No mercy for 'predatory' Salvos paedophile, just 18½ years of 'stern punishment'

A Salvation Army worker will likely die in jail after being sentenced to 18½ years in prison for sexually abusing children in his care over almost 30 years.
Robert Burnett, 77, maintained his innocence throughout 14 different trials on the abuse, which took place when he invited children to sleep over at his home or took them on camping holidays between 1973 and 1999.

http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/no-mercy-for-predatory-salvos-paedophile-just-18-years-of-stern-punishment-20161028-gsd1q7.html 

Young people reluctant to report sexual abuse, royal commission research finds

Children and young people are reluctant to speak out about sexual abuse, according to a survey for the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse.

The commission wants young people to play a role in making themselves safer in institutions like schools, churches and sporting clubs.
 To do this they commissioned a research project involving 1,500 children and young people, including those with a disability, asking them what makes them feel unsafe and what they think needs to be done to make them safer.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-10-28/young-people-reluctant-to-report-sexual-abuse-rc/7975104 

Child abuse inquiry hit by sexual assault claim

Inquiry chair is urged to address allegations of cover-up of alleged sexual assault by its most senior lawyer.  The head of the national inquiry into child abuse has been urged to publicly address claims that it covered up an alleged sexual assault by its most senior lawyer.
An inquiry worker alleged that Ben Emmerson QC sexually assaulted her in a lift at the inquiry’s offices in Millbank in central London in early September, according to BBC Newsnight.

https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2016/oct/28/child-abuse-inquiry-hit-by-sexual-assault-claim 

Celibacy and the modern priest: Tom Keneally on his new book Crimes of the Father

In the early 1970s I knew a splendid priest whose authority to say Mass and operate within the Archdiocese of Sydney was terminated by the then prelate, Cardinal James Freeman. The priest's name was Father Pat Connor and he was a dear friend. As a young missionary in India, he was influenced by Gandhi, and I never knew a person who practised non-violent dissent with less pathology and more dignity and human love than Pat. As a peaceable man, he was involved in anti-Vietnam and anti-apartheid protest, including the famous and unwise Springbok tour of 1971.

http://www.smh.com.au/entertainment/books/tom-keneally-on-his-new-book-crimes-of-the-father-20161026-gsb77f.html 

Diocese, priest deny claims sisters were abused as children

ALTOONA, Pa. (AP) - A Pennsylvania Catholic diocese and a priest are denying allegations by two sisters who say the priest repeatedly molested them as girls, including one at her First Communion party.

Attorneys for the Altoona-Johnstown diocese and the Rev. Charles Bodziak say he "denies any sexual interest in children and denies he ever utilized his position to 'groom' or seek sexual gratification from any child, at any time."

http://www.philly.com/philly/news/20161027_ap_a8a207f2d74b495e855ae281749da758.html 

Community leader boasted about snagging favor from future top cop

A Borough Park community leader bragged on a taped phone call how he pulled some strings to get future top cop James O’Neill to transfer a friendly lieutenant back to the neighborhood, The Post has learned.
Community Board 12 Chairman Yidel Perlstein wanted Michael Andreano returned to Borough Park’s 66th Precinct from the 60th in Brighton Beach, where the cop had been shipped following his promotion.

http://nypost.com/2016/10/26/community-leader-boasted-about-snagging-favor-from-future-top-cop/ 

NYPD lieutenant stripped of badge, gun over ties to bribery scheme

A high-ranking Brooklyn cop has been stripped of his badge and gun over ties to a key figure in an alleged $1 million NYPD bribery scheme, The Post has learned.
Lt. Michael Andreano of the 66th Precinct in Boro Park was put on desk duty as part of the wide-ranging corruption probe that has already resulted in pending charges against three NYPD bosses, sources said.

http://nypost.com/2016/10/24/nypd-lieutenant-stripped-of-badge-gun-over-ties-to-bribery-scheme/ 

Assignment Record– Rev. Robert A. Torres

Summary of Case: Robert A. Torres was a priest of the Diocese of Little Rock, ordained in 1966. He assisted at a number of parishes in Little Rock before being named lead priest at a Malvern parish, and subsequently in Little Rock, Hope and Ashdown. Torres was longtime chair of the Diocesan Liturgical Commission and director of the Mexican-American Spanish Center. He retired in 1995. After 2002 Torres is no longer indexed in the Official Catholic Directory.

http://www.bishopaccountability.org/assign/Torres_Robert_A.html 

Victims take church to court over St William's school sex abuse

Five child sex abuse victims have launched a high court bid for compensation over abuse at a Catholic school in East Yorkshire.

More than 200 men claim they were abused at St William's residential school in Market Weighton between 1970 and 1991, run by the De La Salle order.
The order has apologised "unreservedly" to those affected by the abuse and for the actions of its former principal.

http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-humber-37750887?post_id=10204672433356106_10207941130191484#_=_ 

Abuse commission submitted to reject evidence over priest

The child sex abuse royal commission has been told to reject evidence from Cardinal George Pell, the world’s third most senior Catholic, regarding a former priest.

In submissions by counsel assisting to case study 35 into the Melbourne Archdiocese, Gail Furness SC and Stephen Free submitted that the commission should reject Cardinal Pell’s evidence that he was intentionally deceived by the Catholic Education Office regarding former priest Peter Searson.
They submitted the CEO should have done much more to respond to the obvious threat posed by Searson, however there was no evidence any of the officer at any time intentionally concealed from the Archdiocese information that it received about Searson.

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/nation/child-sex-abuse-royal-commission-told-to-reject/news-story/2ff3060298e0ab130d25587dec48a01b 

'He assaulted me sexually, threatened at knife point’: Seminary priest arrested on student’s complaint

“He threatened him with a knife, even physically assaulted me when I refused to withdraw my complaint given to the seminary,” says a 20-year-old young man in his complaint registered at the Iritty police station.
The young man’s determination to pursue a case of sexual assault has lead to the arrest of 41-year-old Father James Thekkemury, a priest working as a lecturer in Bengaluru.

http://www.thenewsminute.com/article/he-assaulted-me-sexually-threatened-knife-point-seminary-priest-arrested-students 

Vatican, Argentine church to open 'dirty war' archives

VATICAN CITY (AP) " The Vatican and Argentina's bishops have finished cataloguing their archives from the country's "dirty war" and will soon make them available to victims and their relatives who have long accused church members of complicity with the military dictatorship. The 3,000 files being released, though, are a fraction of the documentation believed to be in the possession of the Argentine church.
A joint statement Tuesday by the Vatican and the Argentine bishops' conference said the process of digitizing the archives had been completed and that procedures to access the information would be forthcoming. No date was set, and the opening for now is restricted to victims, detainees, their relatives and the religious superiors of victims who were priests or nuns.

http://www.dailyrepublicannews.com/news/20161025/vatican-argentine-church-to-open-dirty-war-archives 

VA--Minister to hold meeting about “cover up charges”

A minister who was accused and sued for covering up sexual abuse within his church is reportedly holding a meeting Wednesday with his congregants to discuss the matter. A support group plans to email members of the congregation with information about the accusations.
Rev. Samuel G. Wenger is head pastor at Freedom Fellowship, an independent church he started in Broadway VA after he was denied a vote of affirmation from his congregation at Cornerstone Church also in Broadway.

http://www.snapnetwork.org/va_minister_to_hold_meeting_about_cover_up_charges 

Discussion paper on trauma-informed approaches to child sexual abuse released

The Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse has released a discussion paper examining the growing interest in trauma-informed care and the implementation of trauma-informed approaches to support survivors of trauma, including survivors of child sexual abuse.
The discussion paper, Principles of trauma-informed approaches to child sexual abuse, was produced by Dr Antonia Quadara and Cathryn Hunter from the Australian Institute of Family Studies.

