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	Admitted Child Molester's Supervision Is a Sign-Out Sheet Must Tell Retirement Home When Leaving By George Pawlaczyk Belleville News-Democrat May 23, 2006 http://www.belleville.com/mld/belleville/news/local/crime_courts/14645735.htm BELLEVILLE - The head of a Catholic religious order said Monday a plan to supervise a priest who admits he sexually abused boys consists solely of having him sign out whenever he leaves a Belleville retirement home. Using a sign-out sheet to safeguard children from potential attack by the Rev. Real Bourque, an admitted child molester, drew sharp criticism Monday from the executive director of a national group that monitors how the Catholic Church hierarchy deals with abusive priests. "What do they expect? That if he's going to molest a child he'll write down on the sign-out sheet, 'Going to molest a child.'?" said David Clohessy, executive director of the St. Louis-based Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests. "Belleville citizens should be outraged. This isn't supervision," Clohessy said. "Bourque clearly can do ... whatever he wants." The Rev. Allen Maes, local head of Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate of which Bourque is a member, said the Oblates agreed to supervise Bourque. He said the supervision consists of a sign-out sheet. "He doesn't leave the place (retirement home) without notifying someone," said Maes, who added that Bourque is assigned only to visit and comfort sick and dying Oblate priests in area hospitals and nursing homes. He has the use of a car. Bourque has admitted that in the late '70s and early '80s he sexually abused boys in Massachusetts and Maine while assigned there as a priest. He was never criminally charged but received treatment in 1995 at a Catholic Church-operated treatment center in Maryland. Bourque, who told a News-Democrat reporter in April that he abused boys, later stated he will not comment further. Last week, Clohessy's group presented a letter to Belleville Bishop Edward Braxton asking that Bourque be removed from the diocese or be strictly supervised. Bourque, who was quietly transferred to Belleville in 2002, is not allowed to wear a priestly collar or perform any public ministry. In Belleville, the Oblates run the Shrine of Our Lady of the Snows. The retired priest's residence at the St. Henry Oblate Retirement Home two blocks from Althoff High School, was the subject last week of a meeting at the chancery. The meeting was called by Braxton, who has said publicly he has no direct authority over priests such as Bourque, who is a member of a religious order. Maes and diocesan Vicar General the Rev. Jack McEvilly were at the meeting. Braxton could not be reached for comment. Clohessy warned that a sign-out sheet is virtually no supervision and is much less monitoring than was given to the Rev. Daniel McCormack in Chicago. According to the Chicago Sun-Times, McCormack, 37, was charged in April with molesting three children while he was out on bail from charges that he sexually abused three other children. "Look at the recent Chicago scandal," Clohessy said, "His supervision was more involved than Bourque's, and he (McCormack) molested a child, according to prosecutors, while he was being supervised by another priest." Contact reporter George Pawlaczyk at gpawlaczyk@bnd.com and 239-2625.
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