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Saturday, October 05, 2002
TUCSON
Diocesan board set to review sex cases
Arizona
Republic
Associated Press
Oct. 4, 2002
TUCSON - Tucson's bishops have appointed a 12-member board to review all sexual
misconduct allegations against priests, church employees and volunteers, the Diocese
of Tucson announced Thursday.
The Sexual Misconduct Review Board, empowered to review all such allegations,
was created under sexual misconduct prevention and response guidelines approved
July 30 by Bishop Manuel Moreno.
posted by Bill Mitchell on 10/5/2002
09:20:36 AM
BELLEVILLE (IL)
The Bishop, The Scandal And His Plan
Gregory's '94 Experience Shapes Centrist Response
Washington
Post
By Alan Cooperman
Washington Post Staff Writer
September 28, 2002
BELLEVILLE, Ill. -- When Wilton D. Gregory arrived here as bishop nearly a decade
ago, this sprawling diocese of small towns and large cornfields was in the midst
of a sex scandal that was truly American Gothic.
Thirty-three people, including three priests, said they had been abused by priests.
The local newspaper reported sex parties in rectories, a church-sponsored youth
camp run by an alleged pedophile, a male prostitute who stole checks from a priest-client,
a "homosexual ring" operating out of the National Shrine of Our Lady of the Snows,
a priest who impregnated a 16-year-old and then gave her a voodoo potion to induce
an abortion.
posted by Bill Mitchell on 10/5/2002
09:12:55 AM SPOKANE
Diocese may alter rule, name accused ex-priest
Seattle
Times
SPOKANE — In an apparent change from past practice, the Spokane Roman Catholic
Diocese is considering making a former priest's name public in its investigation
into allegations of sexual abuse of boys decades ago.
Last week, the diocese was sued and accused of covering up serial abuse by former
priest Patrick O'Donnell.
The latest case involves a priest accused of child abuse in a single incident
in the 1950s but who may have continued to molest boys into the 1970s, the Rev.
Steven Dublinski, the diocese's vicar general, told The Spokesman-Review.
posted by Bill Mitchell on 10/5/2002
09:08:59 AM
MILWAUKEE
Interview with Archbishop Timothy Dolan
Journal Sentinel
Sept. 29, 2002
Archbishop Timothy M. Dolan, who was installed as Milwaukee's 10 archbishop in
August, was interviewed in his office at the Cousins Center in St. Francis on
Sept. 26 by reporter Tom Heinen. Here is a transcript of that interview:
Q: You refer frequently to Pope John Paul II in your writings, in your homilies.
And, at your installation, the theme of the homily was "Be Not Afraid." That seems
to be the theme that Pope John Paul used in his first homily when he was installed,
or in his first address to people in St. Peter's Square. Did you intentionally
model yours after his?
A: I did. If I'm not mistaken -- because I did the same research -- his catchphrase
on Oct. 16 (1978) was "Open Wide the Doors to Christ." And then on Oct. 22, (1978)
when he was installed as pope, that's when he used "Be Not Afraid." I can remember
watching that, and I can remember wondering why he was using "Be Not Afraid,"
because at the time I wasn't too afraid of anything and I didn't know what the
church had to be afraid of.
posted by Bill Mitchell on 10/5/2002
09:07:22 AM
Funding problems plague archdioceses
Many are forced to cut programs, lay off staff as donations decrease
Detroit
News
By Sandra Marquez / Associated Press
LOS ANGELES -- Javier Stauring, a Roman Catholic chaplain at a Los Angeles juvenile
detention center, has yet to enter the archdiocese's towering new $189 million
cathedral.
He says he is uncomfortable worshipping at Our Lady of the Angels Cathedral --
with its fancy gift shop and imported alabaster windows -- given the layoffs and
other cutbacks caused by a $4.3 million budget deficit at the headquarters of
the nation's largest archdiocese.
The deficit will cost 60 people their jobs this month and curtail programs that
offer anti-abortion counseling and serve college students, gays, minorities, inmates
and the disabled.
"There are some bad feelings about how the church has chosen to allocate funds,"
said Stauring, who will lose half of his 24 staff members to the layoffs. "It
would have been nice if we had heard: 'We really did try to save these services.'
But I never heard that. It just shows where the priority is."
Elsewhere around the country, the archdioceses of Boston, Chicago and Milwaukee
have announced budget cuts. Among the reasons given: the downturn on Wall Street,
higher operating costs, a drop-off in contributions because of the priest sex
scandal, and the prospect of multimillion-dollar settlements with victims.
posted by Bill Mitchell on 10/5/2002
09:04:27 AM
Survivors of abuse meet in Minnesota
Pioneer Press
Organizers this week announced formation of a Minnesota chapter of the Survivors
Network of those Abused by Priests.
Victim-survivors created the nationwide self-help and advocacy group in 1992 to
assist those sexually abused as children and minors by priests, brothers, nuns
and teachers in the Roman Catholic Church.
Twin Cities organizers, who wish to remain anonymous, have been holding meetings
since late August for about 20 former victims. About half were abused while living
in Minnesota; others suffered abuse elsewhere.
posted by Bill Mitchell on 10/5/2002
09:02:24 AM
WESTON (MA)
Official Tells Catholics: Fight Abuse With Purse and Feet
The
New York Times
By PAM BELLUCK
WESTON, Mass., Oct. 4 — Standing in this Boston suburb, at the epicenter of the
sexual abuse scandal in the Roman Catholic Church, Gov. Frank Keating of Oklahoma,
chairman of a national board monitoring how the church handles the problem, did
not mince many words.
"We would not be here if the bishops had handled this before," said Governor Keating,
who was appointed by America's Catholic bishops in June to lead the commission
overseeing compliance with their new policy on sexual abuse.
"There is no reason why I should be here," he said. "There is no reason why this
commission should be here if what should have been done had been done."
In his first speech on the scandal since his appointment, Mr. Keating said that
if bishops failed to comply with the new policy, parishioners could withhold contributions
or attend Mass in another diocese.
posted by Kathy Shaw on 10/5/2002
09:01:27 AM
MINNEAPOLIS
Survivors' group is a place for priest-abuse victims to share their pain
Star Tribune
Warren Wolfe
Star Tribune
Published Oct 3, 2002
Tears glistened on their cheeks as they listened to each others' stories of betrayal
and survival -- men and women, young and not so young, soft-spoken and bombastic
-- a dozen people coping with sexual abuse at the hands of Catholic priests.
"People think that you go through something like this and then you recover. But
it's not like that," said Hans Meier, 52, who said he was abused when he was in
grade school in Winona, Minn.
posted by Bill Mitchell on 10/5/2002
09:00:04 AM
BALTIMORE
Was it fair to list accused priests?
Baltimore
Sun
Letters to the Editor:
As a Catholic, I was deeply disturbed by the method chosen by Cardinal William
H. Keeler to decide whose names should be included on the "sexual offender" list
printed in The Sun ("Archdiocese's list of clergy accused of child sexual abuse,"
Sept. 26).
Apparently, Cardinal Keeler took it upon himself to determine whether the charges
against these individuals were "credible." If so, the cardinal put the name on
the list.
posted by Bill Mitchell on 10/5/2002
08:57:58 AM
MILLVILLE (MA)
Complaint against local priest under review
The
Woonsocket (RI) Call
JOSEPH FITZGERALD, Staff Writer October 05, 2002
MILLVILLE -- The Diocese of Worcester's Pastoral Care Committee has begun reviewing
a complaint against a Millville priest accused of molesting a 14-year-old boy
18 years ago and will forward a recommendation to Bishop Daniel Patrick Reilly
when that process is completed, a spokesman for the diocese said yesterday.
Rev. Jean-Paul Gagnon, a priest at St. Augustine's Catholic Church in Millville
for the past six years, is accused of molesting a 14-year-old boy while serving
as a parish priest in Worcester in the early 1980s. The accusations come from
a civil lawsuit filed this week in Worcester Superior Court by Timothy P. Staney
and his parents, Joseph and Corinne Staney.
"We were served the official complaint late Thursday afternoon so this is only
our first chance seeing it," Ray Delisle, spokesman for the Diocese of Worcester,
said yesterday. "This is all new to us and the Pastoral Care Committee is just
beginning to review the details. We're not entirely sure if even Father Gagnon
has been served."
Houston-based attorney Daniel J. Shea is representing the Staney family. The lawsuit
also names as defendants the Diocese of Worcester and Raymond Tremblay, who was
a religious education teacher at the Holy Name of Jesus parish.
posted by Kathy Shaw on 10/5/2002
08:52:05 AM
MANCHESTER (NH)
Panel begins review
of clergy sexual abuse policy
The
Union Leader
By KATHRYN MARCHOCKI
Union Leader Staff
Ten years and three revisions after the nation’s Roman Catholic bishops published
their first sexual misconduct policy, a new effort to refine it against today’s
standards and scandals began yesterday.
“Here we are again restoring trust,” Bishop John B. McCormack of Manchester said,
referring to the national policy, titled “Restoring Trust,” adopted by the bishops
in 1992.
“And so the effort goes on. What we need to do is to help people within our church
and our society to have a strong sense that we care for our children,” he said.
posted by Kathy Shaw on 10/5/2002
08:46:52 AM
WORCESTER (MA)
Holy Cross to hold religious conference
Worcester
Telegram & Gazette
By Emilie Astell
Telegram & Gazette Staff
WORCESTER-- A religious conference this month at the College of the Holy Cross
will feature discussions on Catholicism and how it is practiced, but it will not
address allegations of sexual abuse of children by priests.
The Rev. Bruce T. Morrill, S.J., a visiting professor from Boston College, said
the conference is not directed at the current crisis among priests, but is aimed
at addressing Roman Catholic practices and rituals.
“The conference deals with how power is shared, constructed and challenged,” he
said.
The four-day event, titled “Practicing Catholic: Ritual, Body and Contestation
in Catholic Faith” will run Oct. 18-21 at the college.
posted by Kathy Shaw on 10/5/2002
08:41:45 AM
NORTH ANDOVER (MA)
Catholic group blasts bishops' bans
The Eagle Tribune
From staff and wire reports
Likening the bishops' actions to "totalitarian rulers," the Catholic lay group
Voice of the Faithful is demanding a chapter be allowed back into North Andover's
St. Michael's Church and an apology from the Merrimack Valley's bishop.
The Most Rev. Emilio S. Allue banned a chapter of the group from meeting at the
North Andover parish earlier this week and accused them of promoting "hidden issues."
Despite, the ban, the local chapter will meet in mid-November, said spokesman
John Vellante, most likely at the North Parish Unitarian Church on Academy road.
The group is also considering North Andover's St. Paul's Episcopal Church and
Merrimack College. A hall in Merrimac was also considered.
posted by Kathy Shaw on 10/5/2002
08:36:25 AM
BOSTON (MA)
Archdiocese plans to launch anti-abuse training programs
Boston
Herald
by Tom Mashberg
The Boston archdiocese hopes to train tens of thousands of parishioners in how
to root out child abuse, and will launch child welfare programs this month in
religious classes and schools, Bernard Cardinal Law's Cabinet secretary for child
protection said yesterday.
``The scope of the problem is tremendous,'' said Deacon Anthony P. Rizzuto, a
53-year-old grandfather and child psychologist with the hefty new title of Cabinet
Secretary for the Office of Child Advocacy, Implementation and Oversight. ``I've
spent weeks trying to get my hands around the scope of it. This won't be a one-shot
deal.''
During a round of media interviews yesterday, Rizzuto outlined the fledgling steps
of what he acknowledged to be a costly and complex effort to rescue the archdiocese
from its clergy abuse scandal.
posted by Kathy Shaw on 10/5/2002
08:33:40 AM WESTON (MA)
Sex abuse watchdog blasts Pilot newspaper
Boston
Herald
by Eric Convey
The chairman of a panel overseeing Catholic Church efforts to combat clergy sex
abuse nationwide ripped into the Archdiocese of Boston's Pilot newspaper yesterday
and criticized bishops who barred the group Voice of the Faithful from church
property.
Oklahoma Gov. Frank Keating also said he expects the Vatican to allow a trial
period for new abuse policies proposed by U.S. bishops. And he offered a qualified
endorsement of Bernard Cardinal Law's ministry.
Keating hit the weekly Pilot for printing an editorial criticizing him for having
said a Catholic could switch parishes to leave a diocese led by a bishop who didn't
implement sex abuse policies.
