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	Bishop Defends Actions on Admitted Abuse San Francisco Chronicle [California] June 25, 2006 http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2006/06/25/ national/a112305D66.DTL&hw=catholic&sn=002&sc=924 (06-25) 11:23 PDT Santa Rosa, Calif. (AP) -- A Roman Catholic bishop criticized for not immediately reporting a priest for sexually abusing three boys is defending his handling of the matter and said he was "dismayed" to learn the priest had fled to Mexico. "The district attorney's office confirmed publicly that the Diocese came forward in a 'fairly expedient fashion,'" Bishop Daniel Walsh wrote in a letter published Saturday on the Web site of the Diocese of Santa Rosa. Walsh came under fire last week for waiting three days to notify authorities that the Rev. Xavier Ochoa, a priest in his diocese, had admitted he sexually abused three boys over the past decade. The delay gave Ochoa time to flee to Mexico, according to church and law enforcement officials. "Since Fr. Ochoa had many loyal supporters in Sonoma County, I did not consider him to be a flight risk and am dismayed by his decision to flee," Walsh wrote. Walsh said he has maintained "zero tolerance" for child sexual abuse and has appealed to Ochoa to return to California.
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