• Church faces 104 abuse complaints -- Anglican.
The Daily Telegraph, Australia, http://dailytelegraph.news.com.au/story2.jsp?sectionid=1273&storyid=1287 , September 4, 2004
AUSTRALIA'S second largest Anglican diocese has fielded 104 new allegations of abuse and harassment by members of the church over the past 15 months following the introduction of a new protocol for dealing with complaints.
Delegates to the annual Synod of the Diocese of Melbourne were told today that three matters were now the subject of police investigations.
A third of the complaints related to sexual abuse of children, another third to adult sexual assault, inappropriate adult sexual relationships or sexual harassment, and the final third to bullying and other forms of abuse of power.
Just 21 of the 104 new disclosures of abuse and six active cases continued from previous arrangements have been or are being formally investigated, including the three referred to police.
The remainder were closed without requiring formal investigation.
Nine of the complaints involved schools and respondents have included ordained ministers, lay ministers, employees and volunteers.
A report to delegates said a financial settlement had been made in a very small number of cases, while a number of respondents had resigned as a result of the process.
The complaints have been lodged over a 15-month period following the introduction of a protocol called Power and Trust in the Church in late-2002. ...
• Ex-priest's sex case ends in a mistrial [1970s Ewing] -- RCC. Female.
The Courier-Journal, www.courier-journal.com/ localnews/2004/09/04 ky/B1-priest09040-4957. html , Sep 4, 2004
UNITED STATES: The rape and sodomy trial of former Roman Catholic priest Bruce Ewing ended yesterday after one juror refused to relent on his decision, some of the other jurors said.
Prosecutor Carol Cobb said that 11 jurors told her they were leaning toward convicting Ewing before the hung jury was called about five hours after deliberations began.
But Cobb declined to say whether she would try Ewing again, saying she would have to reassess the case. "I'm very encouraged," Cobb said. "I think we put on a strong case."
Neither Ewing nor his accuser, Janet Goodner, would talk to reporters after Jefferson Circuit Court Judge McKay Chauvin declared the mistrial.
Ewing, who left the priesthood in 1977 and was later an aide to two Louisville government officials, will remain out of jail on bail.
On the first day of the three-day trial, Goodner testified she had a consensual relationship in the mid-1970s — starting when she was 14 — when Ewing was a priest at St. Vincent de Paul Church.
She testified they started having sex when she was 15 and broke up two years later when she learned that Ewing — who was then in his late 20s — was dating an older teen.
During his testimony, Ewing denied any sexual relationship with Goodner. He said she was a girl in a struggling family who needed help, which he gave her.
After deliberating for about four hours, the jury informed the judge it was deadlocked. Chauvin told the jurors to continue deliberating.
But 15 minutes later, one juror sent a note saying he wanted to speak to Chauvin.
A short time later, at 3:20, the judge called the jurors back into the courtroom and read a note in which the jurors wrote that they would not be able to reach a verdict.
Had Ewing been found guilty of third-degree rape and two counts of third-degree sodomy, he could have been sentenced to as many as 15 years in prison.
Earlier in the day, Ewing's attorney, David Lambertus, told the jury in his closing arguments that even though his client was accused of having a relationship with Goodner, only her brother, John Barnes, testified that he saw evidence the two were more than friends.
"Nobody ever sees or hears anything about this," Lambertus said, noting that numerous friends and co-workers from throughout Ewing's life testified that he was a caring and trusted person.
Lambertus said Goodner came forward only when sexual-abuse lawsuits were filed against the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Louisville two years ago.
Goodner filed a civil lawsuit against the archdiocese in 2002 and reached an undisclosed settlement through mediation a year later.
But Cobb told the jury that Goodner's claims against Ewing were highly detailed — she said, for example, that Ewing was uncircumcised and described his former apartment in the rectory.
Cobb said Goodner's claims had nothing to do with money.
"What she wanted was justice and to have this burden lifted off her shoulders after 25 years," Cobb said in her closing. #
• Orange Diocese Settles Molestation Suit; Priest Still in Post [1970s Murray] -- RCC. Boys.
Los Angelese Times, www.latimes.com/ news/local/state/la- me-priest4sep04,1, 1448922.story?coll= la-news-state , By William Lobdell, September 4, 2004
UNITED STATES: The Roman Catholic Diocese of Orange quietly paid $500,000 late last year to settle a molestation lawsuit against a high-ranking priest who, nine months after the payout, remains the official pastor of a Newport Beach parish.
Although Msgr. Daniel Murray of Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church has been on paid leave since last September when the allegations first surfaced, Bishop Tod D. Brown will wait until an internal investigation is complete before deciding whether to remove the cleric from his post, church officials said.
Murray has denied the claims made by a Riverside County man who said he was molested over six years during the 1970s, beginning when he was 8 years old.
The Times does not name victims of alleged sexual abuse without their consent.
Murray, who couldn't be reached for comment, also is accused in a second lawsuit of molesting another boy.
An attorney for the Riverside County man said his client is disappointed that Murray hasn't been forced from the ministry.
"It certainly disappoints him," said lawyer Roland Bainer of Corona, who confirmed the settlement amount. "He was hoping that him coming forward would be a wake-up call."
And victims advocates said they were surprised and outraged to hear about the unannounced settlement and the fact that Murray still officially retains his job.
Murray has served the diocese in a variety of top positions, including as a church legal expert and chief recruiter of new priests. ...
• Judge declares mistrial in case accusing former priest of rape, sodomy [1970s Ewing] -- RCC. Female.
The Enquirer (Cincinnati), http://www.enquirer.com/ editions/2004/09/04/ loc_loc2ychurch.html , By Bruce Schreiner, The Associated Press, Saturday, September 4, 2004
LOUISVILLE - A judge declared a mistrial Friday when a jury was unable to reach a verdict in the case of a former Roman Catholic priest accused of raping and sodomizing a teenage girl decades ago. After deliberating for five hours, jurors informed Jefferson Circuit Court Judge A.C. McKay Chauvin that they were deadlocked in the case of Bruce Ewing, who was charged with rape and sodomy.
Prosecutor Carol Cobb said she was disappointed that the trial ended with a hung jury but added, "It's not over yet." Cobb, a Jefferson County assistant commonwealth's attorney, said she would reassess the case, which could go to trial again. "I think we put on a strong case considering this offense occurred over 25 years ago," she told reporters afterward. Ewing's attorney, David Lambertus, declined comment.
Ewing, who also formerly worked for a city alderman and a Metro Council member after leaving the priesthood, will remain free on bond. If convicted, Ewing could have faced up to 15 years in prison on the one count of third-degree rape and two counts of third-degree sodomy. Ewing testified Thursday that he never had sex with the teenager. His accuser, Janet Goodner, testified a day earlier that the relationship lasted some two years in the mid-1970s and was consensual.
In closing arguments Friday, Cobb described Ewing as a young priest in the 1970s who took advantage of a girl who had a turbulent family life and was vulnerable.
• Abbey clears monk, 75, of molesting boy in 1960s: A lay review committee makes the recommendation, saying there isn't enough evidence against the Rev. Cosmas White [1960s] -- RCC. Benedictine.
