Event: Victims blast Archdiocese, Cardinal 

Hundreds of newly exposed documents show extent of sex abuse and cover up in LA

Documents show Cardinal personally involved in abuse cases

He covered up for abusers, keeping them in ministry for years

Other abusers were paid secret salaries or “sent out of town” to avoid police

Mahony, church officials must be held accountable for crimes, victims say

What:  

Holding childhood photos, victims of child sexual abuse and their supporters will discuss the recent release of hundreds of pages of clergy sex abuse and cover-up documents made public as a part of a lawsuit against the Archdiocese of Los Angeles. They will demand that Archbishop José Horacio Gomez:

• Publicly admonish Cardinal Roger Mahony for knowingly covering up for molesters,
• Immediately fire, remove and punish anyone who abused or endangered a child,
• Stop continued legal maneuvers that have delayed the release of other documents and stalled justice for victims, and
• Cooperate fully with law enforcement and civil authorities.

They will also:

• Urge law enforcement to carefully review the documents and prosecute anyone–including Cardinal Roger Mahony–who broke the law,
• Beg anyone who was abused, or who saw or witnessed abuse, to contact law enforcement, not church officials. 

When: 

Tuesday, January 22, 2013 at 11 am

Where:

Outside of the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels, 555 W. Temple (at Hill), Los Angeles. Map

Who:  

Six-to-seven victims of child sex abuse and their supporters who are members of a support group called SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests. SPANISH speakers will be available for interviews.

Why:  

Today, hundreds of pages of clergy sex abuse and cover-up documents were made public as a part of a lawsuit against the Archdiocese of Los Angeles.

The documents, which outline the careers of 14 predator priests, show how Cardinal Mahony and other high-ranking church officials concealed the sexual abuse of children from law enforcement and the public. Including, according to the Los Angeles Times,”[proposing] strategies to prevent police from investigating three priests who had admitted to church officials that they abused young boys.”

According to another document, LA church officials paid “a secret salary” to a Philippine priest who, along with six other priests, sexually abused a girl and got her pregnant.

The files were released as a part of a lawsuit against former Los Angeles priest Father Nicholas Aguilar Rivera. They are not a part of the documents that are scheduled to be released as a part of the 2007 Archdiocese settlement with more than 500 victims of child sexual abuse.

All of the documents may be viewed here.