*** ALABAMA ***

SETTLEMENT SHROUDS BAPTIST CASE. A secret settlement was reached
just before a civil suit went to jury against Moffett Road Baptist
Church minister Henry Hobson, Mobile, for sexually abusing a girl,
14. Hobson admitted having sexual intercourse with the girl he
referred to as an adopted daughter, once when she accompanied him on
church "visitation". He admitted she "wanted out", but called her a
"pleasant diversion". At first he denied her accusations and asked
her to say she had lied, for "damage control". He resigned in April
1991 after a suicide attempt when the girl confided in the youth
pastor about him. Attorney Robert Cunningham, Jr. told jurors that
many church members shunned the 9th grader, blaming her. His
attorney argued, "It certainly was not part of his job to have
sexual intercourse with her, and therefore the church is not
responsible," adding: "He thought it was better she learn about sex
from him rather than some young boy at school." Source: _Mobile
Register_ 2/12/93.

PRIEST ADMITS SEX WITH 10 TEENS. Wilputte Alanson "Lan" Sherwood,
48, pastor of St. Benedict Catholic Church in Chandler, admitted
having sex with 10 teenagers following a recent arrest for trying to
molest a male hitchhiker, 17. Bishop Thomas J. O'Brien told
reporters he knew of Sherwood's arrest in 1986 for indecent
exposure, but found him "remorseful and embarrassed" so did not
relieve him of duties. Sherwood was convicted twice for exposing
himself in X-rated bookstores; the court ordered him to stay out of
adult bookstores. The priest admitted to picking up hitchhikers,
taking them home to the rectory, and videotaping them in various sex
acts, including a boy as young as 14. Police confiscated 272
pornographic videos, and four 3-ring binders recording the first
names of sex partners, physical descriptions, list of acts
performed, ages, and "scores" rating their performances. Although
relieved of duties, Sherwood will receive a $685 a month salary and
$550 a month car allowance. Source: _Arizona Republic_ 3/13/93,
3/20/93.

*** CALIFORNIA ***

MOLESTING SACRAMENTO PRIEST CODDLED. A retired priest, 78, received
no prison time, even though he pleaded no contest to charges of
sexually molesting a girl, age 7. James Monaghan must perform 120
hours' community service, undergo 5 years' probation, register as a
sex offender and continue counseling. He molested the girl, now 11,
as she sat on his lap during "counseling". Court-appointed
psychologist Shawn Johnston, apparently a Catholic, recommended
leniency: "It strikes me as a rather sad case in which an elderly
Catholic priest appears to have seriously stumbled after more than
50 years of service to his church and the community." Source: _San
Francisco Examiner_ 2/28/93.

PRIEST ALLOWED TO ABUSE CHOIRBOYS? Six choir members allege that
priest Richard T. Coughlin molested them 20-30 years ago with
impunity. Joseph Beckman, now 32, said his parents first told church
officials about Coughlin's criminal behavior in 1974, but they did
nothing. Coughlin, founder of the All-American Boys Chorus Q which
grosses $500,000 a year with 125 boys ages 8-14 and gave
performances at the Vatican Q resigned on Dec. 28. He was stripped
of all public duties as a priest and forbidden involvement with the
choir. Parents were told Coughlin had resigned for "personal
reasons", unaware of abuse claims until revealed in a _Los Angeles
Times_ story. Matthew Roehl, 27, says he and 2 other boys told the
assistant choir director in 1979 that Coughlin had made sexual
advances toward them. The priest kissed Roehl dozens of times during
choir bus rides at night as other boys slept. "I have absolutely no
recollection, I swear to the Almighty, of these charges," Coughlin
told the _LA Times_. "I certainly cannot say that I know that I did
it, because I can't recollect anything. I'm a confused and very much
destroyed man." Many choir members and colleagues insist Coughlin is
innocent, accusing the men of wanting "attention", even though the
diocese expressed "reasonable belief that there may be some
foundation to the allegations". More than 200 parents of choirboys
past and present met to express support for Coughlin, with only a
few voicing concern that complaints were suppressed. Source: _Inland
Valley Daily Bulletin_ 2/16/93, _LA Times_ 2/10&11/93, _Orange Co.
Register_ 2/11/93.

MORE PRIESTS ACCUSED BY EX-STUDENTS. Former St. Anthony's Seminary
students have accused more priests of possible sexual molestation at
the now-closed school. "We have names of other priests we're looking
into," said Geoffrey Stearns, chairman of an independent inquiry
into the scandal at the former Santa Barbara school. Just how many
priests are implicated has not been determined. The probe was
launched in January at the insistence of members of St. Anthony's
Greater Community (parish). They spoke up after 2 priests at the
seminary were accused of sexually abusing their students or members
of the school's associated Santa Barbara Boys Choir. The priests
included Philip Wolfe, who was convicted and imprisoned for 1 year
after a former student reported he forced him to perform oral sex 12
years before. And priest Robert Van Handel was accused by a former
student of forcing him to strip, undergo massage, and be
photographed, as well as having other boys strip and touching their
genitals. Van Handel was recently removed from his duties in Oakland
and sent to Maryland for psychological treatment. A third priest,
Mario Cimmarusti, who taught at the seminary in the 1960s, has also
been accused of molestation. Source: _Santa Barbara News-Press_
3/19/93.