http://childabuseroyalcommission.gov.au/media-centre/media-releases/2016-10/discussion-paper-on-trauma-informed-approaches-to 

The Cancer of Clericalism

In 2004 Bishop Demetri of the Antiochian Archdiocese entered a guilty plea to a reduced charge of attempted fourth degree criminal sexual misconduct. To be specific he “grabbed the breast of a North Carolina woman seated next to him at a slot machine in the Turtle Creek Casino outside Traverse City” and was “highly intoxicated” (see here for more) as was evident from the closed circuit video that captured the event. He was drunk, he was gambling, and he sexually assaulted a woman.

http://www.theamericanconservative.com/dreher/cancer-of-clericalism-antiochian-orthodox/ 

Former Catholic priest who abused children at Shirley Oaks has 'too soft' jail term extended

A former social worker and Catholic priest who abused 13 children over more than two decades, including at Shirley Oaks children's home, today had his "too soft" jail term increased by a third.
Philip Temple molested 12 boys and one girl over 25 years, starting in the 1970s, while working in south London care homes and at a north London church.
He also lied on oath at a trial in the 1990s, when he was cleared of sex offences against a teenage boy - forcing his victim to go through the trauma of giving evidence against him twice.

http://www.croydonadvertiser.co.uk/former-catholic-priest-who-abused-children-at-shirley-oaks-has-too-soft-jail-term-extended/story-29847348-detail/story.html

Johnstown native plans to keep fighting for child sex abuse survivors

HARRISBURG - Shaun Dougherty, a Johnstown native, was one of the victims highlighted in the state grand jury investigation of child sex abuse in the Diocese of Altoona-Johnstown.
Since coming out with his own story, Dougherty has joined state Rep. Mark Rozzi (D-Berks), who also was abused by a priest, and other victims and advocates who have spent hours walking the halls of Pennsylvania government pushing for the passage of House Bill 1947.

http://wjactv.com/news/local/johnstown-native-plans-to-keep-fighting-for-child-sex-abuse-survivors 

Spotlight for victims

It was sometime in 1976. Two policemen, a rookie and a veteran officer, gathered at Boston police station. They were discussing the arrest of a Catholic priest on charge of molestation of children. A high ranking clerk was talking to the mother of the children in the police station. The assistant district attorney then entered the police station and told the cops not to let the press get wind of what happened. When the rookie remarked how it would be difficult to keep the press away during the arraignment, the veteran scoffed and sarcastically asked "what arraignment?"

http://www.thedailystar.net/wide-angle/spotlight-victims-1305664 

Australian police question cardinal over sex abuse allegations

Australian cardinal George Pell, one of the most powerful figures in the Vatican, has confirmed that he was questioned in Rome last week by Australian police in relation to sex abuse allegations.  

A statement on his behalf said the cardinal, the Vatican’s prefect of the secretariat for the economy, said he had “voluntarily participated” in an interview by Victoria police.

http://www.irishtimes.com/news/world/europe/australian-police-question-cardinal-over-sex-abuse-allegations-1.2846096 

Celibacy and the modern priest: Tom Keneally on his new book Crimes of the Father

In the early 1970s I knew a splendid priest whose authority to say Mass and operate within the Archdiocese of Sydney was terminated by the then prelate, Cardinal James Freeman. The priest's name was Father Pat Connor and he was a dear friend. As a young missionary in India, he was influenced by Gandhi, and I never knew a person who practised non-violent dissent with less pathology and more dignity and human love than Pat. As a peaceable man, he was involved in anti-Vietnam and anti-apartheid protest, including the famous and unwise Springbok tour of 1971.

http://www.smh.com.au/entertainment/books/tom-keneally-on-his-new-book-crimes-of-the-father-20161026-gsb77f.html 

Bill to aid sex abuse victims dies in Pa. House

HARRISBURG — A controversial proposal to extend the civil statute of limitations for child sex abuse victims appeared to collapse Tuesday after supporters in the House of Representatives said it was unlikely to move an amended version of the bill or reintroduce the original measure.
With little chance of it passing, they said they would try to revive it when the assembly reconvenes next year.  “The process is over at this point,” said Rep. Mark Rozzi, a Reading Democrat and clergy abuse victim who had been the bill’s fiercest advocate.

http://www.tribdem.com/news/bill-to-aid-sex-abuse-victims-dies-in-pa-house/article_c3042e0a-9b7c-11e6-bbe9-7b97d778fb21.html 

Retired priest admits being repeat sex offender

Retired Roman Catholic priest Robyn Q. Gwyn, who was found guilty in late September of sexually assaulting a Kingston man when his accuser was still a boy in the late 1980s to early 1990s, pleaded guilty Monday to victimizing a second child between 2000 and 2002.
Assistant Crown attorney Gerard Laarhuis said the second victim first came to light in May 2014 when Deacon William Gervais, the archbishop’s delegate for misconduct, filed a report with Kingston Police.

http://www.thewhig.com/2016/10/24/retired-priest-admits-being-repeat-sex-offender 

Son of former archbishop arrested over sex abuse claim

Rev Mark Carey, 51, above right, the son of former Archbishop of Canterbury Lord Carey, was arrested last week in connection with an assault on a young girl in the 1980s.

According to this report, his alleged victim, now in her 30s, claimed she was assaulted by Carey Jr when he was in his late teens and Lord Carey was a priest in the North-East.

http://freethinker.co.uk/2016/10/24/son-of-former-archbishop-arrested-over-sex-abuse-claim/ 

Church ministers sex affair led to murder

Murderers Michelle Reynolds and Scott Harper will have their story air on tonight’s Killer Clergy on Investigation Discovery (ID). The salacious crime story made headlines more than a decade ago in Rome, Georgia, where authorities say that Michelle Reynolds had a sexual affair with youth minister Scott Harper. That affair, they say, led to the stabbing death of Michelle Reynolds’ husband, Thad Reynolds.

http://www.inquisitr.com/3635982/michelle-reynolds-scott-harper-church-ministers-sex-affair-led-to-murder-of-thad-reynolds-in-rome-georgia-on-ids-killer-clergy/ 

Independent body to investigate sex abuse complaints

[ACNS, by Gavin Drake] Complaints of church-based sexual abuse in Australia’s internal province of Victoria will be investigated by an independent body with its own board of directors. The dioceses of Melbourne and Bendigo have already approved the new structure, which will be considered by the dioceses of Wangaratta, Ballarat and Gippsland next year. The new body is being established by the Church but is separate from the dioceses and their archbishop. It will work across a number of dioceses.

http://www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/10/independent-body-to-investigate-sex-abuse-complaints.aspx 

I let down abuse victims, admits former archbishop

Lord Carey of Clifton, the former Archbishop of Canterbury, has said that he deserves to face personal criticism from the national child abuse inquiry for his support of a bishop later convicted of indecent assault, it is understood.
Lord Carey was told last week that he may be subject to “explicit criticism” from the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse because of the way he handled revelations about Peter Ball, then bishop of Gloucester.

http://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/i-let-down-abuse-victims-admits-former-archbishop-rz9djs6r7 

King's boy details 'disgusting' bullying

A former student of The King's School in Sydney has told the abuse royal commission he was driven out of the school by relentless bullying that started after a boy ejaculated on his sleeping bag.