The Oregonian, www.oregonlive.com/ news/oregonian/index. ssf?/base/news/10942 99195270760.xml , By ASHBEL S. GREEN, Saturday, September 04, 2004
OREGON, UNITED STATES: The head of Mount Angel Abbey has cleared a Benedictine monk accused of molesting a boy in the 1960s, the first time in Oregon that Catholic officials have lifted restrictions on a clergy member accused of sexual abuse. Abbot Nathan Zodrow last week accepted the recommendation of a lay review committee, which determined that the evidence did not support the accusation against the Rev. Cosmas White. The decision means White can rejoin his fellow monks in public Mass and prayer at the abbey, said Rita Kester, director of communications for Mount Angel. Ever since the 2002 lawsuit against him, White has been allowed only to pray and celebrate Mass privately, although he was permitted to join other monks for nonreligious group activities such as meals, Kester said.
White was pastor at St. Paul Church in Silverton when an anonymous man filed a lawsuit accusing him of molesting him. Kester said White, 75, has retired and did not ask to return to a parish. Parishioners at St. Agatha's Church in Southeast Portland, where White had served as pastor for more than 20 years, learned of the news after Mass last Sunday. "We always knew he wasn't guilty of this," said parishioner Jo Anne Schubbe. "He's been a real beloved pastor in our parish, and everybody feels the same as I do."
The announcement was made a day before the opening of the new St. Agatha's School, for which White had helped raise money to build, Schubbe said. [...]
According to court records, the suit against White was filed in June 2002. The accuser, who filed under the initials R.J.K., said White molested him while he was a student at Mount Angel Seminary Preparatory High School for boys. White was a teacher. The school has since closed.
The lawsuit was settled for a nominal amount of money two months after it was filed, Kester said. ...
• Mistrial In Rape Case Of Former Priest [1970s Ewing] -- RCC. Girl.
WAVE 3 (Louisville, Kentucky), www.wave3.com/ Global/story.asp?S= 2259108&nav= 0RZFQZvu , September 4th, 2004
LOUISVILLE, Ky. -- A judge declared a mistrial Friday when a jury was unable to reach a verdict in the case of a former Roman Catholic priest accused of raping and sodomizing a teenage girl decades ago. After deliberating for five hours, jurors informed Jefferson Circuit Court Judge A.C. McKay Chauvin that they were deadlocked in the case of Bruce Ewing, who was charged with rape and sodomy. Prosecutor Carol Cobb said she was disappointed that the trial ended with a hung jury but added, "It's not over yet." Cobb, a Jefferson County assistant commonwealth's attorney, said she would reassess the case, which could go to trial again. ...
• Judge throws out some clergy abuse cases -- RCC.
The Boston Herald, http://news.bostonherald.com /national/view.bg? articleid=42803 , By Associated Press, Saturday, September 4, 2004
OAKLAND, Calif. - A judge has thrown out several claims of sex abuse involving a Roman Catholic priest in Northern California, striking a potential blow to hundreds of men and women who allege they were molested while diocese officials looked the other way. Judge Ronald Sabraw said plaintiffs' attorneys had not presented any direct evidence the church "knew or had reason to know, or were otherwise on notice, of any unlawful sexual conduct" by the priest, who is now dead. The claims were part of a consolidated lawsuit involving 160 complaints against Northern California clergy.
"The evidence can support many inferences favorable to the plaintiffs, but the court cannot cross the line where inferences turn into speculation, conjecture, imagination or guesswork," the judge wrote Thursday. Lawyers for both sides are at odds on how the ruling will affect the nearly 1,000 people involved in the lawsuits. The ruling only directly applies to the dismissed claims but could set guidelines on how other judges can weigh evidence in these cases. "It's a significant ruling because this judge is telling lawyers representing more than 150 plaintiffs and a dozen defendants ... what he thinks the law is and what the template is going to be," church lawyer Stephen McFeely said Friday. He declined to estimate how many cases could be thrown out under the ruling.
The Northern California lawsuits were brought under a state law passed in 2002 that rolled back the statute of limitations, allowing alleged victims to file claims against the church by Dec. 31, 2003. Similar consolidated lawsuits are pending in Los Angeles and San Diego. # [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 08:05 AM]
////////// End of Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker www.ncrnews.org/abuse , Sat September 04, 2004
Abuse Chronology, visit: http://www.multiline.com.au/~johnm/ethics/ethcont95.htm
• Priest slips through. -- RCC.
The Tablet (Britain), Saturday, 4 September 2004
BRITAIN: In Britain this week the big story for the Church was the revelation that a priest convicted last week for sex abuse of two boys had earlier been allowed to continue in active ministry. The Church's new guidelines were followed, so how did he slip through the net? Is it time to review the Nolan guidelines? [To obtain more, have to subscribe.] [Sep 4, 04]
#### Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker, www.ncrnews.org/abuse, Sun September 05, 2004 edition follows:-
• Diocese settles abuse claim [1970s Murray] -- Still on payroll. RCC
Orange County Register, http://ocregister.com/ ocr/2004/09/05/sections/ local/crime_courts/ article_229107.php , By MARIA SACCHETTI
CALIFORNIA: A Riverside County man who said a priest molested him as a boy has won a $500,000 settlement from the Roman Catholic Diocese of Orange, spokesmen for both sides said Saturday.
The settlement, reached in December, is drawing some criticism because it was unannounced for months and because the priest, Monsignor Daniel Murray, is technically still the pastor of Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church in Newport Beach.
Murray has denied the allegations and has been on paid leave for the past year pending a church investigation, the Rev. Joe Fenton, diocese spokesman, said.
Murray could not be reached for comment Saturday. The settlement had no admission of guilt.
In the lawsuit filed last year, the Riverside County man alleged that Murray sexually abused him in the 1970s, from age 8 to his early teens. [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 11:55 AM]
• Priest accused of child sex abuse [Paterno] -- RCC.
BBC News, http://news.bbc.co.uk /2/hi/europe/3623092.stm ,
AUSTRIA: The Roman Catholic Church in Austria says it is investigating a prominent priest following accusations that he sexually abused children.
A papal emissary in Austria said the inquiry was launched after at least 10 young people alleged they were victims.
The priest accused, August Paterno, denies the charges.
The inquiry comes three weeks after a Catholic seminary near Vienna was closed following a separate scandal involving child pornography.
A Polish student priest was given a six-month suspended jail sentence for downloading hundreds of images from the internet.
• Priest accused of rape, murder of 8-year-old [2004] -- Girl.
IOL, www.iol.co.za /index.php?set_id= 1&click_id=15&art_id= qw10942194 63527B265 , Sapa, September 03 2004 at 04:41PM
SOUTH AFRICA: Police arrested a Vereeniging priest on Friday for his alleged involvement in the rape and murder of an eight-year-old girl last month.
Police spokesperson Captain Maria Mazibuko said the girl's body was found dumped in the backyard of her Evaton home on August 30 after she was found raped and strangled, allegedly by the priest, 36, and two other men who are still at large.
