• Brisbane Anglican abuse report tabled in Queensland Parliament.
BRISBANE (Queensland, Australia): The full unabridged report was tabled on May 1 2003 by Premier Peter Beattie.
Hon. P. D. BEATTIE (Brisbane Central, ALP) (Premier and Minister for Trade) (9.33 a.m.): I seek leave to table a report titled Report of the board of inquiry into past handling of complaints of sexual abuse in the Anglican Church Diocese of Brisbane.
Leave was granted, and Parliament agreed to have it printed (the diocese of Brisbane will pay the cost). These actions were taken so that the report could be available to the public, without danger of court cases for defamation. The report stated that the action of retaining a certain sex abuser in the Church's service was not appropriate, and commented on many other matters.
-- see Queensland Parliament Hansard, Quick Access, http://www.parliament.qld.gov.au/hansard/Documents/htm_files/030501DY.htm .
The ACROBAT version of the Report itself, 471 pages, includes this statement: "The Board considers that no Bishop acting reasonably could have reached the decision to continue a known paedophile in the ministry. There were no extenuating circumstances nor can the Board imagine any that could have justified his continuance." (15.8 on page 49) http://www.parliament.qld.gov.au/AnglicanReport.pdf ,
Thu May 1 03
• Notre Dame VP Fr. Scully resigns. NOTRE DAME (Indiana, USA):
Father Timothy Scully, executive vice-president of the University of Notre Dame, has resigned. Father Scully was in charge of a number of high-profile parts of the university including finances, human resources, and construction. He is known as the number 3 man at the university.
The head of the university's board of trustees says Father Scully's decision was of a "personal nature". As executive vice president, it was believed Father Scully was a possible successor to Notre Dame's president Father Edward Malloy, whenever Malloy would leave that position. . . .
Scully was involved in a highly publicized incident on-campus earlier this year. He confronted two local television reporters along with a TV photographer prior to a mass for then-missing Notre Dame student Chad Sharon. A complaint was filed with campus police against Scully. Father Scully later apologized to those involved. There was no mention of the incident was made in today's news release by either Scully or the board.
Scully will remain a professor of political science and will continue as chair of the advisory board for the Kellogg Institute for International Studies.
[Picture caption: Father Scully will remain in his current position until June 30, 2003.]
-- WNDU NewsCenter16,
http://www.wndu.com/news/052003/news_19712.php , May 2 03
Read ND's own version: "Father Timothy Scully, C.S.C., to step down on June 30," From Associate Vice President: Matthew V.Storin http://www.nd.edu/~prinfo/news/2003/5-2.html , May 2 03
########## Poynteronline, Abuse Tracker, Friday, May 2, 2003 edition follows:- •
Central teacher charged for porn
http://www.toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dll/artikkel?Avis=TO &Dato= 20030501 &Kategori=NEWS03&Lopenr=105010107&Ref=AR ,
Toledo Blade.
TOLEDO (OH): A Toledo Roman Catholic priest on leave of absence since December was
charged yesterday with one count of child pornography in U.S. District Court, officials said.
If convicted, the Rev. Stephen G. Rogers, 54, a religion teacher at Central Catholic High School, faces a maximum sentence of up to five years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000 for possessing child pornography that had been transmitted by computer, said Thomas Secor, an assistant U.S. attorney.
The charge was filed as an information, a legal procedure that avoids a grand jury investigation and usually indicates a plea-bargain agreement has been reached, legal experts said.
John Czarnecki, Father Rogers' attorney, said the priest has no comment.
(Posted by Kathy Shaw 8:30:35 AM)
•
5 sue diocese, claim priests abused them
http://www.toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?Date= 20030502 &Category=NEWS02&ArtNo=105020121&Ref=AR ,
Toledo Blade, By Mark Reiter.
TOLEDO (OH): Five men who claim they were sexually abused by priests in the 1970s and
1980s filed lawsuits yesterday in Lucas County Common Pleas Court against Toledo's Roman Catholic diocese.
Two complaints allege that sexual misconduct was committed by Dennis Gray, a former priest who was accused of similar sexual molestations in nine lawsuits filed last year against the diocese.
The diocese also was sued by three men who alleged they were sexually abused in the 1970s by two Redemptorist priests at St. Gerard Catholic Church in Lima, Ohio.
The men, who refer to themselves as John Does in the complaint, accused the Rev William Geiger and another priest of sexually molesting them. The name of the second priest is identified only with a surname. However, The Blade has chosen not to publish it because his full name was not available.
•
Manchester diocese delays release of financial statement
http://www4.fosters.com/News2003/May2003/ May_02/ News/nh_0502b.asp ,
Foster's Daily Democrat.
MANCHESTER, N.H. (AP): The Diocese of Manchester has delayed releasing its audited financial statement by months to make it more complete.
Bishop John McCormack announced in February the diocese would release the statement by the end of March, but spokesman Pat McGee said Thursday it now will be within the next few months.
McCormack wants auditors to present a clear and comprehensive picture of diocesan finances, and they needed more time, McGee said. ...
The diocese has settled with many individual plaintiffs, and last year made two group civil settlements exceeding $6 million. The diocese has not used parish funds to settle civil litigation, including any money from the diocesan central fund, McGee said.
Parishes place money into the central fund and then borrow, at a rate lower than rates offered commercially, for the construction or repair of buildings.
•
E-mail assault launched
http://www.theunionleader.com/articles_show.html?article=20765 ,
The Union Leader, By Kathryn Marchocki.
