'The sex abuse I faced as a child is destroying me',
admits Fr Brian D'Arcy
By Rodney Edwards Senior Reporter One Survivor's Story
The Impartial Reporter
Fr Brian D'Arcy speaking to Tommy Tiernan on RTE at the weekend.
Father Brian D’Arcy who was sexually abused as a child and while training for the priesthood believes as the years go on “the more the effects of the abuse are destroying me”.
The frank admission by the Fermanagh born cleric on the Tommy Tiernan Show on RTE at the weekend comes as The Impartial Reporter continues its long-running investigation into historic child sex abuse in the county.
And God bless you for it.
Like very many of the allege victims who deserve justice here, Fr. Brian will never see his abusers arrested, charged or prosecuted because they are dead.
“I had been abused as a young fellow and abused as a student on my way to the priesthood, it took me a long time to sort myself out and I am not sure if I have sorted myself out yet actually… they died without anybody knowing,” he said during the emotional interview.
“In fact most days I say to myself life is a journey and if you think you have it sorted out you have stopped living, you are half dead, you have to keep going.”
Fr Brian was sexually abused as a 10-year-old boy by a religious brother at his school in Omagh and again seven or eight years later by a priest while he was studying for the priesthood at Mount Argus in Dublin.
“I was a country kid in schoolyard standing out, not playing football. One of the brothers spotted me and during lunch time he’d bring me up to his room, he’d be very nice to me, give me sweets, tell me I was very lonely, and then he’d put me across his knee and abuse me enough so that he could get satisfaction.”
In the years that followed Fr Brian finally realised what he had suffered as a child.
“I didn’t know what was happening, I didn’t know it was abuse until the years afterwards, that may sound stupid but that’s the way it is. At 18 I was nervous, I was young, I had been disturbed by the earlier abuse, and you want to be a people pleaser, you don’t want to be rejected.
“I stopped being a child at 10. Two things happen, you either become extremely angry and try to act as an adult or you freeze emotionally,” he said.
Then at a student at Mount Argus he would experience being abused again because “the man saw me as a helpful, compassionate young guy, who was immature because of what happened before”.
“I thought I was wiser that time. How did I get caught again?” he said, admitting that it took years for the abuse to register with him.
“Then you’re growing up, you hear guys talking, I got ferociously guilty. Was I involved in this? Had I committed a sin? I was afraid to say it.
“Who was going to believe a 10-year-old country kid? I used to get scared, I was scared at night, I used to feel ferociously dirty. I never really had a healthy attitude towards sex or sexuality at all.”
While he has spoken in the past about the abuse he faced it is only now that Fr Brian is exploring the impact it is having on his life.
“At the moment I am trying to write a little bit about that within myself because at the moment I feel that if I don’t write about it, or talk about it, or think about it the older I am getting the more the effects of the abuse are destroying me.
“You feel that your life has been wasted, that I’ve done nothing. I’ve worked as hard as I could, trying to mix with people, learn from people, trying to be at pop concerts, masses, crematoriums, gravesides, jails. You try to be compassionate. If I can’t look in the mirror and say, yeah you made mistakes, yeah you are not perfect, you are never going to be God no matter what you think you are. If I can look in the mirror and say that and forgive myself for not being perfect, forgive myself for the mistakes I’ve made, forgive myself for the wrong choices I’ve made… if I can’t do that how can I hand on anything to somebody else.”
"I can say to anybody now; to the Pope, that any institution that puts the good name of the good institution ahead of the vulnerability of a child deserves no respect"
Fr Brian told Tiernan that he has found the courage to “speak to power” and “speak the truth to power” by talking about being the victim of sex abuse.
“If I hadn't had to survive abuse I wouldn’t have had the same conviction when I was speaking. I can say to anybody now; to the Pope, that any institution that puts the good name of the good institution ahead of the vulnerability of a child deserves no respect,” he said to loud applause.
Peter Ball, the bishop who sexually abused vulnerable teenagers has died
Prince Charles rebuked by child sex abuse inquiry
By Neil Shaw
PlymouthLive, DevonLive And CornwallLive
Disgraced former Church of England bishop Peter Ball, who was jailed for sexual abuse, and his twin brother Michael Ball the former bishop of Truro, want to switch faith so they can "live and worship in anonymity". (Image: John Stillwell/PA Wire)
The former bishop jailed in 2015 for sexually abusing vulnerable teenagers has died.
Peter Ball had been friends with Prince Charles, Duke of Cornwall, and was a frequent visitor to Cornwall when his twin brother Michael was Bishop of Truro from 1990 to 1997.
Bishop Peter Hancock, Church of England safeguarding lead, said: "We have been made aware of the death of Peter Ball and our prayers and thoughts are with everyone affected by this news."
Ball, 87, who lived in Somerset was Bishop of Lewes between 1977 and 1992 and Bishop of Gloucester from 1992 until he resigned in 1993.
He was jailed for 32 months for offences against 18 teenagers and men over three decades. He was released in 2017.
Prince Charles rebuked
An inquiry heard Prince Charles had backed Ball when initial allegations were made, which Charles said he now feels "deep personal regret" for.
