9th July 2010. See article from catholicculture.org

The Melbourne archbishop has issued an apology saying 60 priests abused children.

Offering a sincere and unreserved apology to all those victims who have suffered the pain and humiliation of sexual abuse and to their families, Archbishop Denis Hart of Melbourne has issued a pastoral letter on sexual abuse.

In the past 14 years, about 300 people have been compensated as victims of sexual abuse within the archdiocese, he wrote in his July 1 letter. Most of the complaints relate to incidents from 30 and up to 80 years ago. We receive few complaints of abuse that has taken place since the 1970s.

86 offenders have been identified over an 80 year period, of whom 60 were priests of the archdiocese. 35 of those priests are now deceased.

5th July 2010. See article from nz.news.yahoo.com

An Australian Catholic priest has been sentenced to almost 20 years in jail for child sex attacks which the judge said were sadistic and went unpunished for many years.

John Sidney Denham, 67, was sentenced to 19 years and 10 months after pleading guilty to a range of charges, including multiple counts of indecent assault against boys aged five to 16.

Judge Helen Syme told a Sydney court that many of Denham's 25 victims were left terrified by the attacks they endured at schools in Sydney and elsewhere in New South Wales between 1968 and 1986.

The indecent assaults involved multiple children, often significant planning, were frequently sadistic and overall persistent, objectively serious, criminal courses of conduct, Syme said, according to Australian news agency

23rd May 2010. Based on article from newser.com, Thanks to Alan

The Australian branch of the Church of Scientology helped a stepfather cover up his sexual assault of his pre-teen daughter and blamed the girl for the attacks, the victim has revealed. The daughter, now an adult, says her stepdad molested her from the ages of 7 to 11, and that Scientology official Jan Eastgate told her and her mother to lie to police about the abuse and that it was her own fault, the Sydney Morning Herald reports.

Just say no, she kept repeating that. Don't say yes because otherwise you will be taken away from your parents and you'll never see your family again, Carmen Rainer recalled being told: They told me it was my fault because I'd been bad in a past life. I believed them. I was 11, that's what I knew. I grew up believing what they believed.

Eastgate said Rainer's claims are false and that the church insisted that Rainer's stepfather go to the police in 1999. Rainer made a statement to police in 2001, which led to her stepfather's arrest and conviction for indecent assault.

30th August 2009.  See article from news.com.au thanks to Alan

Former Anglican priest has admitted to a court that he allowed a 12-year-old boy to masturbate in his shower but has denied he acted in any way "improper".

Wilfred Dennis has pleaded not guilty to three counts of indecent assault and one count each of gross indecency and carnal knowledge relating to two altar boys in the 1970s.

He also denied telling Traditional Anglican Archbishop, John Hepworth, he had molested more then 40 boys during a telephone call in June 2002.

17th August 2009. See article from freethinker.co.uk

Father Robert Fuller, a Sydney-based Catholic priest, thought he was chatting on the internet to a 13-year-old girl when he sent her sexually-explicit messages – and even masturbated on a webcam for her.

But the “girl” turned out to be a member of the Sex Crime Squad’s Child Exploitation Internet Unit – and Fuller, parish priest of All Saints at Liverpool for six years, has now been charged with attempting to groom an under-aged “girl” for sex.

Police – according to this report – allege that he sent chat-room messages between July and August, and even tried to arrange a meeting to engage in sexual activity.

Fuller was arrested and later charged with grooming a person under the age of 16.

20th July 2009. See article from coffscoastadvocate.com.au, Thanks to Alan

The leader of a New South Wales secretive religious group based on the Coffs Coast has appeared in court on 14 charges of aggravated indecent assault, sexual assault and sexual intercourse without consent.

Senior Christian Assemblies International pastor Anthony Scott Williams appeared in Coffs Harbour Local Court with police alleging the offences were aggravated by his use of his position as the Overseer (highest authority) of the organisation of which the victims were members.

The charges included indecent assault of a victim under the authority of the offender; assault with an act of indecency; aggravated sexual assault of a victim under the authority of the offender and sexual intercourse without the consent of the victim.

Williams, 65, of Christian Assemblies International Pacific Headquarters at Wayper Creek Road, Upper Orara, was on bail after being arrested on June 5 following allegations that he had had sexual intercourse without consent with a member of his church.

The charges involved two different male victims, both allegedly members of CAI at the time and related to alleged offences on a variety of occasions between 2002 and 2005 in Coffs Harbour, Upper Orara and Byron Bay.

24th July 2009. See article from speroforum.com

Raped by an imam in Bangladesh, a girl is now pregnant and faces Islamic scourging. She will be forced to marry her rapist.

The victim of repeated rapes who has become pregnant is being forced by local leaders to marry the man who abused her and sentenced to a beating for the "crime" committed. This is the story of a teenager in the village of Char Padma in Faridpur district of central Bangladesh.

Omar Faruk is a teacher from the "Maktab", the village Islamic school. The imam has long abused the minor, taking advantage of the position of prestige within the local community. The girl is in the seventh month of pregnancy, her physical and mental health are not good, and she risks a premature birth.

For several months she hid the violence and pregnancy, for fear and shame. When her belly started to grow, the news spread throughout the village. On July 18 last the Arbitration Council met, consisting of a group of experts led by Fazlur Rahman Fazal, to discuss the matter and issue a verdict. The meeting ended with a conviction of 101 lashings a head for the young girl and the imam, author of the violence.