*** COLORADO ***

CULT LEADER GETS 16 YEARS. Fugitive religious leader James Randazzo,
convicted in 1989 of sexual exploitation of children, was sentenced
to 16 years in prison. Founder of Spiral of Friends cult, he
videotaped sex sessions with teenaged children during "therapy". His
wife Colleen is serving an 8-year prison term. Randazzo had skipped
the country, but was nabbed last fall in Hungary. Source: _Rocky
Mountain News_ 1/30/93.

*** CONNECTICUT ***

HARTFORD PRIEST SUED FOR ABUSE. A civil suit accuses a priest of
sexually abusing 3 students when he was chaplain and teacher at
Northwest Catholic High School in the 1970s. Rev. Ivan Ferguson, 58,
is not named in the suit, but the Archdiocese of Hartford and the
school are. The men accuse the priest of repeatedly molesting them
between 1975-1978. In 1991, the state legislature extended the
statute of limitations to permit victims to sue until the age of 35.
Attorney Thomas M. McNamara of New Haven said the men had not come
forward earlier "out of a sense of guilt, shame, and embarrassment,
and also because they are up against an institution like the church
- and who is to believe them over the word of a man of God?"
Ferguson, who specialized in youth ministry, joined the chaplaincy
staff of Hartford Hospital 8 years ago. He is the 4th Catholic
priest in the state to be accused since January of molesting youths:
In January a lawsuit was filed in Superior Court, Bridgeport against
Rev. Raymond S. Pcolka, 53. Fifteen adults say he raped and
sodomized them at churches in Strafford and Bridgeport between 1966-
1982. Rev. Felix H. Maguire, 66, was sued in January in New Haven by
a former parishioner of St. Therese's Church, then aged 15. Rev.
Kieran Ahearn, 55, of St. Mary Church, Bethel, was arrested by
Massachusetts police for indecent assault of a minor when he was on
a skiing vacation. He pleaded not guilty Jan. 21. Source: _Hartford
Courant_ 3/11/93.

PCOLKA CHECKS OUT OF CHURCH TREATMENT. The Catholic Diocese of
Bridgeport "revoked the authority" of priest Raymond S. Pcolka,
accused of sexually abusing 15 young people, after he walked out of
a Catholic psychiatric institute against the advice of staff and his
bishop. The diocese says it "disclaims any responsibility" for
Pcolka "from this day forward". "It seems to me the press release is
an attempt by the diocese to reduce its liability," says T. Paul
Tremont, attorney of 13 men suing the priest. The lawsuits allege
the diocese knew Pcolka was molesting children but failed to protect
them. Source: _Hartford Courant_ 3/10/93. A Massachusetts woman
became another litigant. She says Pcolka sexually assaulted her 18
years ago when she went to him for religious instruction. Source:
_New York Times_ 1/21/93.

BOOK RECOUNTS IRISH SCANDAL. The _Sunday Times_ of London published
excerpts of a book by a Connecticut woman who had an affair with
deposed Irish bishop Eammon Casey of Galway. Casey is believed to be
in counseling with a priest-psychiatrist at the Institute of Living
in Hartford, following his resignation in May 1992 after Annie
Murphy of Ridgefield disclosed to an Irish newspaper that the
prelate was the father of her son Peter, now 18. _Hartford Courant_
3/17/93.

*** ILLINOIS ***

MAYER (FINALLY) GETS 3 YEARS. The Rev. Robert E. Mayer, 53,
implicated in numerous cases of sexually abusing minors, was
sentenced to 3 years in prison for molesting a girl, 13. Four men
also testified during the trial about Mayer's advances toward them 9
years ago, when they were 13 and 14. "The evidence indicates a long
history of sexually inappropriate conduct with children and adults,"
said prosecutor Mark Cavins. "This crime was not committed on
impulse or spur of the moment." Mayer is the first priest in Cook
Co. to be sentenced to prison. He continued to maintain his
innocence, pleading for mercy: "As God is my witness, I was never
alone with the girl," Mayer told the judge. Judge Thomas Durkin
replied, "God is not your judge today." Source: _Chicago Tribune_
2/6/93.

GOVERNOR WON'T COMMUTE DAVIS. Illinois Governor James Edgar rejected
a plea for executive clemency filed by the relentless Rev. L.R.
Davis, convicted child molester and pastor at Christian Fellowship
Church, Waukegan. Davis got a 31-year sentence for sexual acts with
2 teenage boys recruited into the church from Mexico. About 200
Davis supporters packed a hearing for his petition in January.
Source: [Waukegan, IL] _News Sun_ 2/12/93.

THREE BELLEVIEW PRIESTS REMOVED. Three priests in the Catholic
Diocese of Belleville were asked to take leaves of absence for
sexual misconduct by Bishop James Keleher. Rev. James Calhoun
resigned after allegations he had sex with a youth more than 20
years ago. Parishioners are rallying behind Rev. Robert Vonnahmen,
accused of sexual relations with a minor, more than 25 years ago.
The third priest, Rev. Jerome Ratterman, left Blessed Sacrament
Church in Belleville following a charge of misconduct 20 years ago.
The bishop say all the priests are receiving therapy, and victims
are encouraged to come forward for "professional counseling and
pastoral care". Source: _Evansville Courier_ 3/22/93.

