Fifteen Years After Dallas, Part One: The Altoona-Johnstown Grand Jury Report

Read the Introduction to this series here. In 2016, the Pennsylvania Office of the Attorney General announced that “a statewide investigating grand jury has determined that hundreds of children were sexually abused over a period of at least 40 years by priests or religious leaders assigned to the Roman Catholic Diocese of Altoona-­Johnstown.” The two-year investigation…Continue reading Fifteen Years After Dallas, Part One: The Altoona-Johnstown Grand Jury Report

Fifteen Years After Dallas, A Seven-Part Series: Introduction

The 2002 Dallas Bishops’ Conference was a barn-burner. On the heels of the Spotlight series and scandals in dioceses across the nation, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) got together at their annual June meeting to put together “massive reforms.” Those reforms became the Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People and…Continue reading Fifteen Years After Dallas, A Seven-Part Series: Introduction

Don’t lie

That’s today’s lesson for Claretian priest Fr. Tony Diaz. He’s the organizer of San Gabriel Mission’s May 25 Build the Dreams Scholarship Fundraising Dinner. His fatal error was deciding to honor admitted child molester Bruce Wellems along with actor Edward James Olmos. Wellems is a priest of questionable standing who has been banned from the…Continue reading Don’t lie

Banned priest and admitted abuser slated for San Gabriel Mission award

Not fake news. They’re really doing it. And Edward James Olmos is gonna be there, too. Bruce Wellems is a problematic guy, to say the least. He’s been banned from the Archdiocese of Los Angeles. He’s been removed from ministry in the Archdiocese of Chicago and by the Claretian order. Last year, he was sued…Continue reading Banned priest and admitted abuser slated for San Gabriel Mission award

Cardinal Dolan and his Belief in Sex Abuse Reform Bills

It’s true: New York’s Archbishop Cardinal Timothy Dolan believes in Window Legislation and Statute of Limitation Reform for victims of child sexual abuse. He knows they both work to help victims heal. He’s showing us right now. Just look at his actions, not his words. In fact, since last fall, he’s shown that archaic Statutes of…Continue reading Cardinal Dolan and his Belief in Sex Abuse Reform Bills