BishopAccountability.org
	Churches Cite Compliance with Child Protection Policies By Andy Smith Eagle-Tribune [New Hampshire] April 18, 2006 http://www.ecnnews.com/cgi-bin/15/etstory.pl?-sec- NHNews+fn-fn-fn-fn-nhcatholic.0418-20060418-fn It might not have happened as quickly as he would have liked, but the Rev. Marcel Martel says Holy Angels in Plaistow, like other New Hampshire parishes, is training staff and conducting background checks to ensure that children are never endangered in church. Local Catholics say the Manchester Diocese can still do more to ensure the safety of children, though most agree that significant progress has been made since 2002. That was when the diocese agreed to new child-protection policies and annual audits by the attorney general's office. The reaction comes in the wake of the first audit ? done by the forensic practice unit of the auditing firm KPMG ? which criticized the diocese for failing to carry out background checks on all of its staff and volunteers. Some priests, including Martel, believe the audit might already be outdated. It includes data collected as early as May 2005 and was released by Attorney General Kelly Ayotte on March 30. Marcel, who leads Holy Angels in Plaistow, said such an audit would have given an inaccurate picture of the present state of his parish. He said he takes the background checks very seriously ? so much so that last September, he fired an employee for failing to process the checks in a timely manner. The criminal background checks, as well as training on how to interact with children, were required by the 2002 agreement that allowed the diocese to avoid criminal charges in sex abuse cases. "We had a staff member put in charge of following through and implementing those mandates," Marcel said. "And I came to the realization that he had not been doing his job. But since September, our parish has come into almost full compliance. If anyone in that report went through what we went through, the report would be woefully inadequate." The first audit was only based upon surveys of parishes in Dover, Manchester and the Lakes Region. Investigators found no parish that was in full compliance with child-protection policies. In one parish, criminal background checks had not been performed on nearly half of the employees and volunteers. The state plans to take a statewide survey within the next year. Marcel said that all 17 staff members at Holy Angels have had criminal background checks, which are conducted by the State Police. Individual parishes forward signed releases to the Manchester Diocese, which passes them along to police. Local priests said it usually takes a few weeks to process the checks. Volunteers who interact with children are also checked and required to attend "Protecting God's Children" workshops conducted by New Hampshire Catholic Charities. So far, 214 of the church's 266 volunteers have received their certifications through the workshop, Marcel said. The Rev. Paul F. Ruzzo at Mary Queen of Peace in Salem said background checks have been completed for all 147 staff members and volunteers who have contact with children. They've also completed the "Protecting God's Children" program, he said. Ruzzo conceded that "there's more work to do" to fully restore Catholics' confidence in church leadership. But he did not believe that the attorney general's audit was an accurate reflection of the progress that's been made throughout the state. "I don't think they got a full read on what the parishes have done," he said. "I don't know what parishes they visited or when they visited, but I would say we are in compliance. And I have the sense that parishes are doing everything they can to be upfront and diligent." Marcel agreed that there is no crisis of confidence within his parish, and he said that most Catholics seem assured that the sex abuse scandal is well in the past. He said that's due not only to steps the parishes have taken, but also to the fact that much of the abuse took place prior to 1980. "Over the last 25 years, the Catholic Church in the United States has been one of the safest places to be, and certainly in New Hampshire. So it's not a grave concern on the part of 99 percent of the people," he said. But not everyone is satisfied with the progress the diocese has made. Robert Morton of Newton said the attorney general's audit proves the diocese is "still falling short" in its effort to protect children. The attorney general last month specifically blamed church leadership for noncompliance. "The fundamental problem seems to be a failure to take responsibility at the top of the diocese," Ayotte said at the time. "Of course, it starts at the bishop, but it's just not him alone." Morton once attended Mary Queen of Peace in Newton but now travels to Holy Family in Amesbury. He said Cardinal Bernard Law's removal from the Boston Archdiocese made him feel "safer" and more comfortable attending church in Massachusetts. As a member of the advocacy group New Hampshire Catholics for Moral Leadership, Morton has campaigned to remove Bishop John B. McCormack from the Manchester Diocese. Until that happens, he said, true progress cannot be made. State Rep. David J. Bettencourt, R-Salem, attends St. Joseph in Salem and said the views of New Hampshire Catholics for Moral Leadership represent the minority. Most Catholics he speaks with, he said, believe the church is moving on and will never repeat the mistakes it's made in the past. "I would be shocked if you ever saw a scandal of this magnitude happen again," he said. "If there is a positive to come out of that situation, it's that the church has become much more open and preventative to make sure that nothing of that nature happens again."
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