Search Results for: church sexual abuse

Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby announced his resignation on Tuesday following an independent review that found significant failings in the Church of England’s handling of abuse allegations against volunteer John Smyth. Smyth, who operated at Christian summer camps in the UK, Zimbabwe and South Africa, was accused of physically, sexually and psychologically abusing over 100 [...]

Pope Francis’ child protection board said victims of clergy sexual abuse should have more access to information about their cases along with compensation, in its annual report published on Tuesday. The Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors issued its inaugural annual report detailing findings and recommendations for the Vatican’s handling of clergy sex abuse [...]

Pope Francis on Friday addressed clerical sexual abuse in Belgium during a meeting with Belgian civil leaders in Brussels, expressing deep remorse and calling for action. The pontiff stated that the Catholic Church was “ashamed” by these abuses, describing them as a “scourge.” Francis emphasized that the Church must confront this issue with Christian humility [...]

Missouri Governor Mike Parson announced the state will move forward with plans to execute Marcellus Williams at 6 pm local time on Tuesday despite controversy over evidence and racial discrimination in the trial that led to his 2001 capital conviction. Who is Marcellus Williams? The jury that convicted Williams of capital murder knew little about [...]

The Argentine court issued a decisive ruling Friday condemning Archbishop Mario Cargnello of Salta, alongside three other clergy members, for their involvement in gender violence against a group of nuns. The case, which centers around allegations of violence against Carmelite Nuns of the San Bernardo Convent, stemmed from the nuns’ support for devotion to the [...]

Independent French reparations agency, Instance Nationale Indépendate de Reconnaissance et de Réparation (INIRR), reported that it has provided financial reparations to over 500 victims of sexual abuse perpetrated by clergy or leaders in the Catholic Church in 2023. INIRR’s 2023 report revealed that over 60 percent of victims are men, averaging an age of 61 years [...]

The US Supreme Court vacated an order by Justice Samuel Alito on Thursday that paused the dispute between the terms of a $2.46 billion settlement between sexual abuse victims and the Boy Scouts of America (BSA). BSA declared bankruptcy in 2020 amid thousands of lawsuits for sexual abuse against Scout Leaders. Abused in Scouting, a group dedicated to litigating sexual [...]

US Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito granted a stay order Friday to appellants contesting the terms of a $2.46 billion settlement between sexual abuse victims and the Boy Scouts of America (BSA). BSA declared bankruptcy in 2020 amid thousands of lawsuits for sexual abuse against Scout Leaders. A settlement was approved by a bankruptcy judge [...]

The High Court of Australia dismissed the Catholic Church’s bid to avoid paying damages to the father of a choirboy allegedly sexually abused by Cardinal Goerge Pell. The landmark decision confirms the decision of the Victorian Supreme Court of Appeal that victims’ families may seek compensation as secondary victims of clergy sexual abuse. The Thursday ruling [...]

The Catholic Archdiocese of Quebec on Friday announced that their cardinal, Gérald Cyprien Lacroix, would be stepping down “temporarily…until the situation is clarified” after being named as an alleged perpetrator in the recently approved class action suit, Gaétan Bégin and Pierre Bolduc v. The Roman Catholic Archiepiscopal Corporation of Quebec and The Roman Catholic Archbishop of [...]