The paper, published by the Archdiocese of Boston, unfairly suggested he was urging
the faithful to sin, Keating said. ``That newspaper should know better.''
posted by Kathy Shaw on 10/5/2002
08:30:14 AM
BOSTON (MA)
Franciscan brother faces new charges
Boston
Globe
By Associated Press, 10/5/2002
A member of a Roman Catholic religious order already charged with sexually abusing
four altar boys was indicted yesterday on eight more counts of sexual assault
involving three new alleged victims.
Franciscan Brother Fidelis DeBerardinis, 75, was indicted by a Suffolk County
grand jury on five counts of indecent assault against all three alleged victims
and three counts of raping two of them.
DeBerardinis is free on $10,000 cash bail after he pleaded not guilty in August
to sexually abusing four altar boys while assigned to an East Boston church from
1968 to 1973.
posted by Kathy Shaw on 10/5/2002
08:26:56 AM
BOSTON (MA)
Archdiocese to put focus on prevention
New appointee says education about abuse key
Boston
Globe
By Sacha Pfeiffer, Globe Staff, 10/5/2002
Saying he has ''a foot both inside and outside'' the church, the man recently
named to oversee implementation of new child protection policies in the Boston
archdiocese described himself as ''uniquely qualified'' for the job, citing his
roles as a deacon and church employee - and as a husband, father, and grandfather.
''Yes, I am part of the archdiocese and I do work in close association with the
bishops,'' said Anthony P. Rizzuto, the former executive director of the office
of Catholic cemeteries, who last month was named cabinet secretary overseeing
the church's new Office for Child Advocacy, Implementation and Oversight. ''Yet
the diaconate represents a body of people whose experiences exist outside the
archdiocese.''
Rizzuto, 53, speaking publicly for the first time yesterday in back-to-back interviews
with media outlets, said he has a ''very close personal relationship'' with Cardinal
Bernard F. Law. Law, he said, asked him personally ''to be part of the process
of healing and restoration'' following the clergy sex abuse crisis that erupted
in January.
posted by Kathy Shaw on 10/5/2002
08:25:10 AM
WESTON (MA)
Keating questions banning of lay group
Boston
Globe
By Michael Paulson, Globe Staff, 10/5/2002
WESTON - Governor Frank Keating of Oklahoma, the man US Catholic bishops have
chosen to oversee the church's efforts to address a clergy sexual abuse crisis,
said yesterday he is baffled by a Boston bishop's banning of the lay group Voice
of the Faithful from church property, saying that the Archdiocese of Boston should
be open to the views of all.
''Just because you wear a red hat does not necessarily mean that you have the
knowledge of what is going on, and you need the input and advice of a wide variety
of people,'' he said. ''The archbishop here and the bishops need to be informed.
That means there's got to be far more dialogue. ... We would not be here if the
bishops had handled this, but we are here. ... No one should be afraid of dialogue.''
But, in front of a crowd of about 600 at Regis College that repeatedly voiced
unhappiness with Cardinal Bernard F. Law, Keating did not satisfy repeated questioners
wanting him to pledge to hold bishops accountable for failing to remove abusive
priests from ministry. Keating said it is up to the pope to decide whether to
remove any bishops, reminded the crowd that his job is to oversee the implementation
of a policy approved by the bishops, and said ''most'' bishops are ''wonderful,
warm, decent, principled, religious, and faithful men.''
posted by Kathy Shaw on 10/5/2002
08:21:09 AM
SAN FRANCISCO (CA)
Priest charged with abuse of boy, 13
Ex-S.F. pastor accused of molestation in '84
San
Francisco Chronicle
Peter Fimrite, Chronicle Staff Writer
Saturday, October 5, 2002
The former pastor of San Francisco's landmark St. Mary's Cathedral and a prominent
figure in the Roman Catholic Church was charged Thursday in Marin County after
allegedly molesting a boy around his 13th birthday in 1984.
The Rev. Milton T. Walsh was booked on charges of two counts of lewd or lascivious
acts with a child under 14 years old and is free on $100,000 bail. He was placed
on leave in August from St. Patrick's Seminary in Menlo Park, where he has been
a professor of theology since 1997. He could not be reached for comment Friday.
He is the latest area priest to be charged in a purge that began after a fresh
wave of allegations of child abuse roiled the church this year. In May, San Francisco's
Roman Catholic Archdiocese furnished prosecutors in Marin, San Mateo and San Francisco
with the names of about 40 accused molesters connected with the church.
posted by Jayson Landeza on 10/5/2002
06:13:25 AM
SAN FRANCISCO (CA)
Witch hunt, cont'd.
San
Francisco Examiner
BY WARREN HINCKLE
Examiner Associate Editor
INCOMING e-mail:
Thank you for your reflection on recent stories about as-yet unproven accusations
against San Francisco priests.
The Examiner's decision to refrain from such sensationalism, as practiced by The
City's other paper, may itself be the sensational story in these times. For that,
I am grateful.
Fr. Francis Cilia
Diocese of San Jose
Your column on the Other Paper's premature ejaculation about the priests was a
home run. Is it possible to shame any journalist these days? Did anyone over there
flush a little, let alone get red-faced? Nice work.
Jerry Nachman,
managing editor,
MSNBC New York
The Boston Globe, the lead newspaper in revealing the Catholic ecclesiastical
establishment's downright immoral delayed reaction to priests serially sexually
abusing children, published an editorial Tuesday noting that the clergy sex scandal
was bound to sprout spurious accusations against priests. It urged the Boston
archdiocese to reinstate its chief canon lawyer, who had to leave his job because
of a "baseless accusation" of abusing a man years ago -- a man who the Globe's
own reporters later discovered to be a professional fantasist.
posted by Jayson Landeza on 10/5/2002
05:14:38 AM
SAN FRANCISCO (CA)
Apology, or not?
San
Francisco Examiner
BY WARREN HINCKLE
Examiner Associate Editor
Readers of journalistic tea leaves are perplexed by serial stories in the Chronicle
last week.
The serial stories actually began Aug. 16, when a story prominently displayed
on the local news page reported that a well-loved and very well-known San Francisco
priest had been placed on administrative leave by the archdiocese because of recent
allegations that he had molested two boys "some 40 years ago."
The story, by staff writer Jaxon Van Derbeken, not only named the priest -- who
will not be named here for reasons that soon will become evident -- but ran a
photograph of him. No civil lawsuit or legal action of any kind had been filed
against the man.
This was followed by another story by the same writer Aug. 29, this time on the
front page of the Chronicle, stating that the San Francisco Archdiocese was "quietly
removing accused priests." When the reader turned the page to the jump of the
story on page A15, the Chronicle reprinted the name of the priest originally exposed
by Van Derbeken, and then named two other priests -- two of the most prominent
and best known in The City -- who had been the subject of charges dating back
to lines on the redwoods.
posted by Jayson Landeza on 10/5/2002
05:08:15 AM
WESTON (MA)
Official Tells Catholics: Fight Abuse With Purse and Feet
New York Times
By PAM BELLUCK
WESTON, Mass., Oct. 4 — Standing in this Boston suburb, at the epicenter of the
sexual abuse scandal in the Roman Catholic Church, Gov. Frank Keating of Oklahoma,
chairman of a national board monitoring how the church handles the problem, did
not mince many words.
"We would not be here if the bishops had handled this before," said Governor Keating,
who was appointed by America's Catholic bishops in June to lead the commission
overseeing compliance with their new policy on sexual abuse.
"There is no reason why I should be here," he said. "There is no reason why this
commission should be here if what should have been done had been done."
In his first speech on the scandal since his appointment, Mr. Keating said that
if bishops failed to comply with the new policy, parishioners could withhold contributions
or attend Mass in another diocese.
posted by Jayson Landeza on 10/5/2002
04:09:47 AM
Friday, October 04, 2002
WESTON (MA)
Keating says church should embrace reform groups
Boston.com
By Theo Emery, Associated Press, 10/04/02
WESTON, Mass. -- Oklahoma Gov. Frank Keating, visiting the epicenter of the church
sex abuse crisis for the first time since he was named head of a panel reviewing
church policy, said Friday the church hierarchy should embrace reform groups such
as Voice of the Faithful.
The church can only benefit from debate with lay groups, reformers, critics and
others, he said.
"Just because you wear a red hat does not necessarily mean that you have the knowledge
of what is going on, and you need the input and advice from a wide variety of
people," he said.
posted by Kathy Shaw on 10/4/2002
10:28:29 PM
BOSTON (MA)
Voice members buttress church
Boston
Globe
CARDINAL LAW would be well advised to step out of his newly mortgaged Italian
marble residence and look around. Instead of telling his bishops to try to put
a lid on the Voice of the Faithful (''Bishop bans group meetings at parish,''
Page A1, Oct. 1), he should take a look at who we are.
As a member of both the Voice of the Faithful and the Parish Voice in my own parish,
I assure him that the vast majority of both organizations consists of eucharistic
ministers, lectors, ushers, teachers of religious education and preparation for
First Communion and Confirmation, members of the church choir and the Parish Council,
and most of the attendees at daily Mass.
In other words, our members are the backbone and energy of the local parishes.
If he could make us disappear, as he apparently would like, there would be a lot
of empty seats in church.
posted by Kathy Shaw on 10/4/2002
07:42:36 PM
WORCESTER (MA)
Voice of the Faithful under study
The Catholic Free Press
By William T. Clew
Bishop Reilly has told the priests of the diocese that it would be premature for
parishes in the diocese to sponsor a chapter of the Voice of the Faithful (VOTF)
without prior consultation with his office. He did not, however, forbid groups
from meeting on church property as has been done in other dioceses.
In a letter, the bishop wrote that he will take more time to observe, listen and
learn about VOTF before he makes any decision about it.
He said he wrote the letter at the request of the Presbyteral Council, the group
of priests who represent the deaneries in the diocese.
posted by Kathy Shaw on 10/4/2002
03:31:30 PM
WORCESTER (MA)
Diocese working to restore trust
Expression of faith continues to be strong
The Catholic Free Press
The past nine months have been a trying time for the Church. Since the first media
reports in January about child sexual abuse by priests, trust has been lost and
is being regained only slowly. Bishop Reilly understands this as well as anyone
and is working on several fronts to restore that trust. He talked about the state
of the people in the Worcester Diocese in an interview last week as the first
in a series of articles and commentaries on Restoring Trust- Signs of Hope.
“The atmosphere is different but the expression of faith is as strong as ever,”
Bishop Reilly said assessing the state of the people in the Worcester Diocese
since the clergy sexual abuse scandal broke in January.
Things have changed but “that shouldn’t bring you to where you don’t speak the
way you should. Always speak about the Gospel - keeping your own faith strong
and recognizing the problem is out there but not always talking about it.”
posted by Kathy Shaw on 10/4/2002
03:30:10 PM
MINNEAPOLIS-ST. PAUL (MN)
Find out more about SNAP
Star Tribune
What: The Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAP) was formed in 1992
in Chicago as a nonprofit self-help organization of people sexually abused by
clergy. A Minnesota chapter was started last month.
Meetings: The Minnesota chapter meets every two weeks, usually on Mondays, from
6:30 to 8:30 p.m. For meeting places, call Belinda Martinez at 651-773-0607, or
send an e-mail to idgas999@hotmail.com.
posted by Kathy Shaw on 10/4/2002
01:27:47 PM
MINNEAPOLIS-ST PAUL (MN)
Survivors' group is a place for priest-abuse victims to share their pain
Star Tribune
Warren Wolfe
Star Tribune
Tears glistened on their cheeks as they listened to each others' stories of betrayal
and survival -- men and women, young and not so young, soft-spoken and bombastic
-- a dozen people coping with sexual abuse at the hands of Catholic priests.
"People think that you go through something like this and then you recover. But
it's not like that," said Hans Meier, 52, who said he was abused when he was in
grade school in Winona, Minn.
"That abuse never leaves you. It affects your whole life," he said Tuesday to
a dozen fellow members of Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAP),
who gathered Tuesday night in the meeting room of a Twin Cities library.
posted by Kathy Shaw on 10/4/2002
01:25:30 PM
BOSTON (MA)
17 Suits Name Former Priest in Sex Abuse
The
New York Times
By THE NEW YORK TIMES
BOSTON, Oct. 3 — The defrocked priest at the center of a sexual abuse scandal
here was named as a defendant today in 17 new civil lawsuits, filed by men who
say he sexually abused them as children.
The plaintiffs said the abuse by the former priest, John J. Geoghan, took place
from 1964 to 1996, when they were 7 to 15 years old. Mr. Geoghan is serving a
9-to-10-year sentence for groping a 10-year-old boy in 1991.
Mitchell Garabedian, the plaintiffs' lawyer, said they, including one plaintiff
who is now 17, were groped, molested and raped.
