In 2001, amidst public outrage at decades of sexual abuse by Catholic priests and repeated promises by the clergy to catch offenders, a young priest named Father Fernando Lopez Lopez joined the Los Angeles Archdiocese.
Four years later Lopez Lopez was convicted of multiple accounts of lewd acts with a child, and one of sexual battery, having admitted to molesting three teenage boys during his time at the St. Thomas the Apostle church in Koreatown.
He had been hired smoothly by the L.A. parish, but refused employment and duties earlier that year by a monsignor in the San Bernardino diocese, who had discovered Lopez Lopez’s past.
It turned out that the young priest had been asked to leave his former position at a parish in Italy, on allegations of homosexual involvement with youths and drug activity. None of this information, however, was dug up by the L.A. Archdiocese.
The excitement surrounding the case died down after the priest served a prison sentence and was deported to his native Columbia.
But now, one of the abuse victims is suing L.A. Archdiocese Cardinal Roger Mahoney for exposing him to harm by hiring Lopez Lopez.
The trial will begin in October, and is already being covered in an investigative piece by Dan Rather.
Could Mahoney have prevented teens from being molested?
How will the suit affect Angelenos’ perception of their diocese?
And has there been significant reform in the way priests are hired?
"And has there been significant reform in the way priests are hired?"..
As long as the secret system within the catholic church is still firmly in place, nothing will ever change.. until those who commit crimes against kids and those who enable, empower and protect predator priests, are held accountable.
I mean accountable to the "law of the land", when crimes are committed criminals go to jail.
The LA diocese needs to be investigated by outside law enforcement for crimes committed by it's church officials, and that includes Mahony.
A recent grand jury investigation was done in the Philadelphia Archdiocese.
This is what needs to happen in the LA Archdiocese.
No comments:
Post a Comment