Aussies: Royal Commission Must Investigate Predatory Priests

[cleanhippie]

The truth deserves a commission

Sex crimes against children and vulnerable adults by Catholic clergy are prevalent. There are possibly thousands of victims in this state. Victims were raped and tortured, some by more than one offender. When these brave and terrified children spoke up to get help, they were further punished by being threatened or beaten. They were silenced.

These crimes continue to be deliberately concealed by the church authorities. Vast numbers of documents about these crimes and the offenders are locked away in church buildings.

--snip--

If a victim wants to seek justice, there exist multiple impediments. The Catholic Church cannot be sued as it does not ''legally'' exist. The dioceses and religious orders cannot be sued as they hide behind a legitimate legal defence. The church and school authorities cannot be held liable as employers of these offenders because canon law dictates that Catholic clergy are not employees. The victim could try to sue the offender, but because child sex crimes are often not reported for decades, the offender may be dead, in a nursing home or most likely indigent, due to the vow of poverty.

Criminal law may bring justice to some, but very few - about 6 per cent of child sex matters reported to the police result in a conviction, and more than half of those are appealed. A criminal trial also causes what is known as ''secondary legal abuse''.

So the victim is left with little choice but to return to the very organisation that protected their paedophile offender. The Melbourne Response (for the Melbourne archdiocese) and Towards Healing (a national process) are comprehensively problematic and abusive for the victims. When the church is investigating its own crimes, there can be no independence.

Read more: http://www.canberratimes.com.au/opinion/politics/the-truth-deserves-a-commission-20120413-1wz1s.html#ixzz246TMu2QM

We need the same action here, but there seems to be little interest is prosecuting these predators, especially for the adherents of the church.

[rug]

1. "especially for the adherents of the church"

You got any data for that?

Oh, and your article is more than four months old. Surely you can find something more current.

[cleanhippie]

2. Yeah, most of the child-rapes occurred decades ago, so they are not current enough to worry about.

[rug]

3. No. You're scraping.

[cleanhippie]

4. No. You are rationalizing.

[rug]

5. No. I am leaving this pointlessness.

[cleanhippie]

7. No. the point is loud and clear.

[MineralMan]

6. All such accusations of sexual abuse and covering such abuse up should

be investigated by the police, not the church. Offenders should be vigorously prosecuted by the state. Religion is no protection from prosecution, or should not be. Prosecute and jail them if found guilty. If the church hierarchy conceals or covers up evidence, then prosecute the individual members of that hierarchy.

In the United States, we have been far too lax in our investigation and prosecution of these people. That must end, and is beginning to. Church documents should be subject to subpoena and court-ordered disclosure. Our laws do not protect churches. Our laws only allow churches to operate. If a church or a member of the clergy breaks the law, then they should be prosecuted the same as anyone else living in the society. Period.

[dimbear]

8. I like the Irish system, where priests are never allowed around children without a responsible

adult present. Unfortunately, the recent case which involved a priest chasing down a child in a street throws some doubt on whether this would be completely effective. Perhaps some sort of electronic monitoring system could be worked out, cameras and all, to solve this difficult enigma. Maybe a remotely triggered shock collar would be able to provide negative reinforcement.

It is a new age, after all, an age when there can actually be eyes in the sky.