The lawsuits also implicate 20 other clergy members who worked with Mr. Geoghan
or supervised him. They include Cardinal Bernard F. Law, Bishop William Murphy,
and retired Bishop Joseph Maguire of the Diocese of Springfield, Mass., who are
named as defendants in two suits each, and Bishop Thomas V. Daily, who is named
in six of the suits.
posted by Kathy Shaw on 10/4/2002
09:39:03 AM
LOUISVILLE (KY)
Archdiocese official didn't check abuse claim
In a deposition, the Rev. John W. Hanrahan also said
he didn't report another priest who admitted molesting boys.
The
Courier-Journal
By Andrew Wolfson
awolfson@courier-journal.com
The Courier-Journal
The former chancellor of the Archdiocese of Louisville acknowledges that he did
nothing to investigate a parent's complaint that a priest had abused his son and
that he didn't report another priest who told him that he had molested some boys.
The Rev. John W. Hanrahan, who served as chancellor from 1966 to 1982, said in
a sworn deposition that when a parent alleged to him that a priest had acted inappropriately
with his son, Hanrahan told him, ''I think you ought to approach that priest and
talk to him about it.''
Hanrahan said he didn't record the complaint against the Rev. Edwin J. Scherzer
and didn't investigate it or discuss it with the archbishop or other chancery
officials to see if other accusations had been made against Scherzer.
posted by Kathy Shaw on 10/4/2002
09:14:54 AM
LARGO (FL)
Youth pastor gets 135 years for sex cases
A judge tells Randy Lee Morrow he wishes the sentence could be longer.
St.
Petersburg Times
By WILLIAM R. LEVESQUE, Times Staff Writer
LARGO -- Youth pastor Randy Lee Morrow lied all the time to the teenagers he says
looked up to him as a father figure. He admits it.
Lies about being in a biker gang. Lies about serving prison time. Lies about having
terminal cancer.
"I lied a lot more than I should have," he says.
But Morrow says he is telling the truth when he insists he did not have sex with
three teenage boys he pastored at Countryside Baptist Church in Clearwater.
A Pinellas-Pasco jury deliberated for two hours on Thursday before deciding that
was a lie, too. Jurors found Morrow, 42, guilty of nine charges involving allegations
he had sex with three teens, ages 13 to 15, while he was their youth pastor.
posted by Kathy Shaw on 10/4/2002
09:09:56 AM
NEW YORK (NY)
TEACHER'S ‘SEX' PET
New York Post
By JOE McGURK, PHILIP MESSING and ALY SUJO
October 4, 2002 -- The mother of the Catholic high-school teacher accused of taking
a 16-year-old student on a wild sexual odyssey through The Bronx's seamier side
told The Post yesterday that her daughter had paraded around town for months with
her teenage conquest.
Nelly Colon said her daughter Mildred had proudly introduced the youth as a 25-year-
old janitor with whom she worked at Cardinal Hayes HS in The Bronx.
"I don't know why my daughter would do this," she said from the Lower East Side
home she shares with her husband, daughter and granddaughter. "She's not well."
posted by Kathy Shaw on 10/4/2002
09:02:45 AM
NEW YORK
Priests Seek to Assert Rights and Fight Church Abuse Policy
The New York
Times
By DANIEL J. WAKIN
Venting feelings of anger, betrayal and sadness, Roman Catholic priests from across
the New York metropolitan area formed a group yesterday to assert their rights
in the face of strict new sexual abuse policies by the nation's bishops.
In a sign of the depth of feeling, a canon law expert from the Brooklyn Diocese
spoke of the rift that has developed between some bishops and priests because
of the policies, which were adopted in June and await action by the Vatican.
The expert, Msgr. William A. Varvaro, advised the men not to admit any sexual
abuses to their bishops, who under the policy must report all violations to the
authorities and permanently remove from the ministry any man found to have committed
an act of abuse.
posted by Kathy Shaw on 10/4/2002
08:54:33 AM
NEW YORK
Priests Discuss Abuse Policy
Newsday
By Stephanie Saul
STAFF WRITER
A noted canon lawyer Thursday warned priests to stay silent if confronted with
allegations of sexual abuse, and also predicted it will take an entire generation
before trust is restored in the church.
Speaking to a newly-formed group of about 150 area Roman Catholic priests, including
some who have married, Msgr. William Varvaro advised getting a lawyer at the first
whiff of an abuse allegation.
“A priest cannot feel free to go in and discuss an allegation. They probably never
thought that they would need advocacy and counsel when they are questioned by
their Bishop or the diocesan officials. The realization now is that they do,”
said Varvaro, also pastor of St. Margaret's Church in Middle Village.
posted by Kathy Shaw on 10/4/2002
08:48:58 AM
CHICAGO
One priest's uncontrollable urge to molest
Dally Herald
By Teresa Mask Dally Herald Staff Writer
Bill Cloutier was a Roman Catholic priest for 18 years.
He resigned in 1993 because, even after 14 years of treatment and two reassignments,
he realized his reason for being a priest was warped - it gave him access to young
boys he couldn't resist the urge to molest.
Today, after a heart attack, years of soul searching, the recovered memory of
being abused himself, and the threat of a lawsuit from a man claiming to be one
of his victims, Cloutier, 53, has decided to make a public confession.
He admits to three instances of abuse in 1979, and he wants to do penance for
his crimes and to bring peace to his victims.
posted by Bill Mitchell on 10/4/2002
08:45:12 AM
CHICAGO
Ex-priest: 'I got away with murder'
Sun-Times
BY KATE N. GROSSMAN STAFF REPORTER
The first e-mail arrived at Bill Cloutier's brick Skokie home two weeks ago.
At first, the former priest was scared--yet another boy was accusing him of sexual
abuse. Then he considered ignoring it. Finally, the ailing 53-year-old decided
to let his accuser have his say.
"If I don't confront it, who will?" said Cloutier, a soft-spoken man with thinning
brown hair. "I think it's important for me, for peace of mind for those I did
victimize."
Over the last two weeks, Cloutier, in a bout of honesty unusual among accused
priests, has poured out his soul to his accuser, 29-year-old Matthew Dalton.
posted by Bill Mitchell on 10/4/2002
08:43:44 AM
MILLVILLE (MA)
Millville priest accused of abuse
Woonsocket
(RI) Call
JEFF HAYNES, Staff Writer October 04, 2002
MILLVILLE -- The Diocese of Worcester will likely announce today what will happen
with St. Augustine Catholic Church, following allegations that Rev. Jean-Paul
Gagnon molested a 14-year-old boy 18 years ago in Worcester.
The accusations come from a civil lawsuit filed this week in Worcester Superior
Court by Timothy P. Staney and his parents, Joseph and Corinne Staney.
The lawsuit states that Gagnon used information obtained in a confessional with
Staney to set Staney up as Gagnon's sex partner. The alleged incidents took place
when Gagnon was a priest at the Holy Name of Jesus parish in Worcester.
Members of the St. Augustine parish -- where Gagnon has served for about six years
-- have privately expressed shock over the matter. Some believe Gagnon left town
Wednesday afternoon.
posted by Kathy Shaw on 10/4/2002
08:41:26 AM
MANCHESTER (NH)
Bishop McCormick celebrates Red Mass
Foster's
Daily Democrat
MANCHESTER, N.H. (AP) — Bishop John McCormack made only veiled references to the
priest abuse crisis rocking the Roman Catholic church as he celebrated a mass
in honor of New Hampshire’s law enforcement officers Thursday night.
He told the crowd of about 60 that included lawyers and law enforcement personnel
that they had come together in their search for justice.
"We fail that at times. We don’t always follow the law, so we seek forgiveness,"
he said.
posted by Kathy Shaw on 10/4/2002
08:35:48 AM
MANCHESTER (NH)
Service alludes to church's
pain, suffering at Red Mass
The
Union Leader
By MARK HAYWARD
Union Leader Staff
The annual Red Mass is held to give judges, lawyers, police and elected officials
strength and guidance in their work. Traditionally, it is held to mark the opening
of courts of law.
It is called the Red Mass because of the color of the vestments worn by the priests.
The mass, which was open to all faiths, was celebrated by Bishop John B. McCormack.
With him on the altar were eight priests and Auxiliary Bishop Francis Christian.
In brief opening remarks, McCormack said, “Justice comes by observation of the
law, and justice also comes by asking God for forgiveness.”
The Rev. Edward J. Arsenault, chancellor of the diocese, gave the homily.
He alluded to pain and suffering the church is experiencing, but made no direct
mention of the clergy sexual abuse scandal.
posted by Kathy Shaw on 10/4/2002
08:33:17 AM
WORCESTER (MA)
Jury rules Teczar committed abuse
Worcester
Telegram & Gazette
By Kathleen A. Shaw
Telegram & Gazette Staff
WORCESTER-- A jury decided yesterday that the Rev. Thomas Teczar sexually abused
David A. Lewcon and caused him harm, but it declined to award him any money.
The verdict was reached after 3 p.m. in Worcester Superior Court after a day of
deliberation in the civil trial.
“No one won here today,” said Louis P. Aloise, a lawyer for Rev. Teczar. The lives
of both men were altered, he added. He called the priest abuse scandal that has
deeply affected the Catholic church in the United States a “national tragedy”
that needs to come to an end.
Michael C. Wilcox, his co- counsel, said the church probably should set up a pool
of funds to reimburse victims. Rev. Teczar was advised by his lawyers not to comment
on the jury's decision.
Laurence E. Hardoon, lawyer for Mr. Lewcon, said he did not know what to make
of the verdict. “They believed him,” he said. Mr. Lewcon, stunned by the outcome,
said he did not know what to say.
The jury had been asked to determine whether Mr. Lewcon needed to have understood
how the alleged abuse harmed him before he started dealing with the issue in 1993.
The jury said no.
Mr. Lewcon said his case did not involve repressed memory syndrome because he
never forgot what happened to him in 1971 when he was 16. He said he did not understand
that he had been harmed by the alleged sexual encounters until 1993 when he saw
a television news report about allegations made against the Rev. Thomas A. Kane,
former director of the House of Affirmation in Whitinsville.
The jury ruled that Rev. Teczar committed “reckless infliction of emotional distress”
on Mr. Lewcon, but judged that it was not intentional. The jury also found that
Mr. Lewcon suffered harm as a result of the defendant's conduct.
Mr. Lewcon testified during the trial that Rev. Teczar invited him to his room
in St. Mary's rectory, Uxbridge, and gave the teen-ager a back rub, and the encounter
ended with mutual masturbation. This happened on two other occasions, at the rectory
and at the home of Rev. Teczar's parents in Worcester, he said.
The jury ruled that the reckless infliction of distress by the priest was not
a substantial contributing factor in bringing about harm to Mr. Lewcon.
Mr. Aloise said the verdict in the jury trial was strikingly similar to one returned
seven years ago when a victim sued the Rev. Ronald Provost, former pastor of St.
Joseph's parish in Barre, for harm he suffered after the priest took nude and
seminude photographs of him. Mr. Aloise represented Rev. Provost in that suit.
He said the only difference between the two was that the issue was negligence
and not reckless intention.
posted by Kathy Shaw on 10/4/2002
08:25:01 AM
NORTH ANDOVER (MA)
Voice chapter resolved to keep meeting
The Eagle Tribune
By Rebecca Piro
Staff Writer
Andover's Voice of the Faithful group plans to meet at St. Robert Bellarmine Church
on Wednesday, but is on alert after its sister chapter was banned from a North
Andover parish by the Merrimack Valley's bishop.
''Obviously, we're concerned,'' said JoAnne Nowak, a founding member of the Andover
chapter. ''We're all kind of watching and waiting, because (the order) does come
from an auxiliary bishop that does have power over all the (area) parishes.''
The Most Rev. Emilio Allue ordered the reformist group out of North Andover's
St. Michael Church last weekend. Voice of the Faithful, a national group, has
hired a canon and civil lawyer to fight the North Andover ban, as well as bans
in four other churches across the country.
posted by Kathy Shaw on 10/4/2002
08:20:39 AM
WORCESTER (MA)
Jury finds priest liable in abuse suit but nixes damages
Boston
Herald
by Robin Washington
In the first Bay State civil case to go to trial in seven years involving priest
sex abuse, a Worcester Superior Court jury yesterday found the Rev. Thomas Teczar
responsible for sexual misconduct against a 16-year-old three decades years ago,
but awarded no damages to the plaintiff.
The split decision came on the same day Mitchell Garabedian, the lawyer who reached
a $10 million settlement for 86 accusers of convicted pedophile John J. Geoghan,
filed 17 more suits against the defrocked priest and his supervisors.
