A staggering 4,450 priests accused of child sex abuse

[Kain99]

NEW YORK (CNN) -- Children accused more than 4,000 priests of sexual abuse in the years between 1950 and 2002, according to a draft survey commissioned by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops.

The survey, to be released February 27, found that children made more than 11,000 allegations of sexual abuse by priests. The 4,450 accused priests are about 4 percent of the 110,000 priests who served during the 52 years covered by the study.

The report is based on a nationwide survey of church records, and was compiled by the John Jay College of Criminal Justice for the conference. The bishops' conference commissioned the survey to get a better understanding of the scope of the crisis.

CNN reviewed a draft copy of the survey. Officials said it may be slightly changed before its release.

More than half of the accused priests had a one allegation against them. Twenty-five percent, or 1,112 priests, had two or three allegations, and 13 percent, or 578 priests, had four to nine allegations, according to the draft report. Three percent, or 133 of the priests, had 10 or more allegations, the draft report found.

The report said that 6,700 of the 11,000 allegations were investigated and substantiated, and another 1,000 were unsubstantiated. The remaining 3,300 were not investigated because the priests involved were dead at the time the allegation was made.

The bishops' conference so far has declined to comment on the survey.

Bill Burleigh, a member of the conference's national review board, said he would not comment until the survey is released. The review board is composed of lay people.

The director of the Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests said Monday the survey's numbers are low.

"Bishops have tried to hide this for years, so there is no reason to believe all of a sudden they would change their ways," David Clohessy said. "The only prudent thing to do is to assume this is not the entire truth. This is a survey, not a report or investigation."

According to the survey, 78 percent of those abused were between the ages of 11 and 17, 16 percent were 8 to 10 years old, and nearly 6 percent were 7 or younger.

The survey also said that several factors contributed to the problem, including failure to grasp its gravity, overemphasis on the avoidance of scandal, use of unqualified treatment centers, misguided willingness to forgive and insufficient accountability.

More than 44,000 priests currently serve in the United States, according to the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops.

 

[Tonio]

Originally posted by Kain99
According to the survey, 78 percent of those abused were between the ages of 11 and 17, 16 percent were 8 to 10 years old, and nearly 6 percent were 7 or younger.

I saw some figures last year that suggested that most of that 78 percent were male and age 13 and older.

So why does most of the media call this "pedophilia" when it's more like statutory rape? Both are heinous crimes, but we're talking about two different types of offenders. To my knowledge, a statutory rapist is not likely to go after little kids, and vice versa.

Well, so what? I'm a parent of two toddlers, and I feel manipulated by the use of the word "pedophilia" when it doesn't fit the facts. Without that knowledge, I might be afraid to let my children anywhere near a priest.

 

[Kain99]

I'm not certain why the distiction matters in these cases but I found the following information at:
http://www.findarticles.com/cf_dls/m0KOC/5_6/106913867/p2/article.jhtml?term=


Child Sexual Abuse

Although child sexual abuse laws vary, states define sexual abuse from the minimum definition standards created by the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (CAPTA; Jan. 1996). Under this law, a perpetrator of child sexual abuse is defined as "a parent or caretaker who is responsible for child's welfare" and sexual abuse is defined as:

The employment, use, persuasion, inducement,
enticement, or coercion of any child to
engage in, or assist any other person to engage
in, any sexually explicit conduct or any simulation
of such conduct for the purpose of producing
any visual depiction of such conduct;
or the rape, and in the cases of caretaker or
other inter-familial relationships, statutory
rape, molestation, prostitution, or other form
of sexual exploitation of children or incest
with children.

The key element that distinguishes child sexual abuse from other sex crimes is that the perpetrator is defined as being in a custodial or caretaker role (S. Cohen, National Clearinghouse on Child Abuse and Neglect Information, personal communication, March 27, 2002). Such roles are typically defined as a parent, relative, adult living in the home, baby sitter, neighbor, teacher, faith community leader, and coach. Not included in child abuse definitions are individuals whom one is dating or with whom one has a romantic relationship. Such roles are not deemed as a custodial or caretaker by the law. Further, under the law, one is prohibited from being in a romantic relationship if there is a custodial duty. However, statutory rape and rape can occur in dating or romantic relationships.

Rape and Statutory Rape

It is difficult to discuss rape and statutory rape laws without an explanation of the differences between the two. Conceptually, rape laws are more similar between states than statutory rape laws. Rape is generally defined as, "Unlawful sexual activity (especially intercourse) with a person without consent and usually by force or threat of injury" (Garner, 1999, p. 1267). Although it is recognized that definitions of rape include sexual behavior other than intercourse, for brevity, this article will discuss rape in the context of legally defined intercourse. Further, school counselors may deal with students who are involved with or who have been victimized by someone of the same sex. State laws may distinguish same sex (homosexual) intercourse from other sex (heterosexual) intercourse. Acknowledging the inequity of this distinction, this article will focus on laws that regard intercourse as some form of illegal sexual penetration.

