News

Jun 07, 2011: Former Irish priest accused of molesting boys extradicted to Ireland

A former Irish priest accused of molesting four men in Humboldt County in the
1980s has been extradited to Ireland, where he faces criminal charges for sexual
misconduct, authorities said.Patrick
Joseph McCabe, 75, was turned over to Irish national police officers Sunday
night at San Francisco International Airport, the U.S. Marshals Service said
Monday.
McCabe,
who was arrested in August, had been jailed since then in Alameda County pending
extradition to his homeland.
Following McCabe’s apprehension, Greg Horne,
38, of Arcata and three unidentified men filed civil lawsuit…

Jun 02, 2011: Lawsuit alleges Ratigan took nude photos of girl

The parents of a minor girl filed a lawsuit today alleging that a priest in the Kansas City-St. Joseph diocese accused of possessing child pornography took nude photographs of their daughter. The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court of the Western District of Missouri in Kansas City, claims that the Rev. Shawn F. Ratigan took photographs and visual images of a child under her clothing, revealing her underwear, and while the child was nude.

May 26, 2011: Lawsuit: Spring Lake Park church failed to protect children against sex abuse

A 21 year-old Blaine man who says he was sexually abused at the age of 15 by
his youth group leader at a Spring Lake Park church is suing its religious
leaders.
The lawsuit, filed Thursday in Hennepin County District Court on the man’s
behalf by attorneys with Jeff Anderson & Associates, names defendants
Emmanuel Christian Center of the Assemblies of God in Spring Lake Park, its
former youth group leader, Paul Alan Brandon, and the Minnesota District Council
of the Assemblies of God.
The lawsuit claims the plaintiff, referred to in the complaint as John Doe
169, was sexuall…

May 19, 2011: Defrocked O’Grady accused of possessing child pornography

A defrocked priest accused of possessing thousands of pornographic images of children was served with a book of evidence today and sent forward for trial before a judge and jury.Oliver O’Grady (aged 65), formerly of Charlemont Street, in Dublin 2, but who is now residing at an address in Ranelagh Village, in Dublin, had been arrested on December 10 last and charged with possessing child pornography.

May 19, 2011: The Vatican Comes Up Short

The Vatican’s long overdue guidelines for fighting sexual abuse of children
are, unfortunately, just that — flimsy guidelines for a global problem that
requires an unequivocal mandate for church officials to work with secular
authorities in prosecuting rogue priests.
Instead, the Vatican has
issued nonbinding guidance that punts the scandal back to the authority of
local bishops, who still will not face firm oversight or punishment for
cover-ups that recycled hundreds of abusive priests.

May 13, 2011: Chicago Archdiocese ‘surprised’ at lawyer’s claims

CHICAGO— The Archdiocese
of Chicago says it’s “surprised” by a lawyer’s claim that the Archdiocese is
withholding files on priests accused of sexually abusing children.
Attorney Jeff Anderson filed a lawsuit Wednesday against the Vatican on behalf of a
woman whose son was molested by a former Chicago priest. Anderson says the
Archdiocese promised as part of a 2008 settlement with 16 abuse victims to
release documents on priests who’d been credibly accused of abuse. But he contends that hasn’t happened and he believes it’s because Vatican won’t
allow it. In a statement released …

May 09, 2011: New Lawsuit Emerges Against Archdiocese Of Philadelphia

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) – John Doe number 172 was 13 years old and an
altar boy at Resurrection of Our Lord in Northeast Philadelphia when his
attorneys say the abuse began at the hands of Father Robert Brennan.
“He would take the kids, build their trust, groom the parents,” said Jeff
Anderson, Doe’s attorney, “have them sit on his lap, use their bodies for his
own sexual purpose.”
Anderson and his team of attorneys say Father Brennan abused John Doe over
the course of a year and a half between 1993 and 1994. But according to the 2005
grand jury report, Brennan abused many more childr…