Peter and Michael Ball, twin bishops
On the prince's role, a report said: "The actions of the Prince of Wales - in speaking about Ball with the (then) Archbishop of Canterbury (Lord Carey) and a member of Lambeth Palace, and the Duchy of Cornwall buying a property to rent to Ball and his brother, were misguided.
"His actions, and those of his staff, could have been interpreted as expressions of support for Peter Ball and, given the Prince of Wales's future role within the Church of England, had the potential to influence the actions of the Church."
Following publication of the report, a Clarence House spokesman said: "It remains a matter of deep regret to the prince that he, along with many others, was deceived by Peter Ball over so many years.
"As he made clear in his voluntary witness statement to the inquiry, at no time did he bring any influence to bear on the actions of the Church or any other relevant authority. His thoughts remain with victims of the abuse suffered over many years."
Charles, who will be supreme governor of the Church of England when he becomes king, told the inquiry in a written statement that he "at no stage (sought) to influence the outcome" of any police investigation into Ball.
It was not until 22 years later that Ball finally admitted his crimes. He was jailed in 2015 for sexually abusing 18 young men over three decades.
In a series of letters between the prince and Ball, Charles said he felt "so desperately strongly about the monstrous wrongs that have been done" to Ball following complaints in 1995 that he had been unable to return to ministry.
Charles also wrote in support of finding a Duchy property for Ball and his brother to rent, and told him: "I long to see you both settled somewhere that suits you and gives you peace and tranquillity."
The prince, who maintained a correspondence with Ball for more than two decades after the bishop accepted a caution in 1992 for gross indecency, told the inquiry he did not realise the truth behind allegations against Ball until his conviction several years later.
He said he responded to Ball's letters occasionally, believing it to be the "polite" thing to do. The inquiry found the replies were "suggestive of cordiality rather than mere politeness".
Charles said did not know of the exact details of the allegations in 1992 and, the inquiry found, did not try to find out.
The report said Charles "should have recognised the potential effect that his apparent support for Peter Ball (returning to ministry) could have had" upon decision-making within Lambeth Palace (home of the Archbishop of Canterbury, Head of the Church of England).
One of Ball's victims, who wished to remain anonymous, accused the prince of "trying to distance himself from Ball" and "play down" their close friendship. He added: "He must have been fully aware of the power and influence that his support would bring."
Richard Scorer, a lawyer at Slater and Gordon who acts for a number of victims, said: "We may never know the true harm caused by Charles's intervention and support for Ball but welcome the fact that the inquiry did not shy away from highlighting his role in this scandal."
This phase of the inquiry, which continues next month, focused on evidence against the Diocese of Chichester and against Ball. It found "a number of serious failings" following allegations of child sexual abuse dating back more than 40 years.
The IICSA found claims of abuse were not handled adequately by the Church, lacked urgency or appreciation of their seriousness and allowed the Church to prioritise its own image above its responsibilities to victims.
The report also criticised former Archbishop of Canterbury Lord Carey, who showed "compassion" to Ball and displayed his "overt support" for him despite there being no justification.
John O'Brien, secretary to the inquiry, said: "I think people will be shocked (by the findings) - I hope they are.
"People will, I think, ask where do we go if we can't turn to that very organisation (the Church) in order to get the support and care that we need?"
Priest accused yet again – two men say he raped them in Brooklyn grade school
By ROCCO PARASCANDOLA
| NEW YORK DAILY NEWS |
Two men have accused a priest, who is now dead, of raping them in the rectory at their Brooklyn parish in the 1980s, the Daily News has learned.
The allegations were laid out Friday in an order to show cause filed by their lawyer, Keith Sullivan, in Brooklyn State Supreme Court, which names the Diocese of Brooklyn and the Church of St. Patrick. They have accused the Rev. John Abrams of raping them when they were students and altar boys at St. Patrick Catholic elementary school in Bay Ridge.
They were 10 to 13 years old at the time. Both graduated in 1987. They knew each other, according to Sullivan, who was hired by one victim several months ago, then learned of the second victim while investigating the allegations.
According to affidavits filed by the men, who are in their 40s, they met Abrams, who was assigned to St. Patrick Roman Catholic Church, while in sixth grade. He befriended them and their friends, and drove them to various places, such as a Bensonhurst bike store, movies and Jones Beach. The men were identified in the affidavits as John Doe.
“During these rides Father Abrams supplied us with beer, cigarettes and pornographic magazines,” one of the men said in the affidavits. "It was also during this time that Father John Abrams lured me into his residence inside St. Patrick’s rectory and sexually assaulted me and raped me on numerous occasions.
“To this day, and every day that I am alive, I have been haunted by what Father John Abrams did to me."
Abrams was moved to another Brooklyn church in 1988. A year after that he was placed on “sick leave” until 1997, and then retired.
In the early 2000s, several other men accused Abrams of violating them when he was pastor at Bayside’s Sacred Heart before moving to St. Patrick in 1982.
In 2007, Bishop Nicholas DiMarzio announced that the Diocesan Review Board had found sufficient evidence that Abrams, then 83, had violated students while at Sacred Heart. He was barred from public ministry and defrocked. He died in 2008.