16th May 2010. Based on article from heraldsun.com.au, thanks to Alan

A Belgian committee probing allegations of pedophilia by priests has been flooded with complaints since the resignation of a bishop who admitted sexually abusing a boy.

Some 270 new complaints have been filed with the commission since Roger Vangheluwe, bishop of the Flemish city of Bruges, quit his post on April 23, said Peter Adriaenssens, according to Belga news agency.

Vangheluwe was the country's first high-level resignation related to the pedophilia scandal sweeping the Roman Catholic church in Europe and the Americas.

The Belgian church recently called on all offenders to admit their crimes and for their victims to file complaints

12th November 2009. See article from theglobeandmail.com, thanks to Alan

Father Bernard Cloutier will stand alone in a Sudbury courtroom today to be sentenced for his sexual abuse three decades ago of a group of altar boys who had idolized him.

Missing from the prisoner's dock, but present in spirit, will be Bishop Gerard Dionne - named as a culprit in a rare judicial finding that the Roman Catholic Church intervened to forestall criminal charges being laid against Father Cloutier in 1983.

Lawyer Susan Vella - an authority on cases involving sexual abuse within religious institutions - said that the Cloutier case is a rare instance where evidence indicates a high-level attempt by the church to subvert a police investigation.

In 2007, the five complainants came forward one by one to allege that Father Cloutier had groomed them during weekend drinking parties and out-of-town trips three decades earlier, and then sexually assaulted them.

In testimony earlier this year at Father Cloutier's trial, court heard that the priest had an excellent stereo system and often supplied cigarettes and liquor to boys who visited the rectory. One man said that Father Cloutier had been like a big brother: I trusted him. I thought he was God. He was a best friend.

2nd October 2009. See article from google.com, thanks to Alan

The bishop of a Roman Catholic diocese in Nova Scotia has resigned less than two months after the diocese reached a $13-million settlement with alleged victims of sexual abuse.

Bishop Raymond Lahey, named to the position in 2003 by Pope John Paul II, is a Newfoundland native.

Ronald Martin, whose brother wrote a suicide note in 2002 that led to charges of sex crimes against a priest from the diocese, filed a class-action lawsuit last year against the organization. In the suit, Martin claimed that the diocese failed to protect children in its care when it became aware of the alleged abuse.

The settlement is aimed at compensating anyone who was allegedly and known to have been sexually assaulted by a priest of the Catholic Episcopal Corp. of Antigonish since Jan. 1, 1950. Last month, Lahey said the agreement was the first step in recognizing the alleged abuse of children as young as eight years old.

See article from timesonline.co.uk

In his formal resignation letter, Lahey said he was resigning for personal reasons.

But it emerged later that when he was returning from a trip to the US last month, customs officials at Ottawa airport had conducted random search of his laptop and found child pornography images.

2nd April 2010. Based on article from jamaicaobserver.com, thanks to Alan

A German Roman Catholic dioceese said Monday that 20 of its current and former priests had been accused in recent weeks of sexual abuse as a scandal embroiling the Church widened.

The Trier bishopric in the west of the country said the shocking allegations involved crimes committed from the 1950s to 1990.

For my part, I would like to encourage those victims who have not yet found the courage to come forward to do so, Bishop Stephan Ackermann told reporters, saying he was stunned by the cases that had come to light.

Ackermann said two people had already reported their cases to authorities while the Church had passed on information on an additional three to prosecutors.

Ten of the accused priests have since died, another two have retired.

Ackermann said the diocese was still conferring on how to handle three cases that fell under the criminal statute of limitations.

 German Victims of Catholic Priests

5th February 2010. See article from news.bbc.co.uk

The head of a Catholic order in Germany has apologised for the systematic sex abuse apparently committed by two priests at a prestigious Berlin school.

Fr Stefan Dartmann said students at the Jesuit-run Canisius College had complained in 1981, much earlier than the order had previously admitted.

The Jesuit said he was ashamed that the college and the order had left the complaint unanswered.

The number of victims was greater than originally believed, he added.

I apologise that those responsible at the time did not investigate and react as they should have done, said Fr Dartmann.

He said he was aware of 25 cases not just in Berlin, but at two other Catholic schools in Hamburg and in the Black Forest, where the priests had been transferred.

Most of the victims had been boys aged around 13 or 14, but young girls were also targeted for abuse.

14th April 2010. Based on article from zopag.com, thanks to Alan

A 5-year-old girl was allegedly raped by a cleric at Minranpur town and was later arrested, police said.

65-year-old Abdul Karim was arrested for raping the minor following an FIR lodged by the victim's father Noshad in this regard, they said, adding the girl had been sent for medical examination.

19th July 2009. See article from adnkronos.com, thanks to Alan

Indonesian police have again arrested Muslim cleric, Pujiono Cahyono Widianto, in a continuing controversy over his marriage to a 12-year-old girl. Pujiono was rearrested for failing to cooperate following his marriage to Lutfiana Ulfa.

The police detained 44 year-old Syech Puji who is also the head of an Islamic boarding school.

In March, the police questioned the wealthy Muslim cleric who had married Ulfa seven months earlier. The police then arrested him but later granted him probation at his lawyers request. Syech Puji, however, did not report to the police once a week as required by the officers.