NEW HAMPSHIRE: A conservative, Catholic lay group has launched an e-mail assault on New Hampshire state legislators asking them to defeat a bill that could force religious leaders to divulge details of child sexual abuse they learn about in the confessional.
The American Society for the Defense of Tradition, Family and Property of Spring Grove, Pa., also is targeting two New Hampshire newspapers asking for fair press coverage of the issue.
State Rep. Edward R. "Ted” Leach, R-Hancock, yesterday said he has received about 628 e-mails since Tuesday night pressing him to strike down any legislative effort to break the seal of confession.
All the e-mails were identical and all were signed, "A Concerned Catholic," he said. He said he believes the approximate 320 state representatives who have e-mail also received them.
•
Bishop appoints two
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/local/palmbeach/sfl-p3bdig02may02,0,951086. story?coll=sfla-news-palm ,
Sun-Sentinel.
PALM BEACH (FL): Bishop Sean P. O'Malley has made the final two appointments to the 11-member Diocesan Review Board, created in September in the wake of a sexual abuse scandal that led to the resignation of O'Malley's predecessor.
Rabbi Merle Singer of Temple Beth El in Boca Raton and Broward Sheriff's Office Sgt. Rodney Brimlow join the panel charged with assessing allegations of sexual abuse of minors by church personnel, making recommendations to the bishop on the fitness of ministry and advising on any investigations.
•
Catholics Reassigning Sex Offender
http://www.timesdispatch.com/ news/localupdates/MGB2GQJK 7FD.html ,
Richmond Times-Dispatch.
NORFOLK (VA): A Norfolk priest convicted of committing a misdemeanor sex offense will be reassigned to a Richmond-area church, according to the bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Richmond.
The Most Rev. Walter F. Sullivan declined today to name the church. "I will announce that next week when I announce other priest assignments," he said.
•
Church keeps quiet about priest transfer
http://www.abc.net.au/gippsland/news/reggip-2may2003-3.htm ,
ABC.
AUSTRALIA: The Catholic Church is refusing to say why it is transferring its parish priest at Morwell. The issue came to a head yesterday when 50 parishioners mounted a protest
outside the office of the Catholic Bishop of Sale, Bishop Coffee.
The church is planning to move Father John Speakman, but will not answer calls from the church community to explain why.
Parishioner John Henderson says it is because Father Speakman's orthodox methods have upset modernists in the church.
•
Priest accused of sex abuse may be hiding in El Paso
http://www.borderlandnews.com/ stories/borderland/ 20030502-108126.shtml ,
El Paso Times, Darren Meritz.
EL PASO (TX): A Catholic priest accused of 42 counts of child molestation may be hiding in the El Paso-Juárez area and may pose a danger to boys in the community, law enforcement officials said Thursday.
The Southwest Fugitive Task Force is searching for Siegfried Widera, 62, of Orange County, Calif., who has been accused of a multitude of sex offenses since he was ordained in 1967. Most of his victims were 14, officials said.
Law enforcement officials suspect that Widera fled from California to this region to hide with the help of relatives after he was indicted by the Orange County district attorney's office Oct. 22, 2002.
"It is our understanding that he is still conducting himself as a priest," El Paso County Sheriff's Department spokesman Rick Glancey said. "He's very good at working his way into a community, gaining some public trust and confidence. He may go into small villages in Mexico."
•
N.J. priest punished for teen sex
http://www.nj.com/news/ledger/jersey/index.ssf?/base/news-3/10518577 25181440.xml ,
Star-Ledger, By Jeff Diamant:
NEW JERSEY: A judge in Montreal sentenced a North Jersey Roman Catholic priest to two
years' probation yesterday, three weeks after he pleaded guilty to
soliciting sex from a 16-year-old male prostitute.
Quebec Judge Claude Gillette also barred the Rev. Eugene Heyndricks from
having contact with minors during the probationary period unless
accompanied by another adult, Heyndricks' attorney said.
Heyndricks, who worked in parishes in Ridgewood, Park Ridge, Fairview, and
most recently at St. John Nepomucene in Guttenberg, was unavailable for
comment yesterday. His attorney, Frank Pappas, said Heyndricks will return
to New Jersey today, but does not know where he will be staying.
In July, police arrested Heyndricks and the Rev. William Giblin, former
headmaster at the Seton Hall Preparatory School, in a gay-friendly enclave
in Montreal in what authorities called the dismantling of a male
prostitution ring that frequently drew patrons from the United States.
•
Lay group allowed to return to Brooklyn archdiocese
http://www.newsday.com/news/local/wire/ny-bc-ny--churchabuse0502may02,0,7542550.story?coll=ny-ap-regional-wire ,
BROOKLYN (NY):
Newsday:
May 2, 2003, 4:34 AM EDT:
NEW YORK (AP): The ban on a Catholic lay group that addresses the
church's sexual scandals has been reversed, Brooklyn diocese officials
said.
Bishop Thomas Daily, leader of the diocese of Brooklyn reversed the ban on
Thursday, allowing Voice of the Faithful to meet on church property. For
six months, the group had met in a college meeting room, a Baptist Church
and an American Legion Hall.
•
Sex scandal threat to Queen's visit
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/1738462.stm ,
BBC [Get the DATE; probably year 2002].
AUSTRALIA: Child abuse victims in Australia are threatening to draw Queen Elizabeth
into a row over the Queen's representative, Governor-General Peter Hollingworth.
Welfare groups want Mr Hollingworth to resign over an alleged cover-up of a sex scandal at a girls' school more than a decade ago.
They are planning a series of protests during the Queen's visit to Australia in March -- part of the Golden Jubilee celebrations to mark her 50-year reign.