The now 19-year-old is the first from the prestigious private boys' school to testify at the inquiry, which is examining institutional responses to harmful sexual behaviours by students.

https://au.news.yahoo.com/nsw/a/32989008/principal-admits-failure-over-rape-claims/#page1 

Judge says Xavier College can see allegedly abused ex-student's psychiatric records

Xavier College is a step closer to accessing the psychological records of a man who claims he was sexually abused as a student at the school more than 40 years ago.
Janusz Skarbek alleges he was raped when he was a student at the exclusive, Jesuit-run school between 1971 and 1974.

http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/judge-says-xavier-college-can-see-allegedly-abused-exstudents-psychiatric-records-20161026-gsbgld.html 

Judge delays sentencing of ex-priest, Navy chaplain for child porn

DOVER, Del. - A federal judge has again postponed the child pornography sentencing of a former Navy chaplain and Catholic priest who was convicted of sexually assaulting a Naval Academy midshipman years ago.
Tuesday’s scheduled sentencing for 50-year-old John Thomas Matthew Lee of Millsboro has been postponed until February. The latest in a series of sentencing delays came after Lee’s attorney complained that prosecutors now want the maximum 50-year sentence, after saying they would ask for about 25 years behind bars.

https://cruxnow.com/church-in-the-usa/2016/10/24/judge-delays-sentencing-ex-priest-navy-chaplain-child-porn/ 

Child Sex Abuse Victims Will Have to Wait Another Year

House Bill 1947 is dead for this legislative session.  The landmark bill extending Pennsylvania's criminal and civil statutes of limitations for child sex abuse survivors achieved a remarkable degree of consensus, considering how many years similar bills have been buried in committees by legislators cowed by Catholic Church and Insurance Federation lobbying pressure.
But it ultimately fell victim to the unwillingness of Senate leaders to allow a vote on retroactive access to civil lawsuits for child sex abuse survivors blocked by current and past statutes of limitations.

http://www.mcall.com/opinion/white/blog/mc-child-sex-abuse-victims-will-have-to-wait-another-year-20161026-story.html

The Vatican’s Treasurer Has Been Interviewed by Australian Police Over Child Sex Abuse Claims

There are allegations that Cardinal George Pell abused young boys in the 1970s and 1980s Police from the state of Victoria, Australia, have flown to Rome to interview Vatican treasurer Cardinal George Pell over allegations of sexual assault.

A spokeswoman for Pell confirmed Wednesday that the Australian-born Cardinal had been interviewed and would continue to co-operate with police but said that he “repeats his previous rejection of all and every allegation of sexual abuse,” the Guardian reports.

http://time.com/4545789/australia-vatican-treasurer-cardinal-george-pell-child-sex-abuse/ 

Prestigious schools accused of placing reputation above student welfare at royal commission

Two of Sydney's most prestigious private boys' schools have been accused of placing their reputations ahead of student welfare at a royal commission.
A teenager who was allegedly indecently assaulted while studying at The King's School told the inquiry the school had a culture of silence.

http://www.smh.com.au/nsw/prestigious-schools-accused-of-placing-reputation-above-student-welfare-at-royal-commission-20161024-gs99qo.html 

Celibacy For Priests. The Defense Takes the Floor

It will not be discussed at a synod, but pressure is growing in favor of the ordination of married men. The most highly esteemed of the Italian theologians has puts a spotlight on the question in an authoritative magazine. And he is opting to hold on to celibacy: not only “opportune,” but “necessary”

https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=4184472111856999279#editor/target=post;postID=3078206511057575831 

In Texas, ‘evil’ pastor’s wife gets five life sentences

Misty Rae Hopkins, above, the widow of a Burnet pastor, has been sentenced to five life terms and four 20-year terms after she was found guilty of aggravated sexual assault and indecency.
According to this report, prosecutors say she and her late husband confined and sexually abused their children over a period of seven years.
Assistant District Attorney Stacy Burke called Hopkins:
A truly evil person who tortured her children.

http://freethinker.co.uk/2016/10/23/in-texas-evil-pastors-wife-gets-five-life-sentences/ 

Sexual abuse claims widen against former Catholic boarding school in Granby

A class-action lawsuit alleging sexual abuse at a former Catholic boarding school in Granby has been expanded to include the names of 11 religious brothers.
The lawsuit was initially launched earlier this month by an anonymous 56-year-old man, who says he was sexually abused more than 300 times at Mont-Sacré-Coeur College between 1973 and 1975.

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/montreal/granby-mont-sacre-coeur-sexual-abuse-1.3817887

Why Several Native Americans Are Suing the Mormon Church

Native Americans who were part of a little-known Mormon program from 1947 to the mid-1990s share much of the same story. Year after year, missionaries or other members of the Church of Jesus-Christ of Latter-day Saints approached these families and invited their children into Mormon foster homes.
As part of the Mormon Indian Student Placement Program, Native American children would live with Mormon families during the school year, an experience designed to “provide educational, spiritual, social, and cultural opportunities in non-Indian community life,” according to the Church. Typically, the Mormon foster families were white and financially stable. Native American children who weren’t already Mormon were baptized. And some of them now claim they were sexually abused.

https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2016/10/why-some-native-americans-are-suing-the-mormon-church/504944/ 

COLUMN: Catholic Church is trying to buy silence of victims

The New York Roman Catholic archdiocese has announced it is willing to pay off the victims of pedophile priests in exchange for their silence.

Any records of such abuse and what the church did about it would also remain private.  It’s an attempt by the church to again avoid accountability and responsibility for the abuse of children.  It should hit home in this community.

http://poststar.com/news/opinion/columns/ktingley/column-catholic-church-is-trying-to-buy-silence-of-victims/article_cac33b64-a505-52e7-b058-bfb471b435bc.html 

Sex abuse suit brought against former private school teacher

A Dartmouth man and retired math teacher at Deerfield Academy is being sued in the wake of allegations he sexually abused a 16-year-old student there in 1986, the victim's lawyers said.
Peter G. Hindle and his unidentified supervisor are named as defendants in a civil suit, filed Sept. 8 in Bristol County Superior Court, according to court documents.

The 12-page complaint alleges Hindle, now 82, engaged in "explicit sexual behavior and lewd and lascivious conduct" when he, among other things, rubbed, massaged and licked the student's naked back. The victim is not identified in the complaint and his lawyer, Mitchell Garabedian of Boston, said he is about 44 years old and resides in New York state.

http://www.southcoasttoday.com/news/20161024/sex-abuse-suit-brought-against-former-private-school-teacher 

Vatican Clarifies the Rules for Cremation: Bury, Don’t Scatter

VATICAN CITY — Ashes to ashes is fine, the Vatican says, as long as you don’t spread them around.

On Tuesday, the Vatican responded to what it called an “unstoppable increase” in cremation and issued guidelines barring the scattering of ashes “in the air, on land, at sea or in some other way.”

The Vatican decreed that the ashes of loved ones have no place in the home, and certainly not in jewelry. It urged that cremated remains be preserved in cemeteries or other approved sacred places.

http://www.nytimes.com/2016/10/26/world/europe/vatican-bans-scattering-of-human-ashes.html?emc=edit_tnt_20161025&nlid=63876270&tntemail0=y&_r=0 

George Pell subject of Victoria Police investigation into multiple allegations of sexual abuse

Police are investigating multiple child abuse allegations levelled directly against Australia's most  senior Catholic cleric Cardinal George Pell, the ABC's 7.30 program has revealed.

Victoria Police's Taskforce SANO, which investigates complaints coming out of the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse, has been examining the allegations by complainants from Ballarat, Torquay and Melbourne for more than a year.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-07-27/victoria-police-investigating-george-pell-over-abuse-complaints/7664674 

George Pell voluntarily interviewed by Victoria Police in Rome over historic child abuse allegations

Australia's most senior Catholic cleric, Cardinal George Pell, has been interviewed by Victoria Police detectives over historic child abuse allegations.

In a statement, Victoria Police confirmed to the ABC's 7.30 program that "three members of Victoria Police travelled to Rome last week where Cardinal George Pell voluntarily participated in an interview regarding allegations of sexual assault".

