Baltimore Catholic church sexually assaulted more than 600 children over 6 decades: Report
Baltimore Cathedral of Mary our Queen
A Maryland prosecutor accused Catholic Church officials in Baltimore on Wednesday of covering up sexual abuse of more than 600 children over decades. State Attorney General Anthony Brown has prepared a report that mentions the names of several priests who “preyed upon" children over several years.
The 463-page report chronicles the abuse and describes what the priests did.
"Time and again, members of the Church’s hierarchy resolutely refused to acknowledge allegations of child sexual abuse for as long as possible," according to the report.
"When denial became impossible, Church leadership would remove abusers from the parish or school, sometimes with promises that they would have no further contact with children. Church documents reveal with disturbing clarity that the Archdiocese was more concerned with avoiding scandal and negative publicity than it was with protecting children."
The report adds that following investigations, it was found that over 600 children were abused by 156 people named in the report, but the number is likely to be higher.
Some parishes had multiple abusers, the report said, such as St. Mark Parish in Catonsville. The place housed 11 child abusers who worked from 1964 to 2004. Oftentimes, multiple people abused one young victim, according to the report.
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"Young people in some parishes were preyed upon by multiple abusers over decades, and clergy used the power and authority of the ministry to exploit the trust of the children and families in their charge," Brown found.
The probe took more than four years, following which the report was prepared and released. It reflects the "depraved, systemic failure of the Archdiocese to protect the most vulnerable — the children it was charged to keep safe,” Brown said in a statement.
Baltimore Archbishop William E. Lori responded to the report and called it a "sad and painful reminder of the tremendous harm caused to innocent children and young people by some ministers of the Church."
"The detailed accounts of abuse are shocking and soul-searing," he said. "It is difficult for most to imagine that such evil acts could have actually occurred. For victim-survivors everywhere, they know the hard truth: These evil acts did occur."
(With inputs from agencies)
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