Investigations have revealed that the girl was taken to a nearby school where she was raped and murdered. The body was later dumped in the yard of her home, police said.
The priest will appear in the Sebokeng magistrate's court on charges of murder and abduction on Monday. - Sapa #
• Sleuth covers altar boy's area -- RCC. Altar boy.
The Republican, www.masslive.com/ springfield/republican/i ndex.ssf?/base/news- 1/109438667 2323062.xml ; By BILL ZAJAC, wzajac@repub.com , Sunday, September 05, 2004
SPRINGFIELD - An investigator hired to probe the 1972 unsolved murder of Springfield altar boy Daniel Croteau has started canvassing the neighborhood where the slain boy lived.
"I know there is a hero out there - someone who can connect Danny's whereabouts from here to the Chicopee murder scene," said R.C. Stevens as he stapled posters seeking help in Croteau's Sixteen Acres neighborhood.
Stevens, who has been hired by The Republican to investigate the murder, placed posters last week in a five-block area surrounding Ferncliff Avenue, where Croteau's parents still live.
Stevens has learned from a murder tip hotline he established that Croteau intended to go to a party in his neighborhood the night he disappeared. His murdered body was found the next day, April 15, 1972, in the Chicopee River in Chicopee. ...
No one has ever been charged in the murder. Richard R. Lavigne, a recently defrocked priest and convicted child molester, has been the only publicly identified suspect.
In the mid-1990s, after Hampden County District Attorney William M. Bennett won a long legal battle to obtain a sample of Lavigne's blood, DNA testing did not link Lavigne to the murder scene.
• Church workers screened -- RCC.
Contra Costa Times, www.contracostatimes.com/ mld/cctimes/news/9587613.htm , ASSOCIATED PRESS, Tuesday, Sep 07, 2004
OAKLAND (CA): The Diocese of Oakland has begun requiring all employees and volunteers at the 60 schools it operates in Alameda and Contra Costa counties to be screened against the state's sex offender registry, imposing the same rules that apply to California's public schools.
The screening procedures come two years after the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops adopted a zero-tolerance policy in response to lawsuits over the sexual abuse and exploitation of children and teenagers by priests.
"It's our responsibility to ensure that we create a safe environment for children who are under our care," Sister Barbara Flannery, the chancellor of the Diocese of Oakland, told the San Francisco Chronicle on Friday.
The 530,000-member diocese has begun requiring all employees at schools and nearly 90 parishes to be fingerprinted, thereby allowing the FBI and the state Department of Justice to look for all types of criminal convictions, not just sex crimes.
• Victim complains about his abuser's new home [Roberts] -- RCC. Boys.
News-Leader, http://springfield.news-leader.com/news/today/0905-Victimcomp-171977.html , Associated Press, September 5, 2004
ST. LOUIS (MO): A former Nevada priest who abused teenage boys is being treated at a Missouri center close to the home of one of his victims, prompting that man's call Friday for the one-time clergyman to be relocated.
"Why do I have to pay again and again and again?" the 21-year-old man said, requesting that he not be publicly identified. Mark Roberts "can go somewhere else.
"I've made a home now and I'm starting to get my life back together."
The victim's father called Roberts' Missouri presence "mentally cruel to my son."
Roberts, 53, was removed from his position as pastor at St. Peter the Apostle Catholic Church in Henderson, Nev., in February 2002 and pleaded guilty in January 2003 to lewdness and child abuse involving five teens. He was sentenced four months later to three years of probation. Authorities said Roberts subjected the boys to strange sexual rituals.
• Abuse case puts diocese on deadline [-2002; Guillen] -- RCC.
Arizona Daily Star, www.dailystar.com/dailystar/dailystar/37581.php , By Stephanie Innes, Sep.05.2004
YUMA (AZ) - A gravely ill 44-year-old mother of six here is playing a prominent role in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Tucson's decision over whether to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.
A sexual abuse lawsuit against the diocese filed by Anita Rodriguez, her husband and three of her sons - two of them still under age 18 - is set to go to trial here Sept. 29, imposing a deadline on Tucson Bishop Gerald F. Kicanas as he weighs bankruptcy in the face of a potentially embarrassing and expensive trial. Kicanas has said he will announce a decision on bankruptcy before the Rod- riguez trial begins.
The deadline is also crucial for Rodriguez, who is in need of a liver transplant and fears she will not live to see her sons' civil case to its end.
The Rodriguez case is one of 21 civil actions over clergy abuse that are pending against the diocese, which spreads across nine Arizona counties including Yuma. The lawsuit is one of four that names a Yuma priest who police say was molesting a 13-year-old boy as recently as summer 2002, which was after the diocese reached a highly-publicized $14 million settlement with 10 men who said they were abused by four members of the clergy. The diocese had heard concerns about the Rev. Juan Guillen's conduct with boys a full decade before.
• Church clears monk of abuse allegations -- RCC.
The Seattle Times, http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2002026864_monk05m.html , The Associated Press, Sunday, September 05, 2004
MOUNT ANGEL, Ore. - A 75-year-old Benedictine monk accused of molesting a boy 40 years ago has been cleared and will be allowed to rejoin his fellow monks during prayer.
It marks the first time in Oregon that Roman Catholic officials have lifted restrictions on a member of the clergy accused of sexual abuse.
Nathan Zodrow, abbot of Mount Angel Abbey, accepted the recommendation of a lay review committee last week, which determined that the evidence did not support the accusation against the Rev. Cosmas White.
Since 2002, when a lawsuit was filed against him, White has not been allowed to pray or attend Mass along with his fellow monks, although he was permitted to join them for nonreligious group activities such as meals, said Rita Kester, director of communications for Mount Angel Abbey.
• Pastor keeps job after settling claim [1970s Murray] -- RCC.
Monterey Herald, www.montereyherald.com/mld/montereyherald/news/9588059.htm , Sun, Sep. 05, 2004
NEWPORT BEACH (AP) (CA) - A high-ranking priest remains the official pastor of a Newport Beach parish nine months after the Roman Catholic Diocese of Orange quietly paid $500,000 to settle a molestation lawsuit against him.
Monsignor Daniel Murray of Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church has been on paid leave since last September, when the lawsuit was filed against him. Bishop Tod D. Brown will wait for the results of an internal investigation before deciding whether to remove the cleric from his post.
Murray denies a Riverside County man's allegations that Murray molested him over six years during the 1970s, beginning when he was 8 years old. Murray also is accused in a second lawsuit of molesting another boy.
An attorney for the Riverside County man said his client believes Murray should be removed from his position with the church.
"It certainly disappoints him," said attorney Roland Bainer of Corona, who first confirmed the amount of the settlement to the Los Angeles Times. [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 08:18 AM]
////////// End of Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker www.ncrnews.org/abuse , Sun September 05, 2004
Abuse Chronology, visit: http://www.multiline.com.au/~johnm/ethics/ethcont95.htm
• Child Abuse Cover-Up Costs Mormon Church $3 Million. [Curtis] -- Mormons. 21 boys.