If brought to trial, the outcome of Garabedian's cases could rest on whether jurors
follow the lead of those in Worcester, who found Teczar engaged in ``reckless
infliction of emotional distress'' against David Lewcon, now 48, of Webster.
posted by Kathy Shaw on 10/4/2002
08:16:27 AM
Rare candor on rogue priests
USA TODAY
EDITORIAL: ''Telling the truth cannot be wrong.'' With those simple words, Cardinal
William Keeler last week released a torrent of information on decades of child
abuse by Roman Catholic priests in the Archdiocese of Baltimore.
Keeler posted on the Internet the names of 56 priests and other clergy members
accused of preying on minors, along with details of the allegations. They include
parishes where the men were assigned and a breakdown on church costs for settling
the cases.
The accessible public disclosure is among the most detailed accounting of sexual-abuse
accusations by an archdiocese since reports surfaced this year that dioceses across
the USA were covering up abuse allegations. At a time when the Vatican is dragging
its feet on approving a strict new policy for dealing with child abusers among
the clergy, Keeler's actions can serve as a needed model on how to rebuild trust
with a shaken public. Indeed, the chairman of a national lay-review panel created
to oversee a new ''zero tolerance'' policy adopted by the U.S. Conference of Catholic
Bishops in June has hailed the move as an example for church leaders.
posted by Bill Mitchell on 10/4/2002
08:01:51 AM
Report concludes late HP minister molested girls
Presbyterian panel also finds allegations against other missionaries
Dallas
Morning News
10/01/2002
By MARK WROLSTAD / The Dallas Morning News
National Presbyterian officials have uncovered broader allegations of sexual abuse
by missionaries while concluding that a late minister at a prominent Highland
Park church molested at least two dozen girls and women, mostly in Africa, in
his 40-year career.
The denomination confirmed long-standing accusations against the Rev. Bill Pruitt
as part of an unprecedented 18-month investigation that doubled the number of
Mr. Pruitt's known victims.
posted by Bill Mitchell on 10/4/2002
07:59:35 AM
NORTH ANDOVER (MA)
Lay group issues sharp reply to parish ban
Boston
Herald
by Tom Mashberg
Turning up the flames on its feud with the Archdiocese of Boston, the Catholic
reformist group Voice of the Faithful sent a stinging rebuke yesterday to a bishop
who has banned VOTF from meeting inside a North Andover parish.
``By innuendo and implication,'' VOTF state in a letter to Merrimack Valley Regional
Bishop Emilio S. Allue, a copy of which was also sent to Bernard Cardinal Law,
``you (have) accused our organization and its members of deceit and (of) creating
scandal in the church.
``These actions are devoid of principle . . . and lacking in Christian morality,''
states the letter, signed by VOTF's president, Boston University Professor James
E. Post. ``We might expect actions (like) these from totalitarian rulers and repressive
political regimes.''
Archdiocese officials referred comment to Allue, who did not respond to telephoned
messages.
posted by Kathy Shaw on 10/4/2002
07:58:00 AM
ST. CLOUD (MN)
Our view: Abbey's settlement receives 'A' rating
St.
Cloud Times
3 October, 2002
EDITORIAL: The settlement announced this week between St. John's Abbey and victims
of clergy sex abuse deserves a "triple A" rating.
It provides long-sought apologies, personal accountability and very public actions.
Such a visionary and comprehensive approach was needed years, even decades ago,
not just to help victims and prevent abuse, but to show society that leaders of
any religion are not above the law.
Abbot John Klassen, attorney Paul Anderson and the many victims and families who
displayed immense courage and unending persistence deserve praise. And peace.
posted by Bill Mitchell on 10/4/2002
07:57:21 AM
BOSTON (MA)
A BOSTON GLOBE EDITORIAL
Catholic helping hand
Boston
Globe
CATHOLIC CHARITIES, the social service arm of the Archdiocese of Boston, is refining
its mission to focus on families and especially their children. A tour at the
new Shaughnessy Family Center of Laboure in South Boston shows that the agency
is doing its work well in a caring, nonsectarian setting.
The only hints of religion yesterday were a crucifix in a small room near the
lobby and a statue of a Sister of Charity. These are reminders of the impact of
the sisters and the church in general in South Boston, where the Knights of Columbus
established a nursery school in 1907. This grew into a second building and became
the Laboure Center, named after a canonized Sister of Charity. The social services
offered there had long outgrown these two buildings.
posted by Kathy Shaw on 10/4/2002
07:55:46 AM MINNEAPOLIS
Abuse victims settle with St. John's Abbey
Minnesota
Public Radio
By Tim Post
Minnesota Public Radio
October 1, 2002
Officials with St. John's Abbey have settled a dozen cases of abuse by monks in
the 1960s, '70s and '80s. The victims will receive a payment from the Abbey, although
the amount isn't being made public. Both sides say the most important part of
the settlement is the formation an independent board of review. The board will
be appointed by victims and will investigate accusations of abuse.
Abbot John Klassen, the leader of St. John's Abbey, is publicly apologizing to
those abused by monks at St. John's.
"On behalf of St. John's Abbey and on behalf of the monks who offended against
you I offer you my deepest and sincerest apology. What happned to you should not
have happened. I cannot express in words my sorrow, my grief for that happen and
please except my apology," Klassen says
posted by Bill Mitchell on 10/4/2002
07:55:28 AM
WORCESTER (MA)
Jury denies damages in abuse suit against priest
Boston
Globe
By Associated Press, 10/4/2002
WORCESTER - A jury refused to award damages to a man who said he was sexually
abused by a Roman Catholic priest despite finding that the priest acted recklessly.
The Rev. Thomas Teczar did not intentionally inflict damage on David Lewcon, a
Superior Court jury found yesterday.
Lewcon, 48, said Teczar repeatedly touched and fondled him in 1971.
Louis Aloise, Teczar's lawyer, said it was a ''total victory'' for his client.
The reckless finding, he said, was hard to argue against.
posted by Kathy Shaw on 10/4/2002
07:53:25 AM
BOSTON (MA)
17 more allege abuse by Geoghan, file suit
Boston
Globe
By Michael Rezendes, Globe Staff, 10/4/2002
Sixteen men and a teenage boy filed new lawsuits yesterday against convicted pedophile
John J. Geoghan and a roster of church officials who supervised the former priest,
signaling that the Boston Archdiocese may be defending sexual abuse claims against
Geoghan for years to come.
Some of the cases allege relatively recent acts of abuse and could lead to further
criminal prosecution of Geoghan, said attorney Mitchell Garabedian, the attorney
for the 17 alleged victims. One of them, at age 17, is still a minor, and says
he was fondled by Geoghan five or six years ago at a Roslindale swimming pool.
Garabedian said the accusations made in the new cases range from fondling to rape
and occurred over more than three decades, from 1964 to 1996, when Geoghan was
affiliated with more than a half-dozen parishes and the Regina Cleri home for
retired priests in Boston.
posted by Kathy Shaw on 10/4/2002
07:51:20 AM
LONG ISLAND
Priests Discuss Abuse Policy
Newsday
By Stephanie Saul
STAFF WRITER
A noted canon lawyer Thursday warned priests to stay silent if confronted with
allegations of sexual abuse, and also predicted it will take an entire generation
before trust is restored in the church.
Speaking to a newly-formed group of about 150 area Roman Catholic priests, including
some who have married, Msgr. William Varvaro advised getting a lawyer at the first
whiff of an abuse allegation.
“A priest cannot feel free to go in and discuss an allegation. They probably never
thought that they would need advocacy and counsel when they are questioned by
their Bishop or the diocesan officials. The realization now is that they do,”
said Varvaro, also pastor of St. Margaret's Church in Middle Village.
posted by Bill Mitchell on 10/4/2002
07:50:54 AM
NORTH ANDOVER (MA)
Catholic group fights bishop over banning from church
Boston
Globe
By Michael Paulson, Globe Staff, 10/4/2002
Stepping up its confrontation with the administration of Cardinal Bernard F. Law,
the Catholic lay group Voice of the Faithful issued a written demand yesterday
that the bishop who banned it from using a church hall in North Andover reverse
his order and apologize.
''As the national president of Voice of the Faithful, I protest - in the strongest
possible terms - the actions you have taken,'' Voice of the Faithful president
James E. Post wrote in a letter to Bishop Emilio S. Allue, who oversees North
suburban parishes for the Archdiocese of Boston. ''These actions are inappropriate
based on the facts of the situation and based on canon law. We believe your actions
to be inconsistent with Church teaching, Christian morality, the spirit of the
Vatican II Council, and contrary to your pastoral duty.''
The letter marks the first time Voice of the Faithful has publicly confronted
a bishop who has banned the group, which was formed in Wellesley in February by
Catholics upset by the clergy sex abuse crisis. The group claims 25,000 supporters
nationwide, including about 135 in North Andover.
posted by Kathy Shaw on 10/4/2002
07:49:13 AM
2nd Suit Alleges Assault By Priest
October 3, 2002
Hartford
Courant
By DAVE ALTIMARI, Courant Staff Writer
A second lawsuit has been filed against a Hartford archdiocese priest and former
state police and fire chaplain alleging that he took advantage of those positions
to sexually abuse a 15-year-old boy.
The new lawsuit contends that three decades ago, the priest, Stephen Foley, abused
a 15-year-old Farmington boy after he became a friend of the boy's family and
began frequently staying weekend nights at their home.
The boy, who is identified only as Richard Doe in the lawsuit, would have been
unable to sue either Foley or the archdiocese under old state statutes. But because
the legislature recently expanded the statute of limitations, he is able to proceed
with the lawsuit, said his attorney, Thomas McNamara of New Haven.
posted by Bill Mitchell on 10/4/2002
07:38:38 AM
Thursday, October 03, 2002
NEW YORK CITY
No Easy Home for Priests' Group
The
New York Times
By DANIEL J. WAKIN
A group of current and former priests has hit a snag in its efforts to organize
resistance to what it says is unfair treatment by the church hierarchy over the
sexual abuse scandal.
A day before the group was to meet at a conference room at the Mutual of America
Life Insurance Company today, the company retracted the invitation.
The company's chairman, William J. Flynn, said yesterday that his security officials
refused to allow the meeting because there was no guest list and because of concerns
about the potentially large number of people.
The organizers of the group, Voice of the Ordained, said they had contacted hundreds
of priests to come to the meeting and had no way of knowing how many would show
up.
posted by Kathy Shaw on 10/3/2002
04:51:36 PM
SAN DIEGO
Ex-pastor sentenced to prison
Boy in counseling was molested by clergyman
San
Diego Union-Tribune
By Onell R. Soto
STAFF WRITER
October 2, 2002
He was a loving father. A caring mentor. A charismatic pastor. But what defined
Michael Skoor yesterday was his sexual interest in boys.
In a downtown San Diego courtroom crowded with supporters and critics of the fallen
clergyman, a judge sentenced the former senior pastor of Calvary Lutheran Church
in Solana Beach to 29 years in prison.
Skoor, 55, pleaded guilty in August to molesting an 11-year-old boy and trying
to do the same to the boy's younger brother. Skoor was spared a life prison term
when defense lawyer Bill Nimmo negotiated a sentence of no less than 20 years
and no more than 30 years.
posted by Bill Mitchell on 10/3/2002
07:25:46 AM
MANCHESTER (NH)
Church lawyers contesting
MacCormack suit
The
Union Leader
By NANCY MEERSMAN
Union Leader Staff
Church lawyers are contesting the Rev. James A. “Seamus” MacCormack’s lawsuit
by saying he has no basis for alleging the bishop derailed his career to keep
him quiet about a scandal he witnessed.
MacCormack, the former pastor of St. Patrick Church in Jaffrey, is suing Bishop
John B. McCormack and other church officials for fraud and wrongful termination.
He charges the bishop put him under virtual “house arrest” and tried to damage
his credibility by sending him for a psychiatric evaluation to keep him from talking
or being believed.
posted by Kathy Shaw on 10/3/2002
07:00:39 AM
WORCESTER (MA)
Teczar jury to resume deliberations
Worcester
Telegram & Gazette
By Kathleen A. Shaw
Telegram & Gazette Staff
WORCESTER-- The jury in the civil suit against the Rev. Thomas Teczar deliberated
for about 2.5 hours yesterday before asking to adjourn for the day.
Judge Peter Velis asked jury members at 4:30 p.m. whether they wanted to continue
their deliberations. They said no and the judge excused them for the day. He initially
scheduled deliberations to resume in Worcester Superior Court at 9:30 a.m. today.