26th March 2010. See article from timesonline.co.uk

Pressure mounted on Cardinal Sean Brady, the Primate of All Ireland, to step down after the Pope accepted the resignation of Bishop John Magee of Cloyne over his handling of clerical sex abuse allegations.

Magee a former private secretary to three popes and the most prominent casualty so far of the Roman Catholic Church's abuse scandals, offered to step down last March after an independent report found that his diocese had put children at risk. His resignation has only now been accepted.

In a statement, Bishop Magee said: As I depart, I want to offer once again my sincere apologies to any person who has been abused by any priest of the diocese of Cloyne during my time as bishop or at any time.

He added: To those whom I have failed in any way, or through any omission of mine have made suffer, I beg forgiveness and pardon.

Bishop Magee, from Newry, Co Down, faced criticism after the Church's watchdog found that he took minimal action over accusations against two priests. It branded his child protection as dangerous, focusing on the needs of the accused rather than the victims.

23rd March 2010. See article from belfasttelegraph.co.uk, thanks to Alan

A senior member of the Catholic Church has provoked outrage after he said he would not stop a child being abused if it breached the confidentiality of a paedophile.

Monsignor Maurice Dooley was speaking amid calls for Cardinal Brady's resignation over a failure to tell police about one of Ireland's most notorious paedophile priests, Father Brendan Smyth.

The head of the Catholic Church in Ireland has been under pressure since it emerged he asked two of the priest's victims, aged 10 and 14, to sign secrecy agreements 35 years ago.

Fr Smyth was eventually convicted of dozens of offences against children — but it was almost 20 years before he was brought to justice.

Defending the cardinal's silence in 1975, Monsignor Dooley said he would not refer sex crimes against children to police today if passed information confidentially.

The monsignor, who has spent over 50 years in the priesthood, also said he would protect a paedophile priest who confided his crimes to him today because the law was on his side: I would not tell anyone. That is his responsibility. I am considering only my responsibility. My responsibility is to maintain the confidentiality of information which I had been given under the contract of confidentiality.

22nd June 2010. See article from news.bbc.co.uk

A high-profile former Roman Catholic priest in Italy has been charged with sexual abuse.

Pierino Gelmini, 85, is alleged to have abused 12 young people at a drug rehabilitation centre he had founded.

He denies the charges. Gelmini left the priesthood two years ago to defend himself.

The Comunita Incontro, which runs drug rehabilitation centres worldwide, has enjoyed the support of powerful figures in Italian politics. In 2005, Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi gave $6m (£4m) to his organisation. Gelmini set up the Communita Incontro in 1963 in the Umbrian town of Amelia. It has more than 200 centres in Italy - and others in France, Spain, the US, Brazil and Thailand.

The allegations against him surfaced in 2008 when nine young men said he had sexually abused them. Another three went to police later.

The first hearing of his trial is due on 29 March 2011.

30th May 2010. Based on article from google.com , thanks to Alan

Italy's bishops' conference provided the first ever statistics of clerical sex abuse in the country, saying there had been about 100 cases over the past 10 years that warranted church trials or other canonical procedures.

Monsignor Mariano Crociata, the No. 2 official in the Italian bishops' conference, gave the estimate during a press conference on the sidelines of the bishops' general assembly, the ANSA and Apcom news agencies reported.

He declined to say how many of the cases resulted in condemnation or defrocking of the priest, or how many were reported to police. While saying the church officials cooperated with police, he insisted that Italian law doesn't require bishops to report suspected abuse. Some lawyers for victims say bishops are required to report abuse since they are public officials. Vatican norms say bishops should follow civil laws in reporting abuse.

17th September 2009. See article from washingtonpost.com, thanks to Alan

When he was a young boy at a Catholic-run institute for the deaf, Alessandro Vantini said, priests sodomized him so relentlessly he came to feel as if I were dead. This year, he and dozens of other former students did something highly unusual for Italy: They went public with claims they were forced to perform sex acts with priests.

For decades, a culture of silence has surrounded priest abuse in Italy, where surveys show the church is considered one of the country's most respected institutions. Now, in the Vatican's backyard, a movement to air and root out abusive priests is slowly and fitfully taking hold.

A yearlong Associated Press tally has documented 73 cases with allegations of sexual abuse by priests against minors over the past decade in Italy, with more than 235 victims. The tally was compiled from local media reports, linked to by Web sites of victims groups and blogs.

The Italian cases follow much the same pattern as the U.S. and Irish scandals: Italian prelates often preyed on poor, physically or mentally disabled, or drug-addicted youths entrusted to their care. The deaf students' speech impairments, for example, made the priests' admonition never to tell all the more easy to enforce.

20th October 2009. See article from stuff.co.nz, thanks to Alan

The Exclusive Brethren Church is being rocked by accusations that it has covered up a plague of sexual abuse in its ranks. Last week a former member of the church, 74-year-old Clive Allen Petrie, was found guilty in Nelson of nine counts of indecently assaulting girls under 12 and one of inducing a girl under 12 to do an indecent act on him. The case involved four girls, three in the 1950s and 60s, and the fourth in the 1980s.

Former church member Neville McCallum, who last week sent a letter to all 1900 Brethren households in New Zealand about alleged crimes and cover-ups within the church, says the Nelson case is only the tip of the iceberg.