The governor-general acts as head of state on behalf of the British monarch, who is also constitutionally Australia's head of state.
Mr Hollingworth was the Anglican archbishop of Brisbane when a teacher sexually abused students at a church-run boarding school in a city covered by his diocese.
•
Australian governor under fire
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/2995131.stm ,
BBC.
AUSTRALIA: The Australian Government is backing Governor-General Peter Hollingworth,
despite mounting calls for him to resign after an inquiry criticised his
handling of sexual abuse cases in the Church.
Acting Prime Minister John Anderson said people should "stand back and
take into account the fact that he has been forthcoming in acknowledging a
failure."
A report published on Thursday said Mr Hollingworth, the former Archbishop
of Brisbane, had allowed a priest to continue his ministry despite knowing
the man was a child abuser.
•
Parish members defend ousted priest
http://www.zwire.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=7891732 &BRD=1719 &PAG=461&dept_ id=25271&rfi=6 ,
The Telegraph, by Cynthia M. Ellis.
BETHALTO (IL): Parishioners at Our Lady Queen of Peace Catholic Church --
hurt, puzzled and angry over the sudden ouster of their priest -- are
rallying to his defense.
The Rev. Kevin B. Sullivan resigned April 15 after an accusation that he
committed a serious "immoral act."
Many worshippers said they feel the allegations should not overshadow all
the good things Sullivan has done within the parish.
"He was a wonderful priest, " Amy Yates said. "He brought unconditional
love to the congregation."
Amy Yates, 32, and her mother, Donna Yates, 61, are saddened that Sullivan
has had to leave the church.
"He's changed the lives of so many people," Donna Yates said. "There are
so many things that are special about Father Sullivan. It's devastating
what's happened."
Thursday, May 1, 2003
•
Priest On the Run
http://www.ktsm.com/news/story.ssd?c=367db7de249449f8 ,
KTSM.com .
EL PASO (TX): The El Paso Sheriff's Department believes a priest charged with 42 counts of child molestation in California and Wisconsin is in the borderland.
62-year-old Father Siegfried Widera is accused of molesting three boys when he was a priest in Wisconsin. He was convicted on a charge of sexual perversion in 1973 involving another Wisconsin boy.
The Milwaukee archdiocese transferred him to another church in Orange County, California.
Years later, he faced claims from men who say they were molested as children at churches Father Widera worked at in Southern California.
When charges were filed in May of 2002, Widera vanished.
Now El Paso authorities believe relatives in the area may be helping him cross the border back and forth into Mexico.
They say he's fluent in Spanish, and they're worried he's been able to adapt into the area, earning trust as a Priest.
•
Officials looking for "serial child molester"
http://www.kvia.com/Global/story.asp?S=1259858&nav= AbC0FZri ,
KVIA, Texas: Law enforcement officials believe a man charged with 42 counts of child
molestation may be in the El Paso, Las Cruces, or Juarez area.
62-year-old Siegfried F. Widera is a ordained priest accused of molesting children in California and Wisconsin. A U.S. Marshall has described Widera as a "serial child molester".
Officials say a manhunt has already generated leads in Wisconsin, California, Texas, and Arizona. Widera has reportedly been spotted in West Texas, Southern New Mexico and Northern Chihuahua, Mexico. Officials are concerned that he may try to stay with family members that could be living in the region.
Widera is described as 5' 10" tall and weighs approximately 250 lbs. He reportedly speaks English, Spanish, and German. He was ordained a priest in 1967.
•
These preyed on children -- Guy, Lynch, Elliot, Shearman, and McAuley
AUSTRALIA: The Anglican inquiry into the handling of sexual abuse has pointed an
accusing finger at several former priests and church workers who abused the trust of children.
While the inquiry looked at nine separate cases, it spent most of its time focusing on the church response to the predatory behaviour of five, now disgraced, individuals.
They were: Toowoomba Preparatory School house master Kevin George Guy. St Paul's school counsellor Kevin John Lynch. Former priest John Litton Elliot. Bishop Donald Shearman. Former cathedral music director Ross McAuley.
Of the five, Guy and Lynch committed suicide, Elliot is in jail, Shearman has retired and is living in Brisbane, and McAuley is believed to be hiding somewhere in Victoria.
Others mentioned in the report include an unidentified parish priest in a small country town and an unidentified university lecturer.
-- The Australian, "Monsters who preyed on children,"
http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/common/story_ page/ 0,5744,6368824%255E2702,00.html ,
By Ashleigh Wilson,
May 2 03
•
G-G protected sex abuser
http://www.thesundaymail.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,5936,6368937%255E421,00.html ,
AUSTRALIA:
Queensland Sunday Mail:
By Ashleigh Wilson and Scott Emerson,
02may03:
John Howard has refused to sack Governor-General Peter Hollingworth,
despite a damning report finding that as archbishop of Brisbane he let a
known pedophile continue working as a priest.
Dr Hollingworth remained defiant last night after a report into the past
handling of sexual abuse in Brisbane's Anglican Diocese found he had acted
unfairly, insensitively and inappropriately in at least two cases of child
abuse.
The report said allowing pedophile priest John Litton Elliot to continue
was "untenable".
Questions were also raised about Dr Hollingworth's decision to let Donald
Shearman, now a retired bishop, continue working after allegations he
abused a 15-year-old girl in the 1950s.
•
Hollingworth digs in
http://news.com.au/common/story_page/0,4057,6370226%255E2,00.html ,
AUSTRALIA:
News.com.au:
By Michael Harvey,
May 02, 2003:
Defiant Governor-General Peter Hollingworth clung to office last night
despite admitting serious misjudgment over child sex abuse claims.