Sullivan said the diocese has already paid about $2 million in claims from men who were students at Sacred Heart, plus at least two others who attended St. Patrick.
He said he filed the order because he was all about ignored after speaking with a Diocese lawyer about a settlement to be paid from a compensation fund it established for sex abuse victims -- and then got no response from DiMarzio.
Sullivan said in court documents that he believes the Brooklyn Diocese is fearful of going bankrupt and and that an investigation conducted by his office learned that the diocese "has taken steps to limit their liability against future claims for sex abuse at the hands of priests. One measure was to reclassify Diocesan priests as independent contractors and give them a 1099 so they are not classified as salaried employees; thus, limiting liability for their actions and/or misdeeds,” Sullivan said in one of the documents.
“Additionally, we were advised … that the Diocese may have transferred significant financial real property and liquid assets into their own Cemetery Trust Fund or its functional equivalent...," it said.
He also noted that earlier this year, following the passage of the Child Victims Act, DiMarzio acknowledged in an open letter to the faithful “the devastating toll child sex abuse takes on its victims and its effects throughout adulthood.”
“We have taken steps to assist survivors in healing from the damage,” he said in the letter.
Not so, Sullivan said.
“I find it hard to square their unprofessional tactics with Christian teachings,” he told The News. “The church is dead wrong for ignoring victims who are now entitled to justice under the recently enacted Child Victims Act, a law they vehemently opposed for years.”
The Diocese of Brooklyn said in a statement on Saturday that it had not yet been served with the order to show cause. But, it said, "When the attorney reached out to the diocese, it was after the IRCP (Independent Reconciliation and Compensation program for Victim-Survivors of Abuse) had closed in January of 2019. He was told that if the IRCP were to reopen, his clients would be permitted to enter.
“Right now the IRCP has not reopened as the private funding has still to be put in place. It is expected to reopen shortly for those who have posted late claims as of this date,” the diocese said.
“We still encourage anyone who wants to make an allegation of abuse to call our Independent Reporting Line, 1-888-634-4499. All reports generated are immediately reported to the appropriate District Attorney,” it said.
“Sexual abuse is a heinous crime and the Diocese of Brooklyn is deeply committed to working with victims through our Office of Victim Assistance, which provides referrals for therapy, support groups for survivors and a yearly Healing Mass to pray for all who have been impacted by sexual abuse.”
The true costs of George Pell's abuse compensation scheme
Response was more beneficial to those who designed it
than victims and survivors
By Farrah Tomazin, The AgeThe controversial scheme set up by George Pell to handle sex abuse claims against Melbourne’s Catholic Church spent almost as much money paying its independent commissioner as it did compensating hundreds of victims.
The church’s own figures reveal that between 1996 and March 2014, the archdiocese spent $34.27 million to run its so-called Melbourne Response, but only $9.72 million – or 28 per cent of it – was used to compensate 307 child sex abuse victims.
Former archbishop George Pell established the Melbourne Response in 1996. CREDIT:NINE
The bulk of the money during that period was spent on other operational costs for the scheme, including $7.8 million to employ barrister Peter O’Callaghan, QC, as its independent commissioner, and a further $4.7 million on general legal fees.
Mr O’Callaghan’s job was to determine the credibility of victims’ claims and make suggestions about what action to take against alleged abusers.
Another $432,000 was used to fund the compensation panel that made recommendations about ex gratia payments, and $11 million was used to fund the church counselling service known as Carelink, most of which was spent on staff and administration.
The figures, contained in a spreadsheet labelled “strictly confidential”, are the most up to date the archdiocese has ever been required to provide publicly. They were subpoenaed by the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse as “supplementary information” and until now have been buried in thousands of documents that form part of the commission’s landmark inquiry.
But as Pell awaits the outcome of his appeal over the historic sex abuse of a choirboy in 1996 – the same year he announced the Melbourne Response – the expenditure has reignited anger among those who have long argued the scheme was designed to minimise the church’s legal and financial liability.
“These figures show how the Melbourne Response did more to benefit the people who designed it, rather than help the victims," said Jim Boyle, whose late brother, Gavan, was abused by Monsignor Penn Jones, a former archdiocese chaplain who would later become the chairman of the Catholic Church’s insurance company. "It was a racket."
Under the Melbourne Response, the independent commissioner investigates allegations of abuse and makes a determination based on the evidence. Victims can then be referred to Carelink and/or the compensation panel.
Jim Boyle, whose later brother, Gavan, was abused by Monsignor Penn Jones, says the Melbourne Response was more beneficial to those who designed it than victims and survivors. CREDIT:EDDIE JIM
The archdiocese declined to respond when asked if it stood by the system, which is under review following the creation of a national redress scheme.
However in a statement, Mr O’Callaghan, who retired in 2017, defended the initiative and said it would be "a big mistake to attribute the whole of the fees of $7.8 million to my dealing with complaints of child sexual abuse".
Peter O'Callaghan, QC, gives testimony about the Melbourne Response at a Victorian parliamentary inquiry in 2013. CREDIT:JUSTIN MCMANUS
"The Melbourne Response was world first innovation in dealing with the issue of clerical child abuse," Mr O'Callaghan said.
