Damned Pervert Priests - and other assorted Holy Scumbags

[Fake Messiah]

5,700 Acts Of Sexual Abuse Committed By German Catholic Priests

Berlin: At least 600 young people were documented as having been abused by Catholic priests in the German diocese of Muenster, but the actual number of victims could be 10 times higher, a report published Monday said.

At least 5,700 individual acts of sexual abuse had been committed by a total of 196 clergymen, including 183 priests, according to the report.

Five percent of the clergymen involved were found to be serial offenders with more than 10 victims, and less than 10 percent had faced any legal consequences.

At the peak of the abuse during the 1960s and 1970s, there were on average two cases per week in the diocese, the report said.

Three in four victims were boys, the majority between 10 and 14 years old, with many of the acts committed against altar boys or at children's and youth camps.

The study reported considerable psychological consequences for the victims reaching into adulthood, including depression and suicidal thoughts, with indications of attempted suicide in 27 cases.

https://www.ndtv.com/world-news/5-700-ac...rt-3064026

[Orbit]

5,700 Acts Of Sexual Abuse Committed By German Catholic Priests

Berlin: At least 600 young people were documented as having been abused by Catholic priests in the German diocese of Muenster, but the actual number of victims could be 10 times higher, a report published Monday said.

At least 5,700 individual acts of sexual abuse had been committed by a total of 196 clergymen, including 183 priests, according to the report.

Five percent of the clergymen involved were found to be serial offenders with more than 10 victims, and less than 10 percent had faced any legal consequences.

At the peak of the abuse during the 1960s and 1970s, there were on average two cases per week in the diocese, the report said.

Three in four victims were boys, the majority between 10 and 14 years old, with many of the acts committed against altar boys or at children's and youth camps.

The study reported considerable psychological consequences for the victims reaching into adulthood, including depression and suicidal thoughts, with indications of attempted suicide in 27 cases.

https://www.ndtv.com/world-news/5-700-ac...rt-3064026

I knew a (now-deceased) guy from another message board who had been abused by priests. It's a terrible thing, and the consequences are lifelong. He was in his 70s and was still affected by it.

[Fake Messiah]

Dozens of Northern CA Priests Facing Child Sex Abuse Claims for the First Time

Dozens of Northern California Catholic priests and church employees – some still working, others retired or deceased – are being publicly accused for the first time of sexually abusing children in their care. The allegations suggest startling new depths to the decades-long scandal that continues to rock the church and its followers.

Those new accusations – and many more – have surfaced in a wave of lawsuits washing over Catholic institutions across the state, including every Northern California diocese from Fresno to Santa Rosa. Some of the new filings allege cover-ups that protected accused predators and silenced victims.

NBC Bay Area’s investigation – based on a review of nearly 140 new legal filings and interviews with more than a dozen plaintiffs, attorneys, and other sources – has so far identified more than 40 Northern California priests or church employees facing child sex abuse allegations for the first time, a number that’s almost certain to grow by the end of the year. 

Other revelations include a string of new sex abuse accusations leveled against clergy and staff at schools for vulnerable Bay Area children: St. Vincent’s School for Boys in Marin County and the Hanna Boys Center in Sonoma. One such lawsuit alleges the sex trafficking of St. Vincent’s Boys to a remote Sonoma County summer camp called CYO Camp in the early 1980s, where one plaintiff states in his complaint that he was given alcohol and forced to engage in sex acts with multiple priests and other boys.

https://www.nbcbayarea.com/investigation...e/2925063/

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In Venezuela, priests convicted of abuse have returned to ministry

The 6-year-old walked to his church with exciting news to share. He had given the matter some thought, he told the Rev. Luis Alberto Mosquera, and he had decided he wanted to be an active Catholic.

“If you want to be an altar boy, you must pass a test,” the priest responded, according to the boy. Years later, the child’s testimony about that afternoon in the parish house would prove crucial: A court concluded that Mosquera had sexually abused him.