PRNewswire, www.prnewswire.com/ cgi-bin/stories. pl?ACCT=104 &STORY=/www/story /09-05-2001/0001 566613&EDATE= , by David Slader of the Law Firm of David Slader, Sept. 5, 2004
Church Continues to Deny Responsibility Despite Ten Prior Warnings to Church Officials and 1983 Excommunication of Priest for Molesting Boys
At Least 20 Other Victims Have Been Identified
PORTLAND, Ore.: The Mormon Church covered up its knowledge of a High Priest's sexual molestation of young boys for more than a decade according to a Portland, Oregon lawsuit that the church paid $3,000,000.00 to settle. The charges were brought by one of the priest's victims, Jeremiah Scott. Today, Scott's mother made a statement describing the Mormon Church as a, "sanctuary for pedophiles. The church is so concerned about its public image," Sandra Scott charged, "that it hid the truth from me that it had recycled a known pedophile into a position of authority in the church where he had unlimited access to young children."
Scott's legal team hailed the settlement as, "the first big step for one victim in the long struggle to expose the Mormon Church's epidemic pattern of providing a safe and secret haven for child molesters." Scott is one of 21 victims of High Priest Franklin Curtis who abused boys in Portland, Oregon, Grand Rapids, Michigan, Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, and Sheridan, Wyoming. Curtis, who was convicted of molesting Scott, has since died.
The church claimed throughout the litigation that it had a constitutional right to "wipe the slate clean" of any member who had "repented" for his abuse of children and had been forgiven by the church. "It is a policy that puts out the welcome mat for pedophiles like Franklin Curtis," Mrs. Scott commented.
In a statement attacking the pretrial rulings of Multnomah County Circuit Judge Ellen Rosenblum, the church stated that it paid Scott $3,000,000.00 only because it would have cost "significantly more in legal fees and other costs" to continue with the litigation. "Nothing could be further from the truth," responded one of Scott's attorneys, Timothy Kosnoff of Bellevue, Washington. "The Mormon Church settled this case because they knew any jury would be outraged by the proof that the church had known for years that Franklin Curtis was a serial pedophile. The church not only venerated Curtis as a High Priest, but it made him a scout leader and Sunday School teacher -- and then hid the fact that he was a molester from the whole congregation."
The lawsuit alleged that when Mrs. Scott asked her Bishop if it was okay for Curtis to live in her home, he gave her no warning. "It would only have taken one word, but he said nothing." Kosnoff added, "The church had seen Curtis ruin the lives of child after child, but protecting their image is more important than protecting their children." Sandra Scott's statement concluded that, "The Mormon Church can forgive whomever it chooses, but it is a sin and a crime to allow known child molesters to have unsupervised access to children."
Scott's lawyers pointed out that the church, also known as the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, had been warned at least ten times that Curtis was using his position as a High Priest, boy scout leader and Sunday school teacher to seduce and molest young boys. Twice, the Mormon Church held a formal court to discipline Curtis for molesting young boys, the lawyers disclosed, but, "within a year they welcomed him back as a priest and agreed to cover up his crimes."
Mrs. Scott blamed the cover up for Scott's abuse. "Curtis would never have been allowed near my son if the church had told me the truth."
Jeff Anderson of St. Paul, Minnesota, who is nationally recognized for his work representing victims of abuse by clergy and who joined Scott's legal team this year to prepare for the anticipated trial, described the Mormon Church's conduct as among the worst of any religious organization in the county: "Most churches have finally caught on that they have a duty to protect their children from pedophiles in clerical garb, but this church still destroys records and still denies that it has any responsibility to tell its members the truth."
Scott's Portland attorney, David Slader, who also has represented over forty victims of sexual abuse by Roman Catholic Priest Maurice Grammond, described the Mormon Church as, "the most meticulous keeper of records in the history of religion. It knows where its members were born, when they were baptized and married, when and where they have moved, how much they contribute to the church each year. Yet they hide the fact that they are sheltering a High Priest who will molest any young boy he can gain access to. It was within their power to save this child from the horrors of months of sexual abuse. We now know of twenty other victims of the church's cover-up. Many more may still be living in the silence that shame imposes. It has to stop."
Persons abused by priests of the Mormon Church or clergy of any denomination can call: National Hot Line for Legal Rights and Options TOLL FREE: 888-567-5557 Or, SNAP (Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests) at 314-645-5915. Abuse survivors in Oregon can call Oregon Abuse Survivors & Advocates (OASA). OASA is a statewide organization that provides advocacy and lawyer referrals for abuse survivors. OASA offers two free handbooks ("You Are Not Alone" and "Seeking Justice") to abuse survivors. OASA can be reached at 503-222-3133. # [Sept. 5, 2004]
Abuse Chronology, visit: http://www.multiline.com.au/~johnm/ethics/ethcont95.htm
#### Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker, www.ncrnews.org/abuse, Mon September 06, 2004 edition follows:-
• 'From Hurt To Healing' -- Book. RCC. Girl.
New Orleans Times-Picayune, www.nola.com/ search/index.ssf?/ base/news-0/109427 5688100820.xml?nola , By Bruce Nolan, Saturday, September 04, 2004
LOUISIANA: As with many other victims of sexual abuse, Mona Villarrubia's psychic damage lay buried and ticking away for years, long after the acts stopped during her childhood in England.
It emerged with a fury in the late 1980s when Villarrubia, a young mother and a Catholic high school religion teacher, found herself raging inexplicably at her two bewildered sons, then careening into black depression she was powerless to check.
Years of grueling therapy followed. A serious flirtation with suicide. Two hospitalizations for reasons left unclear to unsuspecting co-workers, first at Mount Carmel and then St. Mary's Dominican high schools.
But in a major coming-out that she hopes will help both the Catholic Church and other victims, Villarrubia tells much of the story in a new book, "From Hurt to Healing."
It is a memoir that recounts her sexual abuse at the hands of two trusted priests and the ways it distorted all her roles as an adult: as a mother, friend, sister, wife and lover.
"Hurt" relies heavily on years of journals Villarrubia kept during therapy, supplemented by narratives, short poems and stark lists of injuries she came to understand flowed from her abuse. [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 09:35 AM]
• Priest convicted of sexual abuse moved to prison near victim [Roberts] -- RCC. Boys.
KMOV, www.kmov.com/ topstories/stories/090504 ccjrkmovsnap.ea642e5c. html , 05:40 PM CDT on Sunday, September 5, 2004
ST. LOUIS (MO): Members of the Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests (SNAP) handed out leaflets Sunday to draw attention to the case of former Nevada priest Mark Roberts.
Roberts pleaded guilty to abusing at least five boys in Nevada and was sentenced to three years probation. Last week, he was taken off probation and moved to a Jefferson County, Mo. facility - a few miles from where one of his victims now lives.
SNAP officials and the victim's father passed out fliers describing what happened to the victim and how the church and courts have dealt with Roberts in front of the cathedral on Lindell.
The victim's father is concerned for his son's healing and the safety of the children in the community. He called on Archbishop Raymond Burk, Father Bertin Miller and Gov. Holden to remove Roberts from the state. #
• Anglican Church in damage control again -- 70 complainants.
