CURRENT SCOPE OF THE PROBLEM
WITHIN THE ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH
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About the victims:
The John Jay College of Criminal Justice conducted a study of sexual abuse by Roman Catholic
clergy. It was commissioned by U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. The College released their report in late 2004-FEB. 1
Among their findings were the following data:
11,000 allegations of sexual abuse of children had been made between
1950 and 2002; 61% were substantiated; 9% were unsubstantiated; 30% were not
investigated because the alleged perpetrator had died.
4,450 clergy (4%) out of the total 110,000 who served during the
interval are alleged to have sexually abused children.
78% of the alleged victims were post-pubertal (11 to 17 years of age).
1,2
Unfortunately, the full scope of the abuse will never be known. According to
the OC Weekly, many dioceses destroyed or withheld personnel files. This
allegedly included the dioceses of:
Cleveland, OH
Dallas, TX
Fairbanks, Alaska,
Manchester, NH
Oakland, CA
Springfield, MA
Tucson, AZ
Worcester, MA. 4
Impact on the church:
Settlements: As of mid-2005, there are 195 Roman Catholic
dioceses in the U.S. They have paid a total of over $1.5 billion dollars in
settlements since 1950. 11 According to CNN.com:
"The Rev. Thomas Doyle, who left a promising career with the church
to help represent victims, had warned the bishops in 1985 that abuse costs
could eventually exceed $1 billion. He said: "Nobody believed us. I
remember one archbishop telling me, 'My feeling about this, Tom, is no one's
ever going to sue the Catholic Church'." 9
The four largest settlements to date are described below, in
chronological order:
Boston, MA: The scandal surfaced in
Boston during 2002-JAN when court documents revealed that church leaders
moved Rev. John Geoghan from parish to parish in spite of evidence that
he had molested children.This incident triggered an awareness of
sexual abuse by clergy across the country. in 2002-DEC, Cardinal Bernard
Law resigned as archbishop of the diocese. A report issued in 2003-JUL
indicated that more than 1,000 children had probably been molested by
over 235 priests from 1940 to 2000. In 2003-SEP-09, the Boston
Archdiocese agreed to compensate 552 victims who said they were abused
by priests a total of $85 million. Victims received awards ranging from
$80 thousand to $300 thousand, less a large percentage to pay legal
fees. The diocese is the fourth largest in the U.S. It has 2.1 million
parishioners. According to the Associated Press: "Award
amounts will be decided by a mediator, based on the type of molestation,
the duration of the abuse, and the injury suffered. Parents who filed
lawsuits claiming their children were abused will receive $20,000. The
church also will provide for psychological counseling for victims for as
long as they want it, and will put some victims on advisory boards
monitoring the abuse problem.....The archdiocese also released a
statement saying in part that it is 'committed to doing everything
humanly possible to make sure that this never occurs again. Our prayer
is that this may, with the help of God, become a reality'."
Gary Bergeron, who sued for molestation by the late Rev. Joseph
Birmingham said: "This piece of paper means one thing to me and many
men I represent here today. From this day forward I am not an alleged
victim of clergy abuse. I am recognized, I'm a survivor." 7,8
Stephen Pope, a theology professor at Boston College, estimated that it
will take a generation for the Church to recover from the scandal. He
said: "The whole country has been waiting for Boston to resolve this
question, waiting for Boston to set an example." 7
Orange County, CA: During 2004, the
diocese agreed in principle to a $100 million settlement to compensate
approximately 90 victims with amounts ranging from $500 thousand to $4
million. However, attorney fees may chew up to 40% of the payments. The
diocese has 1,044,191 parishioners. The settlement was officially
announced on 2005-JAN-03. 5
According to the LA Times, Bishop Tod D. Brown "...agreed
to open his personnel files to the public. A judge will screen them to
remove names of alleged abuse victims, and material protected by legal
privileges, such as communications between lawyers and psychologists and
their clients.....The diocese had a $171-million investment portfolio
and $23.4 million in cash reserves at the end of the 2003 fiscal year,
according to its financial statement." 6
Bishop Brown wrote in a statement: "We are ashamed that the crime of
sexual abuse took place in our church and are determined that it will
not happen again. Even after these cases are settled, all our efforts to
make our church a safer environment for all and to educate everyone
about the horror of childhood sexual abuse in our society will continue.