Mosquera was convicted in 2006 of sexual abuse against a child and sentenced to more than seven years in prison. But he didn’t complete the sentence. His lawyers feared for his safety in prison and sought probation. In 2008, he was released and returned to the church in Lara state, where he is still a priest. A photo posted on his Facebook page in 2016 and reposted in 2017 shows him surrounded by children.

The 63-year-old cleric’s case is among 10 involving allegations of child sexual abuse scrutinized by The Washington Post over the past two years. The Post interviewed Catholic leaders, police, court officials and victims and reviewed police and court documents. In half of the cases, dating from 2001 to 2022, The Post found priests convicted of charges who were released early from their sentences or served no prison time at all. In at least three cases, the priests were allowed to return to ministry.

Critics see a pattern that they say suggests collusion between a corrupt judicial system and the Church to protect perpetrators rather than victims. The common element in all 10 cases: The children involved came from poor and vulnerable backgrounds.

For clergy who have abused minors, the Church’s status appears to have provided protection. A priest in Zulia, for instance, served no prison time despite being convicted of aggravated sexual abuse against a 12-year-old. A priest in Falcón state pleaded guilty to committing a carnal act against a 14-year-old but was granted house arrest with the condition that he stay away from the victim. He returned to the Church, where he continues his ministry today.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/202...sex-abuse/

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High court rejects California Catholic bishops’ bid for review of California Child Victims Act

The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday rejected an 11th-hour plea by nine Catholic bishops and archbishops, including Santa Rosa Bishop Robert Vasa, seeking to overturn a California law allowing people to sue over childhood sex abuse regardless of how long ago it occurred.

Citing the “ruinously expensive” cost of defending even illegitimate claims, church officials argued that reopening a three-year “look-back period” that expands the statute of limitations on such cases unconstitutionally exposes them to liability in violation of due process protections — particularly since an earlier, one-year window in 2003 prompted massive settlements the church assumed would be the last word on the sex abuse scandal.

“Since the State’s previous revival statute induced the Dioceses to take dramatic steps to pay for the last round of revived claims, the Dioceses now stand largely defenseless against this second wave,” the petition states. “The potential financial implications for the Church are thus nothing short of ruinous.”

https://www.sonomanews.com/article/news/...californi/

[Fake Messiah]

FBI opens investigation into sex abuse in the Roman Catholic Church in New Orleans

The FBI has opened a widening investigation into sex abuse in the Roman Catholic Church in New Orleans going back decades, a rare federal foray into such cases looking specifically at whether priests took children across state lines to molest them, officials and others familiar with the inquiry told The Associated Press.

More than a dozen alleged abuse victims have been interviewed this year as part of the probe that’s exploring among other charges whether predator priests can be prosecuted under the Mann Act, a more than century-old, anti-sex trafficking law that prohibits taking anyone across state lines for illicit sex.

Federal investigators are now considering whether to seek access to thousands of secret church documents produced by lawsuits and shielded by a sweeping confidentiality order in the bankruptcy, according to those familiar with the probe who weren’t authorized to discuss it and spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity. Those records are said to document years of abuse claims, interviews with accused clergy and a pattern of church leaders transferring problem priests without reporting their crimes to law enforcement.

https://www.pbs.org/newshour/nation/fbi-...ew-orleans

[Fake Messiah]

Columbus diocese's list of clergy accused of sex abuse grows to 53 with Newark priest

The list of priests credibly accused of child sexual abuse who have served in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Columbus now totals 53, with one additional priest awaiting a judgment.

The list, originally with 34 clergy named, came out in March 2019 on the heels of the Pennsylvania grand jury report that revealed more than 1,000 victims of alleged abuse by more than 300 priests over 70 years. The report's release spurred public pressure for dioceses across the country to release such lists telling people which priests were believed to have been abusive to children in their areas.

https://www.dispatch.com/story/news/2022...777718001/

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Warning of bankruptcy, Albany diocese proposes abuse settlement plan


Mallory Allen, an attorney who represents dozens of alleged sexual abuse survivors in Albany and across New York, denounced the proposal as "nothing but a last-ditch effort to avoid transparency and accountability with more false promises of fair compensation."

"The diocese ... has wasted years of time and millions of dollars fighting survivors in court and defending its bishops who allowed children to be sexually abused," she continued.