A scathing report into sex abuse in the Anglican Church in Brisbane while
Dr Hollingworth was in charge found he allowed two priests to keep
preaching even though he knew they had sex with boys and girls.
His 1993 decision to allow a known pedophile priest to continue his
ministry after hearing his confession was criticised as untenable.
A statement issued by his office last night said: "Dr Hollingworth accepts
. . that he made a serious error of judgment.
"He acknowledges that he would reach a different conclusion today."
But Dr Hollingworth gave no indication he would step down as
Governor-General.
•
Harrower deeply concerned at abuse report
http://www.abc.net.au/tasmania/news/s845155.htm ,
Friday, 2 May 2003,
ABC Tasmania:
TASMANIA, Australia: Tasmania's Anglican Bishop, the Right Reverend John Harrower, has
expressed deep concern over a report into the handling of sexual abuse cases by the Anglican Church.
The Governor-General, Peter Hollingworth, has been criticised for allowing a priest who admitted to sexual abuse to stay on in the ministry.
Bishop Harrower says it is very important that the church is a safe place for everyone, including children and those who are vulnerable.
"It's certainly not a decision that I would have taken," he said.
"I would have immediately had that priest processed.
•
New calls for GG sacking
http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2003/05/02/1051382070163.html ,
The Age, Friday 2 May 2003, 6:31 AM.
AUSTRALIA: Governor-General Peter Hollingworth's position is again under pressure
after a report was critical of his handling of child abuse cases when he
was Anglican Archbishop of Brisbane.
The report, commissioned by Dr Hollingworth's successor as archbishop Dr
Phillip Aspinall and tabled in Queensland parliament on Thursday, found Dr
Hollingworth made "a serious error of judgment" in allowing a priest to
continue his ministry despite knowing he was a child abuser.
Dr Aspinall publicly apologised to all past victims of abuse and revealed
he had revoked six clergy licences, suspended a further five and referred
40 abuse complaints to police.
The inquiry also found Dr Hollingworth allowed a retired bishop to
continue preaching despite knowing he had had sex with a 15-year-old girl
in the 1950s.
•
Massachusetts Top Court Throws Out Clergy Sex Case
http://reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml? type =topNews &storyID=2664011 ,
Reuters, By Greg Frost.
BOSTON (MA): A woman now in her sixties should not have waited 40 years before suing a Catholic priest who allegedly molested her, Massachusetts' top court ruled on Wednesday as it dismissed her lawsuit.
In a ruling that undermines some of the hundreds of lawsuits filed by alleged clergy sex abuse victims against the Archdiocese of Boston, the Supreme Judicial Court said the woman known only as "Jane Doe" should have filed her lawsuit sooner against the Rev. Gerard Creighton.
Under Massachusetts law, plaintiffs who claim sexual abuse may only file lawsuits within three years of the alleged abuse or within three years of the time they discover an emotional or physical injury caused by abuse.
The woman in the case accused Creighton of molesting her beginning in the spring of 1958, on the cusp of her 17th birthday. She filed a civil lawsuit against him in 1998.
In her suit, the woman said she had suffered from depression, grief, and shame for many years after the alleged abuse. She argued that while she understood that these emotions stemmed from her feelings of self-hatred, she failed to recognize the link between this self-hatred and her alleged abuse.
It was only after she spoke with another priest in 1995 about her alleged molestation by Creighton that she realized it was the root cause of her psychological problems.
•
Former Henderson Priest May Not Get Jail Time
http://www.klas-tv.com/Global/story.asp?S=1256341 &nav=168XFXIf ,
KLAS-tv, April 29.
LAS VEGAS (NV): There is a chance a former Catholic priest from Henderson may not serve any jail time for molesting young boys in his parish. A judge has indicated that Mark Roberts may just get probation for his crimes. That has some Henderson parents and child advocates seeing red.
The mother of one of the victims of former Henderson priest Mark Roberts staged an informational protest outside the Clark County court house.
Debra Tullgreen, wants to convince the courts to sentence Roberts to jail time. Roberts is up for sentencing next month.
She fears a judge may give him probation and believes children are only safe if Roberts and other admitted child molesters are behind bars for life. "Whether a child molester is a priest, a teacher or just your neighbor they need to be sentenced. If we have those people out what guarantees are there that they are about going to hurt future children," said Debra Tullgreen, victim's mother.
But the district attorney says the victims' families agreed to probation as a possible sentence if Roberts would plead guilty to his crimes.
•
Religious order puts up bail for 'Brother Vic' www.al.com/ news/mobile register/index. ssf?/xml/ story.ssf/ html_standard. xsl?/base/news/ 105178085 1311630.xml ,
Mobile Register, By Gary McElroy.
MOBILE (AL): When former Catholic educator Brother Nicholas Paul Bendillo, known as
"Brother Vic," was arrested last week on sex abuse and related charges, he apparently did not have the money to pay his $15,000 in bonds.
Instead, the bond money -- covering two counts of second-degree sexual abuse and two counts of enticing a child for immoral purposes -- was paid by the Brothers of the Sacred Heart, a Catholic religious order of male educators.
No bail company was involved in the cash bond transaction.
Bendillo, a former teacher and academic adviser at McGill-Toolen High School, is a member of the religious order, his attorney, Donald Briskman, said Wednesday.
•
Economy may clip Catholic giving
http://www.masslive.com/search/index.ssf?/base/news-4/1051705 026249460.xml?nnmw ,
The Republican, By Bill Zajac.