ABC, www.abc.net.au/ am/content/2004/s 1192897.htm , AM programme, Reporter: Nick McKenzie, 08:20:00, Monday, 6 September , 2004
AUSTRALIA: TONY EASTLEY: The Anglican Church is again in damage control, after receiving around seventy complaints of sexual assault, bullying and harassment over the last fifteen months
Details of the allegations, including some which occurred many years ago, are contained in a report to the Synod of the Melbourne dioceses.
While the church says it's disappointed by the number of incidents reported, it says its new system of dealing with complaints is encouraging many people to come forward.
Nick McKenzie reports.
NICK MCKENZIE: The report to the synod of the diocese of Melbourne details 104 allegations, including around 70 reported over the last fifteen months.
The complaints involve 75 of the churches' Melbourne members, including ordained and lay ministers, employees and volunteers.
According to the report, a third of the complaints relate to the sexual abuse of children- some involving abuse at schools. Another third relate to inappropriate adult sexual relationships or sexual harassment, and the remaining third involve complaints about bullying and the abuse of power.
Anglican Church spokesman John McKenzie says a new system set up to deal with the complaints has contributed to a rise in the number of reported incidents.
JOHN MCKENZIE: I'm disappointed that these sort of complaints exist. I'm not disturbed that they come in because the objective of the protocol system is to have a telephone number and a process for people who have been upset in the past, to come forward. Some people have been sitting on complaints for 40 years, and some might be as recent as a year or so ago. But this process allows people to come forward – It's oriented towards victims and not to insurance and not to the church and not legal and so on.
NICK MCKENZIE: Of the 104 reported incidents, three have been referred to police, 18 have been or are being formally investigated by the church, and a small number have involved compensation.
The Anglican Church is still recovering from series of scandals.
They including the resignation of former Governor General Peter Hollingworth over allegations he failed to properly handle claims of sexual abuse while archbishop of Brisbane, as well as the resignation of Adelaide archbishop Ian George in June, after claims that he too poorly handled complaints against clergy members.
John McKenzie say while he's concerned abuse may still be taking place, the church is learning from its mistakes:
JOHN MCKENZIE: The process is actually consistent with what the church is trying to do nationally and it separates the hierarchy of the church – that's the clergy – away from the process. So there's no opportunity for cover up by clergy. It's run independently of the church, and encourages people to come forward to talk to an expert. Certainly they'd be offered counselling and that's one of the big things that happens here to investigate cases where there might be some dispute. And at the end, to have a recovery program for the victim and some process for an offending member of the church.
TONY EASTLEY: General Manager of the Dioceses Of Melbourne, John McKenzie ending that report by Nick McKenzie. #
• Wicked secret that tore a family apart [1970s Ridsdale] -- RCC. Boys.
The Age, www.theage.com.au/ articles/2004/09/05/ 1094322642859.html , by Ian Munro, September 6, 2004
AUSTRALIA: A family traumatised after a pedophile priest abused their sons, says the Catholic Church is victimising them again 25 years later. Ian Munro reports.
For much of their married life, "Ron" and "Shirley", a western Victorian couple, wondered what it was that made their once-happy family dysfunctional.
Routine family get-togethers invariably ended in acrimony, with their two sons drinking excessively and feuding violently.
But the couple, who live on a property west of Edenhope, did not really begin to understand what lay behind the turmoil until 1994 - when pedophile priest Gerald Ridsdale was jailed.
During one row, Ridsdale's name came up. He was parish priest at Edenhope where both boys went to the Catholic primary school.
After much pressure, at Easter two years ago, their elder son, 35, revealed that he had been raped by Ridsdale on the day of his first communion. He was repeatedly assaulted during his fifth and sixth years at school, after which his education lapsed into under-achievement and illiteracy.
But, Ron said, what has compounded the family's misery is the failure of the Catholic Church's Towards Healing program to show compassion to their children.
"The way I see it, it's all about getting you into a little office, paying a few thousand dollars, getting you five or six counselling sessions and then go and hang yourself from the nearest tree," said Ron. "It's there to protect the church."
Shirley said that her initial contact with the church was reassuring, but it became clinical once the compensation was raised. When they arrived for the first mediation session, accompanied by a lawyer, church representatives initially refused to see them.
"I was brought up in a loving Catholic home. We were always led to believe the Catholic Church was kind, compassionate and understanding," she said.
"Once we started to go through Towards Healing everything was fine until you started to speak about the pain and suffering and the effect the abuse had on the victims and the family. When you mentioned that word compensation, it changed completely."
Shirley said the church negotiators did not ask any questions at a meeting to discuss compensation. "They went to a room and we went to a room and the mediator went back and forth between us," Shirley said.
A mediator with victim support group Broken Rites said yesterday that compensation paid under Towards Healing to victims of sexual abuse reflected negotiating ability rather than the extent of abuse.
An individual acting alone was likely to receive a fraction of the compensation received by victims who were accompanied by a lawyer or someone else to represent them, said Wayne Chamley who has acted for several dozen abuse victims.
"(The church) sees it as a jumping off point: go to mediation, put money on the table and walk away," he said.
Mr Chamley said many child sex abuse victims were marginalised yet Towards Healing did not seek to stabilise their lives or accept any responsibility.
However, Sister Angela Ryan, of the church's National Committee for Professional Standards, said the financial support offered to victims was not compensation, but was intended as reparation to help them resume their lives.
"It's the intention to be meeting what we can of the needs of those people. For some it's counselling. For some, it's education . . . (or) assistance with the education of their children," Sister Ryan said.
"For a lot of people that's where the healing is going to take place." Sister Ryan said the sum of reparation was related to the damage done to people and to their needs at their stage of life.
"What we say to people is we can't go back and change the past but, given where you are, what are some things that will help bring healing?" she said.
Ron now believes the fighting between his sons is the result of shared blame for not protecting one another from Ridsdale.
Their eldest, who according to a psychiatrist suffered extreme humiliation and degradation, has refused a compensation offer from Towards Healing of $110,000.
"The sad part of it is they have never been after money," Shirley said.
"It was not until the church started to get defensive and make it hard for victims that made him feel they have no compassion for victims." # [Emphasis added]
• Abuse suit against priest is thrown out [1960s-70s Niebrugge] -- RCC. Female.
St. Louis Post-Dispatch, www.stltoday.com/ stltoday/news/stories. nsf/News/Metro+East/ EDF30CE8A32628C 886256F07001C9F3F? OpenDocument&Headline= Abuse+suit+against+ priest+is+thrown+out ; By Paul Hampel, Sep/05/2004
MISSOURI: A Madison County judge has dismissed a woman's sexual abuse suit against a Catholic priest she alleges abused her in the 1960s and 1970s.
Circuit Judge Phillip J. Kardis ruled in June that the plaintiff, Virginia Galloway, now 46 and living in Georgia, waited too long to file her suit against the Rev. Richard Niebrugge, who served at churches in Madison County at the time of the alleged incidents.
Galloway filed the suit in January. She claimed Niebrugge began abusing her when she was 10 and continued to do so into her adulthood.
