Mahony Gives Abuse Panel More Muscle

Cardinal Roger M. Mahony will announce today that he is expanding the scope and authority of a panel overseeing all sexual abuse allegations in the Los Angeles Archdiocese in an effort to add more credibility to the process.

Mahony plans to discuss three new initiatives aimed at dealing with abuse cases in the Roman Catholic Church in media interviews today. In an interview Wednesday, Mahony said his initiatives are far-reaching and will help the church deal with future problems.

As he looks back over the clerical sex abuse allegations, Mahony said he wished he had two of the new programs in place: an expanded panel of mostly laypeople to examine the accusations and claims and an education program to teach children how to guard against sexual abuse and other types of violence.

The cardinal said he also plans to add “spiritual” programs aimed at helping abuse victims who want to continue their involvement in the church separate from therapy or other forms of counseling.

In addition, a separate task force will be created by Mahony to attempt to determine how much the archdiocese has paid to settle abuse claims against clergy members. Because the archdiocese had several insurance companies over the years, Mahony said he wants to determine the costs involved in these cases to get a better idea of the financial aspects of the problem.

As the sexual abuse scandal has flared across the country in recent months, a frequent complaint from rank-and-file Catholics has been that bishops who control the church’s 195 U.S. dioceses have not been accountable to parishioners.

Mahony seemed intent to begin addressing that issue by not only expanding the number of laypeople on his existing sexual abuse council but giving it more authority.

“What has become obvious to me is that too much of this has been functioning within the close clerical circles. We’re much better served when we involve ... laypeople,” Mahony said.

Additionally, Mahony said the priests’ role is somewhat “conflictive.”

“One of our main roles is forgiveness, reconciliation, restoration,” Mahony said.

Years ago, he added, bishops believed that “God’s grace was powerful enough to help overcome this moral evil.”

Mahony said that today, however, he knows that some problems cannot be solved spiritually and need to be dealt with through the criminal justice system.

The cardinal said he will expand the existing nine-member sexual abuse advisory council to 15 members, only three of whom will be priests. The council now has seven lay members and two priests. Among the lay members are the parents of two children who were molested by priests, and a retired judge.

Mahony said he wants to appoint a sexual abuse victim to the expanded panel which, he said, will have “much more authority” over deciding how to resolve complaints of priest abuse. He said the panel will develop and review sexual abuse policies for the archdiocese.

Asked if the council would have the final word on how a case is decided, Mahony said that is “the thrust” of his intention. Currently, the panel makes recommendations to Mahony.

Cardinal May Be Trying to Take Lead Nationally

Mahony’s proposals were met with praise from some who believe the cardinal is attempting to take the lead on these issues.

Mahony said he will discuss these ideas, among others, when he and other American cardinals meet with Vatican officials in Rome next week.

Bill Ryan, a spokesman for the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops in Washington, said that the scope of Mahony’s initiatives appears to be unprecedented. He said he does not know of any other church programs as comprehensive.

“This certainly does sound very far-reaching,” Ryan said. He said that a number of other U.S. dioceses have sexual abuse review councils whose members include a majority of laypeople. But he said Mahony’s intention to give his council greater authority in resolving cases may be unique.

The Most Rev. William S. Skylstad, vice president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, said Tuesday that Mahony’s proposals are the “most specific” he has seen.

“We’ve talked about some of those issues but haven’t gone ahead as far as planning. I’m very impressed,” Skylstad said.

The education programs, which are expected to be implemented in the 287 parishes in the three-county archdiocese, are aimed at teaching children ways to avoid potentially dangerous situations, including sexual abuse, kidnapping and neglect by any adult.

“These programs are designed to help children and young people in all kinds of situations,” Mahony said. “How do you avoid being kidnapped? How do you avoid pornography on the Internet? How do you deal with advances by abusers?”

He said there are several good existing programs that involve both minors and their parents. He said an archdiocesan working group is looking at programs now and should have recommendations to parishes within a few weeks.

Mahony said his offer to create spiritual programs for sexual abuse victims may not appeal to some, but he said he believes it is important for the church to make a “spiritual outreach.”

The Roman Catholic Church faces sexual abuse allegations around the country. The accusations, some new and some years old, first surfaced in Boston earlier this year when it was revealed that a priest had molested more than 130 boys and was transferred from parish to parish.

Mahony insists that his archdiocese is cooperating with law enforcement authorities and that he has a “zero-tolerance” policy toward maintaining abusers in the church. He said he has turned over names of alleged abusive priests to the Los Angeles Police Department, and he is continually meeting with victims.

The LAPD has a special phone line for victims to report abuse by clergy, and detectives say they are receiving new tips nearly every day. The phone number is (213) 485-2883.