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Saturday, January 8, 2011

How Many of Priestly Sex Abuse Cases Were Based on Fraud?

We live in an age of rampant dishonesty. Studies of students show that many have no problem with submitting plagiarized papers, cheating on tests, etc. Ted Kennedy, Martin Luther King, Joe Biden, and any number of other prominent figures are well-known for submitting plagiarised work. So is anyone really surprised that where big bucks are involved people will lie and cheat? "Love of money is the root of all evils."

A lawyer and retired FBI agent who have investigated over 100 priestly sex abuse allegations in Los Angeles believe about half are fraudulent. Donald Steier, a veteran investigative aattorney, says, among other things,“I am aware of several plaintiffs who testified that they realized that they had been abused only after learning that some other person – sometimes a relative – had received a financial settlement from the Archdiocese or another Catholic institution.” (Emphasis in original.) Hey, the Catholic Church has deep pockets!

Certainly, priests who commit terrible crimes against children must be brought to justice, but, in our system of justice, people have a right to be faced by their accusers and receive a free trial. For many priests the accusation is the equivalent of guilt. How easy for someone with a grudge against a priest to accuse him as pay back. An accusation should bring a serious diocesan investigation. Certainly accused bishops have made sure they got all the benefits of diocesan resources to defend themselves. But many have been quick to sell their spiritual sons down the river.

Read complete article here. And pray for accused priests. The guilty, but only the guilty, should be punished.

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