SPRINGFIELD (MA): The Most Rev. Thomas L. Dupre, bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Springfield, announced yesterday the goal of this year's annual Catholic Appeal as $2.9 million and said the economy is likely to be more of an obstacle than the clergy sex abuse crisis.
The goal is the same as last year's when $2.6 million, $300,000 short, was raised. The three-week campaign begins Sunday.
"I recognize that these are very tough economic times, not only for Western Massachusetts but for the entire state and the entire country," Dupre said.
•
Chief Rabbi Pick Opposed on Corruption, Abuse Charges
http://www.forward.com/issues/2003/ 03.05.02/ news12.html ,
Forward, by Ha'aretz and Forward staff:
TEL AVIV, Israel: Israel's Supreme Court has been asked to block the installation
of the nation's newly elected Ashkenazic chief rabbi, because of allegations that include incompetence, extorting money from marrying couples, forging signatures on marriage contracts and sexual abuse of women and boys.
The rabbi, Yona Metzger, currently a neighborhood rabbi in northern Tel Aviv, was elected two weeks ago by a prestigious panel of rabbis and public figures. The election has stirred a hornet's nest of controversy, pitting rabbis of the Modern Orthodox community against leaders of the growing ultra-Orthodox community, which does not recognize the authority of the Chief Rabbinate but now appears to control the institution.
The petition to the high court alleges that Metzger cannot fulfill the duties of chief rabbi, which include chairing the High Rabbinical Court, because he is not qualified to serve as a rabbinical court judge. The petition was submitted to the court by accountant Yaakov Werker, a religious activist who has acknowledged that he was a backer of a rival
candidate for chief rabbi.
Werker's petition also maintains that by running for chief rabbi Metzger implicitly violated the terms of a 1998 deal, under which the national Chief Rabbinate agreed not to investigate charges against him if he agreed not to run for the lesser post of chief rabbi of Tel Aviv. For Metzger now to present "his candidacy for a higher position is deceitful and contradicts [Metzger's] commitment," the petition says.
Metzger has denied all the charges, calling them part of a political vendetta.
•
Man claims nun bilked his bereaved father
http://news.mysanantonio.com/story.cfm?xla=saen&xlb=180 &xlc=989110 ,
San Antonio Express-News, By J. Michael Parker, Express-News Religion Writer.
SAN ANTONIO (TX): A man whose now-deceased father befriended a San Antonio nun has sued the Archdiocese of San Antonio and the Congregation of St. Brigid, claiming
the nun stole about $100,000 and made herself the beneficiary of the father's will.
Houston attorney Doug Sutter filed the suit in state district court Wednesday for Carroll Hormachea.
The suit claims that Sister Imelda Phelan, a member of the Congregation of St. Brigid, opened two joint banking accounts in her own and Joe Hormachea's names totaling more than $74,000 and a joint stock market account for more than $23,000.
The suit says she used her given name, Josephine T. Phelan, rather than her religious name, and also took large sums of money from Hormachea and forwarded gifts and other things of value to her family in Ireland.
She also substituted her own name for that of Carroll Hormachea as the beneficiary of his father's will, the suit claims. The elder Hormachea died last year at 80.
•
Archbishop has some unkind words for church-appointed monitor
http://www.nj.com/ news/ledger/index. ssf?/base/news-8/1051771081268421.xml ,
Star-Ledger, By Jeff Diamant.
NEWARK (NJ): Newark Archbishop John J. Myers has delivered a stern rebuke to the woman
charged by U.S. Catholic bishops to assess church reform in the wake of the priest sex-abuse scandal, saying her actions have perplexed a number of bishops.
Myers' remarks came in a letter declining an invitation to attend an upcoming meeting of a reform-minded group of Catholics, Voice of the Faithful.
Kathleen McChesney, executive director of the Bishops' Office of Youth and Child Protection in Washington D.C., is scheduled to speak at the group's meeting May 13 in Little Falls.
McChesney, once the third-highest official at the FBI, was hired in November by a national panel of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops.
"I have met with Dr. Kathleen McChesney," Myers wrote to a member of Voice of the Faithful April 21. "I can only say that her decisions and the conduct of her office leave more than a few Bishops for whom she technically works in a state of perplexity."
McChesney's main role is to assess and audit bishops' efforts to comply with policies instituted last year to prevent future instances of sex abuse by members of the clergy. Last year, the Catholic Church admitted that bishops had covered up incidents involving priests and children. At least 325 priests have since resigned.
•
Additional Charges For Youth Minister
http://www.newsday.com/news/printedition/longisland/ny-lisod013262199may01,0,4362292.story?coll=ny-linews-print ,
Newsday,
By Keiko Morris,
May 1, 2003.
LONG ISLAND (NY): Nassau police have filed additional charges against a former director of
youth ministry at St. Raphael's Roman Catholic Church in East Meadow,
after two more teenage victims came forward with reports of alleged sexual
abuse.
Detectives on Tuesday charged Matthew Maiello, 29, of 39 Grove St.,
Lynbrook, with five additional statutory charges of third-degree sodomy
and one count of third- degree rape after investigating the new accounts
of the sexual encounters he allegedly had with two female victims, who
were 15 at the time of the abuse.
Police initially arrested Maiello on April 4 in the parking lot of
Kellenberg Memorial High School in Uniondale, where he has worked as an
English teacher for almost two years. All the incidents, however, took
place while he was serving as director of St. Raphael's youth ministry,
police said, from 1999 to 2001.