9th April 2010. Based on article from usatoday.com, thanks to Alan

It has been revealed that a bishop who resigned last year did so after admitting he had molested a child years earlier, when he was a priest.

Georg Mueller stepped down as bishop in the western city of Trondheim in June 2009. The church said it had not previously disclosed the reason for his resignation at the request of the victim.

Mueller's successor, Bishop Bernt Eidsvig, said in a statement that the German had been removed from all pastoral duties and undergone therapy after he admitted the abuse. Mueller admitted to only one case — before he became a bishop in 1997 and no other allegations have come to light, church officials said.

23rd April 2009. See article from standardtimespress.net, Thanks to Alan

A pastor of the Jehovah Witness Church in Kailahun Town is a worried man. The man of God is currently detained at the Kailahun Police Station for the offence of an alleged rape of an 11 year old Pupil of the SLMB Mission in Kailahun.

Police report states that the incident took place at the residence of the suspected pastor in Kailahun town. He was arrested by the father of the victim with the help of some youths, and whisked to the Police Station where he is helping with the investigation.

17th February 2010. See article from ansamed.info, Thanks to Alan

An imam from a small mosque in El Algar (Muria) is wanted by police throughout all of Spain.

The man has been accused of sexually abusing minors, according to sources in the judicial system. A report was filed against the 47-year-old man of Moroccan origin by the parents of five children of a group of 12 who were in a Koran and religion class in the town's mosque.

10th May 2010. Based on article from thelocal.se, thanks to Alan

A Qur'an teacher has been charged with sexually molesting an 11-Year-Old.

The incidents are alleged to have occurred in August and September 2009 in the girl's family home south of Stockholm. The 48-year-old was a regular visitor to the apartment and taught the girl and her 14-year-old elder brother about the Koran and the Arabic language.

When the girl finally revealed what she had been subjected to her parents immediately called the police.

The mother was scared that more children could be exposed, district prosecutor Eva Kokkonen told news agency TT. The sexual molestation involved the man groping the girl, including her breasts: It is always serious when a child is exposed to sexual acts. Especially when it takes place in her home and with a person she should be able to have confidence in. I consider that the man abused his authority and the punishment should be prison.

The prosecutor argues that the evidence against the imam is strong.

30th June 2009. Based on article from icenews.is

After another wave of sex scandals has hit the institution this year, the Church of Sweden is trying to limit damage and maintain the faith of its flock. The Church has been dealing with a steady flow of publicised sexual incidents for a number of years, and things have yet to cool down.

Archbishop Anders Wejryd told the TT news agency he regrets the incidents, but to his credit insists that transparency is the best way to deal with the ongoing problem: It is tragic, but I think that we have been successful in our ambition to get people to file reports.

In April, branches of the Church in Stockholm, Lund and Vaxjo had to deal with several incidents related to sex such as a priest who has having an inappropriate relationship with a 15 year-old, a priest who slept with a grieving widow, and a third who was caught abusing women with language on an Internet dating site.

14th April 2010. See article from iol.co.za , Thanks to Alan

A Swiss cleric has been accused of sexually abusing a minor for a number of years.

The Zurich public prosecutor was in charge of the investigation of the 72-year-old head of the Menorah Church, according to the Swiss ATS news agency. An indictment is expected in the coming months.

He is accused of abusing a young girl from 2006 - when she was seven years old - until his arrest.

The free church, founded in 1986, was described as having attributes similar to a cult, with strict doctrine, strong reliance on the leadership and an impending end-of-the-world belief system.

17th March 2010. See article from independent.co.uk

The church sex abuse scandal unravelling at Roman Catholic-run schools and institutions across Europe has reached Switzerland, where senior clergy admitted yesterday that 60 cases were under investigation.

Abbot Martin Werlen, of the Benedictine Abbey of Einsiedeln, said reports of abuse had been submitted to the Swiss church authorities in the wake of the disclosures in Ireland, Germany, Austria, Poland and Holland. Related articles

11th May 2010. Based on article from timesonline.co.uk, thanks to Alan

Father David Pearce had his eight-year sentence reduced to five years after the Court of Appeal ruled that the judge had been too harsh when sentencing him last year.

The Benedictine monk and former headmaster at the prestigious St Benedict's School in Ealing, West London, admitted abusing five boys between 1972 and 2007.

Pearce, 68, started to abuse the final boy after being forbidden by the church authorities from having contact with children at Ealing Abbey when he was ordered to pay £43,000 compensation to a previous victim. Related Links

Sir Christopher Holland, sitting with Mr Justice David Clarke, said that the indecent and sexual assaults were moderate, consisting of genital groping whenever the opportunity presented itself combined with stolen kisses.

2nd April 2010. See article from thisishullandeastriding.co.uk, thanks to Alan

A paedophile raped and sexually assaulted women and girls over a period of 40 years by using their religion to keep the abuse secret. Despite one revealing it to the Jehovah's Witness elders, no help was given, a court heard.

Now George Cockerill, 78, has been jailed indefinitely after he admitted 19 rapes, four counts of sexual activity with a child, six counts of indecency with a child, one sex assault and two counts of indecency with a child. Judge Roger Thorn QC, sitting at Hull Crown Court, said: You have pleaded guilty to 32 serious counts that reflect your sexual depravity. The reality is that, from beginning to end, it is extended over 40 years. You have wasted your life and caused untold misery

one victim said, you have stolen her childhood. You have been the most terrible hypocrite, passing yourself off as a law-abiding member of the community and using religion as a tool of subjection to control your victims. That is why I'm satisfied this remained a secret for so long.

