Topline
More than 150 Catholic clergy members in the Archdiocese of Baltimore abused at least 600 children during a six-decade period, according to a report from the Maryland Attorney General after a years-long investigation, the latest sexual abuse scandal to hit a Catholic diocese.
The St. Edward Roman Catholic Church in Baltimore, Maryland.
Key Facts
The report alleges that from the 1940s through 2002, more than 100 priests and Archdiocese personnel abused vulnerable children “while Archdiocese leadership looked the other way.”
The investigation, which began under former Maryland Attorney General Brian Frosh in 2018, found more than 600 children were known to have been abused by 156 clergy members, but “the number is likely far higher.”
The report listed clergy members, deacons, seminaries, teachers and other employees of the Archdiocese as abusers.
Most of the abusers listed in the report will not be subjected to prosecution because they are dead, Maryland Attorney General Anthony Brown said during a press conference Wednesday.
Last month, a Baltimore Circuit Court judge ruled that a redacted version of the report would be available to the public.
Baltimore Archbishop William Lori offered an “earnest apology” for the abuse documented in the report, which he said “details a reprehensible time in the history of this Archdiocese, a time that will not be covered up, ignored or forgotten.”
This is a developing story and will be updated.
Further Reading
Baltimore Catholic Archdiocese Covered Up Sexual Abuse Of More Than 600 Victims, Probe Finds (Forbes)
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/anafaguy/2023/04/05/over-600-children-sexually-abused-by-baltimore-area-clergy-as-catholic-archdiocese-looked-the-other-way-report-finds/