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-10-26/cardinal-george-pell-interviewed-by-victoria-police-in-rome/7966266

Justice Nyland Royal Commission

Many reports and inquiries, but little positive change
 The many reports, inquests and inquiries about child protection over the years tell us that we have not adequately addressed the issue of keeping children safe from harm. South Australia has had four independent child protection inquiries, since the Layton Review in 2003.
In 2003, the Report of the Review of Child Protection in South Australia – Our best investment: A state plan to protect and advance the interests of children (Layton Review) provided a set of recommendations that called for an overhaul of the system in order to keep children safe.

http://www.papertracker.com.au/2016/10/justice-nyland-royal-commission/ 

On The Nation: Lisa Owen interviews Steve Cannane

Youtube clips from the show are available here: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCz0MB0iTsElH5b9c7zuGvsA  You might have heard of Scientology's connections with celebrities like Tom Cruise and John Travolta.But what you probably haven't heard is the extensive links the so-called religion has Down Under.
ABC journalist Steve Cannane has just released a book, "Fair Game," about Scientology in Australia. I spoke to him earlier and began by asking what makes Scientology different from well-known religions.

http://www.voxy.co.nz/politics/5/266398 

They destroyed Denis Ryan's police career. Now they admit he was right all along

On the ground floor of the Victoria Police Centre is the Honour Board For Courage that lists the names of nearly 500 police who risked their lives in the line of duty.
But in policing there are two types of courage. There is the instinctive act of physical bravery and the moral type that requires the strength of character to uphold the law when pressured to compromise.

http://www.boorowanewsonline.com.au/story/4093731/they-destroyed-denis-ryans-police-career-now-they-admit-he-was-right-all-along/ 

Alan Jones is under investigation by NSW Police for statutory rape of boys in the 1980’s

Fairfax Media’s 2GB radio host Alan Jones is under investigation by the NSW Police for the statutory rape of underage boys in the 1980’s. I have raised the issue with Fairfax Media, the ABC Board and the Prime Minister’s office and I am still awaiting responses.
One specific complaint to the police is by a man (Victim A) who says when he was an underage boy in the 1980’s he was picked up by Alan Jones at a place known as The Wall in Sydney and Mr Jones paid him for sex. The Wall is in Darlinghurst Road Sydney and has been a known pick-up place for male prostitutes “rentboys” (many of them underage) since the 1960’s. The allegation by Victim A is similar with the fact that with another man as per the below 1988 newspaper front page.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alan_Jones_%28radio_broadcaster%29#Other_cases  

Sexual abuse in the church: William Lynch on why a new pope doesn’t mean justice

On its surface the election of Pope Francis would appear to offer renewed hope for true reform within the Catholic Church.

Two weeks into his reign the honeymoon continues, with the media marveling at the new pope’s easy smile and obvious warmth. They speak of his willingness to live modestly and travel around Rome in a Volkswagen instead of a big limousine.

http://www.mercurynews.com/2013/03/21/sexual-abuse-in-the-church-william-lynch-on-why-a-new-pope-doesnt-mean-justice/ 

This is how they broke our grandmothers

Once, there were witches. No. There were never witches. Not in the way men said, anyway.

Once, there were many Indigenous polytheist and animist faith traditions in what is now Western Europe. Their customs supported varying levels of respect and authority for women. They had holy women, woman healers, and woman leaders.

http://churchandstate.org.uk/2016/10/this-is-how-they-broke-our-grandmothers/ 

Porn star the 11th woman to accuse Donald Trump

An adult film performer is the 11th woman to come forward to accuse Donald Trump of inappropriate conduct, claiming that he offered her $10,000 and access to his jet to come to his penthouse hotel room at a golf event in 2006.
Jessica Drake, an adult performer for Wicked Pictures, appeared on Saturday with attorney Gloria Allred. She said that she met Trump ten years ago at a golf tournament in Lake Tahoe, Calif.

https://nz.news.yahoo.com/world/a/32979714/porn-star-the-11th-woman-to-accuse-donald-trump/#page1 

All Victim Survivors Deserve a Full Measure of Justice

The Catholic Coalition of Conscience and its participating groups (listed below) welcome the announcement by the Archdiocese of New York of the formation of an “Independent Reconciliation and Compensation Program” designed to help victim-survivors of clerical sexual abuse. Although such an initiative has been delayed for too long, as acknowledged by Timothy Cardinal Dolan, the effective implementation of this program could bring much needed aid to victim-survivors who have been denied justice by New York State’s Statute of Limitations (SOL) restrictions governing sexual abuse of children.

https://voicefaithful.wordpress.com/2016/10/21/all-victim-survivors-deserve-a-full-measure-of-justice/ 

Musician aims to inspire Catholic abuse survivors with song ‘99 Candles in Ballarat’

A MELBOURNE-based musician has released a stirring song to inspire and celebrate survivors of child sexual abuse in the Catholic education system.
Ian Whitehead’s “99 Candles in Ballarat” is dedicated to the brave survivors, their victims and families.  The song also pays tribute to those who suffered abuse and committed suicide.

http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/victoria/musician-aims-to-inspire-catholic-abuse-survivors-with-song-99-candles-in-ballarat/news-story/57d72a913cb00085953e0183531da924 

NY cardinal's new compensation program for victims will keep sex abuse hidden

Cardinal Timothy Dolan is trying something new. After years of successfully opposing legislation that would give New York abuse victims more time to sue, he has launched a victims' compensation program -- a first for the New York archdiocese.

This is the Year of Mercy, and the cardinal said he was inspired by the "grace and challenge" of this fact.  "I just finally thought: 'Darn it, let's do it,' " he told The New York Times.

https://www.ncronline.org/blogs/ncr-today/ny-cardinals-new-compensation-program-victims-will-keep-sex-abuse-hidden 

Ballarat’s Children: ‘superiors ignored my urgings to set up child-abuse inquiry’

A detective who helped build the case against one of the country’s most notorious pedophiles has ­revealed he urged his superiors to establish a taskforce to properly investigate the scourge of clerical sexual abuse and how he lament­ed the general lack of resourcing by the force.

Former detective sergeant Blair Smith said he was shocked to learn the extent of pedophilia within Catholic institutions when it first came across his desk in 1993, sparking years of “a total fight” with the church.
Mr Smith, who was part of a small Victoria Police unit investig­ating domestic violence and sexual assaults, has spoken publicly for the first time in The Australian’s podcast Ballarat’s Children.

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/national-affairs/in-depth/royal-commission/ballarats-children-superiors-ignored-my-urgings-to-set-up-childabuse-inquiry/news-story/24750a6de51671f2d6864b571c635e1d

Catholic Church is trying to buy silence of victims

that is what paying the victim / survivors is all about... you may as well shut up now... because once you get paid out... by the catholic church... it will be far too late... for you to get any justice from them... you will be again as they want you... a little boy or girl... giving in to them again and again... you don't need your hands tied... behind you back any more... you have a voice now... and they want you to... be that weak child all over again... don't give in to the catholic church... and remember what we have always known... they have no god... their god is money... wealth... power and control... and this is why... they are using their money... to keep their power over you... and for you to have no voice once more... Didn't we know that this is... the whole idea of paying the money out... to the victims - Survivors...  Ann

=============================================

The New York Roman Catholic archdiocese has announced it is willing to pay off the victims of pedophile priests in exchange for their silence.

Any records of such abuse and what the church did about it would also remain private.

It’s an attempt by the church to again avoid accountability and responsibility for the abuse of children.

