said the information was under review. Anderson wanted to come forward Monday, he said, to state that the family had a "genuine report" of sexual abuse, and that the abuse occurred more than one time. Anderson read a statement from the mother of the alleged victim at a news conference outside of St. Agatha's parish, 3147 W. Douglas Blvd. As authorities investigated a new allegation that a West Side priest repeatedly abused a minor, Cardinal Francis George on Monday night faced angry parishioners at the church the priest once led. "I'm sorry to be with you because this occasion is one that shames me certainly," George said. The crowd of more than 200 at St. Agatha Catholic Church hammered him with the same question again and again about the abuse allegations against Rev. Daniel McCormack that date back to 2000: Why didn't we know sooner? The emotional meeting came on the same day that another allegation against McCormack surfaced, at least the fifth in less than two weeks. The latest abuse occurred over the last 24 months and happened repeatedly, said Jeff Anderson, the lawyer for the latest alleged victim. Neither Anderson nor law enforcement officials would rule out the possibility that some of the alleged abuse took place while McCormack was being monitored by the Chicago Catholic Archdiocese. The archdiocese appointed a priest to monitor McCormack's contact with children at the rectory after the first allegation was made against him in August. It was not immediately clear where the latest alleged abuse by the West Side priest took place, and Anderson declined to provide the details. On Monday night, George made himself a target for criticism at his meeting with parishioners at St. Agatha. "I am truly sorry that you had as a pastor someone accused of molesting small children," he said. Several at the meeting said they felt angry and betrayed by the way the archdiocese handled the allegations against McCormack. "Right now, I have a trust issue with the archdiocese. And if you don't have a trust issue, you should. I need my answers, sir, I really do," said Tara Rice, 37, a parent of children at Our Lady of the Westside Catholic School, housed inside St Agatha "Why was Dan McCormack still here?" Mary McLauren, who oversees the after-school program, said that she repeatedly saw young boys knocking on the rectory's back door during the fall, when McCormack was meant to be monitored. "He did not do what you told him to do," she screamed at the cardinal. "I am hurting. I pray that the Lord will forgive me for not speaking out earlier." George once again said that the archdiocese had not received an allegation in August, only a notification from law enforcement that McCormack had been questioned. On Monday, Anderson said that the family of the alleged victim came to him this past weekend and that he only met with the child briefly. Chicago police spokeswoman Monique Bond said Anderson informed the Child Advocacy Center of the alleged abuse and that police and the Cook County state's attorney's office were informed through the center. Sources with knowledge of the case said police and prosecutors were interviewing the boy and his mother Monday, and they were attempting to sort through the new allegations. Investigators expected to interview witnesses who might be able to corroborate the claims in the coming days, the sources said. John Gorman, a spokesman for the Cook County state's attorney, said the information was under review. Anderson wanted to come forward Monday, he said, to state that the family had a "genuine report" of sexual abuse, and that the abuse occurred more than one time. Anderson read a statement from the mother of the alleged victim at a news conference outside of St. Agatha's parish, 3147 W. Douglas Blvd. "My son is hurting now, but he has told me that Father Dan has hurt him more than one time," the statement said. "I don't want this to happen to anybody else." Anderson said he was protecting the victim's family from scrutiny by not disclosing the place where the alleged abuse occurred, the time when it allegedly occurred, the details of the allegation or the victim's age. But he described the boy as confused, hurting and scared. Anderson, a St. Paul lawyer who represents a number of clergy sex abuse victims, expressed outrage that the archdiocese let McCormack, whom he called a "serial offender," stay in the pulpit after police first heard allegations in August that he had sexually abused a child. Police and prosecutors concluded at the time there was not enough evidence to press charges, then notified the archdiocese. Church officials said McCormack was not removed from ministry because the family of the first accuser never brought an allegation to the archdiocese. Authorities said getting interviews with the victim from the police would have required a subpoena. It wasn't until a second accuser came forward earlier this month that McCormack was arrested. "I feel a great deal of alarm and great disappointment that the efforts we made with the archdiocese ... brings us to this point in time," Anderson said. Authorities are also investigating a claim by a nun who said she alerted church officials to McCormack's possible inappropriate contact with a child in 2000. They are also investigating an alleged incident in 2001 in which the family of a boy said McCormack pulled down the boy's shorts. There have been several new leads in the investigation that are being handled jointly by prosecutors and police at the Child Advocacy Center, Bond said, but police are not commenting on the details. She said all new information is being gathered by the center. George, who experienced dizzy spells and was released from the hospital Friday, ignored advice from doctors to rest. Colleen Dolan, communications director for the archdiocese, said the cardinal concluded he would lose more sleep if he did not tend to parishioners' angst.
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