Volume 25, Number 1    April 2003

 

CTA meets with McChesney about full disclosure, accountability for bishops

Kathleen McChesney, the former F.B.I. official who now directs the U.S. Bishops' Office of Child and Youth Protection, visited CTA national office March 12 and met with CTA staff to discuss common concerns for holding the bishops' accountable to implement their 2002 charter to curb clergy sexual abuse of minors. "I welcome recommendations from all groups regarding child protection issues, and I welcome their points of view regarding tasks set forth in the charter," she said.

McChesney shared immediate plans of her office and the National Review Board which oversees it. By June 20, when the U.S. bishops hold their semiannual meeting in St. Louis, all 194 U.S. dioceses must have in place "safe environment" programs to protect children, educate parents and investigate priests and other church workers with access to children. Meanwhile, McChesney said, researchers at John Jay College of Criminal Justice in New York City have been retained to survey all bishops and compile a comprehensive self-study of the extent of child sexual abuse in the church and how much it has cost the church financially.

Regional CTAs press for full disclosure
McChesney and the board depend on voluntary cooperation by diocesan bishops. In some places, advocacy by regional CTAs and CTA-minded parishioners is leaning on bishops to disclose full information. CTA of Northern Virginia published an ad in the regional section of the Washington Post March 6, urging Catholics to boycott the Arlington diocese's annual Lenten fundraising collection, cutting out and mailing instead a "Zero Dollars" coupon, because Bishop Paul Loverde has not announced whom he has chosen as the child abuse review board required by the 2002 charter. The diocese wants to keep board members' names secret. McChesney told the Post she agrees with CTA that publicly naming board members is the best policy.

In Cleveland, the Community of St. Malachi Parish (profiled) published a detailed 10-point statement of "serious concerns" about Bishop Anthony Pilla's diocesan handling of the scandal. Though a priest and some church workers were indicted in December, many more cases fall outside the statute of limitations. St. Malachi parish wants the diocese to support extending the statute of limitations, and to share much more information about the costs of abuse cases.

The New Hampshire attorney general released 9,000 pages of documents and a detailed report March 3 that he said could have convicted the Manchester diocese of years of child endangerment. Current Bishop John McCormack agreed to this disclosure in return for assurances there would be no criminal charges. Now all eyes are on civil lawsuits. One parish in Merrimack, N.H., is withholding payment of its $84,000 annual assessment to the diocese in protest.

Cardinal Roger Mahony of Los Angeles and Bishop Richard Lennon of Boston are asking courts to exempt church documents from disclosure, and even to dismiss lawsuits, claiming freedom of religion under the First Amendment. National review board chair, Oklahoma ex-Governor Frank Keating, said the people want transparency, and vowed to take up these legal tactics when the board meets at the end of March.