Cockerill was sentenced to imprisonment for public protection for a minimum of six years. He will not be released until the Parole Board believe he is no longer a danger. Cockerill, of Hull, was also ordered to sign the Sex Offenders Register for life. He allegedly had five victims, three of whom were subject to the convictions he pleaded guilty to and two more have made allegations against him.
Police believe there could be more.

8th March 2010. See article from manchestereveningnews.co.uk, thanks to Alan

A man has been jailed for abusing a boy while giving him lessons in the Koran.

Atta Ur-Rehman was found guilty of a number of sex offences against the young victim. Appearing at Bolton Crown Court, he was sentenced to 6 years in jail.

He attacked the boy at an address in Rochdale in May last year where he was supposed to be giving lessons in reading the Muslim holy book. The boy, who was upset and embarrassed, told his mother about what happened.

Ur-Rehman at first feigned ignorance when confronted by the parents, but then asked the boy's parents for forgiveness. The boy's parents then called the police.

14th February 2010. See article from burtonmail.co.uk, thanks to Alan

A former Muslim minister at a prison near Burton, who collected an award at Buckingham Palace for his work, has appeared in court accused of five sex offences.

Mohammed Hanif KhanMohammed Hanif Khan worked with much recognition as the first Muslim minister at HMP Dovegate, in Marchington, receiving a Butler Trust award from Princess Anne back in 2004.

He appeared at North Staffordshire Magistrates Court earlier this week accused of committing serious sexual offences with two young boys. He is accused of three counts of rape and sexual assault of a 15-year-old boy in the Meir area of Stoke-on-Trent.

He is further accused of three counts of rape on a boy under the age of 13 also in Tunstall, Stoke-on- Trent. Both charges relate to a period between July and October last year.

18th December 2009. See article from yorkshirepost.co.uk, thanks to Alan

A Jehovah's Witness who served as an elder betrayed the trust placed in him by abusing young girls. James Michael O'Brien followed one schoolgirl into a kitchen when she was alone away from adults making tea at meetings he was hosting. He pulled her towards him, sexually assaulted her and began to kiss her.

On another occasion he conducted a further sexual assault, Richard Wright prosecuting told Leeds Crown Court.

She felt very angry about what was happening because adult worshippers in the Kingdom Hall had a significant amount of trust placed in them, he said.

A second girl said when she was aged between 10 and 11, O'Brien touched her many times over her clothing when they were together for religious activities. She said he sexually assaulted her in a lift, while travelling in a car and while looking at a computer together.

The court heard he also admitted offences against three other girls when they visited him or when he was helping to look after them unconnected to his role as an elder.

O'Brien who the court was told is no longer associated with Kingdom Hall, was jailed for six years with an extended four years further on licence.

21st November 2009. See article from dailymail.co.uk, thanks to Alan

A wealthy rabbi financed a drug dealing operation in which girls were given cocaine in exchange for sexual services, a court heard yesterday.

Baruch Chalomish turned a Manchester city centre flat into a base for a commercial cocaine supply operation after abusing the drug himself, it was claimed.

He was arrested along with a friend, Nasir Abbas with over £15,000 in cash and 100g of cocaine after police searched the flat in January this year.

Police also searched the rabbi's home address in Salford, Greater Manchester, and discovered cash and a further 50g of cocaine scattered around the house in different containers.

When questioned by police, Abbas claimed that Chalomish didn't sell the drugs but would allow any young woman who visited the apartment in Shude Hill, Manchester, to take the cocaine in exchange for sexual services.

But at Manchester Crown Court, prosecuting counsel Michael Goldwater said: Our case is that Nasir Abbas and Rabbi Chalomish were dealing in controlled drugs. Rabbi Chalomish denies two counts of possession of cocaine with intent to supply, but has pleaded guilty to two counts of possession of cocaine.

19th October 2009. See article from dailymail.co.uk, thanks to Alan

A Yorkshire vicar who raped two young boys and committed a catalogue of sex abuse crimes against youngsters has been jailed for 14 years, prompting a review of all clergy in his diocese.

Peter Hedge carried out the calculated and systematic abuse while he was a curate at St Margaret's Church in Thornbury, Bradford, and later vicar of Holy Trinity Church in Queensbury.

During a trial at Bradford Crown Court the jury heard evidence that Hedge gave youngsters cash to buy cannabis and later gave them money to secure their silence.

The Diocese of Bradford last night confirmed it had begun an external review of the records of all clergy and licensed lay workers following the case, to monitor whether there are causes for concern.

31st August 2009. See article from thisisplymouth.co.uk, thanks to Alan

The Reverend Canon James Wilson, the Rector and Rural Dean of Calstock, was charged with six offences on girls under the age of 13.

The alleged offences date back to the late 1970s when he was a teacher at Pennycross Primary School.

Officers from the Sex Offences Investigations Team have interviewed six alleged victims who are all now adults, which resulted in the charges.

Police are now appealing for anyone who may have information about the matter .

30th June 2009. See article from highbeam.com, thanks to Alan

A religious leader who denies beating six youngsters at a Scunthorpe mosque will now face a re-trial, after a judge at Grimsby Crown Court dismissed the jury.