Allen added their cases "are not going to go away because of yet another mediation program that is predestined to fail because it is funded by an entity that doesn’t want to be held accountable or pay fair compensation to survivors."

The diocese also had fought against the release of information about alleged victims of suspected abusive priests or others. Attorneys for plaintiffs have argued that information on other alleged victims is critical to their ability to show what the diocese knew about abusive priests — including many who were returned to ministry after receiving treatment only to commit abuse again.

Although the diocese has publicly supported the Child Victims Act — after years of the Catholic church lobbying against its passage — and attested to its efforts to help alleged victims, its legal team has also waged a fierce battle in court to prevent the release of many of the records that documented the abuse and their internal handling of it.

During the deposition, Hubbard testified under oath that he and the diocese had systematically concealed incidents of child sexual abuse and did not alert law enforcement agencies when they discovered it, saying their actions were, in part, intended to avoid scandal and preserve "respect for the priesthood."

https://www.timesunion.com/state/article...274425.php

[Fake Messiah]

Hundreds of Portuguese priests sexually abused children

Hundreds of Portuguese priests have sexually abused children since 1950. This is the conclusion of only six months of the special commission looking into child abuse within the Catholic Church in Portugal. Of the 338 witness statements taken so far, only 17 have been passed to the Public Ministry for ‘possible opening of respective criminal processes’, says Correio da Manhã, stressing “there are little expectation of success in criminal matters”. According to the paper, the commission suspects the number of victims is “much higher” than it has been made aware of.

https://www.portugalresident.com/hundred...-children/

[Fake Messiah]

Ex-Students Reveal Abuse at Baptist ‘Christian Torture Compound’

“At Agapé, we lovingly, patiently, and biblically teach your child the importance of submission to authority and the joys of being an obedient law-abiding citizen,” a soft-spoken voiceover actor says while images of smiling teenagers flash across the screen. “Mom and Dad, we want to support you in your effort to rescue your son from himself.”

But former students interviewed by The Daily Beast say the school was far from heavenly. Instead, they encountered a climate more like Lord of the Flies, where staff were given free rein to restrain and beat students, and where some kids were emotionally and sexually abused. They claim Agapé has functioned like a “cult” and “Christian torture compound” for decades, allowing adults to manhandle teenagers and withhold food, water, and proper clothing—apparently without most parents ever knowing.

Since last year, 19 former students have filed lawsuits against the school, alleging physical and emotional abuse, and in some cases, sexual abuse by staff and classmates.

Such accusations led to the arrest of the school’s ex-doctor, David Smock, who faces child molestation charges related to two alleged victims. He has pleaded not guilty. At a March hearing, one 16-year-old testified that Smock began abusing him when he was 13 and grooming him when he was 9 or 10, according to The Kansas City Star, which has extensively investigated claims against Agapé.

https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/ex-s...47317.html

[BrianSoddingBoru4]

All of these abuse cases could - in spite of the horrific psychological damage inflicted - could be a blessing in disguise: bankrupting churches strikes me a positive outcome from this mess.

Boru

[Fake Messiah]

Albany diocese settles first Child Victims Act case for $750K

The Roman Catholic Diocese of Albany recently paid $750,000 to a 47-year-old Saratoga County man who was allegedly sexually abused as a child by a former priest, marking the organization's first settlement in the hundreds of pending lawsuits that were filed under New York's Child Victims Act.

A week ago, Bishop Edward Scharfenberger proposed a court-supervised mediation plan to compensate the roughly 400 victims of sexual abuse who have claims pending against the diocese.

Mittler's lawsuit was filed against the diocese and 73-year-old Mark A. Haight of Schenectady, a former priest who was ordained in 1976 and accused of sexually abusing boys for more than a decade. Haight, who will pay an additional $2,000 to Mettler under the settlement, was shuffled through parishes, schools and to his final post at Glens Falls Hospital as abuse allegations surfaced at nearly every assignment — with the church's response to keep moving him rather than contacting police or terminating him.