"It was run fairly, efficiently and compassionately and provided a remedy for victims of clerical child sexual abuse, where none had previously existed. Whilst I was Independent Commissioner I dealt with complaints in the order of 400. Only 3 per cent of complaints were not accepted."
The Melbourne Response was set up by then Archbishop George Pell in 1996 and continued by Denis Hart when he took over as Melbourne's archbiship in 2001.
But critics have argued that the process lacked compassion: for instance, a 2015 study by Melbourne lawyer and advocate Judith Courtin for Monash University found that most of the people she interviewed ended up feeling "re-traumatised" by the experience.
Jim Boyle, whose brother Gavan died in 2005 from "lung cancer and self-imposed malnutrition", agreed. He believes Gavan’s abuse was compounded by the lack of psychological and pastoral support he received at Carelink that year, which was then under different management. The church, however, has previously rejected this.
Other parts of the Melbourne Response have also come under scrutiny. The royal commission raised concerns that it was “not sufficiently independent” of the archdiocese, and that there was the “potential for conflict” given the church’s law firm, Corrs, were also the lawyers responsible for the scheme.
It also found that Mr O’Callaghan provided advice to two victims that discouraged them from going to the police. One of those victims was Paul Hersbach, who was abused by Father Victor Rubeo in the 1980s. The other victim was known as Mr AFA and was repeatedly sexually abused as a teenager by Father Michael Glennon.
Mr O’Callaghan testified that he felt he had an obligation to inform complainants about what might happen if they went to the police. But the commission wrote: “Having regard to Mr O'Callaghan QC’s defined role, this advice was not appropriate.”
The archdiocese declined to comment when asked about the future of the Melbourne Response – noting that current archbishop Peter A. Comensoli was busy in Rome – and refused to provide updated figures on its expenditure.
However, in February, the day after suppression orders for George Pell’s conviction were lifted, Archbishop Comensoli told ABC radio that he expected the Melbourne Response would likely “come to an end in due course” given a national compensation system was now in place.
“I think most people, if they wish to seek a redress process, will go towards that rather than Melbourne Response,” he said.
Arkansas diocese pays $790,000
to settle priest-abuse claim
by Youssef Rddad, Democrat Gazette
Diocese of Little Rock. - Photo by Gavin Lesnick
The Catholic Diocese of Little Rock confirmed Thursday it paid nearly $800,000 to five men who say a priest sexually abused them when they were boys in the early 1970s.
Josh Gillispie, a lawyer in North Little Rock, filed a legal claim on behalf of the men saying the Rev. John J. McDaniel sexually abused them while they were students at Our Lady of the Holy Souls Catholic School in Little Rock.
Dennis Lee, a spokesman for the diocese, confirmed $790,000 was paid to settle the case after reaching an agreement with the men through a third-party mediator last month.
The settlement is the first publicly acknowledged payment by the diocese since it released a list of clergy who worked in Arkansas at some point and had credible or substantiated claims of sexual abuse against them.
The diocese hasn't said how many accusations there are or whether there are plans to settle other cases.
Accusations against Roman Catholic church leaders across the world and the church's reaction to those accusations have led to concern among congregants.
Pope Francis issued guidelines earlier this year for dioceses and archdioceses to address sexual-abuse cases. Those rules stopped short of mandating reporting to law enforcement officials.
"The abuse that Fr. McDaniel visited upon these trusting, innocent boys was unusually horrific, even compared to other priest abuse cases," Gillispie said in a statement announcing the settlement.
They were between 12 and 15 years old at the time, he said. Gillispie said the abuse happened on campus, and witnesses reported seeing McDaniel take boys to his rectory bedroom.
Lawyers and the church settled their case out of court, and it blocks the men from filing lawsuits against the diocese, Gillispie said.
The settlement didn't include nondisclosure agreements, which allows the men to speak freely about their experiences, Gillispie said. He added such deals are rare for clergy-abuse settlements.
"The reason we are doing this is because my clients want other victims to know that they are not alone," Gillispie said. "These five guys lived into their 50s and early 60s thinking they were alone, which added on and compounded the suffering over the years."
Lee said the church's insurance at the time of abuse covered $250,000 for the settlement, and a diocesan insurance fund paid for the remainder.
"Now that this settlement has been made public, the diocese is in a position to provide additional details which will inform its Catholic faithful about how their money is being spent," he said.
The diocese included McDaniel on its list of clergy "credibly accused" of sexual abuse. Nearly two dozen clergy members were on the church's list, and 12 had credible accusations lodged against them in Arkansas. The others served in the state but had accusations made outside the state.
McDaniel served at multiple churches across the state and finished his career at the Little Rock church before his death in 1974, according to the diocese.
It wasn't known if McDaniel was ever charged with a crime.
Gillispie said he wants to draw attention to Arkansas laws that cap lawsuits and criminal charges from being filed after a certain amount of time passes.
A few states, including New York and California, have passed laws extending the statute of limitation for child sex crimes. Some also included legal paths for victims to file lawsuits at any age for a set amount of time.
Lee said the diocese urges anyone who was sexually abused by church members to contact the Arkansas Child Abuse Hotline and victims assistance services within the Diocese of Little Rock.