We owe it to those who have suffered this kind of abuse to name it for
what it is and, as far as possible, make amends." 3
Covington, KY: In 2005, the diocese
established a $120 million fund to compensate an unknown number of
victims. The diocese has only 89,000 parishioners. So far, the diocese
has revealed that 205 allegations have been received against 35 of its
priests -- nearly 10% of the total number of 354 priests who have worked
in the diocese over the past 50 years. Sixteen of the priests have died;
five have been defrocked; 14 have been permanently removed from ministry
but remain priests. The maximum cost per parishioner could be as much as
$1,300. Claimants will be divided into four groups, depending on the
nature and severity of the abuse. Compensation for members would range
from $5,000 to $450,000.
The exact number of abuse victims who will come forward in the future is
unknown. The diocese is planning to collect $80 million from its
insurance companies. The remaining $40 million will come from a
combination of "investments and real estate." Any unused amount
in the fund will revert to the diocese. Stanley Chesley, lead
attorney for the plaintiffs, wrote in a statement: "This is a very
important and in many ways unprecedented result in an extremely
difficult matter." Bishop Roger Foys wrote in a statement. "After
personally meeting with more than 70 victims, I am painfully aware that
no amount of money can compensate for the harm these victims suffered as
innocent children. Nevertheless, I pray that this settlement will bring
some measure of peace and healing to victims and their loved ones."
2
Los Angeles, CA: The diocese of Los Angeles
-- the largest in the U.S.,
announced on 2006-DEC-02 that it had agreed to pay $60 million to settle 45
lawsuits that alleged sexual abuse involving 22 priests.
Cardinal Roger Mahony issued a news release, saying:
"I pray that the settlement of the initial group of cases will help the
victims involved to move forward with their lives and to build a brighter future
for themselves and their families,"
This leaves more than 500 lawsuits involving allegations against 200 priests
to be settled in the future. 11
Bankruptcy: Four dioceses, (Davenport, IA; Portland, OR; Spokane WA; and
Tucson, AZ) have sought bankruptcy protection. Tucson has emerged from the
process. 11
Clergy: According to the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops,
during 2004, dioceses in the U.S. temporarily removed more than 300
accused clergy. 184 have been defrocked.
Insurance costs: The insurance premiums of all 195 Roman Catholic
dioceses in the U.S. are certain to increase precipitously as insurance
companies attempt to recoup their losses. Premiums paid by other religious
institutions will probably increase as well. The scandal might even affect
other non-profits, commercial establishments, companies, etc.
Loss in the number of donors: Charles Zech is an economics
professor at Villanova University who specializes in the study of
church finances. He said in 2005-JUN that the number of donors has fallen in
the past few years, but the amount contributed overall has held steady. 9
Pending settlements: David Castaldi,
chairperson of the Catholic lay reform group Voice of the Faithful
has predicted that the total cost of the sexual abuse scandal could
eventually total three billion dollars. At the group's national meeting in
2005-JUL, he noted that the Diocese of Portland, OR, faces claims in excess
of a half billion; the Archdiocese of Los Angeles may pay out as much as
$1.5 billion. 10
References:
"Draft survey: 4,450 priests accused of sex abuse. Bishop: 'Very sobering and important milestone'," CNN.com,
2004-FEB-17, at: http://edition.cnn.com/
Bruce Schreiner, "Priest-abuse settlement sets record. Covington (Ky.) Diocese creates $120 million fund to pay victims,
" Indianapolis Star, 2005-JUN-04, at:
http://www.indystar.com/
"Statement of Bishop Brown regarding sex abuse settlement," Diocese of Orange, undated, at:
http://www.rcbo.org/ This is a PDF file. You may
require software to read it. Software can be obtained free from:
Gustavo Arellano, "Shreddin’! Other Catholic diocese have destroyed incriminating priest personnel files. Why not
Orange?," OC Weekly, 2005-MAR-25, at:
http://www.ocweekly.com/
Gustavo Arellano, "The All-Spin Zone. Confidential memo reveals real reason Orange diocese settled sex-abuse suits,"
OC Weekly, 2005-JAN-14, at: http://www.ocweekly.com/
Jean Guccione, "Orange Bishop to Apologize in Huge Abuse Settlement. A record-setting $100-million agreement in the Catholic
Church's sex scandal also will make confidential files public," LA Times, 2005-JAN-04. Online at:
http://www.bishop-accountability.org/
"Boston Archdiocese Agrees to $85M Sex Abuse Settlement," Fox News, 2003-SEP-09, at:
http://www.foxnews.com/
"Chronology of Major Events in Church Abuse Scandal," Associated Press, 2003-SEP-09, at:
http://www.foxnews.com/
