November 4, 2019 / by Brett Katsma / Catholic Church Sexual Abuse
In August of 2019, Bishop Christopher Coyne, head of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Burlington, released a list of 40 priests accused of child sexual abuse. The abuse allegations were deemed credible by a committee appointed by Bishop Coyne, which consisted of seven lay members, four men and three women. One member was a non-catholic and one, John Mahoney, a sixty-five-year-old man from Burlington, Vermont, was a priest abuse survivor himself who settled with the church many years prior. It took the committee nine months to read through more than 50 personnel files belonging to the 40 priests. The committee used the guidelines set forward by the Catholic Archdiocese of Syracuse, New York to help them navigate through all of the documents and information.
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Redacted Names Lead to Frustration with Baltimore Archdiocese
May 11, 2023 / by Christina Feeney / Catholic Church Sexual Abuse, Default Category
The Maryland Attorney General’s Office released its long-awaited report into clergy sexual abuse of children within the Archdiocese of Baltimore in early April. The report details 80 years of clergy sexual abuse of more than 600 children within the archdiocese. It also describes the archdiocese’s knowledge concerning clergy abuse and its attempts to cover-up what […]
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Worcester Diocese Declines to Name Abusive Priests in Report
February 10, 2023 / by Christina Feeney / Catholic Church Sexual Abuse
The Diocese of Worcester recently released a new report about clergy sexual abuse of minors between 1950 and 2022. However, that report failed to include the names of the priests . . .
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Bill Seeking to Remove Statute of Limitations is Gaining Momentum in Maryland
January 26, 2023 / by Christina Feeney / Catholic Church Sexual Abuse
Maryland clergy sex abuse survivors are hoping for justice with new legislation on the horizon . . .
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Diocese of Columbus Adds Priest to Credibly Accused List
January 24, 2023 / by Christina Feeney / Catholic Church Sexual Abuse
The Diocese of Columbus added Rev. Dean A. Mathewson to its list of priests credibly accused of child sexual abuse . . .
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Maryland AG Investigation Reports Over 600 Victims of Clergy Abuse
December 8, 2022 / by Christina Feeney / Catholic Church Sexual Abuse
Maryland Attorney General Brian Frosh’s office finally produced a report over three years after his office first announced it would begin investigating clergy sex abuse . . .
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New Phoenix Bishop Aims for Transparency with Sex Abuse Investigations
August 16, 2022 / by Christina Feeney / Catholic Church Sexual Abuse
John P. Dolan, the new bishop of the Diocese of Phoenix, said the diocese will attempt to be transparent when it comes to investigations of clergy sex abuse.
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Diocese of Albany Adds Priest to Credibly Accused List
May 26, 2022 / by Christina Feeney / Catholic Church Sexual Abuse
The Diocese of Albany recently added retired priest Father Gregory Weider for “reasonable cause” to its list of priests credibly accused of sexual abuse.
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Diocese of Springfield Releases Updated Credibly Accused List
June 30, 2021 / by Brett Katsma / Catholic Church Sexual Abuse
The Diocese of Springfield recently released an updated list of church officials and employees who have been credibly accused of sexual abuse. Bishop William Byrne said the new list is part of his commitment to “transparency and healing.” There are 61 names on the list, 21 more than the previous version.
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What Does it Mean When a Priest or Clergy is ‘Credibly Accused’?
January 27, 2021 / by Brett Katsma / Catholic Church Sexual Abuse
Dioceses have been publishing lists of ‘credibly accused’ priests or clergy regarding child sexual abuse since 2002. However, many people may wonder what it means if a priest or clergy member has been credibly accused of sexual abuse. What standards, if any, are in place for a name to be added to a particular list? A look at the history and process of how these lists came to be may help show what it means if a name is on an ‘accused’ list.
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Lexington KY Diocese Releases Accused Priest List
November 19, 2020 / by Brett Katsma / Sexual Abuse & Assault Lawsuits
The Diocese of Lexington, Kentucky released a list of 20 priests who served in the diocese and have been credibly accused of sexually abusing a minor. The list was compiled after an independent investigation that reviewed all priest and church files, among other documents. The diocese notes in its official report that “the investigators were granted unlimited and unfettered access to all files and documents, all personnel, and all policies and procedures”.
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Diocese of Covington, KY Release List of Accused Clergy
November 9, 2020 / by Brett Katsma / Catholic Church Sexual Abuse
The Diocese of Covington, Kentucky has released a list of priests who have served in its diocese and have been credibly accused of sexual abuse. The list comes after two former FBI agents spent almost a full year reviewing diocese records dating back to 1950. The comprehensive list contains the names of 59 priests and 31 others affiliated with the diocese dating back almost 70 years.
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87 People Claim Sexual Abuse by Colorado Diocese Priests
June 30, 2020 / by Brett Katsma / Catholic Church Sexual Abuse
In October of 2019 an Independent Compensation Program (ICP) in Colorado was finalized allowing those sexually abused as minors by clergy in the Dioceses of Denver, Colorado Springs and Pueblo the ability to file claims. The unveiling of the program coincided with the Attorney General of Colorado releasing the names 43 priests accused of sexual abuse within the Catholic Dioceses of Colorado.
