Media Statements

For immediate release: March 12, 2020

Next week Msgr. William Lynn will be back in court on charges of child endangerment. We hope that he will be convicted – again – by a jury of his peers for his role in covering up a case of child sexual abuse.

Allegations that a priest sexually abused at least four children in Florida were announced yesterday for the first time. According to the attorneys representing the victim, the priest in question has been accused by at least four different people, at least one of whom has already reported to church officials who found him “not credible.”

This morning, attorneys for the Archdiocese of New Orleans were asked by an abuse victim’s attorney if Catholic officials were considering filing for bankruptcy. What such a decision would mean for that survivor, and others, needs to be put into context.

More charges against an allegedly abusive Catholic priest have been brought forward thanks to the work done by Michigan’s attorney general. The progress being made in Michigan should be a signal to other attorneys general around the country that children can be protected in their own states by launching a secular investigation into clergy abuse immediately.

For the second time in six months, police in Cheyenne, WY, have wrapped up an investigation into retired Bishop Joseph Hart. We hope that this investigation will again recommend charges be filed against him so that future children will be protected and so his victims will have a chance at justice in a court of law.

A Massachusetts priest who admitted to abusing “perhaps dozens” of boys had his request for parole denied today. We applaud this decision as it will keep children safer and shows that secular officials are treating serial sexual abuse with all the seriousness it deserves.

A Minnesota diocese has reached a $34 million settlement with nearly 100 survivors of clergy sexual abuse. We hope that this settlement will bring healing to survivors and greater public attention to the ongoing issues of clergy sexual abuse.

A priest who was convicted last November on charges that he sexually abused a child in the erily 2000s had his conviction vacated this week because a new judge believes the priest did not receive a fair trial. We are dismayed that the victim will have to go through yet another trial but are hopeful that the priest will once again be found guilty.

An odd mix-up of identities on the list of credibly accused priests released by church officials in New Orleans is the latest example of the need for outside, secular investigations into allegations of abuse levied against clerics. It is clear that church officials themselves are incapable of accurately relaying details to parishioners and the public.

A new report from the Houston Chronicle and ProPublica has found dozens of priests accused of abuse in the United States have gone on to work in other countries, sometimes with the knowledge of church leaders. This is yet another sign that sexual abuse crisis continues today, despite the rhetoric from church officials, and is a clear indicator of the need for every single diocese to be investigated by secular law enforcement officials.