Galloway also sued Monsignor Theodore Baumann and the Rev. Herman Niebrugge, Richard Niebrugge's brother, claiming they covered up the abuse.
• Blessings for Public Safety Workers -- but abuse victims see too close a connection. RCC.
Los Angeles Times, www.latimes.com/ news/local/la-me- mahony6sep06,1, 5851133.story? coll=la-headlines- california , By Erika Hayasaki, Sep 6, 2004
LOS ANGELES (CA) : Some prayed for strength to help the sick, the homeless or the desperate. Others asked for guidance to deal with criminals. As the sound of bagpipes echoed in the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels, Cardinal Roger M. Mahony blessed hundreds of public safety workers gathered Sunday for an annual Mass honoring those who work for the community.
"Day after day and night after night, you place yourself in harm's way in order to serve us and protect us," Mahony said. He prayed for God to "send down your blessing on all these badges and the people who wear them."
As Mahony walked between the pews and blessed every officer's badge with a splash of water, a dozen protesters with the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests gathered quietly outside the Roman Catholic cathedral, calling for the church to cancel the ceremony.
"We want to help victims who have been afraid to come forward because church officials seem to be well-connected with police, law enforcement and attorneys," said Mary Grant, southwestern director of the organization. Grant said such ceremonies blurred the lines between the church and government.
Church spokesman Tod Tamberg said church officials believed that holding the Mass was not at odds with helping abuse victims feel comfortable reporting crimes. Tamberg said the point of the Mass was to nourish "the faith of the people who risk their lives to protect the community. A good many of these people choose their profession out of their desire to help others, which springs from a religious conviction." [Emphasis added] [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 03:38 AM]
////////// End of Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker www.ncrnews.org/abuse , Mon September 06, 2004
Abuse Chronology, visit: http://www.multiline.com.au/~johnm/ethics/ethcont95.htm
#### Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker, www.ncrnews.org/abuse, Tue September 07, 2004 edition follows:-
• Two more plaintiffs join suit against orphanage [Lammers, Sisters of Charity of Nazareth] -- RCC.
WKRN, www.wkrn.com/Global/story.asp?S=2268808
LOUISVILLE, Ky. A lawsuit that alleges sexual abuse by a priest at a now-closed orphanage in Jefferson County added two plaintiffs today.
The alleged abuse occurred in the 1950s and 1960s at Saint Thomas-Saint Vincent Orphanage in Anchorage, a suburb of Louisville.
The defendant is the Sisters of Charity of Nazareth, an order based in Nelson County. The initial suit was filed in July, but other plaintiffs have been added by the week.
The two new plaintiffs are 50-year-old Colleen Durbin and 44-year-old Deborah Lee Greenwell. They each accused the Reverend Herman J. Lammers of sexual abuse. Durbin says the abuse by Lammers began when she was 6 years old. [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 06:15 PM]
• Diocese to start support group for abuse victims -- RCC.
Newsday, www.newsday.com/ news/local/longisland/ ny-liabus0809, 0,7551773.story?coll= ny-liminute-headlines , BY RITA CIOLLI, September 7, 2004
LONG ISLAND (NY): The Diocese of Rockville Centre will start a support group for victims of clerical sexual abuse later this month, more than two years after the Catholic Church on Long Island was shaken by the stories of predatory priests and just two months after a survivors' organization began a local outreach program.
"We're responding to a need voiced by some survivors of abuse who said they would find a support group helpful in bringing about healing," Eileen Puglisi, director of the Office for the Protection of Children and Young People, said in a written statement last week. The diocesan sponsored sessions begin Sept. 20 and Puglisi said those interested in attending should contact her.
The announcement of the diocese support group comes as officials are reviewing the treatment files of victims and are starting to cut off some financial payments for psychological counseling.
Some advocates have been critical of Bishop William Murphy's motivation to start the group and of the diocese's decision to discontinue therapy payments.
David Cerulli, head of the New York chapter of the Survivors Network of Those Abused By Priests [SNAP], said, "It can't be coincidental that we just started running support groups on Long Island and suddenly two and half years after the abuse was revealed the diocese is now offering support groups. Whenever things like this happen, it just makes me and many others feel that Bishop Murphy just does things from a public relations standpoint." [Emphasis added]
• Diocese completes second audit -- RCC.
Iobserve, www.iobserve.org/rn0820b.html , By Father Bill Pomerleau, Observer staff
SPRINGFIELD (MA) -- The Diocese of Springfield was audited last week to measure its compliance with the sex abuse prevention policies established by the U.S. Catholic Church in 2002.
And while the recently completed independent examination of recent handling of the alleged abuse of minors basically followed the format of a similar audit last year, there were a few changes.
"I think you could say this year's approach had a bit more objectivity, rather than subjectivity," said Laura Failla Reilly, the diocese's victims advocate.
A new question this year is the number of allegations received by dioceses and Eastern-rite eparchies since their 2003 audit, Sheila Horan, deputy director of the U.S. bishops' Office of Child and Youth Protection, told Catholic News Service.
• Diocese mails settlement checks, invites victims to East Longmeadow Mass -- RCC.
Iobserve, www.iobserve.org/ rn0903a.html , By Father Bill Pomerleau, The Catholic Observer
SPRINGFIELD, Mass. -- The mailing of settlement checks to 46 individuals claiming sexual abuse by priests, an invitation to a Mass for victims, and a new grant to hire a victim resource coordinator were among the developments in recent days as the Diocese of Springfield continued to deal with the aftermath of the sexual misconduct scandal.
On Aug. 31, the diocese delivered settlement checks to 46 individuals who say that they were the victims of sexual misconduct by 18 diocesan and religious priests during the past several decades.
Under an agreement signed reached with their attorney, John Stobierski of Greenfield, July 22, the diocese recently allocated $7 million, plus one half of the cost of the services of Commonwealth Mediation Services, a firm that allocated settlement amount among the complainants.
The diocese has also turned over the deeds to two properties in Springfield and Wilbraham to a real estate trust headed by Stobierski, according to Mark E. Dupont, diocesan spokesman.
When sold, the proceeds from the properties will be divided among the complainants in the same proportions as the $7 million.
• No suspicions, says Fuentes about priest's past [1981 Henson] -- RCC.
Orange County Register, http://ocregister.com/ ocr/2004/09/07/sections/ local/local_columns/ article_230565.php , By FRANK MICKADEIT, fmickadeit@ocregister.com , Register columnist, Sep 7, 2004
CALIFORNIA: As the Diocese of Orange's communications chief from 1976-89, former GOP chair Tom Fuentes was heavily involved in the Catholic Church.
I asked Fuentes last week about Father Jerome Henson, who went to work for Fuentes in the diocese in 1983 even though a couple of years earlier, according to police reports cited by the OC Weekly, he had been caught in a compromising position with a 13-year-old boy.
Henson worked in video production, which, Fuentes confirmed, put him into contact with students at Mater Dei High School.
(Henson was put on leave by the diocese in 2002, when the allegations came to light.)
