As Catholic bishops gather in Baltimore, AP query of more than 20 state and federal prosecutors finds they are looking for legal means to hold higher ups in the church accountable for sex abuse.
In this June 4, 2019, photo, Dana Nessel, Attorney General of Michigan, listens to a question from reporters in Detroit. Hundreds of boxes. Millions of records. From Texas to Michigan this month, attorneys general are sifting through "secret" files, nondisclosure agreements between the church and families, heart wrenching letters from parents begging for action, priests' own psychiatric evaluations. They're looking to prosecute, and not just priests.
A nationwide Associated Press query of more than 20 state and federal prosecutors last week found they are looking for legal means to hold higher ups in the church accountable for sex abuse. They have raided diocesan offices, subpoenaed files, set up victim tip lines and launched sweeping investigations into decades-old allegations. Thousands of people have called hotlines nationwide, and five priests have recently been arrested.
Monsignor G. Michael Bugarin, who handles sex abuse accusations for the Detroit Archdiocese, said they too are committed to ending abuse and cover-ups. Bugarin said they cooperate with law enforcement, and that won’t change if the attorney general is considering organized crime charges.Some defenders of the church bristle at the notion of increased legal action, saying the Catholic institution is being singled out by overzealous prosecutors. A spokesperson for the U.S.
Pennsylvania has been flooded with calls, some 1,800 from victims and families over the last three years. In Iowa, 11 people who identified themselves as victims and their relatives came forward in the hotline and questionnaire’s first three days. New Jersey and Michigan’s tip lines have received about 500 calls each, while Illinois has received nearly 400 calls and emails, including 160 from survivors.
Before Pennsylvania’s attorney general got involved, cases against predator priests were largely the purview of local police and prosecutors, or private attorneys bringing lawsuits and civil claims. Although Pennsylvania’s attorney general office says prosecutors have spoken with their counterparts from almost every state, most attorneys general in the U.S. have not taken public action.
इंडिया ताज़ा खबर, इंडिया मुख्य बातें
Similar News:आप इससे मिलती-जुलती खबरें भी पढ़ सकते हैं जिन्हें हमने अन्य समाचार स्रोतों से एकत्र किया है।
Prosecutors crack down on clergy abuse as bishops gatherDETROIT (AP) — Hundreds of boxes. Millions of records. From Michigan to New Mexico this month, attorneys general are sifting through files on clergy sex abuse, seized through search warrants and...
और पढो »
Bishops meeting on sex abuse clouded by state investigationsFrom Michigan to New Mexico this month, attorneys general are sifting through files on clergy sex abuse, seized through search warrants and subpoenas at dozens of archdioceses.
और पढो »
Vietnam to crack down on Chinese goods relabeled to beat U.S. tariffsVietnam has said it will crack down on goods of Chinese origin illegally relabel...
और पढो »
Kamala Harris defends her record as prosecutor: ‘It matters who is in those rooms’Kamala Harris offered perhaps her most vehement justification yet for her prosecutorial career on Saturday, saying she sought to reshape a criminal justice system that many minorities consider fundamentally biased against them.
और पढो »
Publisher drops Central Park 5 prosecutor Linda Fairstein amid #CancelLindaFairstein campaignThe controversy surrounding her role in the wrongful convictions was resurrected after the release of the Netflix series 'When They See Us.'
और पढो »