•
Diocese renews bid to dismiss law
http://www.kentucky.com/mld/heraldleader/news/local/5757491.htm ,
Herald-Leader,
By Louise Taylor.
LEXINGTON (KY): The Catholic Diocese of Lexington is renewing its effort to get a
sexual-abuse lawsuit against it dismissed and has accused the lawyer for
the plaintiffs in the case of wooing new clients in violation of a court
order -- a charge the lawyer says is a flat untruth.
The diocese has argued from the onset of the lawsuit last year that it was
not even in existence when the priests named in the case were alleged to
have molested children, and that it cannot be held responsible for any
claims. The diocese was formed in 1988; most of the abuse allegations date
back 30 to 40 years.
Last week, plaintiffs' attorney Robert Treadway asked the court for
permission to add 19 alleged victims to the suit, bringing the total to
24.
But Tuesday, diocese attorney John Famularo took Treadway to task for his
attempt to amend the complaint. Treadway has been saying for months that
he had additional clients, but waited until after the diocese produced
documents related to the original complaint before adding the new
plaintiffs, Famularo says in a motion that will be argued Friday morning
in Fayette Circuit Court.
•
Ex-priest's psychological records can't be released
http://www.al.com/news/mobileregister/index.ssf?/ xml/ story.ssf/html_standard.xsl?/ base/news/1051780645311630.xml ,
Mobile Register, May 01 03, By Gary McElroy.
MOBILE (AL): A judge has ordered the Mobile County district attorney's office to keep
whatever information it gleans from the Rev. J. Alexander Sherlock's psychological records to itself.
Earlier this month, District Attorney John Tyson Jr. won a skirmish with Sherlock's Mobile attorney, Donald Briskman, after convincing Circuit Judge Joseph "Rusty" Johnston to order two therapists who treated Sherlock to turn over their records of the former Mobile priest.
Although he has not been charged with any crime, Sherlock, 62, is under investigation by the district attorney's office following allegations of child sex abuse.
Sherlock has admitted to a history of such offenses, according to Mobile Archbishop Oscar H. Lipscomb.
•
Mobile archdiocese opens sexual abuse helpline
http://www.al.com/newsflash/regional/index.ssf?/newsflash/get_story.ssf?/cgi-free/getstory_ssf.cgi?j0471_BC_AL-BRF--ChurchAbuse-A&&news&newsflash-al ,
AL.com, The Associated Press,
4/30/03 5:59 PM:
MOBILE, Ala.: Victims of sexual abuse by priests or other church
employees in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Mobile can report the
crimes to a telephone number that will be answered by counselors.
The sexual abuse helpline -- 1-800-856-4184 -- was announced Wednesday by
the archdiocese in response to a criminal investigation involving several
priests and a former Catholic high school teacher.
The phone will be answered Monday through Friday from 8:30 a.m. until 7
p.m., the archdiocese said in a statement.
•
Court Makes It Harder to Sue in Some Cases of Sexual Abuse
http://www.nytimes.com/2003/05/01/ national/01PRIE. html?ex=1052452800&en=15a26a60ea1eafa4&ei=5062&partner=GOOGLE ,
The New York Times, By Adam Liptak.
BOSTON (MA): Massachusetts' highest court made it more difficult yesterday for people
who say they were sexually abused as children to sue long after the events in question.
Legal experts said the decision might affect a small but significant percentage of the hundreds of sexual abuse suits pending against the Archdiocese of Boston.
A Massachusetts law allows people who say they were sexually abused as children to sue in the three years after they turn 18. The law extends that time limit further in cases where the plaintiff was not aware of the emotional harm caused by the abuse or the link between the harm and the abuse.
Yesterday's decision, by the state's Supreme Judicial Court, concerned a woman who said she was sexually abused by a Roman Catholic priest in 1958 during her senior year in high school. Although the woman said she soon felt shame, grief and depression, she said she did not connect those symptoms to the abuse until 1995, when she discussed her experiences with another priest.
•
Clergy abuse flap goes national
http://goerie.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?Site=GE&Date=20030501 &Category=FRONTPAGE&ArtNo=105010350&Ref=AR ,
GoErie.com , By Ed Palattella, ed.palattella@timesnews.com .
PENNSYLVANIA: The local dispute over controversial signs posted at Roman Catholic
parochial schools has drawn a national response.
The Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights, an independent group based in New York City, called the posting of the signs a "witch hunt against Catholic priests."
The Catholic League's president, William Donohue, also demanded that the national headquarters of Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, or S.N.A.P., "condemn this tactic for what it is — a media grandstanding event done at the expense of justice to innocent priests."
The Catholic League faxed a copy of its statement on the signs to news organizations and posted the statement on its Web site.
•
GG won't be sacked: PM
http://news.ninemsn.com.au/National/story_48184.asp ,
ninemsn,
SYDNEY. Australia: Prime Minister John Howard ruled out sacking Governor-General Peter
Hollingworth over a critical report into child sex abuse claims in
Brisbane.
"No, I'm not going to sack the governor-general," Mr Howard told reporters
before flying out from Sydney for the US.
An independent report tabled in Queensland parliament found Brisbane's
Anglican church, under Peter Hollingworth, acted unfairly in dealing with
some complaints of sexual abuse.
It found Dr Hollingworth, the former Anglican Archbishop of Brisbane,
allowed a priest to continue his ministry despite knowing he was a child
abuser.
•
Former priest facing 34 felony counts in sex-abuse case
http://www.whittierdailynews.com/ Stories/0, 1413,207~12026~1361049,00.html ,
Whittier Daily News, By Sandra Marquez, Associated Press.
