“Roman Catholic Church faces costs of nearly $467 million more, new analysis data show.” That’s the sub-heading in an AP newspaper story by Rachel Zoll in my March 31, 2006 newspaper.
Zoll reports that “new figures released Thursday by the nation’s Roman Catholic bishops show the unrelenting toll of the clergy sex abuse crisis,” and there were “783 new credible claims last year, most of which date back decades, and costs of nearly $467 million.” And, “the total number of accusations against Catholic clergy now stands at more than 12,000 since 1950.” And, “the abuse problem was already known to have cost dioceses more than $1 billion since 1950.”
So this is more than a 55-year-old problem. Some efforts seem to have been made to address the issue, such as safeguards nearly 90 percent of dioceses have instituted. But, Zoll reports, “advocates for victims called the audit inadequate, since 104 of the 195 American dioceses conducted a ‘self-audit.’” Outside auditors, Zoll reports, are finding there are a “string of lapses by archdiocesan staff that left children at risk.”