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North Carolina Diocese publishes list of credibly accused clergy
May 21, 2020 / by Brett Katsma / Catholic Church Sexual Abuse
North Carolina diocese publishes list of credibly accused clergy. The hired independent investigators to review files of over 1600 church personnel which began over a year prior to the release.
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Pennsylvania Grand Jury Report Released for Abused Survivors of the Catholic Church
May 5, 2020 / by Brett Katsma / Catholic Church Sexual Abuse
It has been over a year since a Pennsylvania grand jury released the names of 300 Pennsylvania priests accused of sexual abuse. Releasing those names may have helped garner some much-needed momentum for both victims and lawmakers.
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Columbus Diocese adds 8 names to priest sex-abuse list
April 10, 2020 / by Brett Katsma / Catholic Church Sexual Abuse
In September of 2019 the Roman Catholic Diocese of Columbus Ohio added the names of eight priests who have been “credibly accused” of sexual abuse of minors to their published list. The majority of the eight names added to the list are in the category of “extern” which covers clergy members who served in Columbus but were accused of abuse elsewhere.
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Accused Priest List Released by Archdioceses of Burlington (Vermont)
November 4, 2019 / by Brett Katsma / Catholic Church Sexual Abuse
In August of 2019, Bishop Christopher Coyne, head of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Burlington, released a list of 40 priests accused of child sexual abuse. The abuse allegations were deemed credible by a committee appointed by Bishop Coyne, which consisted of seven lay members, four men and three women. One member was a non-catholic and one, John Mahoney, a sixty-five-year-old man from Burlington, Vermont, was a priest abuse survivor himself who settled with the church many years prior. It took the committee nine months to read through more than 50 personnel files belonging to the 40 priests. The committee used the guidelines set forward by the Catholic Archdiocese of Syracuse, New York to help them navigate through all of the documents and information.
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Catholic Priest Guilty of Sex Abuse in Washington, DC
September 3, 2019 / by Brett Katsma / Catholic Church Sexual Abuse
The Rev. Urbano Vazquez, a Catholic priest from Shrine of the Sacred Heart Parish in Northwest Washington, D.C. has been convicted of four counts of child sexual abuse against two children. The abuse was committed from 2015-2017 and Father Vazquez was arrested in November 2018. He was on a list of Catholic priests credibly accused of priest molestation against children which was released shortly before his arrest in late 2018.
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Catholic Church in N.H. Publishes Names of Priests Accused of Sex Abuse of Minors
August 22, 2019 / by Brett Katsma / Catholic Church Sexual Abuse
The Catholic Diocese of Manchester, NH has created a website that shows a comprehensive list of priests that have been accused of Catholic Church sexual abuse. The website includes the names of priests both living and deceased dating back to incidents that occurred in the 1950s. As of August 2019, the Catholic Diocese of Manchester, NH has paid nearly $30 million to compensate victims who filed Catholic Church lawsuits.
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Providence Diocese Lists Priests Accused of Sexually Abusing Children
July 15, 2019 / by Brett Katsma / Catholic Church Sexual Abuse
The Roman Catholic Diocese of Providence, RI has recently released the names of 50 priests and deacons who have been credibly accused of sexually abusing children dating back to 1950. In the posting on their website, the diocese indicates that 19 of the 50 names are priests and deacons that are still alive, but nearly all of the accused have been removed from ministry.
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Police seized 57 items from Saginaw Diocese during raid, including ‘victim list’
June 11, 2019 / by Brett Katsma / Catholic Church Sexual Abuse
Police in Saginaw, MI recently executed search warrants on three Catholic Diocese properties while investigating claims of sexual abuse done to minors by clergy. Public documents show that police seized nearly 60 items of evidence including what was found in the bottom drawer of a filing cabinet at the diocese headquarters, a file titled “victim list”. Additional items from seize included: computers, flash drives, expense accounts, internal memos, and the personal files of convicted sexual-abuser Rev. Robert J. DeLand Jr., three other priests, and one deacon.
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More Than 80 Clergy Members Named in Sexual Abuse Report
May 28, 2019 / by Brett Katsma / Catholic Church Sexual Abuse
Three sexual abuse survivors from the Albany, NY area testified in court recently that they were abused by more than 80 clergy members from the Albany Diocese. One woman testified that she was raped and exploited by a man who was a teacher and counselor at Notre Dame-Bishop Gibbons High School in Schenectady, NY. Mark Lyman, another sexual abuse survivor that testified, said “Many of us were told when we were being abused that we were the only one. My reason for being here is to protect children and to make sure that what happened to me as a child doesn’t happen to another child here in New York State.” Mr. Lyman has spoken out more than once about the abuse he suffered as a child growing up at his church in Troy, NY.
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