PRIEST GETS 5 YEARS FOR MOLESTING BOY. The priest at St. John's
Catholic Church in Walnut, Illinois was sentenced to 3 years in
prison after pleading guilty to aggravated criminal sexual abuse in
Bureau Co. Toussaint J. Perron, 61, admitted abusing a boy, 14, in
August. Other sexual misconduct allegations in which the statute of
limitation had expired were introduced in court to support the
prison sentence. Perron was also priest at Immaculate Conception
Catholic Church in Ohio. Source: _Chicago Sun Times_ 2/20/93, _Quad-
City Times_ 2/18/93.

GREELEY ESTIMATES 100,000 ARE PRIEST'S VICTIMS. In an article in the
March 20 Jesuit magazine _America_, Chicago priest Andrew Greeley
estimates that 2,000-4,000 members of the U.S. priesthood have
molested young people, with victims "well in excess" of 100,000, and
cost of treatment, lawyers and liability settlements running at "$50
million a year and rising". Greeley bases this on information
released by the Catholic Archdiocese of Chicago. Greeley said, "An
estimate of one out of ten priests as sexual abusers might be too
high and an estimate of one out of 20 might be too low." Source:
_Boston Globe_ 3/19/93.

*** INDIANA ***

YOUTH MINISTER CHARGED. Garden City Church of Christ youth minister
Rev. Cameron K. Huffman, 41, was charged with 21 counts of child
molestation for molesting a young boy for a year. Huffman had
admitted to being a pedophile during a counseling session. When the
church in Columbus was notified of Huffman's admission, it fired him
and informed the congregation, also calling police. Police received
complaints against Rev. Huffman from other Indiana cities and
states, but the 5-year statute of limitations has hampered some
investigations. Source: _Indianapolis Star_ 1/28/93.

METHODIST MINISTER ASSAULTS DEPRESSED TEENAGER? A lawsuit filed in
February accuses United Methodist minister R. Gene Voss of sexually
assaulting a female teenager during counseling sessions for
depression at the First United Methodist Church, Crawfordsville. In
1984 her minister began fondling the 15-year-old, initiating
intercourse when she was 16. "Over the next four years Gene Voss
raped the plaintiff over 60 times," says the lawsuit. The woman has
incurred more than $65,000 in treatment for abuse. Voss gave up his
minister credentials in 1991. She is also suing the Crawfordsville
church and the United Methodist South Indiana Conference. "You can
say anything in a lawsuit," was the cavalier response of the
conference's legal advisor. Source: _Indianapolis Star_ 2/4/93.

*** KANSAS ***

KANSAS CITY DIOCESE COVERS UP PRIEST CASE. Jackson Co.'s prosecutor,
investigating claims that a Kansas City priest molested several
boys, charges Catholic officials with refusing to cooperate with a
criminal investigation. Not only did the church place pressure on
prosecutors to drop the case, it tried to censor the story in the
_Kansas City Star_, insisting the "story was of no public value".
The church also insists the parents of the victims do not want to
press charges. The Catholic Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph sent
Rev. Michael Brewer to an unnamed treatment center, after several
families at St. Elizabeth's Parish accused him of improperly
touching their boys. The priest was previously accused of caressing
a boy's buttocks 2 years ago. The Rev. Norman Rotert, vicar-general,
admitted Brewer was sent to therapy then, but the church did not
consider it serious. "In hindsight, we would have been better off to
have sent him to a national center for evaluation." The diocese
adopted a secret policy in 1988 to deal with molesting priests, but
finally published it last December. Generally the policy is to put
the accused priest on leave and require an evaluation. Source:
_Kansas City Star_ 2/12/93.

*** MAINE ***

PRIEST ACCUSED OF MOLESTING BOYS IN CAMP. Marist priest Armand
Thibault, 60, was indicted for unlawful sexual contact and
endangering the welfare of a child involving 3 boys at a church camp
in Long Lake. The priest with a parish in Van Buren, was also
chaplain for 2 Boy Scout troops, but the charges do not involve
either Scouts or altar boys. Aristook Co. Asst. D.A. John Pluto
praised the "courageous effort" of the boys in coming forward. The
diocesan chancellor admitted Thibault told the chancery about the
sexual misconduct charges on Sept. 30. On Oct. 2 the diocese called
the D.A.'s office and human services. On Oct. 3 Thibault halted his
public ministry. Source: _Bangor Daily News_ 3/13-14/93.

PRIEST ACCUSED OF MOLESTING PORTLAND CHILDREN. Retired priest James
Vallely, now living in Florida, was accused by 3 men of molesting
them when they were kids at St Dominic's Parish in Portland. Vallely
was placed on administrative leave and can perform no public
ministry until the investigation is complete. Source: _Bangor Daily
News_ 3/17/93.

