More than 150 clergy members abused at least 600 victims over six decades.
The Catholic Church is again at the center of a decades-long child sex abuse scandal, this time in Maryland.
The church has been embroiled in child sex abuse scandals for more than two decades that encompass hundreds of thousands of victims and that span the globe, from Australia to Chile. The Maryland investigation is one of several major US investigations in recent years showing that such abuse and church officials’ cover-ups were widespread, making the case that the clergy is incapable of bringing perpetrators among their own ranks to account.
A 463-page report released by the Maryland Attorney General’s office Wednesday alleges that clergy sexually abused more than 600 children between the 1940s and 2002. The report also asserts that, rather than seeking to protect children from further harm and bring abusers to account, the church tried to cover it up. It lists 156 bishops, priests, deacons, nuns, and other ministers and employees of the Archdiocese of Baltimore, most by name, as abusers, including some who are still alive and had not previously been publicly identified.
“While every victim’s story is unique, together they reveal themes and behaviors typical of adults who sexually abuse children, and of those who enable abuse by concealing it,” the report says. “What was consistent throughout was the absolute authority and power these abusive priests and church leadership held over victims, their families, and their communities.”
The report is the result of a four-year investigation based on interviews with hundreds of victims and witnesses as well as reviews of hundreds of thousands of documents, including treatment reports, personnel records, transfer reports, policies, and procedures.
According to the report, perpetrators often targeted children who were “especially isolated or vulnerable because of shyness, lack of confidence, or problems at home” and who were “most devoted to the church,” including altar servers, choir members, and youth group members.
