Legal Criminal

Catholic brother abused boy he was counselling

Fri, 01 Apr 2011 07:14:05 +1100

Tag: australia

A FORMER Catholic brother has been found guilty of sexually abusing a teenager he was counselling after the youth was molested by another man.

In the Sydney District Court yesterday a jury of eight women and four men convicted William Stanley Irwin, 55, on two counts of gross indecency on a male under the age of 18 at St Stanislaus College in Bathurst in the mid-1980s.

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The jury heard that Irwin, a former student, house master and part-time teacher at the college, kissed the youth and initiated mutual masturbation when the pair stayed at the boarding school overnight during a road trip in 1986.
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They were also told that in the weeks or months after the assault the teenager reported the abuse to a nun, and then to his parents, who spoke to the Provincial of the Vincentian order, Father Gerald Scott.

But the jury was not present when the court heard of a ''strictly confidential'' file in which Irwin was recorded as having admitted ''the bed incident'' during an interview in 1987.

Irwin went on to be a dormitory master at St Stanislaus for two years. After his arrest in 2009 he was stood down from St Aloysius College at Milsons Point, a day school for boys run by the Jesuits, where he had been a chaplain and teacher since 2003.

Irwin, who left the Vincentians in 2002 and lives with his partner in Pyrmont, had pleaded not guilty to the charges.

The victim, who is now 41, had been molested by a man when he was 15 during a work experience stint at the Puffing Billy Railway in Victoria.

His parents told the court that they trusted Irwin, whom they knew as ''Brother Bill'', and asked him to help their son deal with his feelings about the sexual abuse.

The boy began visiting Irwin for counselling sessions, often in the priests' quarters. In the second half of 1986 Irwin drove the boy from Melbourne to Sydney and showed him the Wall in Darlinghurst and told him it was where homosexual men gathered to solicit sex. The Crown argued it was to ''plant'' the idea of homosexual sex in the boy's mind.

Irwin was granted bail and will be sentenced on July 22.

Tag: william-stanley-irwin

Tag: vincentian-fathers st-stanislaus-college nsw bathurst

http://www.smh.com.au/nsw/catholic-br...1cnhj.html ...

Rome priest sentenced to 15 years for paedophilia

Sun, 06 Mar 2011 23:16:03 +1100

Tag: italy

A court in Rome on Thursday sentenced a former Catholic priest to 15 years in prison for child abuse, as a wave of paedophilia cases by clergymen across Europe reaches Pope Benedict XVI's doorstep.

Ruggero Conti, a former parish priest at Selva Candida on the outskirts of the Italian capital, was found guilty of abusing seven children between 1998 and 2008 when he was arrested. He had claimed complete innocence.

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Prosecutors had sought 18 years in prison for Conti on charges of sex acts against minors, sexual violence and incitement to prostitution of a minor.

He was accused of carrying out some of his crimes on parish camping trips.

The case has attracted wide media attention in Italy as relatively few priestly abuse scandals have come to light in this predominantly Catholic country, compared to the hundreds in northern Europe and the United States.

A lawyer for the victims, Fabrizio Gallo, told reporters he would also seek "a just compensation" from Vatican authorities after the court ordered Conti to pay around 200,000 euros (279,000 dollars) in damages.

"This trial showed that the accusations were true and that the lives of many people have been destroyed forever. I hope the Church will find a solution and compensate victims who have been abandoned," Gallo said.

"No-one offered them a hand to help them or say sorry," he added.

During the trial, the bishop in charge of Conti's parish, Gino Reali, admitted he had ignored initial rumours saying: "I didn't believe them."

He later launched an investigation after two victims came forward.

Conti's lawyer, Patrizio Spinelli, said his client would appeal.

http://clericalwhispers.blogspot.com/...s-for.html ...

Fr Dennis John Corrigan in court in Newcastle

Sat, 05 Mar 2011 00:53:45 +1100

Tag: australia

A Catholic priest, Father Dennis John Corrigan, has been ordered to stand trial in New South Wales in 2011, charged with sexual offences against boys.

Father Corrigan, born in April 1942, first appeared in Newcastle Local Court, New South Wales, on 19 October 2010, charged with sexual offences against three boys aged between 13 and 15. The incidents allegedly occurred in the Windale area, in the Maitland-Newcastle diocese, north of Sydney, between December 1987 and May 1988. The prosecution alleged that the boys were under Father Corrigan's authority at the time of the alleged incidents.