Helal Khan was standing trial after he denied six offences of child cruelty. But, following an application by both defence and prosecution barristers in the case, Judge Kate Buckingham told the panel they were being dismissed as further information had come to light.

Khan, who was formerly employed as the Imam at a mosque on Sheffield Street, was told the re-trial would take place on November 30

27th June 2010. Based on article from yidwithlid.blogspot.com , Thanks to Alan

Yasser Mohamed Shahade was sentenced to ten years probation and designation as a sex offender after pleading guilty to molesting a boy in his mosque.

He entered the United States on a visitor's visa to serve as a full-time imam, or Muslim prayer leader, at a local mosque, Masjid Omar Al Mokhtar, just north of Kennedy Boulevard near downtown Tampa. About two months later, police arrested him after a teen boy who stayed overnight at the mosque with his younger brother said the imam had sexually assaulted him.

19th May 2010. Based on article from news.topwirenews.com, Thanks to Alan

A nearly $18 million settlement was reached after 26 former altar boys of Vermont's Catholic church sued the church, claiming sexual abuse by priests over 30 years ago, as reported by MSNBC. Both parties in the settlement stated they were pleased with the outcome.

The lawsuits accused the Diocese of Burlington of negligent hiring, using the defrocked Rev. Edward Paquette as the prime example. Paquette was the target of abuse allegations before he transferred to Vermont in the 1970s. He worked in parishes in Montpelier and Rutland and in Christ the King Church in Burlington. He was accused of molesting dozens of altar boys.

19th April 2010.  See article from myfoxphoenix.com, Thanks to Alan

He was once the second-highest ranking Catholic priest within the Phoenix Diocese. Former Monsignor Dale Fushek has pleaded guilty to one count of misdemeanor assault. The 57-year-old admitted to inappropriately touching a boy while running a youth program during the mid 1980's. Fushek admitted to touching the genitals of his victim through the victim's clothing.

When the allegations were brought forth in 2005, Fushek was arrested on several child sex abuse charges. He was accused of fondling 7 young boys while working at St. Timothy's in Mesa. As a result of his plea agreement, Fushek would admit guilt to one of the charges, misdemeanor assault, and the others would be dismissed.

11th April 2010. Based on article from commercialappeal.com, Thanks to Alan

When Father Juan Carlos Duran arrived in Memphis in the summer of 1999, the Spanish-speaking Dominican priest provided a much-needed addition to the Catholic Diocese of Memphis.

His duties under the one-year contract were to minister to the growing number of Hispanic parishioners at the Church of the Ascension in Raleigh.

It appeared to be a match made in heaven.

We desperately needed someone to work with our Hispanic community, Bishop J. Terry Steib said in a later deposition recounting talks with the Dominican Order. And the candidate they had was Juan Carlos Duran.

The Memphis Diocese did little to examine the background of its prized candidate, however, and learned too late that Duran was a priest with a past.

I just remember him asking me in the car or asking when we are alone, 'Please, please, let me give you (oral sex),' stuff like that, said a 14-year-old boy identified as John Doe in a sex abuse lawsuit filed against the diocese and the Dominicans. I can't remember the exact number of occasions, but it was multiple.

30th March 2010. See article from getreligion.org, Thanks to Alan

A Utah man known for co-founding the Village of Hope to aid Ethiopian orphans and adopting Ethiopian children has been charged with multiple counts of child sex abuse and child pornography.

Charges filed allege Lon Harvey Kennard Sr. sexually abused two of his adoptive daughters who are now adults.

Kennard faces 24 first-degree felony counts of aggravated sex abuse of a child, 21 second-degree felony counts of sexual exploitation of a child and one count of witness tampering.

The sexual abuse outlined in court records allegedly began in 1995, around the time Kennard was serving as bishop of his LDS Church ward and one year after he and his wife founded Village of Hope.

8th January 2010. See article from blog.cleveland.com, Thanks to Alan

A former priest of the Cleveland Catholic Diocese has reported to Lorain County Jail where he began a 90-day sentence for having sexual contact with a 15-year-old boy in 1997.

The Rev. Patrick O'Connor, 52, who had ministered at Our Lady of Lourdes Shrine in Euclid, St. Jude in Elyria and St. Joseph in Cuyahoga Falls, pleaded guilty in September to corruption of a minor.

He was originally charged with sexual battery, which carries a five-year prison sentence, but a plea bargain reduced the crime.

Besides jail time, O'Connor was sentenced to three years' probation and declared a sex offender, which, under Ohio law, requires him to register all his contact information -- address, telephone, e-mail etc. -- with his local sheriff's office every six months for 25 years.

He also is forbidden to live within 1,000 feet of a school.

2nd January 2010. See article from blogs.laweekly.com, Thanks to Alan

Speaking in the voice of America's Most Wanted's John Walsh): We've seen a lot of scumbags in our day, but this guy takes the cake. Frederick McLean is an alleged sexual predator of the lowest kind.

Authorities allege McLean met many of the child victims through his work as a local Jehovah's Witnesses leader in San Diego. At one point Riverside County authorities were also called to take care of this alleged monster. The 58-year-old is facing multiple counts of sexual assault on a child, with one victim claiming that McLean assaulted her more than 100 times starting when she was 5-years-old.

Federal authorities want McLean so bad they've put him the U.S. Marshals' national, 15 Most Wanted list.

