January2004

Explaining the unusual step of releasing information about ongoing investigations, the report, titled "Report on Clergy Cases January 2004," states: "This report is essential to respond to widespread public concern about allegations of sex abuse by members of the clergy.
"Basically, we used the grand jury to obtain records," Mr. Conte said. "Everything was done through grand jury subpoena, with successive grand juries. Then, of course, people started to come forward."

Mr. Conte's report showed that 86 priests, brothers and sisters of religious orders, and ordained ministers, and three lay persons, have been named as suspects by victims

To date, the report states, 113 victims have provided statements to state police investigators or local police, while another 18 victims have declined to give statements to investigators.

Voice Note: we have found an electronic copy of the report. The voice will issue a press release by Wednesday February 4, 2004 in review of the District Attorneys report.

Dioceses of Worcester makes name and membership change to Pastoral Care Committee to comply with the Charter to Protect Children.

The Pastoral Care Committee, first established in May 2002 has undergone a name change and added four new people to the enrollment. The committee will now be known as the Diocesan Review Committee. The established purpose of this committee is to deal directly with the accusation of clergy sexual abuse from within the Worcester Dioceses. An updated policy is to be released soon according to Mrs. Patty Engdahl, Director of the Office of Healing.

Of the twenty-one member panel, eleven (11) members are represented as being part of the initial review committee. Theses members would be responsible for the original contact with the complainant. Member Mrs. Frances Nugent, victim coordinator will make the initial contact and will be accompanied by at least one member of the initial review committee. Mrs. Nugent returns a signed statement by the complainant, which is them forwarded to the Bishop and District Attorney in jurisdiction.

A presentation of facts is then conducted by Mrs. Nugent to the entire Diocesan Review Committee, which then reviews the presented facts and makes a recommendation to the Bishop. The committee is of an advisory capacity only. This committee is bound by no time limit to make a recommendation. Bishop Reilly and only Bishop Reilly makes the decision to remove a Priest. The Bishop may allow an accused clergy member to remain in ministry if he feels the accusations are inaccurate. This Committee is not mandated by law to report any forms of sexual allegations.

The committee now known as the Pastoral Care Committee of which its members were elected by denary is designed to deal with all aspects of the Worcester Dioceses.

New suit filed December 30, 2003 naming Auxiliary Bishop George E. Rueger, individually and the Roman Catholic Diocese of Worcester a Corporation Sole, as defendants in a clergy sexual abuse case.

Today, in Tarrant County, Texas, 153rd Judicial District Court in case number 153 198356 03 the Diocese of Worcester must answer to a sexual abuse suit filed which names Auxiliary Bishop George E. Rueger, individually and the Roman Catholic Diocese of Worcester a Corporation Sole, as defendants on behalf of John Doe I and John Doe II.

Attorney, Tahira Khan Merritt, who has specialized in sexual abuse cases for more than 10 years, said she has "uncovered a long trail of evidence that proves that Bishop Delaney was fully aware of the risks and dangers involved in appointing Father Teczar to serve in the Fort Worth diocese.

In 1986, Monsignor Raymond J. Page, vicar general of the Worcester diocese, wrote to Bishop Reilly, then in charge of the diocese serving Norwich, Conn., "Father Teczar is a priest of this diocese. Bishop Harrington has granted him a leave of absence with the suggestion that he seek a benevolent bishop.

"Tom's difficulties came to a head two years ago when a 16-year-old boy accused Tom of soliciting him," the letter continued.

Monsignor Page also wrote Bishop Reilly that "Bishop Harrington says there has long been a cloud of suspicion over Tom. Bishop Harrington knows a trail of damaged youngsters he left in one town. The police there were far from pleased. In that town, the police threatened to find a reason to arrest him if he returned there." Bishop Reilly declined to take on Rev. Teczar, and the Worcester diocese began to focus on Fort Worth.

The suit states that Rev. Teczar applied for a position in the Norwich, Conn., diocese but was turned down by Bishop Daniel P. Reilly, who is now Worcester's bishop.

Bishop Rueger wrote to the bishop of Fort Worth, "Our diocesan attorney has advised that Father Teczar be incardinated immediately in the diocese of Fort Worth. Pursuant to this advice, the bishop would be anxious for us to undertake this process." The lawyer he referred to in the Sept. 13, 1988, letter was the late James Reardon of Worcester.