Father Corrigan, of Thomas Street, Mayfield (in Newcastle NSW), was not required to enter a plea at this preliminary hearing.

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Committed for trial
In the same court on 9 February 2011, the magistrate ordered Father Corrigan to stand trial, with a judge, at the Newcastle District Court on multiple child-sex charges.

According to court documents, Father Corrigan served in the Philippines and in Melbourne and Tasmania before he arrived in the Maitland-Newcastle Diocese in the 1980s. He worked for the Glendale parish before being appointed to the Windale parish. He was living in the presbytery at St Pius X parish at Windale when he is accused of molesting three boys over a period of several months.

One of the complainants told police he still had scars on his penis from the abuse he allegedly suffered.

Another of the complainants told police of an incident when Father Corrigan visited the boy’s home. The complainant’s statement said that Father Corrigan was intoxicated as he sat on the lounge-room floor drinking from a brown paper bag and playing with a flick knife in a way that scared the complainant.

One of the complainants stated that he was molested when he was at the Windale presbytery to do odd jobs. Another alleged that he was abused when he stayed overnight at the presbytery.

Father Corrigan was admitted to hospital in March 1988 for "burnout issues", the court documents said.

Police interviewed him in 2004 after allegations were made and he denied any wrongdoing. He was interviewed again in 2009 and 2010 year before being arrested and charged.

Contesting the charges
On 4 May 2011 Father Corrigan appeared in Newcastle District Court for arraignment procedures. He entered a plea of not guilty to each of 13 child-sex charges that were read to the court.

They include nine charges of indecent assault, relating to three alleged victims committed at Windale and Redhead between October 1987 and May 1988.

Corrigan is also charged with twice inciting the oldest victim to commit and act of indecency with him, committing an act of indecency towards the oldest victim and having sexual intercourse with him.

The priest's bail has been continued and his trial will be scheduled for mid-2011.

The police investigation is being conducted by Lake Macquarie Detectives, at Charlestown, NSW, telephone 02 9242 9999.

Footnote
After working at the Windale parish, Fr Dennis Corrigan’s name vanished from the annual editions of the Directory of Australian Catholic Clergy during the 1990s. His name re-appeared in the editions from 1999 to 2001 as the administrator acting in charge of St Mary's parish, Dungog in the Maitland-Newcastle diocese.

In the 2002 edition he was listed as “on leave”, care of the Maitland-Newcastle diocesan office.

In the directory for 2003, Reverend Dennis Corrigan was listed as assistant priest, St Patrick's parish, Wallsend, Maitland-Newcastle diocese. In 2004 he was listed as a chaplain at Sandgate, Maitland-Newcastle diocese.

In 2005 and 2006 he was listed as on leave, care of the diocesan office. On 20 October 2010, Broken Rites found "Rev. Dennis Corrigan" listed on the Maitland-Newcastle diocese website, "care of the diocesan office".

In April 2009 in a totally separate matter, Father Dennis John Corrigan was convicted and fined $2400 after pleading guilty to high-range drink-driving and negligent driving after his car crashed into a parked car in a Mayfield hotel car-park in October 2008. He was found to have a blood-alcohol reading of 0.210.

Tag: broken-rites

http://brokenrites.alphalink.com.au/n...rigan.html ...

DA says no criminal charges to be filed in Fr. Wenig case

Fri, 04 Mar 2011 22:36:30 +1100

Tag: usa

Fr. Laurin Wenig, pastor of St. Mary’s Visitation Parish, Elm Grove, is on administrative leave after the Archdiocese of Milwaukee was notified the week of Feb. 14 of an allegation of sexual abuse of a minor that dates back three and a half decades.

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The district attorney’s office has concluded after reviewing the complaint that the statute of limitations prohibits a prosecution from moving forward, according to Milwaukee County Chief Deputy District Attorney Kent Lovern. “The matter has been referred to our office for the possibility of criminal charges,” he told your Catholic Herald Tuesday. “We’ve taken a look at the matter and we’ve determined that we’re unable to proceed with any sort of prosecution here because the matter – the incident – is barred by the statute of limitations, which restricts the time limit within which a criminal prosecution can be brought, and in this case the allegations relate to an incident that occurred several decades ago, and the statute of limitations in effect at that time was six years meaning that the state had six years to bring a prosecution of that matter after its alleged occurrence,” he said.