The foreman said the jury wanted to begin at 9 a.m. The judge set a compromise
and both sides agreed to resume 9:15 a.m.
The jury sent two questions to the judge from the deliberation room. One asked
about the statute of limitations for this type of sexual abuse allegation. They
later asked the judge to define the term “reckless intention.” The judge said
he would give them the definition when they reconvene this morning.
David A. Lewcon, of Webster, is suing Rev. Teczar, alleging that he caused him
psychological harm when he sexually abused him at age 16.
The case is drawing statewide and national attention from within the legal community
and among alleged victims of clergy sexual abuse because it is one of the few
suits involving a priest that has gone to trial. Most have been settled out of
court without a trial.
posted by Kathy Shaw on 10/3/2002
06:45:03 AM
NORTH ANDOVER (MA)
Voice of Faithful hires lawyer to fight ban
The Eagle Tribune
By Kathie Neff Ragsdale
Staff Writer
Voice of the Faithful, the dissident group banned from five U.S. parishes including
St. Michael's in North Andover, hired a prominent canon and civil lawyer to "explore
our legal rights to meet on church property," said Mike Emerton, spokesman for
the group.
Emerton said no lawsuit is immediately planned, adding "Once we know what our
rights are, then we have to make an informed decision at that point."
Meanwhile, Voice of the Faithful members from St. Michael's continue to look for
an alternate place to meet, after the Most Rev. Emilio Allue, bishop of the Merrimack
Valley, ordered the church's pastor, The Rev. Paul Keyes, to stop permitting the
group to use facilities there.
posted by Kathy Shaw on 10/3/2002
06:38:34 AM
BOSTON (MA)
Church eyeing appeal of order to release records
Boston
Herald
by Tom Mashberg
Archdiocese of Boston officials indicated yesterday they would appeal a Superior
Court judge's order that the church release records on some 87 priests accused
of sexual abuse dating back 50 years.
``Our lawyers are considering an appeal and most likely will do so,'' Donna M.
Morrissey, chief spokeswoman for the archdiocese, said after church attorneys
conducted a 5 -hour deposition of Paula Ford of Newton inside a Boston hotel.
A lawsuit against the archdiocese and the Rev. Paul R. Shanley, brought by the
Ford family on behalf of son Gregory, one of at least four alleged Shanley victims
suing the church, led to the judge's Sept. 25 order that the files be released.
posted by Kathy Shaw on 10/3/2002
06:36:26 AM
PORTLAND (ME)
Priest discusses abuse in his past
Portland
Press Herald
By JOSHUA L. WEINSTEIN, Portland Press Herald Writer
The Rev. Gary Hayes of Kentucky speaks Wednesday night at the Woodfords Congregational
Church in Portland. His speech was sponsored by Voice of the Faithful.
For a time, he did not sound like a priest.
The Rev. Gary Hayes spoke about hating God. About abusing alcohol.
And Wednesday night, in a church that was not his own - the Roman Catholic diocese
of Portland would not let him speak in a Catholic church here - he spoke about
why: As a high school freshman, he was sexually assaulted, again and again, by
priests.
Hayes, who addressed about 150 people at the Woodfords Congregational Church,
is working on healing. He is working, too, on helping other survivors heal, and
on preventing more children from being victimized by priests.
posted by Kathy Shaw on 10/3/2002
06:31:27 AM
NICHOLASVILLE (KY)
Letters threaten 3 priests
Louisville
Courier-Journal
Associated Press
NICHOLASVILLE, Ky. -- Police and the Roman Catholic Diocese of Lexington are investigating
threatening letters sent to three priests that warn them to stop persecuting homosexual
priests within the diocese.
The unsigned letters accuse the Rev. John Dane and the Rev. William Bush of St.
Luke parish in Nicholasville and the Rev. Tom Imfeld of Corbin of wounding and
slandering the diocese, its homosexual priests and its former Lexington bishop,
J. Kendrick Williams. Williams resigned in June after three men sued the church
and accused him of sexual misconduct.
The letters also accuse Dane of running a Web site that is highly critical of
liberals, feminists and gay priests in the Lexington diocese. Dane has developed
Web sites for many parishes and worked as an information technician at the diocesan
office but denies any connection to the site mentioned in the letter.
The Nicholasville Police Department is investigating the letters as cases of ''terroristic
threatening.''
''We don't have any suspects at this time,'' said police spokesman Lt. John Branscumb.
''We're trying to do a fact-finding mission to see who might send such letters.''
posted by Jayson Landeza on 10/3/2002
05:30:14 AM
NEW BEDFORD (MA)
Priest pleads not guilty in decades-old sex abuse
Providence
Journal-Bulletin
BY DANIEL BARBARISI
Journal Staff Writer
NEW BEDFORD -- The Rev. Donald J. Bowen, formerly a priest in Norton, Mass., turned
himself in yesterday at New Bedford Superior Court and pleaded not guilty to charges
of sexual abuse.
Father Bowen, 64, returned from a 31-year missionary stint in Bolivia on Sunday
to turn himself in, according to Assistant District Attorney Walter Shea.
He was arraigned on one count of indecent assault and battery on a child under
the age of 14, one count of unnatural and lascivious acts on a person under the
age of 16 years. He faces a maximum of 10 years in prison if convicted of both
charges.
Father Bowen was released on $100 bail, on the conditions that he regularly check
in with the probation department, he surrender his passport, and that he have
no contact at all with the alleged victim or her family, who reportedly still
live in the area.
posted by Jayson Landeza on 10/3/2002
05:18:46 AM
DANA POINT (CA)
Rising Above a Scandal
At a Dana Point church plagued by allegations of priestly abuse, parishioners
say their Catholicism has grown stronger.
Los Angeles
Times
By WILLIAM LOBDELL and CHRISTINE HANLEY, TIMES STAFF WRITERS
In a year of scandal, few Catholic congregations have been tested as severely
as the 5,000 families of St. Edward Church in Dana Point.
Their charismatic pastor was ousted after admitting several affairs with women.
Later, the church paid $1.2 million to settle allegations that he impregnated
a 16-year-old girl in the early 1980s and paid for her abortion.
There was more: A beloved senior priest was removed amid allegations that he sexually
abused a teenage boy two decades ago. A former parish priest admitted having done
the same. Still another was accused of molestation.
In the latest devastating disclosure from a buried past, authorities last week
arrested a former priest from St. Edward on charges that, in the early 1970s,
he sexually abused and impregnated a teenage girl who sang in the church choir.
posted by Jayson Landeza on 10/3/2002
05:09:30 AM
NEW YORK (NY)
No Easy Home for Priests' Group
New York Times
By DANIEL J. WAKIN
A group of current and former priests has hit a snag in its efforts to organize
resistance to what it says is unfair treatment by the church hierarchy over the
sexual abuse scandal.
A day before the group was to meet at a conference room at the Mutual of America
Life Insurance Company today, the company retracted the invitation.
The company's chairman, William J. Flynn, said yesterday that his security officials
refused to allow the meeting because there was no guest list and because of concerns
about the potentially large number of people.
The organizers of the group, Voice of the Ordained, said they had contacted hundreds
of priests to come to the meeting and had no way of knowing how many would show
up.
posted by Jayson Landeza on 10/3/2002
05:01:50 AM
Wednesday, October 02, 2002
LOS ANGELES (CA)
Economy, abuse scandals causing financial woes for archdioceses nationwide
Boston.com
By Sandra Marquez, Associated Press, 10/02/02
LOS ANGELES -- Javier Stauring, a Roman Catholic chaplain at a Los Angeles juvenile
detention center, has yet to enter the archdiocese's towering new $189 million
cathedral.
He says he is uncomfortable worshipping at Our Lady of the Angels Cathedral --
with its fancy gift shop and imported alabaster windows -- given the layoffs and
other cutbacks caused by a $4.3 million budget deficit at the headquarters of
the nation's largest archdiocese.
The deficit will cost 60 people their jobs this month and curtail programs that
offer anti-abortion counseling and serve college students, gays, minorities, inmates
and the disabled.
posted by Kathy Shaw on 10/2/2002
09:24:16 PM
WORCESTER (MA)
Sex abuse case against former Uxbridge priest goes to jury
Boston.com
By Adam Gorlick, Associated Press, 10/02/02
WORCESTER -- For the first time in seven years, a Massachusetts civil jury is
considering whether a Roman Catholic priest sexually abused one of his young parishioners.
David Lewcon, 48, of Webster, claims the Rev. Thomas Teczar repeatedly punched
and fondled him in 1971 when he was a 16-year-old St. Mary's Church in Uxbridge.
But attorneys for Teczar, now 61, of Dudley, who no longer performs priestly duties,
say physical contact between the two men never went beyond a single back-rub when
Lewcon was 17 and old enough to legally consent. They also claim the Lewcon filed
his case too late under the statute of limitations.
posted by Kathy Shaw on 10/2/2002
09:19:47 PM
COSTA MESA (CA)
Choir leader accused of abuse
Assistant director of All-American Boys Chorus resigns after his arrest on charges
of molesting a boy, now 17, since 1998.
The
Orange County Register
By RACHANEE SRISAVASDI
The Orange County Register
COSTA MESA – An assistant choir director for the All-American Boys Chorus faces
six felony counts of child molestation for allegedly molesting a boy to whom he
gave voice lessons.
Roger Alan Giese, 27, of Irvine is accused of having molested the now 17-year-old
boy from May 1998 until this past May, Orange County Deputy District Attorney
Susan Schroeder said.
The All-American Boys Chorus, based out of the Orange County Fairgrounds, consists
of about 100 boys and is known as one of the nation's premier performance ensembles,
having completed more than 34 tours throughout the United States, Europe and Japan.
Giese, who has worked for the chorus company for eight years, was arrested Friday,
Schroeder said. He met his $200,000 bail and is free pending an Oct. 18 arraignment.
Giese is not the first person from the All-American Boys Chorus who has faced
such allegations. The Rev. Richard Coughlin, a former Catholic priest, was dismissed
in 1992 after five men came forward alleging they were molested during the time
they sang with the chorus in the 1970s and '80s. Those lawsuits were settled.
The current allegations involve only Giese, Senior Deputy District Attorney Shiela
Hanson said.
posted by Kathy Shaw on 10/2/2002
09:13:49 PM
ORANGE COUNTY (CA)
Ex-priest faces sex charges
He is alleged to have fathered a child with a teenager while he was at St. Edward
Catholic Church in Dana Point.
The
Orange County Register
By ZAHEERA WAHID
The Orange County Register
A former Catholic priest was arrested Tuesday on charges of having a sexual relationship
with a 14-year-old girl who gave birth in 1974 to a child he admitted to investigators
was his.
Gerald John Plesetz, 59, who served at St. Edward Catholic Church in Dana Point
during the alleged affair, was charged with three felony counts of engaging in
sex acts with someone under age 16.
The relationship took place from April 14, 1972, to Oct. 1, 1974, when the woman,
identified as "Janet M.," was 14 to 16 years old and a singer in the church choir,
and Plesetz was 29 to 31, according to a criminal complaint filed Monday in Orange
County Superior Court.
posted by Kathy Shaw on 10/2/2002
09:11:05 PM
LOUISVILLE (KY)
Outside report needed, Presbyterians are told
Panel urges change in sexual abuse cases
Boston
Globe
By Bruce Schreiner, Associated Press, 10/2/2002
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - A Presbyterian Church (USA) panel investigating molestation
charges against a missionary said yesterday that church law should be changed
so clergy and lay leaders are required to report child sexual abuse claims to
civil authorities.
The panel proposed the change to the denomination's Book of Order, or constitution,
following its inquiry into charges of sexual and physical abuse of missionary
children in Africa that allegedly took place over a period of decades.
The panel said church law should require clergy, church elders, and deacons to
inform legal authorities of ''any knowledge of physical abuse, neglect, or harm
and of sexual molestation or abuse of a child or adult without mental capacity.''
posted by Kathy Shaw on 10/2/2002
09:12:21 AM
BOSTON (MA)
Archdiocese Taps Worker to Hear Stories of Abuse
The
New York Times
By PAM BELLUCK
BOSTON, Oct. 1 — Some come with poetry they have written or pictures they have
drawn to capture the pain and stabbing sense of betrayal they felt when a priest
they respected raped them.
Some disintegrate in tears as they try to tell their stories. Men becoming vulnerable
boys again, especially because they are telling their stories to a representative
of the church, designated by the Archdiocese of Boston to listen to victims of
clergy sexual abuse.