"Despite the overwhelming evidence that Teczar was a dangerous sexual predator toward young boys, Bishop Delaney appointed him to serve in the Fort Worth diocese, eventually promoting Teczar to the position of pastor at St. Rita's Church in Ranger, Texas, where he served from 1990 to 1993,' she said.

Rev. Teczar, who now lives in Dudley, is free on bail after Texas served a fugitive-from-justice warrant on him in Dudley in December. He was arrested again on a governor's warrant from Texas regarding the same issue in March.

More information on Rev Thomas Teczar available on Published cases side bar.

Voice note: Has Worcester District Attorney Conte, the Dioceses of Worcester or the State Police seen that the neighbors that live in the close proximity of Rev Thomas Teczar have been notified of the danger within?

Romney, CEO of Bay State Co., makes services crisis worse
During Romney's first year in office, the state lost more than 30,000 jobs....By his own standards, Romney's first year has clearly been a dismal failure. Yet, according to his budget chief, Eric Kriss, it's not the governor's fault. No, it's the people who actually do the state's work:

Marriage rally not connected to the church
......Ms. Letourneau said she rented space in Catholic high schools for the rallies because they were the cheapest. She intended to hold the Worcester rally at Union Station but found that the insurance costs were prohibitive.

"I can tell you some of the e-mails have such hatred for the Catholic Church and how dare the church speak on anything after what the priests did. That whole episode really hurt us," she said. She was referring to the clerical sexual abuse scandal that has surfaced within the last two years within the Catholic church, and cover-ups by the hierarchy.

January 18, 2004

"I don't think it's a secret -- they acknowledge themselves -- their voice, their moral authority has been compromised by the sexual abuse scandals, and they know it," House Speaker Thomas M. Finneran, a devout Catholic and an opponent of same-sex marriage, said in an interview. "How do you rally and restore the influence of the church at a time when it's probably at its lowest point with regard to public regard? . . . If the Catholic Church locally is to recover a lot of its strength in attendance and respect and the like, it might not be for a period of 50 years."....."The scandal both weakened the church's role and inhibited the church," Birmingham said

Walsh said the scandal devastated the church's influence. "It will never be the same," she said. "It might be better someday, but not someday soon."

Amazingly, after almost one year, and four days after new web site design went up, District Attorney Conte sends official letter dated January 9, 2004, stating "insufficient evidence for any further investigation" into Bishop Daniel P. Reilly, in the reassigning of Rev Peter Inzerillo at St Leo in late Dec 2001. This acknowledgement clearly represents DA Conte has been protecting Bishop Reilly. ADA Christopher Hodgens had been implying false statement for months to suggest that Worcester District Attorney John Conte was investigating the Bishop.

The "Voice" has confirmation from the Massachusetts State police that no material was ever forwarded, or investigation conducted into Bishop Daniel Reilly by the Auburn C- Pack Unit assigned to District Attorney John J. Conte.

Now, documentation will show clear and concise evidence to prove that legal protection was awarded to the Worcester Dioceses Catholic Church and Bishop Daniel Reilly during this so-called façade of a "clergy Investigation" for the past twenty-two (22) months, by Worcester District Attorney John Conte.

“Worcester County is it’s own country and it’s run by a tyrant,” (Attorney Wendy) Murphy says about the DA. it’s clearly the fault of the DA’s office. “They tried to sweep the case under the rug,” she says. “I’d hear people say rape is pretty cheap in Worcester County. It’s treated like shoplifting”

The diocese paid more than $325,000 last year for issues relating to the sex-abuse crisis: $49,982 to pay for therapeutic services for victims, $100,190 in legal fees, $35,000 for undisclosed legal settlements, and $142,645 for activities through the Office for Healing and Prevention, according to the financial audit released Thursday.

Local diocese reform steps commended

Audit commends diocese

The diocese has had a review committee with lay involvement since 1992 and has been evolving its policy on reporting abuse since establishing a hot-line at that time, the diocese said

Mrs. Jean, a Leominster Catholic, said the audit gives the bishops a vehicle in which to commend themselves for initiating policies and procedures.

"They spoke to the people who started the clergy abuse crisis to begin with," she said. "This is the fox guarding the henhouse, basically.

"There are over 60 victims (of clergy abuse in the diocese), and they feel dejected. They know in reality nothing has changed."

She contends that the pastoral care committee established in 1992 was ineffective and dissolved in the late 1990s. She said the bishop is not supportive of work by advocacy groups, and that the diocese has not offered settlements with victims, as those in Boston and Providence have done.