“We’ve notified all of the parties involved in this matter that there won’t be – that this office will be prohibited by the statute of limitations from initiating any sort of prosecution here, and so whatever process occurs after that is within the hands of the archdiocese.”

http://badgercatholic.blogspot.com/20...filed.html ...

In Philadelphia, New Cases Loom in Priest Scandal

Fri, 04 Mar 2011 22:33:30 +1100

Tag: usa

PHILADELPHIA — Three weeks after a scathing grand jury report said the Archdiocese of Philadelphia had provided safe haven to as many as 37 priests who were credibly accused of sexual abuse or inappropriate behavior toward minors, most of those priests remain active in the ministry.

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The possibility that even one predatory priest, not to mention three dozen, might still be serving in parishes — “on duty in the archdiocese today, with open access to new young prey,” as the grand jury put it — has unnerved many Roman Catholics here and sent the church reeling in the latest and one of the most damning episodes in the American church since it became engulfed in the sexual abuse scandal nearly a decade ago.

The situation in Philadelphia is “Boston reborn,” said David J. O’Brien, who teaches Catholic history at the University of Dayton. The Boston Archdiocese was engulfed in a scandal starting in 2002 involving widespread sexual abuse by priests and an extensive cover-up that reached as high as the cardinal.

Some parishioners say they feel discouraged and are caught in a wave of anxiety, even as they continue to attend Mass.

“It’s a tough day to be a faith-filled Catholic,” Maria Shultz, 43, a secretary at Immaculata University, said after Mass last weekend at St. Joseph’s Church in suburban Downingtown.

But Mrs. Shultz, who has four daughters, expressed no doubt about how the church should deal with the 37 priests. “They should be removed immediately,” she said.

The church has not explained directly why these priests, most of whom were not publicly identified, are still active, though it is under intense pressure to do so. Cardinal Justin Rigali initially said there were no active priests with substantiated allegations against them, but six days later, he placed three of the priests, whose activities had been described in detail by the grand jury, on administrative leave.

He also hired an outside lawyer, Gina Maisto Smith, a former assistant district attorney who prosecuted child sexual assault cases for 15 years, to re-examine all cases involving priests in active ministry and review the procedures employed by the archdiocese.

“There is a tremendous sense of urgency here,” Mrs. Smith said in an interview this week at the archdiocese, where she said she and a team had been working around the clock, without interference from the church hierarchy. “They’ve given me the freedom and the independence to conduct a thorough review,” she said, with “unfettered access to files.”

She added that announcements about her initial review would be coming “sooner rather than later.”

“The urgency is to respond to that concern over the 37, what that means, how that number was derived and what to do in response to it,” she said.

Philadelphia is unusual in that the archdiocese has been the subject of not one but two grand jury reports. The first, in 2005, found credible accusations of abuse by 63 priests, whose activities had been covered up by the church. But there were no indictments, mainly because the statute of limitations had expired.

This time, the climate is different.

When the grand jury issued its report on Feb. 10, the district attorney immediately indicted two priests, Charles Engelhardt and James Brennan; a parochial school teacher, Bernard Shero; and a man who had left the priesthood, Edward Avery, on charges of rape or assault. All four are due in court on March 14. He also indicted Msgr. William Lynn on charges of endangering the welfare of children — the first time a senior church official has been charged with covering up abuse in the sex scandal in the United States.

When the archdiocese learns of reports of sexual abuse, it is now supposed to report them to the district attorney, which is what led to the most recent grand jury investigation. Extensions on the statute of limitations also made prosecutions possible this time.

But even with these changes, some were surprised to see the grand jury paint a picture of a church where serious problems still festered.

“The thing that is significant about Philadelphia is the assumption that the authorities had made changes and the system had been fixed,” said Terence McKiernan, the president of BishopAccountability.org, which archives documents from the abuse scandal in dioceses across the country. “But the headline is that in Philadelphia, the system is still broke.”

The grand jury said 20 of the active priests were accused of sexual abuse and 17 others were accused of “inappropriate behavior with minors.”

In response, Cardinal Rigali issued a statement the day of the report, saying, “I assure all the faithful that there are no archdiocesan priests in ministry today who have an admitted or established allegation of sexual abuse of a minor against them.”

The phrasing spoke directly to the church’s policy of “zero tolerance” of priests who sexually abuse minors. If any active priests have such allegations against them, the policy calls for their suspension until the charges are resolved.