It should hit home in this community.

http://poststar.com/news/opinion/columns/ktingley/column-catholic-church-is-trying-to-buy-silence-of-victims/article_cac33b64-a505-52e7-b058-bfb471b435bc.html 

Bishop McDevitt teacher charged with institutional sexual assault

A Bishop McDevitt High School teacher is facing institutional sexual assault charges for allegedly having inappropriate relationships with two students.
Detectives from the Dauphin County District Attorney’s Criminal Investigation Division arrested Randi Lynn Zurenko, 33, of Millerstown, Perry County on Thursday.
Zurenko was charged with 13 counts of institutional sexual assault, 153 counts of sexual abuse of children, 33 counts of unlawful contact with minors, 20 counts of dissemination of obscene materials to a minor and 13 counts of corruption of minors.

http://abc27.com/2016/10/20/bishop-mcdevitt-teacher-charged-with-institutional-sexual-assault/ 

Catholic school forcing erotic sex-ed on children has a horrifying history of sex abuse

Three mental health professionals are warning parents whose children attend Fr. Ryan High School in Nashville, Tennessee that the school’s mandatory explicit sex-ed course puts their children at risk for sexual abuse. Their concerns are amplified by the fact that the school has a history of sexual abuse of students by administration dating back to the early 1960s.
“In my line of work I’ve seen time and again the pattern of how predators use material like this emphasizing explicit sexual detail and encouraging physical contact to erode a child’s innate sense of modesty, making them vulnerable to be preyed upon,” psychiatrist Dr. Rick Fitzgibbons told LifeSiteNews.

https://www.lifesitenews.com/news/u.s.-catholic-school-forcing-sex-ed-on-kids-has-horrific-history-of-sex-abu 

MO--Catholic cleric to plead guilty; Victims respond

For two years in the 1990s, Sutton was principal of St. Dismas Catholic school in Florissant MO and lived in Shrewsbury MO.
According to BishopAccountability.org: “Sutton, principal of Catholic school in Missouri, was arrested 8/95 on charges he molested students in Australia in 1980s. No accusations in Missouri. He was extradited at request of Australian officials 5/96 after several court battles. US officials knew he was wanted in Australia for almost year but didn't know he was a school principal. In Australia in 5/96 he pleaded guilty to numerous charges of abuse between 1976-1987. Sentenced to 18 yrs jail on total of 67 charges against 15 children. As of 5/14, he had been ranked as one of Australia's most-publicized child sex offenders.

http://www.snapnetwork.org/australia_catholic_cleric_to_plead_guilty_victims_respond 

Offenders must not return to ministry – safeguarding head

The head of the Irish Church’s safeguarding committee has reiterated that keeping clerical abusers out of ministry remains an absolute priority for the Church.

Her comments come against the background of an RTÉ documentary which questions whether the Church’s approach to priests who have harmed children or vulnerable adults demonises abusers and ultimately endangers children. 

On ‘Beyond Redemption?’, a Would You Believe? special, UCD’s Dr Marie Keenan claims that the Catholic Church’s response to clerical offenders is driven by public opinion with the intention of protecting the institution. 

http://www.irishcatholic.ie/article/offenders-must-not-return-ministry-%E2%80%93-safeguarding-head

Youth Pastor Forced Boys Into Prostitution, Report Says

Police arrested a youth pastor on human trafficking charges after he allegedly forced boys into prostitution, according to a report.
Miami's Ron "Romeo" Cooper sold the boys, ages 16-18, to clients online. Romeo raped and assaulted the victims, as well as forced them to do drugs like crystal meth, the report says.
"The boys went through with the sex act because they were afraid of the defendant. The defendant has in the past physically grabbed them and yelled at them in their faces. He also has threatened to go to their families and basically extort them and blackmail them, stating that he was going to show them the photographs he had taken and the advertisements for sex he himself had posted," a prosecutor said.

http://www.charismanews.com/us/60709-youth-pastor-forced-boys-into-prostitution-report-says

Catholic clergy (including George Pell) looked the other way

Catholic clergy (including George Pell) looked the other way while Father Ridsdale continued committing more crimes against more children in more parishes. Background article by a Broken Rites researcher 

This Broken Rites article is the most comprehensive account available about how the Catholic Church harboured this child-abuse criminal — Father Gerald Francis Ridsdale — for 30 years in western Victoria while his superiors and fellow-priests remained silent to protect the church's public image. In 1982, when Father Ridsdale had been abusing children for 20 years, a clergy committee (of which Father George Pell was a member) noted that Ridsdale was being transferred away from Victoria. Thus, he was inflicted on potential victims in New South Wales. Eventually, in 1993, Victoria Police detectives charged Ridsdale in court. He was accompanied to court by his support person, George Pell, who had become an assistant bishop in Melbourne. However, no bishop accompanied the victims. Encouraged by Broken Rites, more victims later spoke to the detectives. In his four court cases between 1993 and 2014, Ridsdale has been jailed for a minimum of 24 years for assaulting 54 of his victims. Broken Rites is proud of its role in exposing the church's cover-up of this criminal priest.

http://www.brokenrites.org.au/drupal/node/55 

Clergy sex abuse topic is relevant today: Michael Rezendes

"Spotlight" -- a film which infused life into an award-winning investigative teams story that exposed a Catholic paedophile scandal involving priests in Boston -- was named as the Best Picture at the Oscars this year. And Michael Rezendes, one of the journalists who worked on the story, says the relevance of the issue doesnt end with the movie.
In the film, Tom McCarthy's dramatic depiction shows the whole process of the 2002 investigation that blew open the child sex abuse in the Catholic Church and also puts in the spotlight the emotions that the journalists went through as it questioned their faith and religion. The investigative team of The Boston Globe won the Pulitzer Prize in 2003 for the story.

http://www.daijiworld.com/news/news_disp.asp?n_id=419854 

“There Were No Witnesses”

That is a quote from Donald Trump denying that he committed the dozen or so episodes of sexual assault on women that he is accused of.
Of course there weren’t, you dolt. Sexual assault is not usually something that you want to do in front of an audience. It is a crime and therefore something that is done in secrecy. It is also frequently done by someone who has some form of power to another person that the first person has that power over.
This pattern should be familiar to anyone who followed the stories of the boys and some girls who were abused by priests. As a victim of priestly abuse myself, when the stories started coming out I recognized the pattern as if it were taken from a textbook. Powerful person corners a victim in a situation where the powerful person can force their attention on the victim. Often the assaulter has created the situation to make sure that there is little chance of discovery yet looks to be a spur of the moment thing.

http://www.blogforiowa.com/tag/priest-abuse-scandal/ 

Children removed from families are at highest risk to suicide

Individuals who as children were removed from their biological families are the nation’s highest risk group to suicide. They are four times at risk than the nation’s highest population risk group to suicide; the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander population of the Kimberley which is the world’s second highest population risk group to suicide – behind Greenland’s Inuit peoples.

http://www.alecomm.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1128%3Achildren-removed-from-families-are-at-highest-risk-to-suicide&catid=104%3Achild-protection-statistics&Itemid=6407 

Parent speaks out about priest’s abuse Father of child abused by Oaxaca priest say the families are victims as well

The father of one of the children in the eight documented cases of pedophilia committed by a priest in Oaxaca has spoken out about the forgotten victims of the crime: the relatives of the abused child.
Pedro Mendoza, whose son was allegedly a victim of Catholic priest Gerardo Silvestre, says he and his wife suffered along with their son when the crime was uncovered.
“The suffering continues, and now includes our other children. It is a chain, and sadly the seed planted by the sexual abuse has taken root,” he said.

http://mexiconewsdaily.com/news/parent-speaks-out-about-priests-abuse/ 

Exorcist priest and soldier arrested for sex abuse in Italy

A Sicilian priest and a soldier have been arrested for sexual abuse, which they carried out under the guise of spiritual 'healing', local media reported on Friday.