RESPONSE TO THE REPORT ON DIOCESAN AUDITS, ISSUED ON JANUARY 6, 2004 BY
THE UNITED STATES CONFERENCE OF CATHOLIC BISHOPS

Thomas Doyle, O.P., J.C.D.

The major problem with this report and the process which it describes is that it seems primarily geared toward re-establishing the lost credibility of the bishops rather than getting at the root cause of the sex abuse nightmare
If in fact, the institutional church is closer to its self proclaimed ideal of being the “People of God” it will be because of the pressure, urging, anger and persistence of the thousands of victims and survivors who have had the courage to step up and not allow themselves to be swallowed by the anonymity of history.

To Promote Healing and Reconciliation
The Diocese has established an outreach program. The bishop, or his designee, has met or offered to meet with victims/survivors of abuse in the Diocese who reported the abuse after June 2002. The victim assistance coordinator is Frances Nugent, who works within the diocesan office for healing and prevention, the director of which is Patricia O’Leary Engdahl. A pastoral care committee was established in 1992, was renamed the diocesan review committee in 2002, and consists of 18 members, including clergy and lay representatives of the legal, medical, social work, education, and business communities. A Commendation was issued for the proactive involvement of this committee in the development of policy and procedures relating to sexual abuse of minors. The procedures for making a complaint of abuse are readily available in printed form. There have been no confidentiality agreements entered into by the Diocese since June 2002

COMMENDATION 1—For the excellence of the Diocese’s communications policy and procedures reflecting the bishop’s commitment to openness and transparency in dealing with issues of sexual abuse of minors.
Voice note: this report is an outrage! It includes false representation of actual events in the dioceses. Most members of the Pastoral care committee have no idea of the real actions of our "Bishop". Commendation 1 is a disgrace to all Worcester dioceses faithful. Anyone who has had any real dealing with the "Bishop" knows nothing could be further from the truth.

The national Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests, SNAP, issued a press release Monday criticizing the audit as largely "glorified, voluntary self-reporting" and as showing little substantial progress by bishops.

letter written by SNAP good explanation of the process of this audit.

With almost two years time expired, enough is enough. It is well past time for the DA to come forward with the results of his "so called" clergy abuse investigation.

Recent actions by Worcester Assistant District Attorney Christopher P. Hodgens have now been uncovered and documented, providing factual evidence to support that ADA Hodgens, who worked solely under the direction of District Attorney John J. Conte, has been protecting Bishop Reilly from investigation by Massachusetts state law enforcement for child endangerment and other related criminal action.

Worcester Dioceses Bishop Daniel P. Reilly, Auxiliary Bishop George E. Rueger, Msgr Thomas Sullivan and Msg Edmond Tinsley have never been brought to testify under oath in a court of law in connection with the clergy abuse scandal in the Worcester diocese during this so called twenty-two (22) month investigation conducted by ADA Hodgens of the Worcester District Attorney's Office.

The key to the whole deal is this: There will be no public release of the names of accused priests or any other details until or if there are any prosecutions. Not even the number of priests’ names under investigation will be disclosed; when asked, Conte simply laughs politely and says, “I’m not going to tell you that.

Worcester District Attorney John Conte is in violation of Massachusetts State statute for the misuse of the Grand Jury. Who by designed was created for the purpose of 'information" for the people. Not for the private use by the DA Conte, to which he has granted "preferential" treatment to his friends Bishop Reilly and the Worcester Dioceses, Catholic Church.

The question, asked facetiously, is ``What do you call a thousand lawyers chained together at the bottom of the ocean?'' The answer, ``A good start,'' and as victims of clergy sex abuse and their advocates review the grim elements of the archdiocesan settlement agreement, we can see why. ......
Admission of guilt and apology to each victim: Paragraph 5 of the agreement states, ``The agreement does not constitute an admission of liability but rather is a good faith resolution of disputed claims.'' This is gutless language for what victims endured at the hands of their salacious predators and their accessory before, during and after the fact, the bishops.
The agreement should have been jettisoned on the basis of this one sentence alone. Plaintiffs' attorneys should hang their heads in shame

Voice note: Mr. Joe Gallagher spent a few cold winter Sundays, Protesting at St Paul's Cathedral supporting clergy abuse victims in Worcester. Thank you Joe.

Official says audit found deficiencies in abuse response

An upcoming report on whether Roman Catholic bishops are implementing their new mandatory discipline plan for sexually abusive priests will say most dioceses are complying, but "there is still a lot that needs to be done," the official overseeing the audit said yesterday.