Posts tagged Sex Abuse in the Church

• Dominican Bishop Accused of Sexual Abuse in Diocese of Venice

  Joe Saunders | September 24, 2007 4:34 AM | 0 CommentsSarasota, FL Category: Miscellaneous
  

  A former bishop of the Catholic diocese of Bani in the Dominican Republic has been accused of sexual abuse by a 42 year old Cuban refugee. I don't understand why a bishop would be working as an ordinary priest in the Diocese of Venice. That is definately not the norm in the Catholic Church. Bishops simply don't become demoted and work as priests in different dioceses. I wonder if this bishop...

• Discovery Leads to More Priest Abusers in Orlando

  Joe Saunders | August 13, 2007 11:14 AM | 0 CommentsSarasota, FL Category: Miscellaneous
  

  The deposition of Sister Lucy Vasquez, O.P., the former Chancellor of the Diocese of Orlando, has led to a very good piece of investigative journalism by Mark Pinsky of the Orlando Sentinel. Pinsky, read the deposition transcript and began his own investigation. He found that two Philadelphia priests who had been credibly accused of sexual abuse in Philadelphia had moved to Orlando and may...

• LA Priest Abuse Settlement and Cardinal Mahony

  Joe Saunders | July 20, 2007 1:10 PM | 0 CommentsSarasota, FL Category: Miscellaneous
  

  I appeared on Fox 13's Your Turn with Kathy Fountain this week to discuss the recent abuse settlement in Los Angeles. As I stated on the program, the institutional secrecy that is so much a part of the fabric of the Catholic Church has contributed to the sex abuse scandal. This is quite evident in the case of Cardinal Mahony of Los Angeles who fought the survivors in court until it was obvious...

• Catholic Archdiocese of Los Angeles Settles Priest Abuse Cases

  Joe Saunders | July 16, 2007 11:03 AM | 0 CommentsSarasota, FL Category: Miscellaneous
  

  The Catholic Archdiocese of Los Angeles has agreed to pay 508 plaintiffs $660 million for abuse they suffered at the hands of Catholic clergy dating back decades. The settlement is the largest priest abuse settlement since the sexual abuse scandal broke in Boston in 2002. However, this by no means bankrupts the church in Los Angelese. The Los Angeles Times reports that the Archdiocese of Los...

• CNN Anchor Thomas Roberts Tells His Tale of Abuse

  Joe Saunders | March 13, 2007 1:33 PM | 0 CommentsSarasota, FL Category: Miscellaneous
  

  For Thomas Roberts, the abuse remained in the shadows. As a successful CNN news anchor, Roberts had buried the hurt, anger, and shame of the abuse-even from himself. Finally, after suffering in silence and fear for 20 years, Roberts came forth and told his tale of horror. Many sexual abuse survivors tell similar tales. They are fearful of recrimination, rejection, and most of all, once again...

• Fort Myers Youth Pastor Charged with Sexual Assault

  Joe Saunders | February 14, 2007 8:26 AM | 0 CommentsSarasota, FL Category: Miscellaneous
  

  A Fort Myers Youth pastor has been charged with sexually assaulting two children for nearly a year. Elantonio Gomez is charged with two counts of Custodial Sexual Battery. The alarming part of the story is that this behavior is still happening in our churches, synagogues, and places of worship. The victims are often unwitting children who are forced to submit to the abuse. They are scared...

• More Problems for Catholic Church in Florida

  Joe Saunders | October 25, 2006 12:43 PM | 0 CommentsSarasota, FL Category: Miscellaneous
  

  Within a week, the Catholic Church in Florida has been rocked by the revelations of two more sexually abusive priests and two other priests who stole millions from the collection plate. Rev. Anthony Mercieca, now 69 and living on the Maltese island of Gozo, recalls touching former Congressman Mark Foley but not abusing him sexually. Mercieca seems incredibly unmoved by the damage inflicted by...

• Rep. Mark Foley Needs to Disclose the Identity of His Abuser

  Joe Saunders | October 04, 2006 5:22 PM | 0 CommentsSarasota, FL Category: Miscellaneous
  

  If Rep. Mark Foley was the victim of a crime, he needs to identify the perpetrator in order to protect other minors. It's not enough that he's disclosed that he's a victim of sexual abuse, he needs to prevent future abuse by naming his accuser.In all the political uproar, this message concerning the safety of our children has been lost. Just as the Catholic bishops thought first about...

• Ft. Myers Pastor Charged with Sexual Abuse of Minors

  Joe Saunders | August 02, 2006 2:48 PM | 0 CommentsSarasota, FL Category: Miscellaneous
  

  Pastor Russell Brown was arrested Monday night on charges he molested three young boys who attended his church, Antioch Missionary Baptist Church. He is accused of three felony counts of lewd and lascivious behavior. Prior to his arrest, he had been pastor of the church for 20 years. In all, there are six children that have come forward to accuse Brown of sexual abuse between the years...

• New Boss (Hopefully) Not the Same as the Old Boss

  Joe Saunders | July 23, 2006 4:55 PM | 0 CommentsSarasota, FL Category: Miscellaneous
  

  As the Diocese of Venice, which includes Sarasota, prepares to welcome a new bishop, we can only hope that this new prelate will deal with the scourge of sexual abuse more openly and honestly than his predecessor, Most. Rev. John Nevins. Nevins has a long history of transferring, covering up, and protecting abusive priests. In fact, in one notorious case, he set up the offending priest with...