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?
… 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
The Georgia State Legislature is trying to pass a bill to help adult victims of child sexual abuse. The legislation, dubbed the “Hidden Predator Act,” extends the statute of limitations for victims from age 23 to 38, and creates other avenues for adults to sue long after that age. This is not groundbreaking legislation. It…Continue reading Wilton Gregory’s REAL message to Georgia…
From the Associated Press: [The] Catholic Church is concerned that the [Michigan] statute of limitations bill could “open up other things that have been closed.” Other things? Things like abuse and cover-up? And these things have been closed? I don’t think so. Certainly not for the victims, who are still suffering. Not for the predators,…Continue reading Closed for whom?
Last week, The Orange County Register published an excellent two-part series on the sex abuse cover-up scandal inside of USA Swimming. Some of horrific facts reporter Scott M. Reid unearthed: • Top USA Swimming executives, board members, top officials and coaches acknowledge in the documents that they were aware of sexually predatory coaches for years,…Continue reading ICYMI – USA Swimming has a scandal on its hands
When Pope Francis appoints Cardinal Roger Mahony as a Papal Envoy in a state where almost every diocese is under investigation for the cover up of child sexual abuse, you know the Vatican has gone full tone-deaf on sex abuse. And now is not the time to go full tone-deaf. The PR Shine Fades Since his…Continue reading Now you’re seeing behind the “Pope Francis curtain”
The Archdiocese of Los Angeles does not want you to know about Fr. Juan Cano. Yesterday, they sent an official to Encino’s Our Lady of Grace Parish and told Catholics there that Fr. Juan Cano was placed on administrative leave on January 19th due to “several allegations” of inappropriate behavior with women, including one minor.…Continue reading Where is Fr. Juan Cano?
November 3, 2017 To: Dr. Jeffrey Docking, President Adrian College @JeffreyDocking, @AdrianCollege cc: Ms. Bridgette Winslow, Assistant Dean of Academic Affairs, Title IX Coordinator Dr. Seth Knox, President, Adrian College Association of Professors The dam has broken: You can no longer blame a fifteen-year-old victim for the fact that one of your professors,…Continue reading My Open Letter to Jeffrey Docking and Adrian College #metoo
The Independent Reconciliation and Compensation Plan is not perfect. But because of it, last week, victims were able to expose two, decades-long hidden priest perpetrators. One of the predators—Casper Wolf—taught in a Bronx high school for 27 years. The Archdiocese knew about allegations entire time. And said NOTHING. If you were sexually abused by a…Continue reading Victims Deadline – Archdiocese of New York – November 1, 2017
The Catholic Diocese of Rockville Center, NY has announced an Independent Reconciliation and Compensation Plan. These plans, administered by Ken Feinberg and funded by the individual dioceses, aim to compensate victims for abuse. You can read more about them in my four-part series here. Victims of sexual abuse in the Long Island Catholic diocese of…Continue reading The next domino falls: Rockville Center NY
A Vatican priest and diplomat under suspicion for violating US child pornography laws wrote his 2003 doctoral dissertation on church laws addressing how the Holy See deals with clerics accused of molesting children. Monsignor Carlo Alberto Capella, recalled by the Vatican last week, wrote The criminal protection of ecclesiastical celibacy in the canonical laws of 1917…Continue reading Exclusive: Accused Vatican diplomat wrote 2003 dissertation on sex abuse church laws
Even I was guilty of assuming that Archdiocese of Agaña (Guam) Archbishop Anthony Apuron was charged with child sexual abuse in his current and highly publicized Vatican Tribunal. But then I learned: Charges in a Vatican Tribunal are secret. Apuron’s replacement confirmed it. From The Tablet (UK): Asked if [Guam] archbishop [Anthony Apuron] was also…Continue reading Exact Vatican Tribunal Charges Against Guam Archbishop Unknown
Rita Milla had a horror story. It was a story that no one could believe. It was 1978. The California teenager said she was being sexually abused by seven priests from the Philippines. She was 16. Who would believe a horrible story like that? The abuse continued. Then she got pregnant. One of the priests,…Continue reading What’s going on in the Philippines, Part Two: The Horror Story
A former vocal coach for Orange County’s All-American Boys Chorus—and a member of the FBI’s Most Wanted List—can be sent back to California from the UK, a judge there ruled this week. Roger Alan Giese, 42, according to KABC: has been charged with five counts of lewd acts upon a child under the age of…Continue reading Accused former All-American Boys Chorus vocal coach can be extradited, UK judge rules
