BishopAccountability.org
	Bishop Sorry for Comments about Sex Abuse By Cathleen Falsani cfalsani@suntimes.com Chicago Sun-Times [Joliet IL] April 1, 2006 http://www.suntimes.com/output/religion/cst-nws-joliet01.html In a letter sent to every parish in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Joliet this week, Bishop Joseph Imesch asked forgiveness from those who have been hurt by his decisions and comments about clergy sexual abuse of minors. Imesch's letter, released Friday, made reference to a deposition he gave last summer in a lawsuit filed against the Joliet Diocese by a man who says he was molested by a priest of the diocese, Edward Stefanich, in the 1960s. Stefanich pleaded guilty in 1987 to criminal sexual abuse for molesting a 14-year-old girl and was sentenced to six months in jail. He has since left the priesthood. In the deposition given in August 2005 but unsealed by a judge in February, Imesch appeared unapologetic for not having removed from ministry priests about whom he knew there were allegations of sexual abuse with minors, including one priest who went skinny-dipping with boys and played poker with them in the nude. The bishop sent that priest for counseling and then reassigned him to another parish, where he was again accused of abusing youngsters. In the deposition, Imesch dismissed the idea of reporting allegations of abuse by one of his priests to police, saying in part, "I'm not going to go to the police and say, 'I've got a suspicion that one of my priests is dating a young girl.' " In his letter to the diocese this week, Imesch appears much more contrite. "I know that some of my words in that deposition have caused pain to many in the diocese and have hurt our church," Imesch wrote. "For all of the hurt I have caused by my words and decisions, by what I have done or ought to have done, I am truly sorry. I ask your forgiveness and prayers." In the same letter, Imesch revealed that between September 2004 and September 2005, the Joliet Diocese received six allegations of sexual abuse by priests. Two were against religious order priests (not under the jurisdiction of the diocese), one was against a priest who is deceased, and one was against a priest who has left the priesthood. Two other accusations against active priests in ministry were brought before the diocese's review committee that vets such allegations and were deemed unsubstantiated, Imesch said. List of priests to be put online From July 1, 2004, to June 30, 2005, the Joliet Diocese spent nearly $130,000 in areas related to clergy sex abuse, including nearly $80,000 in legal fees. An additional $30,000 was paid out during the same time period in a settlement by the diocese's insurance company, Imesch said. Imesch also announced that the diocese would post a comprehensive list of all diocesan priests "against whom a credible allegation of sexual misconduct with a minor has been made." Thomas Kerber, a spokesman for the diocese, said he expected that list, which is still being compiled by diocesan officials, to be posted online in about two weeks at www.dioceseofjoliet.org.
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