Texas priest at center of alleged child sex scandal accused of exposing himself during confession
KMBZ(HOUSTON, Texas) -- A priest at the center of an alleged child sex scandal in Houston has been indicted on charges of exposing himself to a teen during confession.
Father Manuel La Rosa-Lopez of the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston faces his fifth sexual-abuse charge in Conroe, Texas, based on alleged incidents in the 1990s and 2000s. La Rosa-Lopez exposed himself to an unnamed 15-year-old during confession in the year 2000, according to the indictment.
The victim spoke about the incident in a session with a therapist in 2017, according to the lawsuit.
The indictment means there are now five charges against La Rosa-Lopez involving three alleged sexual-abuse victims.
ABC News contacted the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston, which referred questions about the case to La Rosa-Lopez's attorney, Wendell Odom, who did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Montgomery County District Attorney Brett Ligon told ABC News that they are hoping to get to trial by the end of this year or early 2020.
"Obviously, we feel strongly about the evidence against La Rosa-Lopez and our pursuit of justice for victims," he said. "We look forward to presenting our case to a Montgomery County jury soon."
Michael Norris, the head of the Houston arm of the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, told ABC News that his hope is that La Rosa-Lopez pleads guilty, and that the Catholic Church is in need of reform.
"The victims do not need to be re-victimized by reliving their pain on the witness stand," he said. "If the church truly cared about the victims, they would encourage him to do this. We still have a long way to go. The church still doesn’t get it. The first priority of the church is to protect the institution."
The latest charges against La Rosa-Lopez come amid larger troubles for the church, as more than a dozen states have investigations stemming from a 2018 Pennsylvania grand jury report detailing a massive cover-up of clergy abuse allegations by the Catholic Church.
Investigations are currently underway in Arkansas, Colorado, Delaware, Florida, Illinois, Maryland, Michigan, Missouri, Nebraska, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Pennsylvania, Vermont, Virginia, West Virginia, the District of Columbia and the Archdiocese of Anchorage in Alaska.
Minnesota diocese reaches $34 million settlement with abuse survivors
Catholic News Service
Bishop John M. LeVoir of New Ulm, Minn., center, is pictured in Rome March 5, 2012. The Diocese of New Ulm, area parishes and survivors of clergy sexual abuse, have reached a $34 million settlement in the diocese's bankruptcy case. (Credit: Paul Haring/CNS.)
NEW ULM, Minnesota - The Diocese of New Ulm has reached a $34 million settlement with 93 survivors of clergy sexual abuse.
In a letter to Catholics of the diocese, Bishop John M. LeVoir said he believes the settlement “we have reached is a fair one” for abuse survivors and also allows the diocese to continue its ministry to those it serves throughout south and west-central Minnesota.
“(It) represents years of respectful negotiations with those representing victims and survivors in order to come to a fair resolution of claims while continuing essential church ministry,” he said June 26. “I believe the settlement agreement we have reached is a fair one.”
News reports quoted Jeff Anderson, an attorney for many of the New Ulm claimants, as saying that reaching the settlement was “a big day for survivors.”
“Throughout this process, all of the survivors have demonstrated tremendous courage and patience,” he said. “They have advanced the child protection movement and made their communities safer for kids.”
A June 26 diocesan news release on the agreement said the funds for the settlement “are made up of insurance coverage settlements and cash and property contributions from the diocese and parishes, including parishes that do not have claims against them.”
“When claimants approve the settlement plan, it will result in a ‘channeling injunction,’ which will prevent claims against the diocese and parishes based on events that occurred before confirmation of the plan,” it said.
It also said that approval of the settlement by the U.S. Bankruptcy Court will resolve the diocese’s Chapter 11 case. The diocese filed for reorganization under Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code in early March 2017.
In a statement at the time, LeVoir said he asked diocesan attorneys to take the action in response to the enactment of the 2013 Minnesota Child Victims Act, which temporarily lifted the civil statute of limitations on child sexual abuse claims for three years. That three-year window ended May 25, 2016.
Under the window, 101 lawsuits were filed against the New Ulm Diocese and some of its parishes.
Taking the legal step for reorganization was “the fairest way to resolve sexual abuse claims while allowing the Church to continue its essential work of serving people in our local communities,” LeVoir said at the time.
Now that a settlement has been reached, the diocese in its June 26 news release outlined other steps in the process which it said it hopes will be completed by the end of this year. Those steps include filing “a formal plan of reorganization and a disclosure statement” with the court, which the bankruptcy judge must review and approve, if it “provides adequate information.” The plan and disclosure statement then will be sent to the claimants for them to vote on it. Two-thirds of voting claimants must approve the plan, the diocese said.
Once the judge issues an order confirming the plan, a trust will be created consisting of the assets described in the plan. A court-approved trustee for the plan will then make payments to claimants, the diocese said.
“I am deeply grateful to victims and survivors who courageously came forward to raise awareness about clergy sexual abuse and to work to ensure others will not have to suffer the wounds they sustained and the pain they endured,” LeVoir said in his letter. “Victims and survivors are owed just compensation for the harm they have suffered by those entrusted with serving them.”