 Trenton Diocese compensates child abuse victim

28th November 2009. See article from nj.com, Thanks to Alan

The Roman Catholic Diocese of Trenton has paid $325,000 to a 32-year-old woman who says she was sexually assaulted by a former diocesan priest, the late Rev. Ron Becker, who died in January.

Jenni Franz, who was Becker's niece, says Becker molested her more than 100 times from when she was 5 until she was 11. She said she first came forward to the diocese in 2004.

Becker had been the subject of other, similar allegations, and the diocese has settled with at least two other accusers, according to one of Franz's attorneys, Greg Gianforcaro.

Trenton Bishop John Smith barred Becker from ministry in 2002, after receiving what the diocese termed credible complaints. A previous bishop had removed him from parish assignments in 1989, and in the interim he worked in the diocese headquarters, away from minors, evaluating requests for annulments, diocese officials said.

27th November 2009. See article from fredericknewspost.com, Thanks to Alan

A Roman Catholic priest has been sentenced to 10 years probation for sexually abusing an altar boy at a Germantown church more than seven years ago.

In July, the Rev. Aaron A.J. Cote pleaded not guilty and was convicted of third-degree sex offense after Judge Louise G. Scrivener heard an agreed upon statement of facts.

Employed at the Church of St. Vincent Ferrer in New York City, Cote must register as a sex offender and undergo court-ordered evaluation and treatment. The 10-year suspended sentence and probation was part of a plea deal reached by prosecutors.

7th November 2009.  See article from google.com, Thanks to Alan

Four Amish leaders in southwest Missouri who chose to shun an accused child molester in their community rather than report him to authorities were charged Tuesday with failing to report the sexual abuse.

Webster County prosecutor Danette Padgett said all four are bishops and face one misdemeanor count each of failure to report child abuse as a mandatory reporter.

Under Missouri law, people with responsibility for the care of children are required to report suspected child abuse. Examples of mandatory reporters under the statute are doctors, nurses, social workers and teachers and ministers who are not engaged in a privileged communication.

6th November 2009.  See article from spokesman.com, Thanks to Alan

Twenty-one new claims of clergy sex abuse have been filed against the Catholic Diocese of Spokane, a number that has surprised the diocese and could reopen its contentious bankruptcy case.

None of the new allegations – called future claims – was made by children alleging recent abuse, said diocese attorney Greg Arpin. Instead, they are accusations by adults who contend they were sexually abused by priests and other diocese clergy years ago and are just now able to link that abuse to financial damage and other problems in their lives.

31st October 2009.  See article from savannahnow.com, Thanks to Alan

The Catholic Diocese of Savannah has agreed to pay more than $4 million to the alleged victim of an abusive former priest in order to avoid going to trial.

The Diocese released a statement announcing the $4.24 million agreement reached with former St. James Catholic School student Allan Ranta Jr.

Ranta had filed a complaint in a Jasper County, S.C., civil court stating he was molested from 1978 to 1983, starting when he was 10 years old, by former priest Wayland Y. Brown.

Ranta claimed former Savannah Bishop Raymond Lessard and other diocesan officials knew Brown posed a danger to children but failed to take action.

Brown, 66, was convicted in 2003 of sexually abusing two Maryland boys, ages 12 and 13, in 1974. He was released from prison in April 2008 after serving half of his sentence.

31st October 2009.  Based on article from chicagotribune.com, Thanks to Alan

The 15-year saga of a Chicago priest expelled from public ministry, reinstated, then removed again ended this week with his permanent ouster from the priesthood.

John Calicott, the former pastor of Holy Angels Roman Catholic Church in Chicago's Bronzeville neighborhood, received word earlier this month that he is no longer a member of the clergy, the Archdiocese of Chicago said, citing a decree from the Vatican's Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith.

The Vatican decree caps an arduous and circuitous journey since allegations first surfaced in 1994 that Calicott abused two teenagers during his first assignment at St. Ailbe Catholic Church on the city's South Side.

A year later, after parishioners pleaded for Calicott's return, Cardinal Joseph Bernardin made an exception to his policy barring priests removed for sexual misconduct with minors from returning to parish ministry. He cited two psychological evaluations that said Calicott posed no significant risk to children if he continued therapy.

22nd October 2009.  Based on article from news.bbc.co.uk, Thanks to Alan

The Catholic diocese based in the state of Delaware has filed for US bankruptcy protection on the eve of a civil trial involving high-profile sex abuse.

The move automatically delays the case, the seventh of its kind in the US since a scandal in Boston seven years ago.

The bishop of the diocese claimed the move offered the best chance for victims of sexual abuse to be treated fairly. But an attorney for the victims said the action was a desperate attempt to hide the truth from the public.

The case, due to be heard on Monday, would have been the first to go to trial under a state law creating a two-year window allowing claims to be brought even if the statute of limitations had expired. 'Cover-up' About 230,000 Catholics live in the Wilmington diocese, which covers Delaware and eastern Maryland.

This is a painful decision, one that I had hoped and prayed I would never have to make, Bishop W Francis Malooly said in a statement on the diocese's website. He said that talks with the eight victims bringing the case had broken down, and there were fears that too large a settlement would leave the diocese without sufficient resources to compensate another 133 people with outstanding claims.