LOS ANGELES (CA): Five additional felony sex-abuse charges were filed Wednesday against a former priest who could become one of the first ex-clerics in California
to be tried for sexual abuse.
Michael Stephen Baker, 55, now faces a total of 34 felony charges after five counts of oral copulation with a minor were filed by prosecutors.
After a preliminary hearing two weeks ago, Baker was ordered to stand trial for allegedly molesting an altar boy throughout much of the 1970s and '80s.
Baker, who is free on bond, appeared in Los Angeles County Superior Court in Norwalk earlier Wednesday but his arraignment was postponed until May 20 after his lawyer, Donald Steier, asked for more time to review the transcripts of the preliminary hearing.
•
Catholic review board to form
http://www.ohio.com/mld/ohio/news/5758412.htm ,
The Beacon Journal,
By Colette M. Jenkins,
Beacon Journal religion writer,
CLEVELAND (OH): Bishop Anthony M. Pilla expects to make appointments as early as next week to an 11-member review board that will assess the credibility of sex-abuse
allegations against employees of the Catholic Diocese of Cleveland.
Diocese spokesman Robert Tayek said board members will be selected from a pool of 30 candidates, whose names are being submitted to Pilla today by William Denihan, who headed an independent commission that developed a new diocese policy for addressing allegations of sexual abuse of children.
The policy, which was adopted Feb. 28, called for the creation of a review board composed primarily of lay people.
It also requires that the board consist of a clinician with experience in the detection and/or treatment of child sexual abuse victims and in the detection and/or treatment of child sexual abuse offenders; a survivor of child sexual abuse who has completed a course of treatment; a parent; a parish priest; a church lawyer; an attorney; someone with investigative experience; someone with experience in human resources; and someone trained in administrative law and dispute resolution.
•
G-G should resign: Crean
http://www.theadvertiser.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,5936,6365755%255E421,00.html ,
The Advertiser,
01may03.
ADELAIDE (Australia): Governor-General Peter Hollingworth should resign, Opposition Leader Simon Crean has said.
Mr Crean today said if Dr Hollingworth would not resign, Prime Minister John Howard should terminate his appointment after a report which found the former Anglican Archbishop allowed a priest to continue his ministry despite knowing he was a child abuser.
"My judgment back in February was that the controversy and the lack of action by the governor-general was such that it was diminishing the office of the governor-general and that he should resign," Mr Crean told the South Australian Press Club in Adelaide.
"And if not, the Prime Minister should seek termination of his appointment."
•
GG apologises to sex abuse victim
http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2003/05/01/1051382041393.html ,
The Age, May 1 2003.
AUSTRALIA: Governor-General Peter Hollingworth today apologised to a sex abuse victim
after an independent inquiry found he acted unfairly in dealing with some
abuse complaints.
An independent report tabled in Queensland parliament today found
Brisbane's Anglican church, under Dr Hollingworth, acted unfairly in
dealing with some complaints of sexual abuse.
It found Dr Hollingworth allowed a priest to continue his ministry despite
knowing he was a child abuser.
Dr Hollingworth admitted he had made a serious error of judgment in the
case, and expressed regret at his actions.
•
Abuse suits OK'd as class action
http://www.courier-journal.com/localnews/2003/05/01ky/met-front-abuse0501-6066.html ,
The Courier-Journal, By Gregory A. Hall, ghall@courier-journal.com .
LOUISVILLE (KY): A Jefferson circuit judge ruled yesterday that the more than 200 sexual abuse lawsuits pending against the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Louisville may be handled as a class action during settlement talks.
Judge James M. Shake also agreed yesterday that most other activity in those cases should cease until the settlement discussions are completed -- in about 90 days.
Shake held a hearing on those issues Tuesday; his decision was entered yesterday.
Plaintiffs have 30 days to decide whether they want to take part in the class, which is defined as all pending cases filed from April 2002 through April 23.
•
Catholics happy with choice
http://www.heraldnews.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=7876834&BRD=1710 &PAG=461&dept_id=99784&rfi=6 ,
The Herald News, Gregg M. Miliote.
FALL RIVER (MA): Catholics around the city seem to be ready to welcome their
new bishop with open arms.
Monsignor George W. Coleman, who has been serving as the administrator of
the Fall River Diocese since former Bishop Sean P. O'Malley left last
year, was appointed the seventh bishop of the diocese Wednesday. . . .
The Rev. Marc Bergeron of St. Anne's Parish said it's both "interesting
and exciting" to know that he's from the diocese and local area. . . .
Bergeron also commented on the sexual abuse scandal that has rocked this
diocese as well as many others over the past several years.
He said Coleman's policies regarding these matters will likely mirror
those of his predecessor, who was praised in some circles for sympathizing
with the victims of priest abuse.
•
More charges filed against retired priest
http://www.insidevc.com/vcs/state/article/0,1375,VCS_122_ 1929052,00.html ,
Ventura County Star, May 1, 2003.
LOS ANGELES (CA): Five additional felony sex abuse charges were filed Wednesday against a retired priest who could become one of the first clerics in California to be tried for sexual abuse.
Michael Stephen Baker, 55, now faces a total of 34 felony charges after five counts of oral copulation with a minor were filed by prosecutors.
After a preliminary hearing two weeks ago, Baker was ordered to stand trial for allegedly molesting an altar boy throughout much of the 1970s and '80s.
Baker, who is free on bond, appeared in Los Angeles County Superior Court in Norwalk earlier Wednesday, but his arraignment was postponed until May 20 after his lawyer, Donald Steier, asked for more time to review the transcripts of the preliminary hearing.