For six months, that person has been Barbara S. Thorp, a longtime employee of
the archdiocese, who was appointed this spring to head the church's Ministry for
Healing and Assistance. It is Ms. Thorp's job to meet with people who say they
were abused by priests, determine if they need therapy, help them find treatment
if necessary, and arrange for the archdiocese to pay the bill.
posted by Kathy Shaw on 10/2/2002
09:00:02 AM
CONCORD (NH)
Teacher, accused of molesting former Bishop Guertin pupil, was being investigated
in R.I.
Foster's
Daily Democrat
By J.M. HIRSCH
Associated Press Writer
CONCORD, N.H. (AP) — A Roman Catholic brother accused of molesting a former Bishop
Guertin High School pupil also was being investigated in Rhode Island for similar
allegations, according to police.
Woonsocket (R.I.) police Detective Marc Dubois said authorities were preparing
to charge Roger Argencourt with several counts of first- and second-degree child
molestation before the clergyman’s death on Sept. 23.
Dubois said the allegations stemmed from incidents in 1985 and 1986 and involved
a male pupil at Mount Saint Charles Academy in Woonsocket. He said the allegations
involve penetration and fondling.
posted by Kathy Shaw on 10/2/2002
08:49:15 AM
CONCORD (NH)
Diocese wants names of accusers, lawsuit delayed
Foster's
Daily Democrat
By J.M. HIRSCH
Associated Press Writer
CONCORD, N.H. (AP) — The Roman Catholic Diocese of Manchester asked a judge Tuesday
to delay 56 lawsuits by alleged victims of clergy sexual abuse until after the
state’s criminal investigation of the church is complete.
Diane Quinlan, the diocese’s assistant to the delegate for policy administration,
said the "information brought out in the civil discovery process may unfairly
compromise the diocese in the criminal investigation."
Mark Abramson, the lawyer handling the 56 cases, called the move a stall tactic
and said, "If they have nothing to hide, (why) do they want to put discovery on
hold?"
posted by Kathy Shaw on 10/2/2002
08:47:26 AM
MANCHESTER (NH)
NH lawyer for abused
wants priest files
The
Union Leader
By KATHRYN MARCHOCKI
Union Leader Staff
A Manchester attorney who represents scores of alleged abuse victims said he will
ask the court today to order the Catholic Diocese of Manchester to turn over all
its files on priests.
Attorney Mark A. Abramson said he wants all clergy personnel and probation files,
archives and complaints of sexual abuse reported to the diocese now that he is
no longer part of settlement negotiations and intends to take the cases to trial.
“We are going forward full steam ahead. Before this thing is over with, we are
going to open up the vault of secrets and let the entire state of New Hampshire
know what’s been hidden all these years,” Abramson said.
posted by Kathy Shaw on 10/2/2002
08:44:31 AM
WORCESTER (MA)
Lawsuits name priests, teacher
Worcester
Telegram & Gazette
By Kathleen A. Shaw
Telegram & Gazette Staff
WORCESTER-- The Rev. Jean-Paul Gagnon, a priest in Millville; Raymond Tremblay
of Worcester, a religious education teacher; and the Rev. Henry S. Banach, a retired
diocesan priest, have been named in civil suits filed this week in Worcester Superior
Court alleging they abused children in their parishes.
Raymond L. Delisle, spokesman for the Catholic Worcester Diocese, which is also
named in the suits, said the diocese does not comment on pending lawsuits.
Timothy P. Staney and his parents, Joseph C. and Corinne L. Staney, both teachers
in the Worcester public schools, allege in their suit that Rev. Gagnon violated
the Confessional, also known to Catholics as the Sacrament of Reconciliation,
by using information obtained in the Confessional to set Timothy Staney up as
a sex partner for Rev. Gagnon.
Timothy Staney moved to file a suit on his own behalf, but his parents decided
to join the suit to set an example that parents must stand with their children
against clergy sexual abuse if it is ever to be stopped, according to their lawyer,
Daniel J. Shea.
This is the second client Mr. Shea has represented where allegations were made
of violation of the Confessional. Karen A. Pedersen of Fitchburg alleges in her
suit that the Rev. Robert E. Kelley also used information obtained in the Confessional
as a means of sexually abusing her.
“The Catholic church has obviously known that violation of the Confessional is
a major problem because Cardinal Ratzinger included this in his secret memo, Crimen
Solicitationes, which went out to all the bishops in May 2001,” Mr. Shea said.
This information also appeared in a 1962 memo to the bishops but was not shared
with priests and laity, he said. The Catholic Church considers violation of the
Confessional to be a grave issue that can bring sanctions under canon law.
According to the suit, Mr. Tremblay began using his role as religious educator
to sexually molest and abuse Mr. Staney in several incidents, beginning in 1980
when he was 10 and a member of Holy Name of Jesus parish. The sexual abuse continued
until he was 15.
Mr. Staney, who is now 32, said that the incidents, which included oral and anal
penetration and other kinds of “forcible, lewd and lascivious acts,” happened
at Mr. Tremblay's residence in Worcester and at Holy Name of Jesus Church and
school, 51-55 Illinois St., and at other locations. Mr. Tremblay is alleged to
have used pornography in the abuse, according to the suit.
Mr. Tremblay also is alleged to have threatened to discredit and intimidate not
only Mr. Staney, but his family within the parish community if any of the alleged
incidents were revealed, according to the suit. He also threatened to upset and
discredit the reputation of the alleged victim and his parents “in the way of
careers and social status.”
According to the suit, Rev. Gagnon learned of the abuse by Mr. Tremblay when Mr.
Staney told him about it during Confession. The priest “armed with that information,
in effect, 'took over' from Tremblay as the molester,” according to the suit.
Rev. Gagnon then molested and sexually abused Mr. Staney in “multiple incidents”
inside the rectory at 51 Illinois St., at the Staney family home in Spencer, and
in two incidents at Rev. Gagnon's summer home at Quinebaug Cove Campground, Brimfield,
according to the suit. The sexual acts included oral and anal penetration and
involved use of alcohol and pornography.
Rev. Gagnon also threatened to discredit Mr. Staney within the parish, starting
when Mr. Staney was 14 and into his adult life, if he revealed any of the alleged
incidents, according to the suit. He also threatened to discredit and intimidate
Mr. Staney's family within the parish and to adversely affect the teaching careers
and social status of the parents if he revealed the abuse, according to the suit.
It is also alleged that he threatened “the familial accord” of the family if Mr.
Staney revealed the abuse.
The suit involving Rev. Banach was filed by lawyer Carmen Durso of Boston using
the names John Doe and Robert Doe. Mr. Durso said the men are brothers.
According to the suit, Rev. Banach was assigned to St. Hedwig's parish, Southbridge,
when he sexually assaulted and abused the brothers from 1982 to 1988 in the church
sacristy and rectory. John Doe was a 12-year-old altar boy at St. Hedwig's when
Rev. Banach allegedly began sexually assaulting him in a variety of ways, including
genital fondling “and numerous other attempted and threatened acts of assault.”
The assaults happened in the sacristy, usually before Mass, and at the rectory,
according to the suit.
posted by Kathy Shaw on 10/2/2002
08:41:23 AM
NORTH ANDOVER (MA)
Bishop orders Voice of Faithful out
The Eagle Tribune
By Kathie Neff Ragsdale
Staff Writer
A lay reformist group that grew out of the sex scandal embroiling the Roman Catholic
Church has been banned from meeting at St. Michael's Parish in North Andover.
The Most Rev. Emilio S. Allue, bishop of the Merrimack Valley, has ordered the
Rev. Paul Keyes, pastor of St. Michael's, to stop allowing the group Voice of
the Faithful to use church premises.
Group members are vowing to meet elsewhere.
" ... The activities and promotion of the VOTF must be curtailed in order to avoid
further 'scandal' and polarity among our parishioners," Allue said in his Sept.
24 letter, made public over the weekend. "For the sake of unity and Catholic orthodoxy
in the parish, it is inappropriate to foster these meetings and to allow the members
of the VOTF to meet with the parish councils."
posted by Kathy Shaw on 10/2/2002
08:34:25 AM
NEW BEDFORD (MA)
Former priest arraigned
The
Herald News
GREGG M. MILIOTE, Herald News Staff Reporter October 02, 2002
NEW BEDFORD -- Donald J. Bowen, a former Massachusetts priest accused of sexually
molesting a Bristol County girl some 30 years ago, was arraigned Tuesday afternoon
on charges of indecent sexual assault and battery on a person younger than 14,
and unnatural and lascivious acts on a person younger than 16.
He was indicted on the charges by a Bristol County grand jury last Wednesday.
Bowen, 64, surrendered to State Police a little after 2 p.m. and was led, handcuffed,
into the courthouse.
He was released on $100 personal recognizance with some conditions.
posted by Kathy Shaw on 10/2/2002
08:32:40 AM
BOSTON (MA)
Aiding the healing process: Medfield woman oversees help for victims of abuse
Boston
Herald
by Robin Washington
After hearing the stories of 150 alleged victims of clergy sex abuse, Barbara
Thorp said the hardest part of her job is simply listening.
``I can't tell you the number of men I've sat across from, weeping, and how disturbing
it is to have a 40- or 50-year-old man shedding the tears of a 12-year-old boy.
It's heartbreaking,'' said Thorp, head of the Office of Healing and Assistance
for the Archdiocese of Boston.
Thorp's work breaks a church policy that for years required people seeking help
after alleged sexual abuse by priests to bring their concerns to the chancery
- the heart of the very organization associated with the offenses.
posted by Kathy Shaw on 10/2/2002
08:26:47 AM NEW BEDFORD (MA)
Priest declares his innocence in 30-year-old molest case
Boston
Herald
by Eric Convey
NEW BEDFORD - A priest charged with sexually molesting a young girl more than
30 years ago resolutely proclaimed his innocence yesterday after returning from
Bolivia to face the charges.
``Not guilty,'' the Rev. Donald J. Bowen said in a clear, slow voice after the
grand jury indictment was read in Bristol County Superior Court.
The 64-year-old faces one count of indecent assualt and battery on a child under
14 and one count of committing an unnatural and lascivious act.
posted by Kathy Shaw on 10/2/2002
08:25:04 AM
BOSTON (MA)
Church official fears rift over lay group
Boston
Herald
by Tom Mashberg
The Archdiocese of Boston will have to act swiftly to seal the fissures erupting
at the parish level over the role of the Catholic lay group Voice of The Faithful,
a key church adviser said yesterday.
``It is a very volatile issue,'' said the Rev. Christopher R. Coyne, an archdiocesan
spokesman and chief of the church's Office for Worship.
``Pastors are doing the best they can to handle this themselves, but we'll have
to confront it soon or we run the risk of seeing the archdiocese fracturing into
`pro-VOTF' and `anti-VOTF' parishes,'' he said.
posted by Kathy Shaw on 10/2/2002
08:23:07 AM
BOSTON (MA)
Priest pleads innocent in abuse case
Boston
Globe
By Associated Press, 10/02/02
NEW BEDFORD, Mass. -- A priest who returned from South America to face charges
he molested a girl more than 30 years ago has pleaded innocent.
The Rev. Donald Bowen is accused of molesting the girl over a six-year period,
beginning in 1965 when the girl was 9 years old.
Bowen was released on personal recognizance after being arraigned on charges including
indecent assault and battery at New Bedford Superior Court on Tuesday.
Prosecutors said Bowen abused the girl after he befriended the family.
posted by Kathy Shaw on 10/2/2002
08:18:41 AM
BOSTON (MA)
For church counselor, a 'heartbreaking' job
Boston
Globe
By Michael Paulson, Globe Staff, Globe Correspondent, 10/2/2002
The calls trickle in, day by day, week by week. One hundred and fifty victims
over six months, mostly men, mostly angry and sad, and looking for help.
''It has been quite moving and very distressing to have 40- and 50-year-old men
weeping through much of the interview, and I always have the sense that, though
I might be looking at a 40-year-old man who is crying, I'm really seeing a 12-year-old
boy's tears,'' Barbara Thorp, the director of the Archdiocese of Boston's new
Office for Healing and Assistance Ministry, said yesterday.
''It's heartbreaking, totally heartbreaking, especially when one knows that they've
held those tears for 20 or 30 years, and yet, when you listen and experience what
they're saying, you feel like you're right in the room with them when it happens.''
posted by Kathy Shaw on 10/2/2002
08:16:21 AM
Tuesday, October 01, 2002
BOSTON (MA)
Church pledging to reach out to victims in wake of scandal
Boston.com
By Denise Lavoie, Associated Press, 10/01/02
BOSTON -- Stung by criticism that church officials have done little to help victims
of sexual abuse by clergy, the Archdiocese of Boston is pledging to reach out
to victims through therapy and private meetings with Cardinal Bernard F. Law.