The pair, both based in Palermo, used the pretext of liberating victims from demonic possession in order to abuse women and children. The two were named by media as Salvatore Anello, 59, who belonged to the Capuchin order, and Salvatore Muratore, 52, who worked for the Italian army in Palermo.

https://www.thelocal.it/20161021/exorcist-priest-arrested-for-child-sex-abuse-in-italy

Italian 'exorcists' arrested on molestation charges

A priest and an army colonel pretending to be exorcists have been detained in Sicily. Investigators have said they took advantage of ill women and sexually abused them.  A Catholic priest posing as a "healer" and "exorcist" was arrested in Sicily on sexual molestation charges, Italian media reported on Friday.  59-year-old Salvatore Anello is charged with inappropriately touching four adult women and a 12-year-old girl.
His case follows a similar one a few months earlier in Palermo, wherein Colonel Salvatore Muratore was charged with 10 counts of molestation while a member of the Renewal of the Holy Spirit Catholic community.

http://www.dw.com/en/italian-exorcists-arrested-on-molestation-charges/a-36111895 

Ex-abuse inquiry judge will be quizzed by MPs over explosive racism claims and threatening to derail the £100million probe

The former head of the beleaguered child abuse inquiry is to face MPs over explosive racism claims threatening to derail the £100million probe.

Dame Lowell Goddard has pledged her ‘commitment to assist’ a Parliamentary committee investigating incendiary misconduct claims, which Theresa May has been accused of covering up.

The judge, who was the third chairman of the crisis-hit inquiry, is now expected to give evidence to MPs via video link from New Zealand, where she lives.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3857678/UK-child-sex-abuse-judge-face-MP-s-questions-racism-claims.html 

Trinity Grammar deputy headmaster reveals he knew about ‘sexualised behaviour’ but did nothing

WARNING: Graphic content.

STUDENTS at a prestigious Sydney private school rounded the edges of a large piece of machined wood and used it to rape other students, a royal commission has heard.

The child sex abuse royal commission is focusing on what went on at Trinity Grammar School in Sydney’s inner west during August and September, 2000.

http://www.news.com.au/national/courts-law/trinity-grammar-deputy-headmaster-reveals-he-knew-about-sexualised-behaviour-but-did-nothing/news-story/71d3290c84f79b6c83e0baec990f0b0c 

Bergen Catholic alumnus says he was sexually abused by teacher in 1970s

A 1974 Bergen Catholic High School graduate came forward Thursday to share for the first time his account of being sexually abused by his chemistry teacher as a 13-year-old student, echoing public claims made by dozens of others who attended the school from the 1950s through 1970s.

Standing across the street from his alma mater in Oradell late Thursday morning, Walter Slapkowski, 59 of Bogota, shared in detail his recollection of the abuse he said he endured in after-school detention several decades ago.

http://www.northjersey.com/news/bergen-catholic-alumnus-says-he-was-sexually-abused-by-teacher-in-1970s-1.1680607 

Priest Army officer arrested

Fondled women, girls 'to liberate them from demonic lust'.
Police on Friday arrested a Catholic priest and an Army officer on sexual assault charges. Father Salvatore Anello, known in Palermo as an exorcist and a healer, is accused of fondling two women and three underage girls when they turned to him for help. Colonel Salvatore Muratore, 52, is accused of sexually assaulting four women and one underage girl. 

http://www.ansa.it/english/news/general_news/2016/10/21/priest-army-officer-arrested_3d8ad119-8dd2-447a-8400-a51bf4c059aa.html 

Winnipeg Catholics react to priest's sex assault, interference charges

A former colleague of a priest charged with sexual assault and sexual interference says he believes Father Ronald Léger is innocent.
"I feel really sorry for him and also for all the parishioners​ because Father Ron was an excellent priest," said Jean-Jacques Serceau, who is the director of Holy Family Parish on Archibald Street. "I don't think he can commit something like that."

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/manitoba/winnipeg-catholics-react-to-priest-s-sex-assault-interference-charges-1.2891789 

Ronald Léger, former priest, pleads guilty to sex assault

A 77-year-old former priest surprised a Winnipeg court Monday by pleading guilty to three sex assault charges and one charge of sexual interference.
Rev. Ronald Léger had previously indicated he would not plead guilty to the offences, which occurred between 1984 and 2004.

http://www.cbc.ca/beta/news/canada/manitoba/ronald-l%c3%a9ger-former-priest-pleads-guilty-to-sex-assault-1.3149681 

Siem Reap Pastor Arrested Over Multiple Sex Abuse Claims

Police in Siem Reap City have arrested a South Korean pastor accused of sexually abusing eight girls on multiple occasions over the past several years and buying them and their families off with gifts of rice, cash and motorbikes.
Park Youl, 62, was arrested on Wednesday morning after being called in for questioning based on a tip, Siem Reap province’s anti-human trafficking police chief Duong Thavry said on Thursday. She said one of the victims talked to police because she was angry that the pastor had refused to give her a motorbike like some of the others.

https://www.cambodiadaily.com/news/siem-reap-pastor-arrested-multiple-sex-abuse-claims-119560/

Priest used youth drop-in centre as 'giant spider web' to catch victims

New allegations of sexual assault have emerged against a Winnipeg priest and convicted sex offender, CBC News has learned.
Four men have come forward alleging Ronald Léger, 78, sexually assaulted them beginning when they were children aged 10 to 12, during the 1980s. All frequented the youth drop-in centre he founded, Teen Stop Jeunesse (TSJ).

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/manitoba/iteam/convicted-priest-ronald-leger-1.3814967 

Child abuse royal commission: Trinity Grammar School students raped other students, inquiry hears

Students at Trinity Grammar School in Sydney's inner-west raped and simulated rape on other students using a wooden implement more than 15 years ago, the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse has heard.

The inquiry is hearing evidence about responses to harmful sexual behaviour at three unnamed New South Wales primary schools, three faith-based private schools — Trinity Grammar School, The King's School and St Ignatius College — as well as a private school, Shalom Christian College in Queensland.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-10-20/trinity-grammar-students-raped-other-students-royal-commission/7949060 

WA--Victims want Bellingham principal fired

First, the principal kept the offender's presence secret for a year. When he finally did “come clean (only after having been prodded by distraught parents), he further deceived parents by claiming, with no apparent basis, that the offender was "in the first percentile" of child molesters who were rehabilitated. (According to one news account, the man remains “registered as a level II sex offender, meaning he is considered at moderate risk to reoffend.”)

http://www.snapnetwork.org/wa_victims_want_bellingham_principal_fired 

Dame Lowell Goddard's statement in response to British press claims

Here is the full statement from Dame Lowell Goddard and her lawyers in London:
In response to allegations published in the Times newspaper dated 14 October 2016, Dame Lowell Goddard QC said:
"My absolute commitment to the Inquiry and in particular to the victims and survivors is the reason why I gave up my career and life in New Zealand to take up the position of Chair of the Independent Inquiry Into Child Sexual Abuse (IICSA) and why I endured the logistical difficulties of the role. My report to the Home Affairs Select Committee of 5 September 2016 and my earlier report to the Home Secretary of 10 August 2016 which followed my resignation as Chair of the Inquiry, both made absolutely clear that I regarded the Inquiry as critical and fundamentally important, and I continue to regard it as such.

http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/85403747/Dame-Lowell-Goddards-statement-in-response-to-British-press-claims 

Child sex abuse inquiry: No reduction in scope, says Alexis Jay

The new chairwoman of the child sex abuse inquiry, Professor Alexis Jay, has said she will not seek "any reduction or restriction" in its scope. The independent inquiry has been beset by controversies, including the resignation of three of its chairwomen.
Prof Jay said that - although some measures would be taken to speed up the inquiry - it was "still very interested in the past". She said she expects "significant progress" by the end of 2020.

http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-37680906 

Time to end zero tolerance?