Did Fuentes know about the allegations when Henson went to work for him? I asked.
"What? Do you think I was sitting next to the bishop when he interviewed him?" Fuentes said. "That the bishop would have told me? No."
• Chairman of abuse inquiry warns against disruptions -- RCC.
One in Four group, http://oneinfour.org/news/news2004/chairman , by Patsy McGarry, Religious Affairs Correspondent - Irish Times, Sep 07, 2004
IRELAND: A public hearing of the investigation committee of the Commission to Inquire into Child Abuse had to be adjourned twice yesterday when proceedings were repeatedly interrupted by former residents of St Joseph's industrial school at Ferryhouse near Clonmel, Co Tipperary.
The committee and commission chairman, Mr Justice Ryan, said that should disruptions continue, all such hearings would in future be in private.
The interruptions by Mr Michael O'Brien, a former Fianna Fáil councillor and mayor of Clonmel, who had been in St Joseph's in the 1940s, and Mr Robert Dempsey, a resident there in the 1970s, occurred as Father Joe O'Reilly, provincial of the Rosminian Institute of Charity in Ireland congregation, was giving evidence. The congregation had responsibility for St Joseph's until 2002.
• Lawsuits increasing, but fewer going to trial -- Cash to avoid publicity. RCC. Male.
Toledo Blade, www.toledoblade.com/ apps/pbcs.dll/article? AID=/20040907/ NEWS02/409070342/- 1/NEWS , By MARK REITER, Tuesday, September 7, 2004
TOLEDO (OH): William Claar wanted others to know about the sexual abuse that a Roman Catholic priest allegedly inflicted upon him as a teenager while growing up in Fremont.
In filing a civil lawsuit against the Toledo Catholic Diocese and the priest in 2002, Mr. Claar, 45, envisioned taking the witness stand and telling a jury he was molested repeatedly in the rectory of his parish.
Mr. Claar waited for his day in court, but it never came. He and others who filed suit in Lucas County Common Pleas Court alleging sexual abuse by clergy reached out-of-court settlements over the last several months with the diocese.
The settlements, which were all reached under the direction of a mediator, were part of an emerging trend: Although more people are filing lawsuits in local courts, fewer and fewer of the cases are being decided by juries.
The number of civil complaints filed in Lucas County Common Pleas Court has steadily increased since 1997. Last year, 5,763 new cases were filed, a 10 percent increase over 1997. But over the same period, the number of jury trials fell from 81 to 49, a drop of nearly 40 percent.
• Pray For Abuse Victim, The Church - And Bornbach [1971] -- RCC. 31 claims, 10 victims. Girl.
Duluth News Tribune, www.duluthsuperior.com/ mld/duluthsuperior/ 9594957.htm ,
WISCONSIN: After more than 63 years in the priesthood, the reputation of the Rev. Raymond Bornbach, 89, of Marshfield lies in a shambles.
Recently it was revealed that the Diocese of La Crosse had "sufficiently confirmed" accusations that Bornbach molested a 9-year-old girl in 1971.
The Plover woman, now 42, who hadn't told her parents about the abuse until she was an adult, had sought counseling in 1997. Upon the advice of her therapist, she contacted the diocese in January 2003. On Aug. 16, the diocese sent a letter with its determination.
The diocese has reported that 58 accusations of child molestation have been lodged against 28 priests between 1950 and 2002, and that 31 claims involving 10 priests had been confirmed.
• Problem priests: Settling and spinning
Post-Dispatch, www.stltoday.com/ stltoday/news/ stories.nsf/ editorialcommentary/ story/7D0E515CD2E7A 86286256F05003A2D3E? OpenDocument&Headline= PROBLEM+PRIESTS%3A+ Settling+and+spinning ; Sep/06/2004
ST. LOUIS (MO): Lawyers for the Archdiocese of St. Louis and 18 people claiming to have been victims of sexual abuse by five priests last week announced that financial agreements had been reached that would result in the 18 lawsuits being dropped.
Usually, such agreements are called "settlements," but archdiocesan lawyer Edward Goldenhersh objected to that terminology as "wordsmithing." He told Post-Dispatch reporter Tim Townsend, "They brought claims and I can beat them in court, and they know that."
Thus, even when it finally does the right thing, the archdiocese has to pour salt on the wound.
Children often repress incidents of childhood abuse and only seek justice when they realize how dramatically the abuse has altered their lives. By then, statutes of limitations usually have expired.
The archdiocese, which cites higher moral laws or canon (church) law when civil law is against it - for example, the question of who owns St. Stanislaus Kostka Church's $9 million in assets - is content with civil law in this case.
• Ex-priest to face child sex charges in November [1960s] -- Girl, Boy.
ABC, www.abc.net.au/ news/newsitems/ 200409/s1193612.htm
AUSTRALIA: Charges against a former Mackay priest accused of indecently dealing with children in the 1960s will be heard in Bundaberg Magistrates Court in November.
The Bundaberg resident is charged with assaulting a girl aged under 12 and a boy under the age of 14 while he was a priest in north Queensland.
Police prosecutor Warren Murdoch indicated eight witnesses will give evidence at a committal hearing scheduled for November 10.
• Activist hits churches' slow response to abuse [Hawkins] -- Anglican.
The Mercury, www.themercury.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,5936,10690107%255E3462,00.html , By CLAIRE KONKES, Sep 07, 2004
HOBART, Tasmania, AUSTRALIA: Churches are stalling moves to end child abuse, says victim and campaigner Steve Fisher.
Speaking in Hobart on the first day of Child Protection Week Mr Fisher, who outed jailed priest Garth Hawkins last year, said churches and governments were too slow to act to protect children.
"Thank God for the media, the word is getting out," said Mr Fisher who is the spokesman for Survivors of Child Abuse and Rape.
"Unless churches or government are forced to act they do nothing."
Claims by Anglican Vicar-General Chris Jones, reported in The Australian newspaper yesterday, that the Tasmanian diocese had been releasing statistics on complaints and listing the names of defrocked ministers were surprising, Mr Fisher said. He said he had a hard time getting information on his own case.
• NSW bishop announces Vincentian priest suspension [1970s Hartcher] -- RCC. Acquitted by court. Vincentian.
Catholic News, www.cathnews.com/news/409/36.php
NEW SOUTH WALES, AUSTRALIA: Bishop Michael Malone of Maitland-Newcastle has suspended a Vincentian engaged in parish work in his diocese following a complaint from a member of the public that he is unfit for ministry with children.
Fr Guy Hartcher, who has served as Administrator of Gresford and Dungog Parishes, was withdrawn from active ministry as of Sunday. The circumstances relate to further information pertaining to charges against him in the 1990s.
In 1993 Fr Hartcher was accused of sexual abuse against two students at a secondary school outside the diocese where he was teaching between 1971 and 1974. Both these allegations were investigated by the Police. Fr Hartcher maintained his innocence throughout the investigations. He was tried and acquitted by the Court in 1997.