“Their coming forward to share their stories and seek justice from the Church that failed them took great courage. I again apologize to them on behalf of the Church,” he added. “I hope that the settlement agreement we have reached together helps victims and survivors on their healing journey.”
Lawyer for former Michigan priest denies new
sex abuse allegations
by Associated Press
LANSING, Mich. (AP) — A lawyer for a former Catholic priest facing sexual abuse charges as part of the Michigan attorney general's ongoing investigation into clergy abuse is denying the new allegations.
Vincent DeLorenzo, who served several Michigan churches, was charged last month with criminal sexual conduct. He admitted when he resigned from a Flint-area parish in 2002 that he had sexually abused a child. He wasn't charged at the time, but the Diocese of Lansing has said eight people eventually accused him of sexual abuse.
DeLorenzo's attorney, Michael Manley, told the Lansing State Journal the former priest "publicly admitted his past wrongs and received harsh punishment within the church."
Manley says DeLorenzo "vehemently denies" the new allegations, which involve a different child. He's free on bond ahead of an Aug. 1 hearing.
Rhode Island diocese names 50 clergy members
‘credibly accused’ of child sexual abuse
By ELLA TORRES| NEW YORK DAILY NEWS |
In this file photo, parishioners kneel as Providence diocese Bishop Thomas Tobin, right begins Mass at the Cathedral of Saints Peter and Paul in Providence, R.I., on Sept. 14, 2018. Tobin called for a day of prayer and penance due to the sex abuse scandal in the Roman Catholic Church. (Jennifer McDermott/AP)
The Roman Catholic Diocese of Providence on Monday released a list of 50 clerics, religious order priests and deacons deemed “credibly accused” of sexually abusing children.
Of the clergy named, 19 priests and deacons are still alive. They range in age from 60 to 98. All except one were removed from the ministry. One priest resigned. The other 31 names are of those who have died.
“The Diocese of Providence is committed to publishing on its website the list of Diocesan priests who were the subject of credible allegations of sexual abuse of minors and the current status of each,” the website, where the names were posted, read.
The list, which was compiled with files dating back to 1950, also included where the men once worked.
Bishop Thomas Tobin said the public naming was “a difficult but necessary moment” in the church. “As Jesus as our witness, we will continue to do everything in our power to remove sexual abuse from the Church, and to bring healing and peace to all,” he wrote in a letter accompanying the list.
It comes amid more than 140 religious orders and Roman Catholic dioceses releasing similar lists. A majority of the lists were either published or significantly updated since August, when a Pennsylvania grand jury detailed hundreds of cases of alleged abuse.
The Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests — better known as SNAP — said that while they applauded the “bit of transparency” from the diocese, there is still more work to be done to ensure the full weight of justice is brought for abuse survivors.
“We know the best way to get full transparency and a true accounting of the problem is by relying on secular, independent officials,” the group’s statement said.
The attorney general’s office is reviewing the allegations of sexual abuse and will cross-reference the list with previous allegations, Attorney General Peter Neronha's spokeswoman, Kristy dosReis, said Monday.
The diocese called the list a “working document” and would update it should more information become available. The diocese also urged victims of sexual abuse by a clergy member, or those who have knowledge of such abuse, to come forward.
Rhode Island is among the most heavily Catholic states in the country.
Priests accused of sex abuse served in
almost every RI city and town
TARGET 12by: Eli Sherman, Ted Nesi, Darren Soens, Kim Kalunian
PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WPRI) – When the Roman Catholic Diocese of Providence gave the late Rev. Robert Marcantonio his 16th and final pastoral assignment in 1989, he’d already been accused of sexually abusing minors multiple times over the previous two decades.
Marcantonio, who died in 1999, started out at Sacred Heart Church in West Warwick in 1967. Within three years diocesan leaders were alerted that he had molested multiple boys, according to documents compiled by the group BishopAccountability.org.
Rather than remove Marcantonio from ministry, however, the diocese sent him to Iowa. He returned to Rhode Island in 1975 and resumed active ministry, spending four years at St. John Vianney Church in Cumberland and then a decade at Rhode Island College, along with overlapping assignments at the University of Rhode Island, Bryant College and the U.S. Navy Reserve. More abuse allegations followed.
The Providence Diocese finally removed Marcantonio from ministry in 1989, according to a list of “credibly accused” priests released Monday by Bishop Thomas Tobin. His alleged misconduct was hardly a secret: a year after his removal, Marcantonio was the subject of an explosive investigative report on WPRI 12 that led then-Bishop Louis Gelineau to revoke the station’s right to televise Thanksgiving and Christmas Masses.
The new list of 50 Rhode Island priests and clergymen credibly accused of molesting minors since 1950 suggests Marcantonio’s treatment was not unique. A Target 12 analysis of the list reveals the accused individuals were assigned to 185 Rhode Island institutions, including churches, schools, hospitals and Catholic youth organizations.
The accused priests served in 32 of Rhode Island’s 39 municipalities, ranging from parishes in smaller towns to 16 separate institutions in Woonsocket, 17 in Warwick and 45 in Providence. No single institution saw more of them than St. Mary’s in Cranston, home to a parish and a school: eight priests on the list, including Marcantonio, were assigned there between 1953 and 2001.