Since the clergy scandal erupted in Boston nine months ago, victims have repeatedly
criticized the archdiocese for not showing compassion or taking steps to bring
them back into the church.
On Tuesday, the archdiocese went on the offensive.
In a series of media interviews initiated by the archdiocese, Barbara Thorp, who
heads the archdiocese's Office for Healing and Assistance Ministry, outlined steps
the archdiocese is taking to try to help victims.
posted by Kathy Shaw on 10/1/2002
07:25:55 PM
BALTIMORE (MD)
Rare candor on rogue priests
USA Today
''Telling the truth cannot be wrong.'' With those simple words, Cardinal William
Keeler last week released a torrent of information on decades of child abuse by
Roman Catholic priests in the Archdiocese of Baltimore.
Keeler posted on the Internet the names of 56 priests and other clergy members
accused of preying on minors, along with details of the allegations. They include
parishes where the men were assigned and a breakdown on church costs for settling
the cases.
The accessible public disclosure is among the most detailed accounting of sexual-abuse
accusations by an archdiocese since reports surfaced this year that dioceses across
the USA were covering up abuse allegations. At a time when the Vatican is dragging
its feet on approving a strict new policy for dealing with child abusers among
the clergy, Keeler's actions can serve as a needed model on how to rebuild trust
with a shaken public. Indeed, the chairman of a national lay-review panel created
to oversee a new ''zero tolerance'' policy adopted by the U.S. Conference of Catholic
Bishops in June has hailed the move as an example for church leaders.
posted by Kathy Shaw on 10/1/2002
05:30:50 PM
LOS ANGELES (CA)
Accused Priest Waives Extradition
Church: Pulled off a cruise ship by Alaskan officials, he faces charges of molesting
seven girls.
Los Angeles
Times
By RICHARD WINTON and JEAN GUCCIONE, TIMES STAFF WRITERS
A Los Angeles priest charged with molesting seven girls who was plucked off a
cruise ship headed for Russia has waived extradition, Alaska court officials said
Monday.
G. Neville Rucker, a retired priest, will be returned to Los Angeles as soon as
bad weather clears in the Aleutian Islands and he can be flown 800 miles to Anchorage,
where he will be met by Los Angeles police detectives, said Greg Wilkinson, an
Alaska state trooper.
During a hearing in the Unalaska District Court, Rucker waived his right to an
extradition hearing and told the judge his attorney advised him to return to California.
Bail was set at $1 million.
posted by Kathy Shaw on 10/1/2002
08:34:35 AM
JAFFREY (NH)
McCormack criticizes
Cote affair revelations
The
Union Leader
Union Leader News
Church officials say the way in which public revelations about Rev. Roland P.
Cote’s long-term sexual affair with a teenager were made are unfair, not only
to the priest, but to his parishioners.
“The circumstances under which his past mistakes have been made public are unfair,”
Manchester Bishop John B. McCormack said in a letter distributed to congregants
of St. Patrick Church in Jaffrey Sunday, citing the sequence of events that led
to the public statement by newly appointed pastor, Cote.
McCormack added that the disclosures, “. . .have nothing to do with Fr. Cote and
everything to do with me and the greater scrutiny under which I serve.” Rev. Edward
J. Arsenault, who serves as chancellor for the diocese, yesterday echoed McCormack’s
sentiments.
posted by Kathy Shaw on 10/1/2002
07:18:12 AM
WORCESTER (MA)
Teczar admits serving liquor to teenager
Worcester
Telegram & Gazette
By Gary V. Murray
Telegram & Gazette Staff
WORCESTER-- The Rev. Thomas Teczar yesterday acknowledged once serving hard liquor
to a teenage boy while assigned to St. Mary's parish in Uxbridge, but denied doing
so on other occasions.
Under questioning by the lawyer for a man who has alleged he was sexually abused
by Rev. Teczar as a teenager, the Catholic priest admitted once serving liquor
to a boy under the age of 18 while at St. Mary's Church, where he was assigned
in 1971 and 1972. Rev. Teczar, who remains a priest, but no longer performs priestly
duties, was not asked to provide any details of the incident.
In response to questions posed by Laurence E. Hardoon, a Boston lawyer representing
David L. Lewcon of Webster, Rev. Teczar said he had no recollection of serving
liquor to teens at any other times before being assigned to the Uxbridge parish.
“To the best of my knowledge, the answer to that is no,” Rev. Teczar said.
Testifying in Mr. Lewcon's Worcester Superior Court case against him, Rev. Teczar
specifically denied Mr. Hardoon's suggestions that he served Southern Comfort
to a 16-year-old boy while at St. Joan of Arc Church in Worcester in the late
1960s and that he gave alcohol to another teen during his assignment at St. Mary's
in Uxbridge.
posted by Kathy Shaw on 10/1/2002
07:11:26 AM
NORTH ANDOVER (MA)
Bishop bans group from meetings at parish
Boston
Globe
By Michael Paulson, Globe Staff, 10/1/2002
In the first clear sign of a local crackdown on a Catholic group pressing for
change in the church, a bishop in Boston has ordered a parish in North Andover
to bar a chapter of Voice of the Faithful from meeting on church property.
''The activities and promotion of the Voice of the Faithful must be curtailed
in order to avoid further scandal and polarity among our parishioners,'' the auxiliary
bishop who oversees North suburban parishes, Emilio S. Allue, wrote in a letter
to the Rev. Paul T. Keyes, pastor of Saint Michael Church in North Andover. ''For
the sake of unity and Catholic orthodoxy in the parish, it is inappropriate to
foster these meetings and to allow the members of the Voice of the Faithful to
meet with the parish councils.''
Keyes, who has generally been supportive of Voice of the Faithful and whose sister-in-law
is one of the organization's leaders, told the group it could not meet on church
property this weekend, citing his vow of obedience to his bishop. The Saint Michael's
chapter, which has been meeting in the parish hall since July, said it will try
to find a synagogue, church, or Catholic college that will allow its 135 members
to meet.
posted by Kathy Shaw on 10/1/2002
06:57:27 AM
SPOKANE (WA)
Lawyer for Catholic priest
says his client is remorseful
Seattle
Times
SPOKANE — The lawyer for the Rev. Patrick O'Donnell says his client is remorseful
about actions that may have led to a lawsuit claiming he molested children but
did not admit wrongdoing.
"He has a great deal of remorse for any harm he may have caused because of any
conduct he may have engaged in," John Bergmann said. "He intends to work with
the diocese to resolve these claims expeditiously and justly to everyone concerned,
including himself."
Nine alleged victims and the widow of a 10th sued O'Donnell for damages on Thursday,
claiming he molested children. They also sued the Spokane Roman Catholic Diocese
for failing to stop him.
posted by Jayson Landeza on 10/1/2002
04:03:58 AM
BOSTON (MA)
Catholic group banned from meeting at parish
Boston
Herald
by Tom Mashberg
Tuesday, October 1, 2002
A top aide to Bernard Cardinal Law has banned the Catholic lay group Voice of
The Faithful from meeting at a North Andover parish, accusing VOTF of promoting
``hidden issues.''
``The activities and promotion of the VOTF must be curtailed,'' Auxiliary Bishop
Emilio S. Allue, regional bishop for the Merrimack Valley, wrote in a letter to
the Rev. Paul T. Keyes, pastor of St. Michael's Parish in North Andover.
``It is inappropriate to foster these meetings,'' he wrote, while Law and his
vicar general, Bishop Walter J. Edyvean, seek ``clarification of all hidden and
open issues involved and promoted by VOTF.''
John Vellante of North Andover, a spokesman for the 135-member VOTF chapter, said
his group is ``extremely disturbed by all this.''
posted by Jayson Landeza on 10/1/2002
03:30:18 AM
DETROIT (MI)
Catholic group provides aid to accused priests
Detroit man's legal fund criticized by some victims
Baltimore
Sun
Knight Ridder/Tribune
DETROIT - The phone calls have rolled in from a dozen states, most beginning with
the same question: "Are you the guy who helps priests?"
Joe Maher, surprised by the national reach of work he started in Detroit, finds
himself answering, "Yep, I guess I am."
Three weeks ago, a visiting priest at Maher's parish, Assumption Grotto Catholic
Church in Detroit, was acquitted of raping a choir member. Maher raised $100,000
for the priest's expenses. Word spread and the calls began.
Now Maher, 42, has quit his job as a financial systems analyst to start Opus Bono
Sacerdotii - Latin for Work for the Good of the Priesthood - a financial and spiritual
support group for priests who say they are innocent of alleged misconduct or who
are repentant and reformed.
"These priests need help," Maher said last week. "Once their names are in the
newspaper, it's over for them. It's very difficult to overcome it."
posted by Jayson Landeza on 10/1/2002
03:24:22 AM
MONTGOMERY COUNTY (MD)
Priest likely to plead in brothers' abuse
Washington Times
ASSOCIATED PRESS
A former Washington-area seminarian is expected to plead guilty to sexually abusing
two brothers during the 1970s.
Wayland Yoder Brown, 59, a Catholic priest living in Savannah, Ga., is expected
to plead guilty to one count of child abuse and one count of battery, according
to a pre-indictment memorandum filed with the Montgomery County Circuit Court
by the office of Montgomery County State's Attorney Douglas Gansler.
In March, a 41-year-old man reported to prosecutors that he had been abused by
Father Brown while he was a seminarian at various locations in the area, including
his home, St. Rose of Lima Parish Rectory in Gaithersburg, and at the Catholic
University in the District, as well as several locations in Georgia. The man's
39-year-old brother also said he was abused — almost exclusively on the grounds
of Catholic University.
Father Brown was arrested in Savannah on June 26.
posted by Jayson Landeza on 10/1/2002
03:15:59 AM
IRVINE (CA)
Charge against Plesetz echoed
A woman in Irvine says she, too, had a child by the former Catholic priest assigned
to a Dana Point church.
Orange
County Register
By CAROL McGRAW
The Orange County Register
A second woman surfaced Thursday to accuse former Catholic priest Gerald John
Plesetz of fathering another child at a time he was supposed to be offering spiritual
counseling.
Plesetz, 59, out on bail and awaiting arraignment Oct. 25, was arrested this week
on charges of having a sexual relationship with a 14-year-old girl who had a child
in 1974. He admitted to sheriff's investigators that the child was his, court
records say.
Plesetz, who lives in Orange and works for Orange County Health Care Agency, said
Thursday that his relationship with the girl, now a woman identified in court
papers as "Janet M," was "a foolish mistake."
"It was a stupid thing. It was a terrible thing."
posted by Jayson Landeza on 10/1/2002
02:53:56 AM
SAN JOSE (CA)
S.J. diocese conducts service for victims
75 pray for those abused by priests
San Jose
Mercury News
By Linda Goldston
Mercury News
In a step toward healing, a ``Silent No More'' prayer service for victims of clergy
sexual abuse was held by the Diocese of San Jose on Friday night.
Bishop Patrick J. McGrath said the Roman Catholic Church must now reach out and
help victims of past abuse at the same time it works to prevent abuse in the future.
``We gather to ask forgiveness for the sin of sexual abuse perpetrated by bishops,
priests, deacons and other representatives of the church,'' McGrath told the group
of about 75 people. ``All of us, as part of the church, must take responsibility
and bear the errors and faults of those who have committed these horrific acts.''
The prayer service was held at the Eastside Senior Center to avoid any additional
trauma to victims who were molested inside a church.
posted by Jayson Landeza on 10/1/2002
02:47:11 AM
ROME, ITALY
Married archbishop says he's still not ready to see woman he wed
San
Francisco Chronicle
Associated Press
A Zambian archbishop who scandalized the Catholic Church by getting married last
year only to later renounce the union, said after a yearlong secret retreat he
is not ready to see his one-time wife.
Archbishop Emmanuel Milingo married South Korean acupuncturist Maria Sung in a
group ceremony led by the Rev. Sun Myung Moon last year, but subsequently rejected
the marriage after a request from Pope John Paul II. Milingo then vanished from
public view, to the despair of his wife.
The archbishop spent one year in seclusion in Argentina, but recently returned
to an undisclosed location in Italy.
posted by Jayson Landeza on 10/1/2002
02:40:58 AM
LOS ANGELES (CA)
Charging sexual abuse, ex-altar boy sues LA Archdiocese
San
Francisco Chronicle
PAUL WILBORN, Associated Press Writer
A former altar boy who claims he was sexually abused by his parish priest sued
the priest, the Catholic archdiocese and Cardinal Roger Mahony on Monday.
