Sexual abuse scandal in Fall River diocese
Encyclopedia
The sexual abuse scandal in Fall River diocese is a significant episode in the series of Catholic sex abuse cases in the United States and Ireland.
who was convicted of molesting 28 children; He admitted sexually abusing at least 100 of both sexes over a period of 30 years, starting in the 1960s.
. He was installed on the following August 11. While Bishop of Fall River, O'Malley settled 101 abuse claims and initiated a zero-tolerance policy against sexual abuse. He also instituted one of the first comprehensive sexual abuse policies in the Roman Catholic Church.
, who was kicked out of the Diocese of Fall River and stripped of his priestly faculties in 1963 after accusations of "improper behavior" with young boys, only to resurface a year later as a priest in Indiana and then in Vermont, was officially removed from the priesthood by Pope Benedict XVI.
James Porter affair
Father James Porter was a Roman Catholic priestPriest
A priest is a person authorized to perform the sacred rites of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particular, rites of sacrifice to, and propitiation of, a deity or deities...
who was convicted of molesting 28 children; He admitted sexually abusing at least 100 of both sexes over a period of 30 years, starting in the 1960s.
101 abuse claims
On June 16, 1992, following the Porter affair, Bishop Sean O'Malley was chosen to head the Diocese of Fall RiverRoman Catholic Diocese of Fall River
The Roman Catholic Diocese of Fall River is an ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Roman Catholic Church in the New England region of the United States. It is led by the prelature of a bishop administering the diocese from the mother church St...
. He was installed on the following August 11. While Bishop of Fall River, O'Malley settled 101 abuse claims and initiated a zero-tolerance policy against sexual abuse. He also instituted one of the first comprehensive sexual abuse policies in the Roman Catholic Church.
Laicization of Edward Paquette
Father Edward PaquetteEdward Paquette
Father Edward Paquette is a former Catholic priest who was laicized for the numerous clerical child abuse affairs he was involved in within several dioceses of the United States...
, who was kicked out of the Diocese of Fall River and stripped of his priestly faculties in 1963 after accusations of "improper behavior" with young boys, only to resurface a year later as a priest in Indiana and then in Vermont, was officially removed from the priesthood by Pope Benedict XVI.
Continued allegations
The Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests has alleged that the Fall River Diocese has not done enough to inform the public about allegations against a Maine priest who once served in the Fall River and Attleboro areas, but diocesan officials have said that they already have done everything the group is now demanding.See also
- AbuseAbuseAbuse is the improper usage or treatment for a bad purpose, often to unfairly or improperly gain benefit. Abuse can come in many forms, such as: physical or verbal maltreatment, injury, sexual assault, violation, rape, unjust practices; wrongful practice or custom; offense; crime, or otherwise...
- Child abuseChild abuseChild abuse is the physical, sexual, emotional mistreatment, or neglect of a child. In the United States, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Department of Children And Families define child maltreatment as any act or series of acts of commission or omission by a parent or...
- Child sexual abuseChild sexual abuseChild sexual abuse is a form of child abuse in which an adult or older adolescent uses a child for sexual stimulation. Forms of child sexual abuse include asking or pressuring a child to engage in sexual activities , indecent exposure with intent to gratify their own sexual desires or to...
- Religious abuse
- Sexual abuseSexual abuseSexual abuse, also referred to as molestation, is the forcing of undesired sexual behavior by one person upon another. When that force is immediate, of short duration, or infrequent, it is called sexual assault. The offender is referred to as a sexual abuser or molester...
- Sexual misconductSexual misconductSexual misconduct is misconduct of a sexual nature. The term may be used to condemn an act, but in some jurisdictions it has also a legal meaning....
- Spiritual abuseSpiritual abuseSpiritual abuse is a serious form of abuse which occurs when a person in a cult-religious authority or a person with a unique spiritual practice misleads and maltreats another person in the name of a deityor church or in the mystery of any spiritual concept...
- Woodstock defence