Haight was removed from his post at Glens Falls Hospital around 1997, where he had worked for nearly seven years without the diocese informing hospital officials of his history. Haight resigned from the priesthood that year, not long after the diocese paid two settlements to his victims. One of the payments included $997,500 made to a man who said he was abused by the priest as a teenager in the 1970s and 1980s.

Records disclosed by the diocese during the pre-trial discovery phase of Mittler's case indicate former Bishop Howard J. Hubbard, who also stands accused of sexually abusing children, had twice sent Haight to treatment programs at facilities used by the Catholic church to treat sexually abusive clergy: House of Affirmation in California in 1985 and Servants of the Paraclete in New Mexico in 1989.

Diocesan officials, including Hubbard, had claimed two decades ago that Haight was working at St. Joseph's Church in Scotia when the first sexual abuse complaint was lodged against him in 1989. 

But testimony and the records turned over by the diocese during pre-trial discovery indicate that Hubbard and church leaders had received their first sexual misconduct complaint against Haight not long after he was ordained more than a decade earlier. In 1980, rather than seek treatment for alleged pedophilia at Hubbard's direction, Haight took a five-year leave of absence from the church and landed a job teaching children. The former bishop, according to court records, wrote a letter of recommendation for the priest without mentioning his sexual abuse history.

In a deposition last year, when Hubbard was asked about the diocese's practice of moving priests accused of sexual abuse to other parishes or assignments after some had received treatment, he acknowledged that they did that instead of calling police. In Haight's case, he was never prosecuted for alleged wrongdoing and is not on any sexual offender registries. His residence in Schenectady is three blocks from a middle school.

https://www.timesunion.com/state/article...285661.php

Or behind the paywall link

https://archive.ph/oMgQO

[Fake Messiah]

Vatican defrocks priest Tim Stier who scolded Oakland Diocese over sex abuse

The Diocese of Oakland said in a statement Friday only that “we wish Mr. Stier all the best in this new chapter of his life.”

But Stier, as he has been for the last 17 years, remains unsparing in his criticism of the diocese over the scandal that has rocked the Roman Catholic church locally and around the world since it first came to light in the 1980s and 1990s through criminal prosecutions of priests and lawsuits.

The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops in 2002 acknowledged the problem, calling for the protection of children and young people and zero tolerance for sexual abuse.

But critics have since accused church leaders around the country of failing to fully account for their role in enabling abuse. A 2018 Pennsylvania grand jury report found more than 300 priests had abused more than 1,000 kids in six of the state’s eight Catholic dioceses. The report found church leaders “brushed aside” victims’ claims and “preferred to protect the abusers and their institution above all” by “concealing the truth.”

Critics, including SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, and Stier, who is close with that group’s leaders, have said the dioceses’ disclosures were incomplete and failed to address bishops’ roles in perpetuating the abuse.

In his May 31 farewell letter to some 60 Oakland Diocese priests, Stier wrote of his dismay that Oakland Bishop Michael C. Barber hasn’t held retired Bishop emeritus John S. Cummins accountable for his role in allegedly enabling the abuse by credibly accused priests the diocese has named.

Stier’s letter, which he said only one priest responded to, said Cummins, bishop from 1977 to 2003, failed to prevent abuse by Vincent Breen, Don Broderson, James Clark, George Francis, Robert Ponciroli, Gary Tollner and Stephen Kiesle. All eventually were taken out of ministry and Broderson, Kiesle and Ponciroli were removed from the priesthood. Only Kiesle is still alive.

Stier, whom Cummins ordained in 1978, had served at St. Bede in Hayward under Francis, who died in 1998 and was accused of sexually abusing at least six kids. The diocese paid a $3 million settlement in 2004 to one of Francis’ victims, whose father Stier knew.

The final straw, Stier said, was a 2004 meeting with Dan McNevin, a former altar boy who said he’d been sexually abused by Clark. He later received part of a $56.4 million settlement with 56 accusers and is now SNAP’s treasurer. After a sabbatical, Stier told then-bishop Allen H. Vigneron in 2005 that he could no longer serve as a parish priest.

https://www.mercurynews.com/2022/07/09/v...sex-abuse/