Baker was previously ordered to stand trial on 13 counts of lewd acts upon a child under 14 and 16 counts of oral copulation with a minor.
Authorities said he also remains under investigation in the alleged molestations of at least nine youths dating to 1976.
•
Text of statement by Governor-General Peter Hollingworth
http://www.theage.com.au/articles/ 2003/ 05/01/ 1051382042394.html ,
The Age (Melbourne), May 1 2003.
AUSTRALIA: Text of today's statement by Governor-General Peter Hollingworth:
"Dr Hollingworth has only just been provided with a copy of the independent Report of the Diocesan Board of Inquiry that was tabled under privilege of the Queensland Parliament today. At the outset, Dr Hollingworth reiterates his abhorrence of all forms of child abuse, most particularly by those occupying positions of trust.
It is clear from the Report Overview that there are two cases in respect of which the Board has made some adverse comment on Dr Hollingworth's handling of matters.
In all other respects the Board has made no criticism of Dr Hollingworth's handling of the various and highly publicised cases of sexual abuse which it examined.
•
SJC rejects abuse suit reaching back to '50s
http://www.boston.com/dailyglobe2/121/ metro/ SJC_ rejects_ abuse_suit_reaching_back_to_50sP.shtml ,
Boston Globe, By Wendy Davis, Globe Correspondent, May 1 2003.
BOSTON (MA): In a significant victory for church officials in the clergy sex abuse
cases, the Supreme Judicial Court yesterday dismissed a suit by a woman who said she had been molested by a priest in the 1950s, ruling that she had waited too long to sue.
The unanimous decision may provide the Archdiocese of Boston with new ammunition in fighting many of the roughly 500 civil lawsuits filed by people who say they were sexually abused by priests decades ago.
"The court is making clear that standards for cases where people haven't filed for a long time are difficult to meet," said Suffolk University Law School professor Michael Avery.
Lawyers for some plaintiffs suing the archdiocese said the SJC decision should spur settlement talks.
Jeffrey Newman, whose law firm, Greenberg Traurig, represents approximately half of those suing Boston church officials, said the decision will require substantial additional discovery in every case. For that reason, he said, "the decision absolutely provides incentives for both sides to reach a negotiated settlement of these claims."
•
Hollingworth admits error
http://www.thecouriermail.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,5936,6366176%255E421,00.html ,
The Courier-Mail, By Sharon Labi, 01 May 03.
AUSTRALIA: Governor-General Peter Hollingworth has apologised to a sex abuse victim
after an independent inquiry found he acted unfairly in dealing with some
abuse complaints.
An independent report tabled in Queensland parliament today found
Brisbane's Anglican church, under Dr Hollingworth, acted unfairly in
dealing with some complaints of sexual abuse.
It found Dr Hollingworth allowed a priest to continue his ministry despite
knowing he was a child abuser. Dr Hollingworth admitted he had made a
serious error of judgment in the case, and expressed regret at his
actions.
"Dr Hollingworth takes this opportunity to express his regret at the
handling of this matter and to apologise to the complainant and his
family," his office said in a statement.
(Posted by Kathy Shaw 5:42:51 AM)
########## End of Poynteronline, Abuse Tracker, Friday, May 2, 2003 edition
• Good news! Bishop Daily rescinds ban on VOTF UNITED STATES:
Dear Friends,
As many of you are well aware, Voice of the Faithful members have been banned from meeting on Church property in eight dioceses across this country. This affront to our sensibilities and Catholic spirit has been the source of pain for our members, wherever they live. However, we have stayed the course in dialogue with our bishops, and today we have seen the fruits of some of these efforts, specifically in the Diocese of Brooklyn.
On April 29, in a letter from Bishop Daily to priests in the Diocese of Brooklyn, the bishop announced that he is rescinding the ban against VOTF from meeting on church property. The significance of this action cannot be underestimated. In his letter, Bishop Daily stated that he found VOTF documents "to be in accord with the teachings of the Church." This unprecedented action by Bishop Daily is testimony to both the words and deeds of the affiliate members in Brooklyn - the truth of who we are - in their collaborative dialogue with their bishop. Additionally, it speaks to the courage of Bishop Daily who is the first of eight bishops who have imposed bans on VOTF to reverse his decision. You can read VOTF-Brooklyn's press release on the VOTF national Web site.
This positive action by Bishop Daily is also testimony to the fruits that grow from the collaborative efforts of laity, parish clergy, and hierarchy. As we learn more about the events that gave rise to this historic action we can only wonder what impact this will have on the decisions of other bishops who have banned us. Hopefully, this will serve as a model for all to witness, and will allay the fears of our critics, proving that we are who we say we are.
Congratulations to our sisters and brothers in the Brooklyn Diocese who have worked so painstakingly to meet in their churches, and congratulations to all Catholics who can regard this historic event as evidence that there is hope for all of us to come together in unity to build a stronger and healthier Catholic Church.
Please forward this message to a friend who may be interested in learning the truth of who we are.
Warm regards, -- Steve Krueger, Executive Director, Voice of the Faithful, "Good news! Bishop Daily rescinds ban on VOTF,"
May 2 03
FOR GOOD TEACHINGS TO BE HEEDED, A BIG CLEAN-UP IS NEEDED
INTENTION: The intention of this group of Webpages is NOT to HARM religion, but to help religion to remove people who seduce youngsters while hiding behind religion, and those who collude with them. THE INTENTION IS TO SAVE THE CHILDREN.
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BRISBANE (Queensland, Australia): The full unabridged report was tabled on May 1 2003 by Premier Peter Beattie.