Cardinal George Pell sentenced to six years jail
for child sex crimes
Cardinal George Pell, the most senior Catholic Church official to be convicted of sex crimes, has been sentenced to 6 years in prison by an Australian judge
Victorian Government to force priests to break
seal of confessional to report abuse
for child sex crimes
Cardinal George Pell, the most senior Catholic Church official to be convicted of sex crimes, has been sentenced to 6 years in prison by an Australian judge
Deutsche Welle
Disgraced Cardinal George Pell on Wednesday was sentenced to six years in an Australian prison for child sex crimes.
Pell, who once helped elect popes and ran the Vatican's finances, was convicted in December of molesting two choirboys at St. Patrick's Cathedral in Melbourne in the 1990s.
Chief Judge Peter Kidd told the Melbourne court that the sentencing reflected the crimes committed and were not directed against the Catholic Church.
"You are not to be made a scapegoat of the failings or perceived failings of the Catholic Church," said Kidd, criticizing a "lynch mob mentality" among the public.
Pell, now 77, but 55 at the time of the crime, was convicted of forcing the 13-year-old boys to perform oral sex on him in the priests' sacristy of St. Patrick's Cathedral, where he was archbishop. The other convictions related to improperly touching the boys.
Going into the sordid details of the case, Kidd accused Pell of "callous indifference" and said he saw "no evidence of remorse or contrition" for the crimes in which Pell has denied involvement.
One survivor of the abuse remains alive, the other died of a heroin overdose.
The most senior Catholic official to be convicted of sexual abuse, Pell took leave in 2016 as economy minister for the Vatican to fight the charges. In December, the Vatican announced Pell had been removed as one of the pope's advisers, without commenting on the trial.
Last month, the Vatican opened an internal investigation into Pell that could result in a canonical trial and Pell's eventual expulsion from the priesthood.
The Catholic Church has been rocked by multiple sex abuse scandals across the globe, including Chile, Germany and the United States.
seal of confessional to report abuse
By state political reporter Stephanie Anderson
Ribbons outside St Patrick's in Ballarat, in support of survivors and victims of child sex abuse.
Legislation forcing priests to break the seal of the confessional to report child sexual abuse could be introduced within the year, as Victoria's Attorney-General ponders legal avenues for victims who signed up under the Melbourne Response.
The Melbourne Response was a compensation model set up by Cardinal George Pell, who was last year convicted of child sexual offences.
The Cardinal is appealing against the conviction, but the news has prompted calls for the Melbourne Response to be torn down.
The Melbourne Response limited the amount of compensation a victim could seek.
But Attorney-General Jill Hennessy said the Government was looking at legislation that could allow those people to sue for more compensation.
"I do think there is a compelling case for government to look at what options might be available to us, so that work is currently being done," she said.
The Victorian Government plans to introduce laws by the end of the year forcing priests to break the seal of the confessional to report abuse.
The State Opposition called for similar changes before the last state election, and while the Catholic Church said it welcomed the expansion of mandatory reporting, it maintained the confessional seal cannot be broken.
Father Kevin Maloney, the Vicar-General of the Diocese of Ballarat, said the church would need to consider its position if the changes become law.
"If that happens, the leadership in the church is going to have to sit down and work out how they're going to respond to it," he said.
"But from my point of view, if that law goes through that's the law I'll have to work with."
French cardinal given 6-month suspended
sentence for child sex abuse coverup
By Nicholas SakelarisUPI -- A senior French cardinal in the Catholic Church was found guilty Thursday of failing to report abuse of a minor and received a six-month suspended prison sentence.
Archbishop of Lyon Philippe Barbarin, once considered as a possible future pope, is the highest-profile leader to be caught up in the sex scandal that's dogged the church for years.
Barbarin, 68, denies wrongdoing, saying he learned of an abusive priest in 2014 from a victim who confided in him.
"I cannot see what I am guilty of," Barbarin told the court. "I never tried to hide, let alone cover up these horrible facts."