THIRD MAINE PRIEST ACCUSED. Priest of the largest Catholic parish in
the state, John L. Audibert, 53, went on leave after being named for
molesting a 15-year-old about 17 years ago in Caribou. He was
diocesan priest for 25 years. His associate pastor at Holy Cross
Parish, Rev. John Allen, said: "Father John is a beloved and well-
respected priest of the diocese. I am confident that the allegations
toward him are being handled by the diocese with great sensitivity
for him and for the accuser." Source: _Bangor Daily News_ 3/17/93.

*** MASSACHUSETTS ***

LAVIGNE RELEASED OVER VICTIMS' OBJECTIONS. Despite pleas by former
altar boys against the release of convicted molester Rev. Richard
Lavigne, he was released in January after serving only 7 months at a
Catholic treatment center. Four survivors of abuse recounted at a
news conference how they were molested, raped, and coerced into
stealing for the priest. The priest, 51, pleaded guilty in June to
reduced charges of indecent assault for fondling boys at St.
Joseph's Parish in Shelburne Falls, and was given only 10 years
probation. He was ordered to spend 7 months to a year at St Luke's
(Catholic) Institute in Suitland, Md. Seven other men sent testimony
about being molested by Lavigne to be read at the conference: "I was
very terrified, scared, embarrassed, and humiliated," testified
Raymond Gouin, recalling how Lavigne routinely drove him to a motel,
left him in the parking lot and had him scale a wall to meet him in
a room. His brother Joseph recalled how he had all the altar boys
sleep in one bed during one trip, molesting him twice that evening.
The men said Lavigne had boys, some as young as 11, steal antiques
in Massachusetts and Vermont. Several went into therapy and drugs.
"I looked at this man as a big brother," said Joseph Shattuck, 19,
who said Lavigne raped him when he was an altar boy in 1987. "My
self-esteem and confidence have been destroyed by Father Lavigne."
The 11 men, including two nephews of the former Springfield D.A.,
characterized the priest as a sometimes violent, threatening man who
assaulted them between 1967 and 1990 at U.S. and Canadian motels, a
camp, in Arizona, at the home of Lavigne's parents, and various
rectories and churches. "I felt dirty, used and damned. Father
Lavigne intimidated me by telling me he was God's worker, and if I
ever told anyone, God would send me to Hell," stated Raymond J.
Chelte ll, 37. The 11 victims are seeking unspecified damages, as
well as assurances Lavigne will never be allowed near children
again. Four of them had already taken part in criminal proceedings
against Lavigne. No new molestation charges are expected. Lavigne
was ordered not to serve as a parish priest or work alone with
children under age 16 during his 10-year probation. Source: _Boston
Herald_, _Springfield Union-News_ 1/29/93.

CROTEAU MURDER STILL HAUNTS LAVIGNE. One of 11 men testifying
against Rev. Richard R. Lavigne's release in January was Los Angeles
TV director Michael A. McMahon, whose statements reopened interest
in the unsolved murder of altar boy Danny Croteau, 11. Croteau's
battered body was found dead, floating in the Chicopee River in
1972. Police told the Croteau family that Lavigne was the prime
suspect, but he was never charged with the unsolved murder. McMahon
stated how Lavigne made the boys feel "very special", then molested
them on overnight excursions. He recalled, in horse-play, how he had
pushed another boy, Danny Croteau, to the floor. "Father Lavigne saw
this and struck me in the face so hard it knocked me down. I was
shocked, hurt, embarrassed, and confused ... He molested me that
night." Hampden Co. DA William M. Bennett reportedly wants a court
order requiring a blood sample from Lavigne, so he can compare it
with blood found near the site where Croteau's body was found more
than 20 years ago. Source: _Springfield Union-News_ 1/30/93.

REV. PROVOST FOUND GUILTY. Worcester Diocese priest Ronald D.
Provost of Barre was found guilty of photographing a nude boy in
September 1992. He argued it was an accident, but had to turn over
hundreds of photos of nude boys to police. Source: _Boston Globe_
2/8/93.

MORE COVERUP ON MSGR. KELLEY. More victims have come forward naming
Msgr. Robert Kelley, who is serving 5 to 7 years for repeatedly
raping a 9-year-old girl in her own bedroom. In February, 4 other
victims from Leominster and Gardner telephoned an attorney
representing the girl, now a university student, saying they too
were victimized. She had met with Bishop Harrington in 1990, saying
he appeared less contrite than concerned about himself. A second
family accuses the bishop of assuring them that a priest who
sexually assaulted their child would be sent to an institution for
help, then banned from serving as a priest. But the Worcester
Diocese newspaper later published the priest's name in its directory
of local priests. Bishop Harrington was reportedly infuriated at the
inadvertent revelation that the priest was still serving. "What they
were really protecting was the good public name of the church," one
observer told the _Boston Globe_. Source: _Boston Globe_ 2/8/93.