Still, six days later, he placed three priests on administrative leave — a tacit acknowledgment that perhaps there were priests facing such accusations.

The uncertain fate of the 37 active priests, whose names the archdiocese turned over to the district attorney, all but guarantees a continuing spectacle here. So do the indictments, a flurry of civil suits against church officials, victims who continue to step forward and the potential for courtroom drama.

Three weeks into the scandal, the archdiocese said it was not clear how much the revelations had hurt attendance at Mass and donations. Daniel E. Thomas, an auxiliary bishop of Philadelphia, said he had heard both sides: some parishioners were attending church more to pray for the victims and “the good priests, the faithful priests,” and some have told him, “We’re angry, we’re confused and we’re distressed.”

He also said that some priests had told him that donations were not down but that he was aware of “at least a few people who have said, ‘I’m not going to be giving to the church’ ” and that some were not fulfilling their pledges to give to the church’s capital campaign. He said money for the capital campaign goes specifically to help the church fulfill its charitable mission; it cannot go toward the defense of priests or legal fees, he said, and so only the poor, the sick and the needy would suffer if those donations dried up.

Jon Hurdle contributed reporting.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/05/us/...r=1&hp ...

Priest held for abducting kids

Fri, 04 Mar 2011 05:17:46 +1100

Tag: india

NEW DELHI: A 50-year-old priest has been arrested from south Delhi's Fatehpuri Beru area on Thursday night for allegedly kidnapping five minor boys.

The accused, who was heading a Hanuman Mandir and Math at Budh Road near Gadaipur in Fatehpur Beri for the past 23 years, allegedly wanted to portray the boys as "child gods" in a bid to dupe his followers and earn money through donations.

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Prem Dass was arrested after one of the kidnapped boys managed to make a telephone call to his uncle in Basti, a UP town around 50 kilometres away from Ayodhya. The other four kids include the two children- aged 15 and 13 - of Dass' own brother living in Sultanganj, UP. Two other kids - both 12 years old - belong to Bisoni and Bhagalpur of Bihar. Except for the boy from Basti, no other kid has completed primary education.

Dass, who hails from Bhagalpur, was apprehended following investigation after the boy in Basti went missing. "Dass was very ambitious and wanted to get rich by setting up his own ashrams but due to his poor economic condition, he could not do so. He felt that if his ashrams have 'child gods' to head them, devotees will make a beeline since they will be impressed with kids and their devotion at such a tender age. He planned to take the lion's share of the devotees donations for himself, all the while projecting himself as the "dharma guru" of the kids," said H G S Dhaliwal, DCP (south).

Dhaliwal said the accused dressed up the boys in saffron robes and continuously "indoctrinated and influenced" to make sure that no outsider suspect he kidnapped the boys and that the children live in an atmosphere where they act and behave like "gods".

"He brought the children to Delhi by promising them better education and a life of excesses. Once in city, he held them captive," said Dhaliwal. Police said that the boy from Bhagalpur was brought to Delhi by Dass in July 2010 with a promise of providing good education and better life to him. In Delhi, he was made to work in the temple. Two brothers, when they were rescued, were in a priest's attire.

Investigating officer Anil Sharma said Dass was "greatly" influenced by the success a few religious ashrams that receive huge amount of donations from devotees. Since he hailed from Bhagalpur district but knew UP well, he was planning to set up base in religious sites like Ayodha, Varanasi and Mathura. "It is strange that he took under his fold those children who never studied Sanskrit. He did enroll his brother's children in school, but the thrust was to train them as godman,'' said the investigator.

Dass came to Delhi in 1985 and worked as a priest in a local temple of Jaunapur. Three years later, he established a small temple in Gadaipur. Following mushrooming of farmhouses in the area, he started getting rich devotees. The cops, though, are yet to ascertain how a "poor man" from Bihar could build a Math with seven rooms. "We are investigating the ownership of the land and whether Dass owns other properties in UP, especially in Ayodha," said an investigator.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/ci...629383.cms ...

Mexican man's clergy sex abuse case can be heard in U.S., judge rules

Tue, 01 Mar 2011 00:07:24 +1100

Tag: usa
Tag: mexico

By Carol J. Williams, Los Angeles Times

The man, who claims he was abused at age 12 by a priest shuttled between L.A. and Mexico, can sue the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Los Angeles under a 222-year-old law addressing foreign complaints.