The rigorous approach of the Church to clergy who have sexually abused “isn’t as Christian as it should be”, says Mick Peelo ahead of ‘Beyond Redemption?’ a Would You Believe? special screened on RTÉ tonight, Thursday October 20.

It’s a surprising statement for a documentary journalist who has been reporting on the abuse crisis in the Church for over 20 years, notably alongside the late Mary Raftery in the 2002 documentary ‘Cardinal Secrets’. Over the years, he says, he had been consistently strong in advocating for the rights of victims.

http://irishcatholic.ie/article/time-end-zero-tolerance 

New Therapy Helps Adults Process Childhood Sexual Abuse

Linda lost her job over a pack of gum.Each time her boss popped a stick of Big Red into his mouth, he became her grandfather. That simple piece of gum was a trigger that sent her right back to age eight and the nightmare of sexual abuse she endured at her grandfather’s command.
This is just one of the devastating stories Kate Chard can tell. “Childhood sexual abuse affects a man’s, a woman’s entire life,” she says. “We focus on some core areas in my therapy of safety, trust, power and control, self-esteem and intimacy. Those things impact ability to work, ability to sustain healthy relationships, and ability to parent.

http://usmedicalinfohub.co/new-therapy-helps-adults-process-childhood-sexual-abuse/ 

Vic Police need Statements from Survivors RC Testimony doesnt go to Police

Aug 23, 2016 — A copy of signatures and comments with this petition were handed to Assistant Police Commissioner Steve Fontana today at the CLAN Protest outside Police HQ Melbourne.
"A National Apology will encourage more victims to testify and mean more pedophiles are successfully prosecuted.
People as they age, they tend to have very strong memories from their childhood. Older people who were arrested for vagrancy as a 3 year old, or subject to beatings in Police premises or NOT BELIEVED about Child Sex Abuse, definitely need an Apology because these were Crimes on the Statute Books at the time, and the Police should have taken a Statement. The Police should have been sympathetic to a child who was brave enough to speak out about horrendous crimes being committed against them. ...

https://www.change.org/p/police-commissioner-victoria-issue-warrants-for-george-pell-and-denis-hart-for-perverting-the-course-of-justice/u/17643011 

Survivors of abuse in child care institutions protest for nationwide apology from police

This is so true... I was taken back to nazareth house... every time I ran away to the police for help... I was always taken back to my abusers... and each time I was striped naked across the bed... both my hands and feet... tied to each end of the bed... and whipped... this was done by the nuns... always three of them... then to be told... to knell down and apologize to them... I could not move... let alone know... why they thrashed me like this... most nights across the bed... they were evil witches... yes, nuns... women... and the older girls... raped us children... boys and girls as well as the priest did to us...  Ann

==========================================

Adults abused as children while staying in orphanages, children's homes, foster care and other care institutions have launched a campaign for a nationwide apology from police. Support group CLAN (Care Leavers Australasia Network) held a protest outside Victoria Police headquarters on Tuesday, claiming police failed to act on, or consider, reports of abuse made by children in care.
"When children did try to tell the authorities, they weren't believed," CLAN co-founder Leonie Sheedy said.  They group also say children who ran away from the institutions would be returned straight back to where they were being abused.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-08-23/abuse-survivors-call-for-police-apology/7777946

Bill to empower victims of sexual abuse in jeopardy as House and Senate clash

Victims of sexual abuse are anxious. Some say they are being re-victimized by a legislature split on a bill that would let them sue their abusers.
That bill, House Bill 1947, is in jeopardy with just three days left in the legislative session despite the fact that most lawmakers agree on most everything that’s in it.

http://abc27.com/2016/10/20/bill-to-empower-victims-of-sexual-abuse-in-jeopardy-as-house-and-senate-clash/ 

Yoga instructor accuses Donald Trump of sexual misconduct

That didn't take long.

A day after the final presidential debate of the 2016 campaign, a yoga instructor and lifestyle coach appeared at a news conference to accuse Donald Trump of sexual misconduct.
Fighting back tears, 45-year-old Karena Virginia became the 10th woman to accuse the Republican presidential candidate of inappropriate behavior.
She alleged that in 1998, Trump walked up to her at the U.S. Open tennis tournament, grabbed her arm, and then touched her breast, according to NBC News.

https://nz.finance.yahoo.com/news/gloria-allred-announces-sex-misconduct-024734134.html 

End "The God Loophole" -- Stop Abuse of Children in Religious Daycares

Many religious daycares use their church affiliation as a means of exempting themselves from state rules. Alarmingly, such exemption problems occur in 17 states and impact over 7,700 different facilities nationwide. 

The growing trend of using religion as a shield from regulation makes children susceptible to abuse in religious daycares. Thus, a daycares religious freedom comes at a price for children. The lack of common sense rules in religious daycares has proven disastrous as numerous children are abused and neglected in these facilities. Many cases are not reported because of religious exemptions, yet even when cases are reported it does not ensure justice. In fact, many cases are dismissed because of religious exemptions which allow many states to break rules.

https://www.change.org/p/congress-end-the-god-loophole-stop-abuse-of-children-in-religious-daycares?recruiter=3314017&utm_source=share_petition&utm_medium=facebook&utm_campaign=autopublish&utm_term=des-lg-share_petition-no_msg 

Military to be used against NZ peace flotilla

New Zealanders do not want war ships.... in our Auckland Harbour... or any where near our shores... Our country has an incredibly proud history... of on-water actions against war and nuclear weapons...

A corrigendum to this notice was published on 8 September 2016, Issue No. 79, Notice No. 2016-go5175.

Departmental

Notice of Intention to Declare a Major Maritime Event; https://gazette.govt.nz/notice/id/2016-go4597

 ==============================================================

As in Link Below;...

Friday, 30 September 2016, 11:26 am
Press Release: Auckland Peace Action Military to be used against NZ peace flotilla
From: Auckland Peace Action
Date: Friday, 30 September 2016

The government has indicated it plans to deploy the NZ military against a peaceful flotilla opposing the entry of warships into Auckland Harbour in November.
“This is a major crackdown on protests. It even bans swimming in parts of the Harbour while these warships are around,” said Auckland Peace Action member Valerie Morse.
The NZ Navy is hosting wargames with a US warship in mid-November in the Hauraki Gulf. Auckland Peace Action is organising a flotilla to demonstrate New Zealanders’ opposition to war and weapons.
 
http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PO1609/S00378/military-to-be-used-against-nz-peace-flotilla.htm

Sexual abuse scandals at universities akin to Savile and Catholic Church cases

Huge scale sex abuse scandals have been uncovered throughout UK universities, with evidence dating back to the 1980s
The discovery of sexual abuse in institutions has, unfortunately, been on the rise in recent years, including reports of abuse committed against students at UK universities. The Guardian recently published an article reporting numerous cases of sexual abuse and assaults, including rape, in the academic world of our universities between established professors and doctoral students, with some cases appearing as early as the 1980s and 1990s.

http://mancunion.com/2016/10/17/sexual-abuse-scandals-akin-saville-catholic-church-cases/ 

Bellingham parents withdraw kids from Catholic school over sex offender controversy

If a sex offender makes regular visits to an elementary school, who needs to know?
Some parents at Assumption Catholic School, a preschool and K-8 school in Bellingham, believe staff erred by waiting a year to warn all families of a parent who was a registered level II sex offender. At least three families were so concerned by the way the situation was handled that they withdrew their children from the school.

http://www.bellinghamherald.com/news/local/article108369317.html 

Read more here: http://www.bellinghamherald.com/news/local/article108369317.html#storylink=cpy

 

http://www.bellinghamherald.com/news/local/article108369317.htmlhttp://www.bellinghamherald.com/news/local/article108369317.html 

How Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte's bloodthirsty war on drug dealers is driven by being sexually abused by a Catholic priest as a child

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte was sexually abused as a child by a Catholic priest, a traumatic experience which now drives his bloody war on drugs.

