U.S. sacks suspects; N.Z. testing victims

UP TO a dozen Los Angeles priests who were involved in past sexual abuse cases have been directed by Cardinal Roger Mahoney to retire or otherwise leave their ministries.

  The forced retirements were the latest repercussions in the growing scandal of priestly sexual abuse in the Catholic Church in the United States.

  The Church's Los Angeles Archdiocese made no public announcement of the dismissals, which occurred during the past two weeks, according to Church sources.

  None of the Los Angeles priests is believed to be involved in any recent cases of sexually abusing minors.

  Their cases occurred up to a decade ago, and all underwent psychological counselling and had been considered rehabilitated, according to one of the sources.

  Nevertheless, since the scandal over the sexual abuse of children erupted anew in the Boston archdiocese last month, dioceses across the country have been under pressure to rid themselves of any priests with a history of sexual misconduct.

  In Boston, the archdiocese was found to have known for years but failed to act against a priest who had been accused of abusing 130 children.

  As that scandal mushroomed, Cardinal Bernard Law, of Boston, reluctantly turned over to police the names of 80 priests who had been accused of abusing children over the past 40 years.

  In New Zealand, the Anglican Church is preparing to pay compensation to women who claimed they were sexually harassed and abused by a priest in the 1970s and 1980s.

  Christchurch Bishop David Coles said the Church was insisting the women underwent a psychiatric assessment. But he said the examinations were not a challenge to their integrity.

  The accused priest, Robert McCullough, was principal of an Anglican Church boarding hostel at Canterbury University and later canon at Christchurch Cathedral.

  He was stripped of his authority to officiate as a priest and of all his Church offices in 1989 after five complainants came forward. --LOS ANGELES TIMES and DEUTSCHE PRESSE-AGENTUR