Statutory rape laws are much more diverse and complex and, thus, are difficult to discuss in general terms. There are two primary difficulties that arise when attempting to discuss and explain statutory rape laws. The first difficulty results from the enormous variance in how statutory rape is labeled from state to state. Although the term statutory rape is commonly used, it is usually not the term used to describe the crime in states' legal statutes (Davis & Twombly, 2000). Examples of terms used to describe statutory rape include: sexual assault, statutory sexual assault, unlawful sexual conduct, gross sexual imposition, criminal sexual penetration, sexual contact, sexual offense, and carnal knowledge (Donovan, 1997). In some states, Alaska for example, the statutory rape is termed sexual abuse, thus, leading to possible confusion with sexual abuse as defined by CAPTA noted above. To further complicate the legal definitions, many states use the noted terms in conjunction with designations of degree of offense (e.g., first degree, second degree). For example, New Mexico classifies levels of rape and statutory rape by using terms such as first-degree criminal sexual penetration and third-degree criminal sexual contact (Donovan). School counselors are strongly advised to learn the legal terms for statutory rape in their state.

 

[Tonio]

Originally posted by Kain99
I'm not certain why the distiction matters in these cases but I found the following information at:
http://www.findarticles.com/cf_dls/m0KOC/5_6/106913867/p2/article.jhtml?term=

Thanks for the info, Kain. My point is that I believe the two crimes are being perpetrated by two different sets of people, psychologically speaking. If I'm being warned to protect my 2-year-old daughter from being molested by a priest, and it turns out that most of the victims were teenage boys instead, I think I have reason to feel manipulated.

 

[vraiblonde]

Originally posted by Tonio
If I'm being warned to protect my 2-year-old daughter from being molested by a priest, and it turns out that most of the victims were teenage boys instead, I think I have reason to feel manipulated.

Are you Catholic? If not, then you have no worry about a priest coming anywhere near your daughter. These boys who were molested were parishioners - the priests had easy access and the trust of the families. Not only that but there's a huge homosexual subculture in the Catholic Church - they're the ones responsible for 99.99999% of the molestations. I don't think they're interested in your daughter.

 

[Tonio]

Originally posted by vraiblonde
Are you Catholic? If not, then you have no worry about a priest coming anywhere near your daughter. These boys who were molested were parishioners - the priests had easy access and the trust of the families. Not only that but there's a huge homosexual subculture in the Catholic Church - they're the ones responsible for 99.99999% of the molestations. I don't think they're interested in your daughter.

Thanks for the info. No, we're not Catholic, but a Catholic school is on our short list of local schools we're considering for the kids.

Don't most people define pedophilia as sexual abuse of little kids, not teenagers? I served on a grand jury about 10 years ago, and one of the most heartbreaking indictments we handled was of a suspected pedophile. His alleged victims were all girls, and the youngest was 3.

 

[SmallTown]

Is Mr. Jackson a closet priest?

 

[Kain99]

In the matter of the priests I believe that the term most often used is "Children were Molested" [a] sexually abused. Teenagers are children regardless of how old they may seem.

Criminally, the use of the word pedophilia may be inaccurate but whats the difference?

With these numbers I think it's fair to say that we cannot guarantee the safety of any of our children in the Catholic enviroment. jmho

Why play Rusian Roulette when you don't have to?

 

[Toxick]

Originally posted by Tonio
Don't most people define pedophilia as sexual abuse of little kids, not teenagers?

I think most people define pedophilia as sexual abuse of any minor as defined by law. At least technically, if not exactly philosophically. Personally, I draw the line at the point where you have to think about it.

If you hesitate, and say, "Is what I'm doing wrong?".... then it's wrong.


But that's just my humble opinion.

Originally posted by Tonio
I served on a grand jury about 10 years ago, and one of the most heartbreaking indictments we handled was of a suspected pedophile. His alleged victims were all girls, and the youngest was 3.

I hope you sentenced him to death by claw-hammer.

 

[Tonio]

Originally posted by Kain99
In the matter of the priests I believe that the term most often used is "Children were Molested" [a] sexually abused. Teenagers are children regardless of how old they may seem.

Criminally, the use of the word pedophilia may be inaccurate but whats the difference?

True, teenagers are still children psychologically, although not necessarily in sexual development. Based on my limited reading, there's a huge psychological difference between a statutory rapist who goes after teens and a pedophile who goes after little kids. They appear to be two different groups of people who target two different groups of victims. In the Michael Jackson case, I noticed that California law defines and prosecutes sex crimes differently when the victims are younger than 14.