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A Mexican man who claims he was abused at age 12 by a priest shuttled between Los Angeles and Mexico can sue the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Los Angeles in U.S. court under a 222-year-old law addressing foreign complaints, a federal judge has ruled.

The case brought against church leaders in Los Angeles and Mexico alleges that Father Nicholas Aguilar Rivera was able to assault dozens of children in both countries because church officials conspired to conceal his history of pedophilia. The church has denied that allegation.

The ruling by U.S. District Judge Josephine S. Tucker, announced Monday, was the first clergy abuse case to be brought under the Alien Tort Claims Act of 1789, which allows foreigners access to U.S. courts when remedies are lacking in their home countries, attorneys said.

In the complaint filed in April, Aguilar is accused of sexually abusing as many as 60 children, including 26 in Los Angeles in the late 1980s.

Tucker said the crimes alleged by the plaintiff, now 26, constitute "cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment." She has yet to rule on whether the case is strong enough to proceed to trial.

Attorneys for the man hailed the ruling as "groundbreaking."

"The judge has stated that the abuse, the conduct we alleged, falls within the meaning of the Alien Tort Statute as interpreted by the Supreme Court," said attorney Anthony DeMarco.

A lawyer for the Los Angeles archdiocese, Michael Hennigan, said the church was interpreting the judge's ruling to be an "invitation" to seek disposal of the case through a different legal tack.

carol.williams@latimes.com

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-...?track=rss ...

Vatican Finds Chilean Priest Guilty of Sexual Abuse of Minors

Tue, 22 Feb 2011 23:46:02 +1100

Tag: chile
Tag: vatican

On behalf of the Vatican, Archbishop Ricardo Ezzati of Santiago announced that an elderly reverend has been found guilty of sexually abusing minors in Chile.

Father Fernando Karadima, 80, has been ordered by the church to retired to a “life o prayer of penitence,” and has been moved to a place where he may have no contact with former parishioners or “person’s that have been spiritually guided by him.”

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Last year, the accusations against Karadima shocked the predominantly Roman Catholic Chileans who saw him as a revered spiritual leader and father figure.

Karadima’s accusers saw at least some vindication in the church’s decision, but last year, a judge investigating the accusations against him had the case closed, and ruled that there was not enough evidence to charge the reverend. So while he has been found guilty by the church, Karadima has yet to be prosecuted criminally.

The Santiago appeals court is still deciding whether or not to reopen the criminal case, but the Vatican’s decision may push for the reopening.

Archbishop Ezzati said Karadima’s “punishment” from the Vatican took into consideration his age and felt it appropriate to subject him to “lifelong prohibition from the public exercise of any ministerial act, particularly confession and the spiritual guidance of any category of persons,” adding that he is forced to retire “to a life of prayer and penitence, also in reparation to the victims of his abuses.”

Should he violate these conditions, Karadima could face removal from the priesthood.

Karadima maintains his innocence and plans to appeal the Vatican’s decision. In accordance to the ruling, he has reportedly already retired to a religious convent in Santiago.

http://www.hispanicallyspeakingnews.c...nors/5490/ ...

Port Orchard Pastor Charged With Raping 12-Year-Old Girl

Sat, 19 Feb 2011 00:45:35 +1100

Tag: usa

By Aubra Salt Oregon Herald senior reporter

32-year-old Pastor Dirk P. Jackson was arrested Wednesday morning at his home in Port Orchard, charged with two counts of second-degree child rape.

On November 19, 2010, a woman claimed Jackson had repeatedly sexually assaulted her between 2002 and 2003 when she was 12 and 13-years-old and when Jackson was 19 to 21 years-old. She was a student in Jackson’s sixth-grade class at Manchester Christian Academy.

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The woman said the sexual abuse occured while she and Jackson were in the classroom as other children played outside during recess or when the other children were away in another rooms. She said there were numerous occasions in which Jackson had inappropriately touched her, and at least two times that she had performed oral sex on the Pastor.

She said she decided to report the charges to authorities when she saw Jackson at the First Baptist Church on Sidney Avenue in Port Orchard.

"We’re pretty shocked", said head Pastor Jamie Greening. "Whether these charges are true or not, we don’t know. We’d like the truth to come out, but nothing about these charges is consistent with the man we’ve known for eight years."

Jackson first began work at First Baptist Church in October 2003, working with kids in youth programs.