Richard J. Kirby, 39, said Father Michael Wempe, then a priest at St. Jude Catholic
Church in Ventura County's Westlake Village, abused him from 1975 to 1977. Wempe
was one of seven priests dismissed earlier this year amid allegations of sexual
improprieties.
Wempe, who could not be located for comment, has not been charged with a crime.
Last June, Kirby and Mahony co-authored a commentary published in the Los Angeles
Times about how the church should help abuse victims.
posted by Jayson Landeza on 10/1/2002
02:35:11 AM
LOS ANGELES (CA)
Pioneering Law Allowed Filing of Priest Abuse Cases
Legislation: The 1994 state statute extends time limits for serious molestation
cases.
Los
Angeles Times
By TERESA WATANABE, TIMES STAFF WRITER
In opening criminal cases against four former and retired Roman Catholic priests
last week, Southern California prosecutors are relying on a 1994 California law
that has become a national model for overcoming legal time limits on decades-old
child molestation cases.
Without the law, which was upheld by a sharply divided state Supreme Court in
1999, the cases against the priests almost certainly would not have proceeded,
prosecutors said.
After the California law was enacted, 40 other states passed extended time limits
to bring charges in cases of sexual abuse of children. Some of those states now
say they did not go far enough and are seeking even tougher laws to help them
prosecute more clergy abuse cases.
posted by Jayson Landeza on 10/1/2002
02:28:35 AM
Monday, September 30, 2002
BALTIMORE (MD)
Cardinal's cleaning of the closet leaves traces of doubt
Baltimore
Sun
Dan Rodricks
I THINK it's fair to say that pages 18A and 19A of Thursday's Sun gave a lot of
people around here the creeps. It was cleaning day for Cardinal Keeler and the
Archdiocese Of Baltimore, with accommodation by this newspaper -- two pages of
bold-faced names and fine print summarizing decades of child sexual abuse allegations
against diocesan and visiting priests. The total ran to 83. The truth shall set
you free, but sometimes it just gives you a queasy stomach.
Some of us gave the pages a quick scan to see if we knew anyone who had been listed.
Some read every detail.
posted by Kathy Shaw on 9/30/2002
09:22:01 AM
JAFFREY (NH)
Jaffrey priest tells congregation sexual relationship was with young adult
Foster's
Daily Democrat
By J.M. HIRSCH
Associated Press Writer
CONCORD, N.H. (AP) — A Roman Catholic priest accused of sexual misconduct with
a teenage boy during the 1980s acknowledged the relationship to his Jaffrey congregation
Sunday, but said the young man was at least 18 at the time.
The Rev. Roland Cote read a letter to the St. Patrick Parish asking forgiveness
and describing the relationship, which he said lasted five or six years starting
in 1985.
"What I did was wrong, but it did not involve a minor or a parishioner," he said.
posted by Kathy Shaw on 9/30/2002
08:40:09 AM
JAFFREY (NH)
Rev. Cote apologizes
for affair with teen boy
The
Union Leader
By BENJAMIN KEPPLE
Union Leader Staff
The Rev. Roland Cote, pastor of Jaffrey’s St. Patrick Parish, apologized to parishioners
during Mass yesterday for having a sexual relationship with a male teenager in
the 1980s.
Cote’s remarks came two days after The Associated Press reported that a witness
to a deposition of Bishop John B. McCormack said the bishop had assigned Cote
to the church after Cote had admitted that relationship. Yesterday, Cote made
his contrition clear.
“What I did in the 1980s was wrong, and I am sorry,” Cote, 57, said in his prepared
remarks, a text of which the Diocese of Manchester released yesterday. “I am committed
to living a faithful life as a celibate chaste man who serves the Lord and His
Church as a priest and I have assured Bishop McCormack that I have lived a chaste
life as a celibate priest for many years now.”
posted by Kathy Shaw on 9/30/2002
08:36:28 AM
BOSTON (MA)
Law back from Rome, celebrates Mass in Hub
Boston
Herald
by Robin Washington
After a trip to Rome to attend the funeral of a fellow Catholic prelate, Bernard
Cardinal Law returned to the Cathedral of the Holy Cross yesterday, addressing
a lightly attended service without mention of the priest sex scandal.
Law, who has held few public celebrations of Mass at the cathedral or elsewhere
since June, instead commented on the possible strike by Boston janitors, to whom
he offered the church's support.
``The janitors' families should know that Catholic Charities is putting emergency
services at their disposal,'' he said, announcing a janitors' food fund.
posted by Kathy Shaw on 9/30/2002
08:31:04 AM
JAFFREY (NH)
N.H. bishop 'fesses up to parish priest's relationship with teenager
Boston
Herald
by Robin Washington
New Hampshire Bishop John B. McCormack, a former aide to Bernard Cardinal Law,
wrote a letter to parishioners at Jaffrey's St. Patrick Parish acknowledging a
sexual relationship by their priest, the Rev. Roland Cote, with a teenage boy
in the 1980s yesterday.
Cote also apologized, reading a letter to his congregation asking forgiveness
for the relationship, but stating that the young man was 18 at the time.
``What I did was wrong, but it did not involve a minor or a parishioner,'' Cote
said.
posted by Kathy Shaw on 9/30/2002
08:28:40 AM
WORCESTER (MA)
Sex abuse civil case could set precedent: Lawyers test how juries will see
the scandal
Boston
Herald
by Robin Washington
WORCESTER - A week ago, the Diocese of Worcester received widespread condemnation
- followed by praise - when its lawyer attempted to subpoena names from a sex
abuse victims' group before the bishop intervened.
But in another case, the spotlight remains on clergy sex abuse here, where for
the first time in seven years a civil case against a priest has gone to trial
in the Bay State.
And though the benches are nearly empty of spectators in the Superior Court case
of Lewcon vs. Teczar, the legal community is watching it closely.
``None of the clergy abuse cases have gone to trial in recent memory. It will
be interesting to see how a jury responds,'' said Carmen Durso, a lawyer with
several clergy cases, including a conspiracy charge against the Archdiocese of
Boston.
posted by Kathy Shaw on 9/30/2002
08:19:45 AM
SPRINGFIELD (MA)
Stigmatine priest sued in abuse case
Boston
Globe
By Michael S. Rosenwald, Globe Staff, 9/30/2002
A Springfield man is suing a Stigmatine order priest, saying that the clergyman
failed to protect him from another cleric who allegedly sexually abused him from
the time he was 12 to 15 years old.
In a lawsuit filed in Middlesex Superior Court last Thursday, Donald Smith, 44,
alleges that the Rev. Joseph Fellin knew or should have known that the Rev. Richard
Ahern was of bad character and reputation and unable to properly interact with
minors.
Ahern is deceased.
Smith's attorney, Mitchell Garabedian, who recently won a multimillion dollar
settlement for victims of defrocked priest John Geoghan, alleged yesterday that
Ahern, then affiliated with Our Lady of Mount Carmel parish in Pittsfield, repeatedly
raped his client from 1970-73.
posted by Kathy Shaw on 9/30/2002
08:16:42 AM
LOS ANGELES (CA)
God Got Me Into This
An interview with the matriarch of Charismatic Catholics, Marilynn Kramar
LA Weekly
Joseph Trevino
Years from now, Catholic historians who look back at the history of U.S. Latino
Catholics will find that few figures have been more influential among Spanish-speaking
immigrants than Marilynn Kramar.
Blond, blue-eyed and flashy, Kramar brought the Pentecostal-style Charismatic
Renewal movement to millions of U.S. Latinos. Speaking in tongues and believed
to be moved by the Holy Spirit, Charismatics are credited with thwarting the Latino
Catholic diaspora to Evangelical churches. Coming from a fifth-generation family
of preachers, the Los Angeles-born Kramar converted to Catholicism in 1972 while
doing missionary work for the Assemblies of God in Colombia. The same year she
founded Charisma in Missions, the largest Charismatic ministry in the U.S. Since
then, every year she holds the Encuentro Latino, a massive three-day spiritual
party, at the Sports Arena for pilgrims from all over the U.S. and Latin America.
L.A. WEEKLY: What is your view on the current church scandals?
MARILYNN KRAMAR: The Catholic Church is like a family. A lot of our family is
dysfunctional. And it didn't happen overnight that it became dysfunctional. We
have a lot of secrets in the closet. Our families are becoming aware that they
have to come out and tell their story. I believe it's the best thing that ever
happened, because finally we have to look at truth for truth and deal with it.
When a father becomes a real father, when he takes responsibility and asks forgiveness
for all the things he's done to hurt his children and his wife, he becomes part
of a healing process that the family can believe [in] again.
posted by Jayson Landeza on 9/30/2002
04:18:03 AM
FULDA, GERMANY
German bishops OK sex-abuse plan
Dioceses can investigate claims first; statement includes apology
Dallas
Morning News
Associated Press
FULDA, Germany – German bishops presented long-awaited recommendations Friday
for curbing sexual abuse by Catholic priests, ending months of deliberations with
an apology to victims and a pledge of greater vigilance.
The new measures were adopted in response to a series of abuse cases in Germany
this year that were revealed as reports of sexual abuse by clergy grabbed headlines
worldwide, especially in the United States. The scandal has clouded the last years
of Pope John Paul II and shaken the church.
Like guidelines unveiled by U.S. bishops in June, the plan adopted by the German
Bishops' Conference this week attempts to answer pressures to quickly report cases
of abuse to civil authorities.
However, the new rules allow individual dioceses to first investigate suspicions
of sexual abuse on their own. If suspicions about a priest are corroborated, he
would be urged to surrender to prosecutors or, "depending on the case," be reported
to criminal authorities by the church.
posted by Jayson Landeza on 9/30/2002
04:03:30 AM
PROVIDENCE (RI)
Number of Catholics in R.I. drops
The new Diocese of Providence figures show that the number of Catholics in the
state has declined by 91,000 in the past year.
Providence
Journal-Bulletin
BY RICHARD C. DUJARDIN
Journal Religion Writer
The nation's most heavily Catholic state might not be as Catholic as it used to
be, according to a new study of church membership in the United States.
Compiled by the Association of Statisticians of American Religious Bodies, it
shows that while 63 percent of Rhode Islanders were affiliated with with Catholic
parishes in 1990, the percentage was down to 52 percent in 2000.
What is particularly startling about the new figure -- 542,244 -- is that it comes
from data supplied by the Diocese of Providence, based on reports from local parishes.
Only a year ago, the diocese reported to the Official Catholic Directory that
Rhode Island had a Catholic population of 639,962.
posted by Jayson Landeza on 9/30/2002
03:50:49 AM
Sunday, September 29, 2002
MANILA, PHILIPPINES
CBCP tries to salvage image;
tightens screening for seminarians
The
Manila Times
By Joshua Dancel
In a bid to salvage its image tattered by sex scandals, the Catholic Bishops’
Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) has announced it would tighten the screening
process for applicants for the seminary.
CBCP President Archbishop Orlando Quevedo admitted that 38 percent of seminary
applicants have either had sexual abuse experience or are facing sexual abuse
charges.
This is the reason the CBCP is reviewing screening process for applicants to
prevent aspirants with tainted sexual background.
He did not say though if the “strict screening” would be targeting gay applicants.
Quevedo also admitted they have yet to prosecute a single priest up to now since
sex scandal stories came out in the papers.
posted by Jayson Landeza on 9/29/2002
09:18:11 PM
MANILA, PHILIPPINES
Church’s moral clout eroding
The
Manila Times
MANILA — Elsa, a physical therapy teacher in a Philippine school, says she was
about seven years old when a priest in her hometown groped her chest and thighs.
It happened in her house not once, not twice, but many times.
Devastated and seared by guilt, she blocked everything from her mind for 20
years until 1993, when it came back to her after she stumbled on a news item
about a young girl sexually molested by an uncle.
“I don’t know if I want to see the priest again ... I am still angry. I think
the church should acknowledge that these things are happening,” Elsa, the only
name she wants to go by, told Reuters.
Now 35, married and freed from her past after counseling by a nun, Elsa is one
of an unknown number of victims of pedophiles in priest’s robes in Asia’s largest
Roman Catholic country.
posted by Jayson Landeza on 9/29/2002
09:13:24 PM
SAN FRANCISCO (CA)
San
Francisco Chronicle
Phillip Matier and Andrew Ross
Chronicle Columnists
HEARD AROUND: The two former Catholic priests and lay brother of a Catholic
order indicted for alleged child molesting are just the tip of the iceberg.
We hear prosecutors in San Francisco are looking at as many as 25 more cases
-- the question being how many of them can be made to stick.
posted by Jayson Landeza on 9/29/2002
08:55:26 PM
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