VICTIM OBJECTS TO PRIEST'S RELEASE. A college student raped by a
Roman Catholic priest when she was a young girl asked the state to
make Rev. Robert E. Kelley serve his full prison sentence rather
than release him early on parole The former pastor of Sacred Heart
Church in Gardner was sentenced in March 1990 to 5 to 7 years in
prison after pleading guilty to assault and unnatural rape of a
child. "The victim was robbed of her childhood by Father Kelley, and
she continues to suffer the effects of the abuse," noted her
attorney Robert L. Rice Jr. The Worcester diocese declined to get
involved with the parole proceedings. Source: Associated Press.

*** MICHIGAN ***

LUTHERAN TEACHER CHARGED. St. Paul's Lutheran elementary school
teacher Gerald J. Bauer, Jr., 31, was charged with molesting a
Student, 12, during a visit to his home. The Farmington Hills
teacher was charged with 1st and 2nd degree criminal sexual conduct.
Source: _Detroit Free Press_ 2/13/93.

MORE CHARGES DISMISSED AGAINST BAPTIST. Washtenaw Co. Dist. Judge
Thomas F. Shea threw out 2 charges of 1st-degree criminal sexual
conduct against Baptist deacon Mark Foeller, leaving 6 counts of
criminal sexual conduct. The deacon and bus driver at North Sharon
Baptist Church is accused of raping a boy, 9, twice, at the church,
which has a campaign to bus low-income children from 4 counties to
its Sunday school and church camp. The dismissals follow earlier
dismissals against assistant pastor Timothy Lee Leonard, 33,
originally charged with 12 similar counts. Judges dismissed all his
charges, saying the alleged victims were either too young to testify
or that their testimony was too vague. At least one family will file
a civil lawsuit against the North Sharon Baptist Church and Leonard,
according to Ann Arbor attorney Mark A. Hopper. "We will sue the
church for negligent hiring and negligent retention of those
workers." Leonard has been invited back to the church and is
directing its music programs. A mother told a reporter she was
"stunned" and "numb" by the judge's decision. Shea ruled that a 9-
year-old could not testify about being raped in the church nursery,
because she couldn't say on which day it happened. Source: _Jackson
Citizen Patriot_ 2/5&18/93.

*** MINNESOTA ***

PORTER LITIGANTS MAY CITE VATICAN. Twenty victims of former Catholic
priest James Porter are considering a move to sue the Vatican, since
laicization documents "implicate the Vatican", says attorney Jeffrey
Anderson. The St. Paul attorney is one of the nation's leading
counsel for clergy abuse victims. Porter was recently convicted of
molesting a babysitter at his home in 1987. The Fall River diocese
in Massachusetts just settled numerous lawsuits with East Coast
victims. Porter faces criminal charges there, and other civil suits
in New Mexico, where he abused victims while in Catholic
"treatment". Porter wrote Pope Paul Vl in May 17, 1973, documenting
13 years of "falls" and numerous transfers. Source: _Minneapolis
Star-Tribune_ 2/12/93.

MOLESTER STILL LISTED IN CHURCH ANNUAL. A Lutheran Church-Missouri
Synod pastor who admitted to sexually molesting a Duluth boy and who
is being sued for molestation by 3 others, is still listed as a
pastor in good standing in the synod's 1993 Lutheran Annual. Rev.
Daniel Reeb admitted in 1991 that he molested a parishioner, 13,
several times in the 1960s, and made official testimony about it to
church officials. His victim and several others have filed lawsuits.
Reeb resigned a year ago, but was put on "restricted status" and can
still preach. He moved to Cheyenne, Wyoming. Source: _News-Tribune_
3/3/93.

LUTHERAN PASTOR ADMITS SEX WITH BOY. Cloquet pastor Wayne Vetter of
Zion Lutheran Church pleaded guilty to 1st degree criminal sexual
contact with a juvenile. He is in counseling for sexual abuse and is
expected to be sentenced to a correctional center. He served
ministries in Madison, Wis., and Grand Forks, N.D. A man came
forward to say Vetter had molested him in Grand Forks, but the
statute of limitations has expired. Vetter admitted to a habit of
anonymous Sex in public places. Source: _Duluth News-Tribune_
3/19/93.

POLL REVEALS WIDESPREAD ABUSE. 6% of Minnesotans personally know
someone who has been sexually abused by a member of the clergy, and
2% say they have been touched by a clergyperson in a way that made
them uncomfortable, according to a _Star Tribune_/WCCO-TV Minnesota
Poll. About 1% of parents say their children have told them they
have been touched by a clergyperson or church worker in such a way.
The newspaper, extrapolating from that, figures that 58,700 to
124,100 Minnesota adults have been touched in such a way. A phone
survey of 1,222 Minnesotans was taken from Jan. 26 to Feb. 5. The
level of sexual abuse was similar for Protestants and Roman
Catholics: 7% of Protestants had personal knowledge of such abuse
while 5% of Catholics did. Gary Schoener, an expert in sexual
misconduct by professionals, called this "pretty high", indicating
regular occurrence. A 1991 survey of Minnesota clergy showed 15% of
mainline Protestant clergy admitted to an affair outside of
marriage, and 21% of Roman Catholic clergy admitted to a sexual
relationship. Source: _Star Tribune_ 2/21/93

*** NEBRASKA ***

CHARGES REDUCED FOR PASTOR. Third-degree sexual assault charges were
reduced to attempted contributing to delinquency of a minor against
Beatrice pastor Rev. Norman Scott Callahan, 50, associate pastor of
Centenary United Methodist Church. He is accused of sexual contact
with a boy, 15, and was suspended for 60 days from his post. Source:
_Omaha World-Herald_ 3/20/93.

