Nation & World News
Audit shows compliance of dioceses
The audit found 90 percent
of America’s Catholic priests
comply with safeguards
against sexual abuse
By Jon Sawyer
St. Louis Post-Dispatch (KRT)
WASHINGTON — An outside
audit finding general compliance
with safeguards against sexual abuse
by Catholic priests was described by
church leaders Tuesday as important
but only a start in addressing one of
the worst crises ever for the Catholic
Church in America.
The audit was commissioned by
the Office of Child and Youth
Protection, an internal watchdog
group established by the U S.
Conference of Catholic Bishops
after its enactment of a Charter for
the Protection of Children and
Young People.
The audit, released Tuesday,
found that 171, or 90 percent, of the
195 dioceses and eparchies —
Eastern Rite divisions of the church
— were in compliance with the
reporting and procedural safeguards
required under the charter, approved
by the bishops at their meeting in
Dallas in June 2002.
Auditors told the diocese that it
had to fulfill three "instructions" — a
directive given when a particular
requirement of the charter had not
been met. Fewer than one-third of
dioceses were given instructions.
Less-severe "recommendations" were
issued when there was incomplete
implementation of a part of the char
ter, or where significant improve
ment could be realized.
Groups representing victims of
priest sexual abuse said they were dis
appointed by audit criteria that they
said permitted bishops, in effect, to
grade their own performance.
"It's disappointing," said David
Clohessy of St. Louis, national direc
tor of the Survivors Network of those
Abused by Priests, known as SNAP.
"It's largely what we feared — a lot of
self-praise for very minimal steps and
a huge focus on policy and proce
dure and paperwork, which has
never been a serious factor in abuse."
"There were written codes of
conduct for priests, formal com
plaint procedures and written
diocesan communication plans
already," Clohessy said. "No child
was abused because those proce
dures were not adequate."
"The priests currently in service in
our church are credible, faithful
members of the clergy," Belleville,
111., Bishop Wilton D. Gregory said.
"We've done everything we can to
remove anyone who has credible
allegations against them. The priests
who are serving are men of integrity."
The audit was conducted under
the direction of former FBI official
William A. Gavin and involved site
visits by 54 auditors, most of them
former FBI agents.
The audit also recommended a
series of additional steps, all
endorsed by the National Review
Board, including annual reports by
the conference's Office of Child and
Youth Protection that would include
detailed data on the number of alle
gations, actions taken against priests,
numbers of victims and financial
cost to dioceses.
Some of the outstanding ques
tions will be addressed in two fur
ther studies due by late next
month: a detailed account of all
past abuses, conducted by the John
Jay College of Criminal Justice at
the City University of New York,
and a "causes/context study" aimed
at assessing the roots of abuse
through interviews with priests,
perpetrators and victims.
"You can talk about how we need
to improve some of these mecha
nisms, about the need for better fol
low-through, but there's been a fun
damental change in the landscape,"
Robert Bennett, a member of the
National Review Board, said.
"You've got this national board,
representing the laity, going out into
the bowels of the church — looking
at records, getting access to individ
ual priests. That has never happened
before, and I don't think that's a
genie you can get back in the bottle.
It's here to stay."
(c) 2004, St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
Distributed by Knight Ridder/Tribune
Information Services. St. Louis Post
Dispatch correspondent Patricia Rice
contributed to this report.
CLOSURE
continued from page 1
provides bus passes to faculty and
students, which can be utilized by
most coming and going from cam
pus, and that many live near or on
campus anyway.
Also, he said a large majority of stu
dents came to campus Tuesday de
spite the weather.
"If the vast majority of faculty and
students can be on campus then we
ought not to deprive them," Williams
said, adding that he realized some stu
dents couldn't make it, and he expect
ed them to exercise their good judg
ment on whether to come to campus.
For those students who couldn't
make it to class, University Registrar
I
Herb Chereck said he sent an e-mail
to all departments urging them to be
"understanding and reasonable"
when enforcing mandatory class at
tendance policies. If the departments
have further questions, he urged them
to contact him. He has received no
phone calls, he said.
Williams remembered the last time
the University was closed because of
bad weather at the end of Thanksgiv
ing break in 1985. There was a snow
storm across the state that prevented
many students from getting back to
Eugene, he said.
French student Sarah Wininger and
Eugene resident Steve Bridge braved
the trip from the south hills of Eugene
to campus Tuesday morning. Once he
arrived, Bridge fought to keep his feet
below him on the slick ice covering
University Street.
Wininger said she thought it
would have been a good idea to shut
down campus.
"Considering there probably won't
be another day like this, it wouldn't
hurt," she said.
Bridge agreed.
"You really could hurt yourself just
walking around campus," Bridge said.
English student Jenny Domer, who
huddled below an umbrella to escape
the freezing rain, wondered if officials
would have closed campus if it hadn't
been only the second day of classes.
She "almost killed" herself on her
bicycle, she said.
"There's always that risk," Williams
said, referring to the danger of stu
dents walking around campus. "1
think our students are adults. They'll
exercise their good judgment. People
have to take care of themselves under
these circumstances."
Williams was aware of no reports of
student or employee injuries, he said.
Not all students thought school
should have been closed, however.
Environmental Science student
Arista Hickman joked that Tuesday
was a good day to show off University
students' resolve.
"I think it just shows how tough we
are at Oregon," she said. "We're not
OSU wussies."
Contact the people/culture/
faith reporter
at jaredpaben@dailyemerald.com.
PHOTO 1
specials!
JANUARY 5-18
2ND SET FREE!
3x5 prints:
12 exp $2.25
24 exp $4.25
36 exp $6.25
4x6 prints:
12 exp $3.25
24 exp $6.25
36 exp $8.25
From 35mm C-41 full tramie,
color him. (Pane native.
hall-Pame, and negatives
excluded.) '
20% OFF APS 7
PROCESSING:
1 5 6Xp. (one set)
$4.40
25 exp. (one set)
• $6.66
(one set)
$9.40
40 exp.
/ V
write for the
Oregon Daily Emerald
For more information about freelancing
call 346-5511.
\_J
UNIVERSITY OF OREGON
BOOKSTORE
www.uobooKstore.com
Retail
Half.com
||
For a limited time, first-time buyers
Save an additional $5
on purchases of *50 or more:
Simply use this code:
GGDUCKS2004
i
Le Duh.
How smart is this: All the textbooks you
need for up to 50% off retail prices. New or
used, all you have to do is go to half.com
and type in the book titles, or ISBN numbers.
Viva la value!
.com
bye8
Same textbooks.
Smarter prices.
Copyright 2003-2004 Half.com. Half.com, the Half.com logo, eBay and the eBay logo are trademarks of eBay Inc. All rights reserved. 'Average Retail Price of a New Textbook based on data from Foiled Corp (as reported by The Associated Press in January 2003). Average
Retail Price of a UsedTextbook based on data from Monument Information Resources. Average Half.com Price for New and UsedTextbooks based on an August/September 2003 analysis of over 500,000 books sold on Half.com. Quantities pricing and availability are not
guaranteed and will vary due to supply and demand. Coupon is for first-time buyers only. Limited time offer; excludes shipping and handling; offer subject to change or termination without prior notice.