Over the 22 years leading up to his removal, Marcantonio served as a pastor at five parishes, six colleges, a high school and a seminary, spanning three states. Survivor advocates say such frequent reassignments were a common trend for abusive priests.
“Moving around predators was typical,” said Tim Lennon, president of the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, or SNAP.
If this had been the Gospel they were spreading, instead of evil, they would have done a commendable job.
In Providence, six accused priests were assigned to the Cathedral of Sts. Peter and Paul between 1931 and 1988, and six pastored Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church between 1936 and 1981. They were among the 17 churches served by the late Rev. Charles Dolan, another priest on the list, during 40 years in active ministry that stretched from the presidencies of Herbert Hoover to Richard Nixon.
The list contains no details about the underlying accusations, so it’s unclear how many children the diocese believes each of the 50 priests victimized, and where the alleged abuse took place. Attorney General Peter Neronha indicated Monday there also may be other credible accusations that were never reported to the diocese. Tobin disclosed during a 2007 court deposition that there were 125 accused priests named in sealed church files at the time.
The transferring of abusive clergymen has become known as “priest shuffling,” which critics say is what the Catholic Church did during much of the 20th century when sex abuse was alleged. (The Providence Diocese says it now forwards all accusations to the state police, the local police department where the accusation originated and the attorney general.)
“Some of them have been moved 15 times, 12 times, 13 times, 16 times – that speaks thunder,” said Rep. Carol Hagan McEntee, D-Narragansett, who sponsored a newly enacted law that extends the statute of limitation on childhood sex abuse to 35 years.
“There’s a problem with the priest when they’re moved that often,” added McEntee, whose sister, Ann Hagan Webb, has said she was molested by a priest as a child.
Diocesan spokesperson Carolyn Cronin pushed back at that generalization, saying reassignments were “common to enrich a priest’s vocation with diverse educational and pastoral experiences.”
“Hundreds of good and faithful priests have been reassigned or transferred to different parishes and special assignments throughout their years in ministry,” she said. “It would be a grave disservice to paint them with a broad brush implying that their reassignment indicates any type of wrongdoing.”
Not all priests bounced around. The Rev. Richard Holden served at St. Vincent de Paul Church in Coventry from 1971 until his death in 1985. (He was accused posthumously, according to the diocese.) The Rev. Anthony DeAngelis, whom Webb has accused of molesting her when she was a child, pastored the Sacred Heart Church in West Warwick from 1936 to 1979 — the same church where Marcantonio started out.
But most others moved far more often and received a new assignment every few years, including the Rev. Paul Charland, whom the diocese named without any explanation of the allegations against him.
Charland — who is now 74, and did not respond to a request for comment — served between 1971 and 2011 in Providence, North Kingstown, Pawtucket, Cumberland, Coventry, Woonsocket, Tiverton, North Providence, Foster, Cumberland and Woonsocket, according to the diocese’s list.
Charland was “removed from ministry” on Aug. 26, 2011, according to the list. That phrase was not, however, used the following week in the diocesan newspaper’s regular roundup of priest appointments across Rhode Island.
The paper’s Sept. 1, 2011, appointments list said only: “Rev. Paul A. Charland from pastoral ministry to nursing homes in the Providence Area to Senior Priest status while continuing to reside at Regina Cleri Residence, Providence with restricted faculties, effective immediately.” (Regina Cleri is a home for priests located next door to St. Joseph’s Church on Hope Street.)
Cronin, the diocese’s spokesperson, said Charland “was fully removed from ministry and could no longer function as a priest” in 2011. But she did not respond to follow-up questions about whether he still has senior priest status now, or whether his current and former parishioners were notified that he had been removed due to credible abuse allegations.
Charland is one of at least four living clergymen on the diocese’s list whose allegations are not well documented, illustrating the lack of context provided about the underlying accusations. The list provides only the names, birthdays, current status and assignments of the 50 accused.
The scant detail is already raising more questions, and is concerning to those who want to stop future abuse from happening.
“Only by knowing what went wrong to enable abusers in the past can we best know how to prevent similar situations in the future,” said Zach Hinter, SNAP executive director, in a statement.
Tobin said Monday he wanted to release the list to show the church’s hierarchy has nothing to hide. But Webb said she doesn’t buy it, and Lennon questioned the bishop’s motives given the mounting number of dioceses that have recently released similar lists.
“They could have released the names years ago, five years ago, ten years ago,” he said. They are releasing names because the church has been exposed by outside forces … not because of any moral interest in the welfare of victims or the safety of children.”
70 Sex Abuse Cases Settled On Guam
They’re only a fraction of the more than 220 sex abuse cases
filed on Guam since 2016
By Anita Hofschneider Honolulu Civil Beat
The Pacific Daily News on Guam reported Friday that 70 sex abuse cases were settled against the Boy Scouts of America, Capuchins and Sisters of Mercy.
Forty-four of the cases were settled against the Boy Scouts after discussions took place in Honolulu. The settlement terms weren’t released, the PDN reported.