*** NEW HAMPSHIRE ***

LANCASTER PRIEST ARRESTED. Father Leo Shea of All Saints Catholic
Church was arrested and charged with felonious sexual assault of a
boy, 14, at a rectory in Troy in the early 1980s. The church placed
him on administrative leave. The exploitative relationship including
alcohol occurred when the altar boy was 14 to 19. He also gave the
boy about $7,000. In interviewing at least 9 former Troy altar boys,
police found 4 who alleged sexual contact by Father Shea. A mother
whose 2 sons had told her Shea molested them reported this to
another priest working in Keene, who assured her Father Shea "would
be taken care of". The priest was merely transferred. Bishop Leo E.
O'Neil of the Manchester Diocese was "saddened and deeply concerned
over the charge". Police taped a conversation between the priest and
his accuser in which he appears to admit that the church was aware
of his misconduct. Source: _Coos Co. Democrat-Lancaster N.H._
3/17/93.

*** NEW JERSEY ***

SUIT HITS DIOCESE FOR LOSS OF FAITH. Four Burlington families who
say their daughters were molested by a Medford priest have filed
suit against Catholic officials for deception and loss of faith.
They accuse Rev. Florencia Pineda Tumang, pastor at St. Mary's of
the Lakes Church, of fondling them from 1987 to 1992. Tumang has
been a fugitive since last April, following the first accusation.
The suit is unusual because it charges that due to loss of faith,
the families have lost their "salvation". In 1990 the families of 3
of the girls informed Tumang's superiors about the allegations, but
the diocese did nothing, effectively inviting the assault of a
fourth girl, then 13. Tumang, 70, was indicted for the incident, but
fled after church officials talked to him. He is believed to have
returned to the Philippines. The families fault the church for
failing to report abuse and engaging in a coverup. Source:
_Philadelphia Inquirer_ 3/4/93.

MENNONITE REV. RAPED DAUGHTER? The Rev. Eugenio Matos, 61, was
charged with 18 counts of repeatedly raping his daughter over an 11-
year period. The pastor of the Spanish Mennonite Church in Trenton
has 12 children. He is accused of sexually assaulting the girl when
she was 5 in 1981, continuing the abuse until his arrest in March,
1992. Source: _Trenton Times_ 2/4/93.

5 YEARS FOR COMPULSIVE SEX OFFENDER-PRIEST. Compulsive, repetitive
sex offender Rev. John G. Pisarcik, 48, must serve 5 years without
parole at the state's Adult Diagnostic and Treatment Center, for
molesting 2 boy church members. Pisarcik had been at the church-run
treatment center in New Mexico since his arrest in October 1991. He
pleaded guilty last year, after a victim confided in his parents, to
2 counts of aggravated sexual assault against victims under the age
of 13. "He's been working hard, but he's not yet driven out all the
demons," defense attorney Donald Belsole told the judge. A statement
from one of the youths was read in court: "I trusted him, and he
destroyed that trust. My main concern is that he never does this
again and puts another child and family through what I am [going
through]." Source: _Newark Star-Ledger_ 1/16/93.

*** NEW YORK ***

N.Y. ARCHDIOCESE HIT WITH $50 MILLION SUIT. The Catholic Archdiocese
of New York is being sued for $5 million for placing a priest with a
history of sexual misconduct in charge of a church youth program,
where he molested a teenager. Rev. Daniel Calabrese pleaded guilty
last year to sodomizing a boy, 16, at St. Mary's church in
Poughkeepsie, after giving him vodka. He was sentenced to 90 days in
jail and 5 years' probation, and is currently at the Catholic
Church's unlicensed treatment center at a resort in Jemez Springs,
New Mexico. The archdiocese denies knowledge of the priest's past
and claims the boy "willingly consented to and participated in the
[sex] act." Attorneys for the archdiocese argued in court that an
inquiry into the handling of Calabrese would be an unconstitutional
intervention in religious affairs. Dutchess Co. D.A. William Grady
wrote Cardinal John O'Connor last year that the church's mishandling
of the priest "defied logic". Calabrese was transferred to St.
Mary's after being ousted from St. Paul's Church in Congers, after
being caught drinking with teenage boys and showing them
pornography. Grady told the _New York Post_ that the parish priest,
Rev. Philip Hill, asked 2 assistant D.A.s and a police officer on
the day of Calabrese's arrest: "Can we make this go away if we make
Father Calabrese go away?" Such behavior "caused me grave concern
about how the church addresses rehabilitation and punishment".
Source: _New York Post_ 2/19/93, _NY Times_ 2/24/93.