Bishop Malone said a person scanning the Internet found reference to these historic matters and concluded that Fr Hartcher was unfit for ministry with children. This person made a formal complaint to Police. Bishop Malone said that until these matters are independently investigated, Fr Hartcher will be withdrawn from active ministry. [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 03:41 AM]
• The Redeemer: I. Cannes: The Slow Drive to Triumph
The New York Times Magazine, www.nytimes.com/2004/09/05/magazine/05ALMODOVAR.html , By LYNN HIRSCHBERG, Published September 5, 2004
Stuck in traffic in a black sedan on his way to the Palais des Festivals for the Cannes International Film Festival premiere of his new movie, 'Bad Education,' Pedro Almodóvar seemed, as he often does, both anxious and curious. He fidgeted, he fussed.
When he rolled down the window, the paparazzi, who were walking three-deep alongside the slow-moving car, screamed at him: 'Pedro! Pedro!' and cut off his view of the street, where his image was plastered on walls and where fans waited to mob him.
He strained to see past all this. He was intrigued by what one woman in the crowd was wearing, by the relationship -- which was what, exactly? -- between two men eating ice cream. He was looking for details, a hint of narrative, the movie.
They recognized him instantly, the photographers and fans, through the rolled-down window: the trademark salt-and-pepper pouf of his hair rose like a corona surrounding his head.
He was dressed tonight in a custom-designed Christian Dior tuxedo and was wearing dark sunglasses and looked, as he idled in traffic, like a teenager who had dressed up for a party he couldn't wait to get to, or maybe not.
He is in his 50's now but has the bouncy effervescence of a child. It's one of the character traits, but only one, that has played a part in making him arguably the most original and daring filmmaker working today. ...
At the dark heart of "Bad Education" is the sexual molestation of a young boy by a priest. The incident, which is depicted with grace and sadness, triggers a series of events that unfold over decades. The abused boy grows up to be a drug-addicted, would-be (but ill-fated) transsexual writer.
His younger brother, an actor, hopes to sell a film director on the idea of making a movie about his brother's relationship with the pedophile priest.
As the plot unfolds, fact intersects with fiction, identities shift and emotional bargains are negotiated at great psychological cost. Bernal plays no fewer than three interlocking characters. Like Almodóvar's previous two films, "All About My Mother" (which won the Best Foreign Film Oscar in 2000) and "Talk to Her" (which won an Academy Award for best screenplay in 2003), "Bad Education" is filled with beautiful and startling imagery: a child's face is split by a drop of blood; a young boy sings a version of "Moon River" (Holly Golightly's song in "Breakfast at Tiffany's") in a moment of reverie.
But the movie, which will be shown as the New York Film Festival's centerpiece entry on Oct. 9 and 10 and is scheduled to open theatrically in New York and Los Angeles in November, is ultimately more concerned with redemption than with beauty -- which may be its most transgressive aspect.
////////// End of Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker www.ncrnews.org/abuse , Tue September 07, 2004
Abuse Chronology, visit: http://www.multiline.com.au/~johnm/ethics/ethcont95.htm
or click Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker www.ncrnews.org/abuse for current on-line
The Boston Globe Spotlight http://www.boston.com/globe/spotlight/abuse
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References at: www.multiline.com.au/~johnm/ethicscontents.htm
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Books: www.multiline.com.au/~johnm/carnalbooks.htm
Buy Fidelity magazine www.j23.com.au Australia
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• Pastor files $2.5 million claims against state [? 2004 Evans] -- The Upper Room Fellowship.
Seattle Post-Intelligencer, http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/ local/188810_evans01.html , By JOHN IWASAKI TACOMA (WA): A Tacoma pastor under fire for allegedly helping church members in her job as a public administrator filed two claims against the state yesterday, asserting that officials have conducted an improper investigation. Linda Evans, regional administrator for the state Department of Social and Health Services in Tacoma, is seeking $2 million in damages for herself and $500,000 for her church. Evans contends that a high-ranking DSHS administrator improperly participated in her investigation, that investigators threatened her employees and church members and that the agency failed to submit a resolution plan within the specified period. She also said that state Auditor Brian Sonntag implied that she was guilty in public comments after issuing his July 12 report, which was triggered by a whistle-blower complaint. Sonntag concluded that there was reasonable cause to believe that Evans used her position to help church members gain state jobs, sell videotapes of church services and solicit church donations, among other allegations. Evans, who supervises 500 employees, says the allegations are inaccurate or overblown. She has been on paid leave from her $75,060-a-year job since Feb. 9. [...] "I want to go back to work," Evans said yesterday. "It hasn't happened. I'm in the netherworld." [...] In seeking damages, Evans said DSHS had discriminated against her because of her race, wrongfully removed her from her job based in part on her religious expression, invaded her privacy and conducted a negligent investigation. ... • Reverend bites police officer, sentenced to two years in jail [2003 Lucas] -- Baptist. Houston Community Newspapers, www.zwire.com/ site/news.cfm?newsid= 12827819&BRD= 1574&PAG=461 &dept_id= 532245&rfi=6 , By JAMIE MOCK, Sep/01/2004 TEXAS: A 52-year-old Reverend sentenced to two years in the penitentiary after biting a police officer now has a second chance to receive probation. Acting as his own attorney, Curtis Lucas rendered himself ineligible for probation during his trial by failing to file the proper documents and not offering proof to the court of his eligibility. District Judge Thomas Culver III, who sentenced Lucas last week, has filed a motion for Lucas to appear in court again 40 days after his original sentencing. Culver will review the case and Lucas's behavior while incarcerated to decide if Lucas is eligible for what is known as "shock probation". "It is somewhat like Charles Dickens' 'A Christmas Carol'," says Fort Bend County District Attorney John Healey. "The defendant is shown what his future can be and given an opportunity to think about it and appreciate it and then is brought back without having to live that particular future and given an opportunity to avoid the imposing of the penitentiary sentence, somewhat like the ghost of Christmas future and its revelations to Ebenezer Scrooge." [Posted by Kathy Shaw, Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker at 07:01 PM] • Catholic diocese hit with lawsuit -- Money. RCC.
Republican www.masslive.com/ springfield/republican/ index.ssf?/base/news- 8/109411135494950.xml , By MARLA A. GOLDBERG, mgoldberg@repub.com , Thursday, September 02, 2004 SPRINGFIELD (MA) - A former secretary of the All Saints Parish in Agawam, Ann Jackobek, is suing the Roman Catholic Diocese of Springfield for wrongful termination and defamation, maintaining that she was fired after accusing the Rev. Steven Amo of misappropriating parish funds. A spokesman for the diocese, Mark E. Dupont, said a thorough review of parish finances was conducted by diocesan auditors, and "nothing was found which substantiated her (Jackobek's) allegations." Amo said he is hurt by Jackobeck's claims. "Personally, I'm very upset by the allegations," he said. Amo said that since May, the parish has been using plastic tamper-resistant collection bags. Once sealed, the bags can't be opened without destroying them. "This is to protect everyone," Amo said. Amo has not been charged with any crimes. Dupont stated there was no relation between Jackobek's job being eliminated and her allegations, adding that a fiscal review leading to Jackobek's termination began long before she made accusations against Amo. |
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