The cardinal's remarks seem to conflict with what he told La Croix newspaper two years ago, an interview that indicates he knew about the priest's crimes a decade earlier but didn't report it because no victims had come forward.
Last month, Pope Francis announced an "all-out battle" to tackle every single case of abuse by priests.
Barbarin said he was slow to act to keep things quiet and avoid a public scandal. He plans to appeal his conviction.
"The reasoning of the court is not convincing," attorney Jean-Felix Luciani said.
Francois Devaux, a victim advocacy group in Lyon, said Thursday's verdict is a "major victory for child protection."
As pathetic a sentence as it was, it is, nevertheless, a conviction.
Preynat was charged with sex abuse in 2016 and will stand trial later this year.
French cardinal resigns after being found guilty of covering up sexual abuse allegations
France's senior Catholic cleric, Cardinal Philippe Barbarin, has been convicted of failing to report a known paedophile priest to police, the latest high-ranking churchman to fall in the global reckoning over clergy sex abuse and cover-ups.
Cardinal Philippe Barbarin announces during a press conference that he will present his resignation to Pope Francis. (AP)
The verdict came as a surprise since the statute of limitations had expired on some charges. At the end of the trial, prosecutors argued for an acquittal, saying there were no grounds to prove legal wrongdoing.
Five co-defendants - an archbishop, a bishop, a priest and two other officials - were acquitted.
Barbarin's conviction furthers the crisis facing the Catholic Church's embattled hierarchy. The sex abuse scandal recently led to Australian Cardinal George Pell's sexual abuse conviction and the defrocking of America's ex-Cardinal Theodore McCarrick for sexually molested minors and adult men, including during confession. Pell is appealing the decision.
Barbarin, 68, said he would offer to resign when he meets with Pope Francis "in a few days."
"I have decided to go and see the Holy Father to offer him my resignation," he said in a brief statement, expressing his compassion for Preynat's victims.
Barbarin was made a cardinal by St. John Paul II in 2003, a year after John Paul made him archbishop of Lyon.
The Vatican didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.
Former NY priest arraigned on child sexual abuse,
endangering charges
Frank Esposito, Rockland/Westchester Journal News
The Rev. Thomas Kreiser, a former Bronxville parish priest, was arraigned Tuesday on charges of sex abuse and endangering the welfare of a child.
Kreiser allegedly touched a 10-year-old girl on an intimate part of her body on three occasions between Sept. 5, 2018, and Sept. 20, 2018. The incidents happened on St. Joseph's parish school grounds as Kreiser visited the school while serving in the Bronxville parish, according to the Westchester County District Attorney's Office.
The New York Archdiocese has since removed Kreiser from the parish.
He's charged with three counts of first-degree sexual abuse, a felony, and three counts of endangering the welfare of a child, a misdemeanor.
Bruce Bendish, Kreiser's attorney, entered a not guilty plea on Kreiser's behalf.
Kreiser is due back in court June 11.
Kreiser previously worked at St. Patrick's Church in Yorktown and St. Gregory Barbarigo Church in Garnerville, where he ran into legal troubles.
He served as pastor of St. Gregory from 2008 to 2010, and pleaded guilty to a felony for stealing $25,600 from the parish for internet gambling and other uses.
Kreiser was sentenced to five years of probation in 2011.
Philadelphia priest arrested in alleged
child sexual abuse
by The Associated Press
PHILADELPHIA (AP) — A spokesman for the Roman Catholic church says a Philadelphia priest has been arrested on allegations that he sexually abused a minor.
Philadelphia police say 49-year-old Armand Garcia was arrested Monday and faces charges of rape and sexual abuse. Police did not release details of the allegations. Court records show Garcia posted bond and was released late Monday.
Garcia's attorney, William J. Brennan, says there's notoriety about allegations against priests, but Garcia is presumed innocent and should be given a chance to present his defense.
A spokesman for the Archdiocese of Philadelphia confirmed that Garcia was working as a pastor in Philadelphia at the time of the allegations between 2014 and 2017.
The archdiocese placed Garcia on administrative leave in March 2018 when police notified church officials of their investigation.
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