MONTICELLO PRIEST CONVICTED, ARCHDIOCESE PROTECTED. A Sullivan Co.
jury found priest Juan Bazalar guilty of 6 counts of sexual abuse
and sodomy involving an altar boy, 14. He had been transferred by
the Archdiocese of New York to the Monticello Church of St. Peter.
Dill Michaels, a member of Victims of Clergy Abuse Anonymous in New
York, accuses that archdiocese of trying to "keep the appearance of
innocence", minimize its involvement and protect its image.
According to court documents, Bazalar's pastor told him to leave
Monticello and go to New York City in Dec. 1991, after a friend of
the victim reported the abuse to police. Monsignor Edward O'Donnell
told him to leave the country. The Peruvian priest fled to Canada,
and on June 30,1992 was extradited. Source: _New York Post_,
[Middletown] _Times-Herald_ 2/20/93, 2/26/93.

*** NEW MEXICO ***

EXPOSED ARCHBISHOP RESIGNS. Archbishop Robert Sanchez, 59, the first
U.S. Hispanic archbishop and secretary of National Conference of
Catholic Bishops, resigned following continued reports, including a
segment on "60 Minutes", that he molested at least 4 or 5 young
women. Albuquerque Archdiocese Chancellor Ron Wolf admitted that
Sanchez, away at a retreat on Vatican orders to seclude himself, had
acknowledged having a "relationship" with 3 women. Wolf insists that
"60 Minutes" tapes of the 3 women showed them describing consensual
relationships, "certainly not forced". The women, who were teenagers
at the time, described traumatic betrayal, intimidation, unsolicited
advances, and use of religion to seduce. Sanchez released a vague
statement expressing regret for his actions without specifying what
they were. Sanchez had come under criticism last year for not
reacting more forcefully to sexual abuse charges in his community.
Sources: _New York Times_, _Omaha World Herald_ 3/10/93; Associated
Press 3/21/93.

RETIRED PRIEST INDICTED. Retired priest David A. Holley, 65, already
the subject of civil suits by victims, was indicted on 8 felony
charges of sexually molesting young boys in the early 1970s in
Alamogordo. The charges include sodomy, sexual assault, and
aggravated sodomy involving 8 boys. Holley served in the Worcester,
Massachusetts diocese, and was sent to the church's unlicensed
treatment center in New Mexico when parents accused him of molesting
their sons. He was given pastorships in New Mexico where he
continued to abuse kids, according to suits. Source: _Springfield
Union News_ 1/29/93.

*** OHIO ***

TOLEDO PRIEST TO RESIGN. Following publicity in the _Toledo Blade_
detailing the sexual abuse of Barbara Blaine as a devout teenager by
her priest, that diocese will finally force the resignation of the
unnamed priest from his position as a hospital chaplain. Blaine has
spent 7 years trying to remove him from positions of authority in
the Catholic Church. His superior, Rev. James Cryan, continued to
side with the priest and accuse Blaine of an "adolescent crush",
until "a number of other women" came forward to report similar
improprieties. "I think the church is making a mistake in thinking
he is the victim, when in fact he is the perpetrator. The church is
doing nothing for me or the other women." Sources: _Toledo Blade_
1/29/93, _St. Louis Post-Dispatch_ 2/21/93.

EPISCOPAL PRIEST CHARGED WITH SEXUAL BATTERY. An Episcopal priest,
Douglas Hodges, 57, was charged with sexual battery, a 3rd-degree
felony, in a 1991 incident involving a parishioner in counseling. A
Fostoria woman and her husband, who said Hodges had sexual
intercourse with her during counseling, had previously filed a civil
suit against Hodges, Bishop James Moodey of the Episcopal diocese of
Ohio, Trinity Episcopal Church, Fostoria, and the owner of the
counseling center. An Episcopal official says Hodges is no longer a
priest, but declined further comment. Source: _Toledo Blade_
2/11/93.

*** OREGON ***

PARISH SUPPORTS PORTLAND PREYING PASTOR. Prominent pastor Rev.
Willie B. Smith, 64, former president of Ecumenical Ministries of
Oregon, is accused of sexually abusing 3 teenage girls at First
African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church. He was charged with 11
counts of 1st degree sexual abuse, a felony, and 1 count of 3rd
degree sexual abuse, a misdemeanor. Pastors in the community were
quick to speak about his "exemplary" work. Two of the victims told
police Smith had cornered them in his church office and groped them.
A third said she was repeatedly abused by Smith for 16 months,
beginning in September 1990. The victims were 12, 13, and 17 at the
time of the incidents. Almost every parishioner lined up to hug,
kiss and reassure Smith following the arrest. Source: _Oregonian_
3/13,15/93.

*** PENNSYLVANIA ***

SUIT: HIV+ PRIEST MOLESTED KIDS. Two families are suing the Diocese
of Scranton alleging that a priest convicted of sexual abuse
molested the youths knowing he tested positive for Human
Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV), precursor of AIDS. One suit charges
that Robert N. Caparelli of St. Vincent DePaul Church, Milford, knew
he was HIV+ in 1984, and began molesting their son in 1985. Parents
amended the original suit filed in 1991 to include the HIV
complaint. The second civil suit, filed in February, claims the
priest breached his duty to another victim by failing to inform him
that Caparelli was putting him at risk of contracting AIDS and other
sexually-transmitted diseases. Caparelli was sentenced last summer
to 2-5 years in prison and fined $5,000 for pleading guilty to
sexually abusing a boy, 13. Further criminal charges may be filed.
The priest has applied for public-funded legal representation! The
local newspaper noted that his incarceration so far has already cost
taxpayers more than $10,000 through January 1993, not including
about $1,100 in special medical tests for him. Source: _Pike Co.
Dispatch_ 2/4/93, _Scranton Times_ 2/7/93.