The 70 cases are only a fraction of the at least 220 sex abuse cases filed on Guam since the U.S. territory removed the statute of limitations for child sex abuse cases in 2016. Most of the cases are against the Catholic Church, which is still trying to settle the lawsuits.
New sex abuse cases are still getting filed.
NY Archdiocese Sues Insurers After Coverage Denied for Child Sex Abuse Claims
Insurers don't plan on covering cases covered under new laws
That must strike terror into the hearts of the church hierarchy
By Dan M. Clark
The Archdiocese of New York has filed a lawsuit against its various insurers over the years after one company said it’s not planning to cover claims brought through a new law enacted this year that will open a window for older victims of child sex abuse to file civil litigation in New York.
The suit serves as a proactive move by the archdiocese, which is seeking a declaration by the court that the insurance companies must provide coverage for, and defend the church against, those claims.
It’s the exact outcome church officials had feared early on in discussions over the Child Victims Act, a bill passed in New York this year that extended the statute of limitations for cases of child sex abuse and created a temporary window for victims of any age to bring civil litigation. That window, which runs for a year, opens in August.
The Catholic Church eventually came around to support the final version of the legislation, which was approved by lawmakers in January and signed into law by Gov. Andrew Cuomo.
But the litigation brought by the archdiocese last week affects more than just members of the clergy, the suit claimed. Other institutions, like schools or hospitals, could also find themselves in a situation later this year where an insurer rejects coverage for claims of child sex abuse.
Attorneys from Blank Rome in Manhattan are representing the archdiocese in the lawsuit, which was brought against nearly three dozen companies in Manhattan Supreme Court last week.
It was prompted by a decision in May from Indemnity Insurance Co. of North America, or INA, and its parent company Chubb Group of Insurance Companies. They had written in a letter to the archdiocese that they didn’t plan to defend the church against a lawsuit brought by a child sex abuse victim in April and wouldn’t provide coverage for the claims he’d alleged.
That lawsuit was brought against the archdiocese by John Michael Norman, who alleged that two members of the clergy sexually abused him from 1972 to 1974. He brought claims of negligence against the archdiocese in the suit, claiming the church “knew and/or reasonably should have known” about the abuse.
During that time, according to the suit, the archdiocese was insured by INA. The insurance policy purchased at the time stated that INA has the duty to defend the church “even if the allegations of the suit are groundless, false, or fraudulent,” the complaint said.
The archdiocese provided notice to INA of the lawsuit in April, but was denied coverage about two weeks later.
Chubb had written, on behalf of INA, that they weren’t obligated to provide coverage or defend against the lawsuit based on the nature of Norman’s claims. The denial letter said Norman “alleges to have sustained injury that was expected and/or intended from the standpoint of the archdiocese. These allegations do not give rise to an ‘occurrence’ under the INA policies.”
The archdiocese claimed in the complaint filed last week that Chubb and INA misinterpreted Norman’s lawsuit. They argued that Norman didn’t allege the archdiocese expected or intended on him being sexually abused. His suit was worded differently, the church said.
“Instead, the Norman suit makes alternative allegations that the archdiocese knew or should have known of the improper conduct of Father Fernando and Monsignor Brennan,” the complaint said. “The Norman suit thus seeks to hold the archdiocese liable even though the archdiocese may not have expected or intended, or even had notice or knowledge of the alleged abuse.”
The church also argued that the insurance companies ignored that Norman’s suit doesn’t identify who might have known about the alleged abuse and what information was available to the archdiocese at the time.
“To the extent that the Norman suit alleges that the archdiocese had knowledge of the alleged abuse, the Norman suit fails even to allege that the archdiocese actually knew or received notice of Father Fernando’s or Monsignor Brennan’s pedophilic propensities prior to the alleged abuse, thus leaving open the possibility that the archdiocese neither expected nor intended the abuse, if at all, until some point after it started,” the lawsuit said.
Norman’s suit hasn’t yet been filed, but it’s set to become active when the one-year window opens in August. The Child Victims Act raised the statute of limitations for civil claims of child sex abuse to age 55. Victims above that age will have the window to initiate their litigation.
If the archdiocese, and other institutions, are denied coverage of those claims by insurance companies, they’ll have to foot the bill during the one-year window and for any other civil claims brought within the confines of the law.
A spokesman for the church confirmed the details of the suit Monday afternoon.
“Rather than honor its contractual obligation under the insurance policies they issued, Chubb has advised the Archdiocese that it will not stand behind its insurance policies and contractual obligations,” said Joseph Zwilling, a spokesman for the archdioese. “This leaves the Archdiocese with no choice but to commence a lawsuit to ask the court to order Chubb to stand behind their insurance policies.”
The lawsuit is seeking to have the court strike down the reasoning by Chubb and INA for denying coverage and refusing to defend the church, and then to have that decision applied to each of the other insurers named.
A spokesman for Chubb declined to comment on the lawsuit, saying that company policy precludes them from speaking on open litigation. It’s unclear if the company has yet retained counsel for the litigation.
The New York archdiocese includes Manhattan, the Bronx and Staten Island in New York City and Dutchess, Orange, Putnam, Rockland, Sullivan, Ulster and Westchester counties.
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