In his first interview since taking office 100 days ago, President Duterte told Al Jazeera that his tumultuous childhood shaped his current beliefs and policies. 'It's what you get along the way that shapes your character'.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3842252/Philippine-President-Rodrigo-Duterte-s-war-drug-driven-sexually-abused-Catholic-priest-child.html 

Amber Rudd DENIES misleading MPs over reasons for Lowell Goddard's resignation and says the judge must explain herself as replacement signals 'new approach' to probe

Amber Rudd has flatly denied misleading MPs over the reasons why the chair of the child sex abuse inquiry quit - and said she should be the one answering questions.

The Home Secretary insisted it would have been 'inappropriate' for her to reveal allegations that Dame Lowell Goddard made 'racist' remarks - claims the judge has strenuously denied.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3842142/Even-victims-say-abuse-probe-halted-demand-fourth-head-shambolic-sex-inquiry-removed.html 

Utah Jehovah’s Witnesses church forced woman to listen to audio of her rape, lawsuit says

A woman is suing a Jehovah's Witnesses church in Weber County after, she says, one of its instructors repeatedly raped her when she was a minor and the organization's leadership forced her to listen to an audio recording of one of the assaults.

The woman filed the lawsuit Wednesday in 2nd District Court, accusing the Kingdom Hall of Jehovah's Witnesses church in Roy — as well as naming the alleged perpetrator, several church leaders and the Watchtower Bible and Tract Society (the religion's headquarters located in New York) — of knowingly allowing the "unfit" instructor to rise to a position of authority without warning members of his "dangerous propensities" and past sexual transgressions.

http://www.sltrib.com/news/4465861-155/woman-sues-utah-jehovahs-witnesses-church 

Several perfect storms exposed pedophile priests

He was tall and thin and wore bow ties, and he was packing up his laptop to leave just as the hearing started.

While counsel for plaintiffs stood before the judge detailing obstruction of justice the Archdiocese carried out against pedophile priest victims, the court beat reporter from the L.A. Times was packing up to leave. And he was the only journalist there besides me.  

http://cityofangels12.blogspot.co.nz/2016/10/several-perfect-storms-exposed_17.html 

Boston Globe journalist Mike Rezendes speaks to UMass Lowell about ‘Spotlight’

As part of the Parker Lecture Series, Michael Rezendes, a member of The Boston Globe’s Spotlight Team came to UMass Lowell to speak about his experiences on the infamous case, being played by Mark Ruffalo in a film, and the overall importance of journalism in the modern world.

In 2015, The Boston Globe’s investigative team experienced their claim to fame with the academy award winning film “Spotlight.” Based on the true story, this film highlighted the infamous story the Spotlight Team exposed: the cover up of child molestation by priests in Boston churches.

http://umlconnector.com/2016/10/boston-globe-journalist-mike-rezendes-speaks-to-umass-lowell-about-spotlight/ 

Judge Lady Smith's appeal to child abuse victims and witnesses

The senior judge appointed to lead the Scottish government's child abuse inquiry has urged victims and witnesses to come forward.

Lady Smith said she was determined to find out "what happened, where, how and why". The inquiry will examine historical allegations of child abuse in Scotland. It is expected to last four years, and will look at the extent of abuse of children in care and identify any systemic failures.

http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-scotland-37680635 

Philippines president Rodrigo Duterte reveals he was abused by priest as a child

Rodrigo Duterte, the president of the Philippines, says the motivation for his brutal clampdown on drugs comes in part from being sexually abused by a Catholic priest as a child.
The 71-year-old has attracted attention for a tough crackdown on the Filipino drug trade that has seen almost 4,000 people killed by police and vigilante gangs since he took office on 30 June.

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/asia/philippines-duterte-war-on-drugs-sexual-abuse-crackdown-human-rights-a7366941.html 

Ballarat bishop agrees to be sued for historic sex abuse claims in lieu of dead predecessor

A Catholic bishop in regional Victoria has agreed to be sued for sex abuse claims dating back to the 1960s, standing in the place of his long-dead predecessor.

His stance means victims can bring the Ballarat diocese to court over the actions of the previous bishop who is alleged to have presided over child sex abuse.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-02-17/ballarat-bishop-agrees-to-be-sued/7175286 

Child abuse civil case statute of limitations could be removed in Western Australia

Time restrictions on when victims of child sexual abuse can launch civil action seeking damages in Western Australia look set to be removed, with the Government and Opposition backing a private members bill introduced by a backbench Liberal MP.

The legislation introduced by Eyre MP Graham Jacobs, which would remove the six-year statute of limitations for child sexual abuse civil cases in WA, is set to be debated in State Parliament

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-10-13/child-abuse-victim-time-restriction-for-damages-wa-bill-debate/7927548 

Trump's comments remind me of when I was assaulted - my pastor blamed me

When I hear Donald Trump talk about grabbing a woman by the p--y, I can feel his hand on my vagina. I can feel the weight of his body against my breasts. I can see his sickly smile, the "thank you" he throws my way when he's finished. I can imagine it — quite vividly - because it happened to me at the hands of a co-worker.
Every day it happens to countless women. It's been happening to me for 20 years.

http://www.nj.com/opinion/index.ssf/2016/10/trumps_comments_are_nauseating_but_my_own_pastor_e.html 

Former First Nations police chief’s request for lenient sentence over ‘abhorrent’ rapes rejected

After Jean-Paul Néashish, a former First Nations police chief, was convicted of sexual assault, his lawyer argued for a lenient sentence because the man had been sexually abused at a residential school.
But in a decision this week, Quebec Court Judge Jacques Lacoursière rejected the request, jailing Néashish for six years and noting he was not the only one in the case to have suffered because of his aboriginal status.

http://www.leaderpost.com/news/national/former+first+nations+police+chief+request+lenient+sentence/12276255/story.html 

Shefford Boys' Home: Victim tells how years of abuse led him into life of crime

ONE of the young boys who suffered terrible abuse at Shefford boys' home has said he believes the 'evil' environment led him into a life of crime.
Trevor Hercules lived at the Catholic St Francis Boys' Home – dubbed the 'orphanage from hell' - for three years between 1966 and 1969.  He went on to spend nine years in jail for armed robbery before turning his life around and establishing his own programme, which he calls Social Deprivation Mindset, to help other youths divert away from life behind bars.

http://www.bedfordshire-news.co.uk/sdkfhsdkfhk/story-29803267-detail/story.html 

Woman sues Belleville Diocese over allegations of sexual exploitation by priest

A lawsuit filed Tuesday in St. Clair County alleges the Belleville Diocese “created a foreseeable zone of risk of sexual abuse and exploitation” by a Roman Catholic priest.
The Rev. Osang Idagbo, currently the parish administrator at Sts. Peter and Paul Church in Waterloo, is accused of manipulating a vulnerable woman between December 2013 and July 2015, while she sought his counsel about becoming Catholic and getting through a rough relationship with her husband.

http://www.stltoday.com/lifestyles/faith-and-values/woman-sues-belleville-diocese-over-allegations-of-sexual-exploitation-by/article_b3000cfe-3507-5431-8ba8-d025cac9402c.html 

‘Spotlight’ editor, ‘Weird Al’ share their stories at Cal Poly gala

Ben Bradlee Jr. never thought he would inspire a movie — much less an Academy Award-winning one.
But he and his team of journalists at The Boston Globe did just that with their work uncovering sexual abuse in the Catholic Church, which won a 2003 Pulitzer Prize for Public Service. Their work was portrayed in the film “Spotlight,” which took home the Oscar for Best Picture at the 2016 ceremony.

http://www.sanluisobispo.com/news/local/education/article108575307.html

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