~Part three in a multi-part series~previous post Settlement Class Actions Lawsuits are BAD for victims, BAD for justice, and a PUBLIC SAFETY HAZARD. And the opt-out? It’s every bishop’s dream. I talked about the opt-out a little in my last post. But in this post, I will talk about why settlement class action lawsuits in…Continue reading Class Action Sex Abuse Lawsuits Part 3: The Evil Opt-Out
~Part two in a multi-part series~previous post Settlement Class Actions Lawsuits are BAD for victims and BAD for transparency. But they are mighty good for bishops. Here is what we know about victims of child sexual abuse: It can take decades for victims to come forward, because child sexual abuse is a crime of shame…Continue reading Class Action Sex Abuse Lawsuits Part 2: Lessons from Covington
~Part one in a multi-part series~ Class Actions: BAD for Victims. BAD for Justice. BAD for Transparency Class action lawsuits are a bishop’s dream and a victim’s nightmare. Let me explain: Earlier this week, news reports discussed a federal class action lawsuit filed on Tuesday against the Vatican and the US Conference of Catholic Bishops. (This…Continue reading A New Series ~ Settlement Class Action Sex Abuse Lawsuits
Michael Sean Winters has written an excellent piece on the Baltimore USCCB Bishops’ Conference. He called the entire conference—from DiNardo’s leadership to the proposed reforms—”amateur hour.” My take on his editorial goes a step further: Pope Francis and the Congregation of Cardinals may have saved the US Bishops from themselves. DiNardo and team never had…Continue reading Did the Vatican save the US Bishops from themselves?
UPDATED 5:14 pm: From the Washington Post: Instead, Cardinal Daniel DiNardo — the president of the U.S. bishops’ conference — told the group that the Vatican’s Congregation for Bishops had asked the bishops not to take action until after a worldwide meeting of church leaders in February. This is very interesting. The congregation is the…Continue reading UPDATED: Francis put the brakes on Baltimore. Now what?
Spoiler warning: The US Conference of Catholic Bishops is taking us for a bunch of rubes. The bishops are relying upon two things: 1) the public’s lack of institutional memory; and 2) Catholics’ reliance upon the bishop’s artificial moral authority. #1 Lack of Institutional Memory Let’s start with #1. The best way to do this…Continue reading Some thoughts on this week’s Baltimore Bishops’ Meeting
While there has been no formal announcement of an investigation into clergy sex abuse and cover-up statewide, California Attorney General Xavier Becerra sent this shot across the Twitter bow earlier today: If you believe you’ve been a victim of or have information regarding incidents of sexual abuse by clergy members in California, please report…Continue reading The CA Attorney General potential investigation is picking up steam
Many of you may have seen posts about All Survivors Day yesterday. Now what? It’s time for change. It’s time for action. The past two years have been a whirlwind of news about child sexual assault and cover-ups. The scandal is being exposed everywhere—churches, sports, camps, organizations, public and private schools. If you think…Continue reading It’s time for change
Joelle yacks about a lot of stuff in a lot more places than just this blog. So, for those of you who can’t get enough … The San Jose Mercury News interviewed me about J. Patrick Foley, one of the priests in “the San Diego Eight” list. The Pacific Daily News asked me about more…Continue reading Joelle said WHAT?
Today the Diocese of San Diego released a list of eight credibly accused priests who have worked in the diocese. The names are: Fr. Jose Chavarin Fr. Raymond Etienne SVD Fr. James P. Foley Fr. Michael French Fr. Richard Houck Fr. George Lally O.A.R. Fr. Mark Medaer Fr. Paolino Montagna This list is dangerously incomplete.…Continue reading San Diego Diocese holds back on abusive priests, public list tops 103
One of my dearest friends is a married deacon in the Archdiocese of Washington, D.C. In his position, he attended to Cardinal Wuerl. But after the Pennsylvania Grand Jury Report, he decided: No more. After James wrote and delivered the letter attached below, we talked. He told me that telling Cardinal Wuerl was one thing.…Continue reading D.C. Deacon Calls on Wuerl to Resign
While New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and other parts of the country explode with scandal and investigation into clergy sex abuse and cover-up, a little pot of disrepute is simmering in one Southern California Diocese. Welcome to San Diego The Diocese of San Diego is well known to readers of this blog. It’s the home…Continue reading What’s going on in San Diego?
I wrote briefly about the Vatican Circular Firing Squad in a previous post. It was an over-simplification, but hit the point. To truly understand what is happening right now with the Catholic clergy sex abuse scandal—and how the scandal has been able to flourish for so long—you need to understand the people, the dynamics, and…Continue reading Who is Carlo Maria Vigano? And what does he have to do with Kentucky Clerk Kim Davis?
Pope Francis says: “Those in the Vatican who knew about and covered up abuse are ‘caca.’” The response within those formerly in the Vatican: “Et tu? You knew.” Commence the Vatican circular firing squad. Last one standing … wins?
It’s time for action. You’ve read the PA Grand Jury Report and its sickening revelations. You’ve watched child sex abuse scandals unfold in US Gymnastics, Penn State, The Boy Scouts of America, Hollywood, our public schools, and across beloved institutions we have trusted with the care of our children. If you are a survivor, healing…Continue reading Big Announcement: It’s time for Action. Join STOP
… and things are never going to be the same. On Saturday, I am leaving for Geneva, Switzerland, where former California State Senator Joe Dunn and I will be presenting at the United Nations’ ITU AI for Good Global Summit. There, we will discuss how cognitive computing will forever change how we work to expose child…Continue reading We’re taking this show to the United Nations
It’s the Sacrament of Confirmation season in the Catholic Church, and that means one thing: trouble. Why? For the Archdiocese of Los Angeles, it’s time to dust off disgraced, abuse-enabling bishops and force them on innocent Catholic teens, adults and parishes. I’ve already received numerous complaints from two Los Angeles parishes: St. Timothy’s in West Los…Continue reading Disgraced Bishop resurfaces for confirmation season … again
UPDATED 5/24 PA’s Catholic Dioceses receive copies of 884-page report. Public release slated for June. PA’s Catholic Dioceses have said they “won’t block the release” of the Grand Jury report. Bishop says that the report contains information that is “difficult to hear.” UPDATED 5/9 Bishop Trautman Smells Blood in the Water – His Own…Continue reading UPDATED 5/18: PA State Grand Jury Investigates Six Catholic Dioceses: What you need to know
Yesterday, I was a featured speaker at UCI Law School’s series on the #MeToo movement. Our discussion: Victims of child sexual abuse and sexual assault have been empowered to speak out about what happened to us. But what do we do to change the systemic problem in our institutions that made this abuse and cover-up…Continue reading #MeToo: Making a Movement
“The realization that I had used, willingly and unwillingly, my charm for the wrong reasons.” This was a quote from Joseph L. Bishop. He has admitted to “acting inappropriately” (read: sexually assaulting) numerous women during his career in the LDS church. It was the use of the word CHARM that got me. He still, at…Continue reading A note on predatory grooming