28th September 2009.  See article from kfvs12.com, Thanks to Alan

A group of clergy abuse survivors are asking the Louisville Archdiocese to speak out against a local church that recently ordained a convicted child molester as a minister.

Several members of the Louisville chapter of Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests hand-delivered a letter to the Archdiocese office on Thursday. The letter urges Archbishop Joseph Kurtz to publicly condemn the City of Refuge Worship Center for ordaining Mark Hourigan as a minister.

13th September 2009.  Based on article from washingtonpost.com, Thanks to Alan

One in every 33 women who attend worship services regularly has been the target of sexual advances by a religious leader, a survey released Wednesday says.
The study, by Baylor University researchers, found that the problem is so pervasive that it almost certainly involves a wide range of denominations, religious traditions and leaders.

"It certainly is prevalent, and clearly the problem is more than simply a few charismatic leaders preying on vulnerable followers," said Diana Garland, dean of Baylor's School of Social Work, who co-authored the study.

It found that more than two-thirds of the offenders were married to someone else at the time of the advance.

24th August 2009.  See article from abpnews.com, Thanks to Alan

A jury in Tucson, Arizona, convicted a former youth minister at a Southern Baptist church of molesting a 13-year-old girl over the course of a year.

Jurors found Christopher Decaire guilty of six charges of molestation and sexual misconduct.

The girl, now 15, testified that Decaire molested her between January 2007 and January 2008 while he served as youth minister of East Tucson Baptist Church. She told jurors that something happened pretty much every Wednesday, the night the youth group met.

Decaire will be sentenced Sept. 18. He faces more than 50 years in prison.

 Credible case against Wisconsin Priest

24th August 2009.  See article from wkowtv.com, Thanks to Alan

The Madison Catholic Diocese admitted allegations of sexual abuse of a child made against a Madison-area priest are credible.

The bishop referred the case against Joseph Gibbs Clauder to the Vatican for judgment, but one group says that's not enough.

The Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAP) wants open information and prosecution.

Clauder was ordained in 1973. He's currently on administrative leave, after allegations of sexual miscount with a woman in 1999. Now, he's accused of sexually abusing a child. The diocese confirmed this information, calling both allegations "credible," and referred the case to the Vatican in Rome for judgment.

27th July 2009.  See article from suntimes.com, Thanks to Alan

The former No. 2 official of the Catholic church in Chicago admitted that he knew 25 priests broke the law by sexually abusing children but did not report them, according to depositions made public.

Auxiliary Bishop Emeritus Raymond E. Goedert's statements show the lengths they went to to protect their reputation and the priest at the peril of the child, said attorney Jeff Anderson, who represents men who have sued the archdiocese over alleged childhood molestation.

I knew the civil law considered it a crime, Goedert said in the deposition: But I'm not a civil lawyer. I think we just relied on -- a lot on our -- we knew it was wrong, what was done. And we used our common sense and prudence with the help of people -- expert in the field to assist us in resolving these cases.

I simply would not talk about it to anyone except those who had a right to know because of their position in the diocese, Goedert said.

The archdiocese issued a statement confirming that settlements had been reached with six survivors of abuse by priests totaling $3.9 million and that all of the abuse happened between 1970 and 1986. The priests involved were all removed from ministry by 1991 or earlier, the church noted.

15th July 2009. See article from kspr.com. Thanks to Alan

Famed leader of Tony Alamo Christian Ministries Tony Alamo himself will make an appearance in federal court for the start of his trial on charges he took young girls across state lines for sex.

The Joplin native's religious sect headquartered in Arkansas has been under scrutiny for years because of such accusations.

Alamo pleaded not guilty while at the same time saying the bible describes the age of consent as when girls reach puberty.

A guilty verdict on one charge from the ten-count indictment could place the preacher behind bars for the rest of his life.

He served six years in prison the 90s, making him a candidate for the harshest sentence this time around.

Update: Guilty on all 10 charges

29th July 2009. See article from kansascity.com

Alamo stood silently Friday as he was convicted of all 10 charges against him, a contrast to his occasional mutterings during testimony. He is set to be sentenced in six to eight weeks.

He could face a total of 175 years in prison for violating the Mann Act, a law originally aimed at stopping women from being sold into prostitution. Each count also carries possible fines of $250,000.

“I’m just another one of the prophets that went to jail for the Gospel,” Alamo called to reporters as U.S. marshals escorted him back to jail.

Update: Guilty on all 10 charges

17th November 2009. See article from freethinker.co.uk

Evangelist Tony Alamo was sentenced yesterday to 175 years in prison for taking underage girls across state lines for sex, effectively punishing him for the rest of his life for molesting children he took as brides in his ministry.

Alamo, 75, had been convicted in July on a 10-count federal indictment. US District Judge Harry F Barnes said Alamo used his status as father figure and pastor and threatened the girls with the loss of their salvation.

The judge then rather foolishly declared: Mr Alamo, one day you will face a higher a greater judge than me, may he have mercy on your soul.

Just before Barnes sentenced Alamo, the evangelist offered a brief statement to the court praising God then later adding: I'm glad I'm me and not the deceived people in the world.

12th May 2009. See article from ynetnews.com, Thanks to Alan

A New York rabbi convicted of molesting his daughter has been sentenced to 30 years in prison.

Monsey rabbi Israel Weingarten was found guilty in March of abusing his daughter through much of her childhood. The trial was traumatic for his victim, who is now 27.