*** RHODE ISLAND ***

THREE MEN ACCUSE PRIEST OF ABUSE. Three men, in separate lawsuits
filed in March, accuse Father James M. Silva of molesting them 20
years ago as parochial school students when he was a curate in Jesus
Savior parish, Newport. Two were altar boys at the church, abused in
the rectory bedroom and on overnight camping trips. They were urged
to file suit by Frank Fitzpatrick, a leader of a group representing
people molested by James Porter in the late 1960s. Also named in the
lawsuit is the church, Rev Joseph Cardoza Q alleged to have known
Silva consorted with young boys, Bishop Louis E. Gelineau, Bishop
Kenneth A. Angell, and church corporations. Bishop Gelineau
professed to being "very sad and upset" over the lawsuit. Source:
_Providence Journal-Bulletin_ 3/18/93.

*** SOUTH DAKOTA ***

PRIEST ADMITS TORTURE, RAPE OF BOY. A Catholic priest admitted he
tied up, handcuffed, and raped a boy in Fairfax about 34 years ago,
in testimony made public recently. Judge John Konenkamp of Rapid
City unsealed parts of a deposition made by Rev. William Lambert,
69. Sioux Falls businessman Bob Koenig filed civil suit against the
priest last August, seeking damages from the Catholic diocese of
Rapid City. Lambert admitted to the abuse of Koenig and 5 others.
Koenig's suit says he was forced by the priest to confess having sex
with him to at least 17 priests, none of whom helped him. Source:
_Rapid City Journal_ 2/28/93.

*** VIRGINIA ***

EPISCOPAL PRIEST, "ABOVE REPROACH", SUED, INVESTIGATED. Six women Q
including one filing a $4 million civil lawsuit Q have accused Byron
Bruce Newell, 60, former assistant pastor of Falls Church Episcopal
Church, of sexual molestation or advances. The plaintiff alleges
Newell forced her into sexual activities during counseling sessions
at the church for 2 years, telling her that her sexual feelings
toward him would bring her closer to God. Episcopal officials said
they removed him from his pastoral role and ordered counseling after
learning of complaints by women in 1988. However, they only launched
a full inquiry last September. Newell, now a fundraiser for Trinity
Episcopal School for the Ministry near Pittsburgh, is named in the
suit, along with the church, the diocese, the bishop and church
pastor John W. Yates ll. According to the suit, Yates told the woman
what happened during counseling was her fault, and did not act on
complaints from 5 other women that Newell had verbally or physically
harassed them. The dean of the seminary insisted Newell "has more
than amply repaid our trust. His behavior has been above reproach".
Source: _Washington Post_ 3/20/93.

PASTOR ADMITS ABUSE OF GIRLS. Admitting having intercourse with a
female teenager and indecently touching another, Rev. Larry G.
Johnson pleaded guilty to 2 counts against him dating from 1977-79
while pastor of Buffalo Wesleyan Church. He recently resigned his
position as superintendent of the Dakota District of the Wesleyan
Church Source: _Rapid City Journal_ 2/28/93.

*** *** CANADA *** ***

MOLESTER-PRIEST PROMISES TO BEHAVE. A former priest convicted of
sexually molesting 10 children, who was released from prison in
December, insists, "I don't consider myself dangerous at all. I have
had a full range of treatment." Leonard Buckley, 54, formerly a
priest and principal of St. Mary's School in Cranbrook, B.C, was
convicted in 1989 and sentenced to 5 years in prison for molesting
kids ages 8-15 over a 17-year period involving 1,000 separate
attacks. Buckley moved into the suburban Vancouver home of his
brother, a principal, creating community concern. The newspaper
identified him with a photo and headline: "Pedophile on Parole."
Source: _Spectator_ 2/8/93.

PRIEST "IDOL" PLEADS GUILTY. Roman Catholic priest Kenneth Keeler
ended a trial for sexual abuse 2 days after it began by suddenly
pleading guilty to assaulting 3 teenage boys. The court had heard
testimony about how he fondled the genitals of 2 boys and
masturbated a third to rid him of "bad spirits". One man testified
that Keeler fondled his genitals about 12 years ago in the rectory
of Holy Rosary Church in Ottawa and at the St. Brigid's Summer camp
in Quebec which Keeler helped establish for needy children. He
didn't come forward because Keeler was "his idol". Ottawa Archbishop
Marcel Gervais, during a church hearing in May 1991, had told the
victims nothing would be done aside from giving Keeler alcohol
counseling. One witness said he also caught the priest in the act of
masturbating former Bishop John Beahan at the camp. Statistics by
the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops indicate Keeler is at
least the 56th Catholic priest or brother convicted of sexual
offenses in Canada since about 1985. _Ottawa Citizen_ 1/12,13,14/93.