The woman making the accusations said she decided to report Jackson because she felt the abuse she suffered had an "extreme negative impact on her life" and with her ability to have healthy relationships.

Police say Jackson admitted to the woman he had sexually touched her when she was a girl, to having had sexual relations with her then, and having her peform oran sex on him while they were in her classroom. He admited this after he sent a request to the woman on Facebook to be friends, and after several recorded phone calls he made to the woman. During a call, Jackson stated several times that he was sorry about what he had done to the woman when she was girl, and worried what would happen with his marriage and children, and worried about going to prison.

Police later spoke to Jackson and informed him they had copies of recorded conversations and his admissions, and were therefore aware of the assaults.

According to the certificate of probable cause. "He told us that it was not forced and told me that it was consensual."

Jackson has lived in Kitsap County all his life and has a 1-year-old daughter and a 3-year-old son. His father, Don Jackson said at a pre-trial hearing, "This is one of the finest contributors to the community we have. His life has been a contribution. Hundreds of people are standing in support and confidence of this man."

Jackson was booked into the Kitsap County Jail and the state requested Jackson’s bail be raised from $250,000 to $500,000. The judge lowered it to $50,000.

Detectives are concerned there may be additional young victims who may not have reported inappropriate touching or behavior by Jackson. Investigators are asking anyone with additional information to contact Detective Chad Birkenfeld at (360) 337-5619.

http://www.oregonherald.com/oregon/lo...d-Girl.htm ...

37 Philadelphia-area Catholic priests now under investigation in latest child sex abuse scandal

Thu, 17 Feb 2011 05:54:40 +1100

Tag: usa

By Brett Michael Dykes

The Vatican has withstood a very long run of scandals involving the alleged sexual abuse of boys by Catholic clergy. The latest church outpost to get caught up in an explosive sexual abuse scandal---the archdiocese of Philadelphia--is trying to ensure that parishioners see that it's taking an active hand in investigating the charges.

As you may have heard, three Philadelphia priests and a parochial school teacher were charged last Thursday with raping and sexually assaulting young boys in their care. In response to the charges, the Catholic Church in Philadelphia is opening its own investigation into the possibility that 37 additional priests who remain in active ministry committed similar crimes.

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Cardinal Justin Rigali, the archbishop of the Philadelphia diocese, announced that the three priests already charged with crimes have been placed on administrative leave, and that his office is concerned about "credible allegations of child sexual abuse" involving 37 others. To lead the investigation, the church hired Gina Maisto Smith, a former Philadelphia assistant district attorney who's spent the bulk of her career prosecuting child sexual assault cases.

"Sexual abuse of children is a crime. It is always wrong and gravely evil. Protecting children, preventing child abuse and assisting victims are priorities of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia," Rigali said in a statement. "Many people of faith and in the community at large think that the Archdiocese does not understand the gravity of child sexual abuse. We do. The task before us now is to recognize where we have fallen short and to let our actions speak to our resolve."

Philadelphia District Attorney Seth Williams praised Rigali's announcement, and in the statement the church said it is "committed to working" with the DA's office to get to the bottom of all accusations. Rigali's aggressive response to the alleged pattern of abuse stands in stark contrast to the Church hierarchy's grudging-to-evasive handling of similar charges over a span of decades. As more recent scandals have emerged, senior Vatican officials have questioned the motivation of their critics. Indeed, last year, one senior Vatican official suggested that media outlets reporting on the scandals were targeting the Church because they'd been possessed by Satan.

In addition to charging the three priests with rape and sexual assault, Philadelphia prosecutors also charged Monsignor William Lynn, the Philadelphia Diocese's secretary for clergy under former Archbishop Anthony Bevilacqua, with two counts of endangering the welfare of a child for his alleged role in covering up the crimes. From 1992-2004, Lynn was responsible for investigating such allegations. A grand jury found that he knowingly allowed pedophile priests to continue serving in roles in which they had regular access to children.

John Allen, CNN's senior Vatican analyst, characterized the charges against Lynn as a potential bombshell for the Church hierarchy.

"This is apparently the first time that a Catholic leader has been charged criminally for the cover-up as opposed to the abuse itself," Allen said on the news outlet's religion blog. "It sends a shot across the bow for bishops and other diocesan officials in other parts of the country, who have to wonder now if they've got criminal exposure, too."

http://news.yahoo.com/s/yblog_thelook...se-scandal ...