Article Title
Catholic Church Sexual Abuse Scandal: 7 Excerpts From the Grand Jury Report
Link to Article: https://www.nytimes.com/2018/08/14/us/catholic-priests-pennsylvania-church-jury.html?action=click&module=RelatedCoverage&pgtype=Article®ion=Footer
Link to Grand Jury Report: PA 40th Statewide Investigating Grand Jury Report 1 Interim Redacted __ 2018-08-14
Source: New York Times
Author(s): By the New York Times
Date: August 14, 2018
Synopsis of Article
“We…need you to hear this,” say the members of the Pennsylvania 40th Statewide Investigating Grand Jury, regarding their 900-page report, which documents the findings of their two-year long investigation into allegations of child sexual abuse by Catholic clergy and cover up of that abuse by Catholic hierarchy, in six of Pennsylvania’s eight Roman Catholic dioceses. Some 300 abusive priests preyed upon at least 1000 identifiable victims (probably many times that number, in fact).
Case after case was disturbing and tragic — even bizarre.
The report did not spare the Catholic hierarchy, heretofore comparatively unscathed by the abuse scandal.
Church authorities often protected abusers, sympathizing with them instead of the victims.
The report details the unholy career of Edrward R. Graff, 45 years a priest, who raped scores of children.
Church authorities documented numerous reports about abuse committed by Graff over the years. But when his abusive record was revealed to the public, the diocese down played and denied its knowledge of the sordid details.
Some priests preyed upon multiple members of the same family.
The grand jury reported that it had uncovered a ring of predatory priests in the Pittsburgh diocese who “shared intelligence or information regarding victims,” created pornography using the victims, and exchanged victims among themselves. “This group of priests used whips, violence and sadism in raping their victims,” the report states.
