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Idaho Catholic Church Sexual Abuse Lawyer
This is how Boise’s Catholic Diocese investigates sexual abuse accusations
In the wake of recent sexual assault revelations in the catholic church, many parishioners and community members want to know what the church is doing to investigate accusations against priests. A shocking 1500-page Pennsylvania grand jury report, released in 2018, revealed a pattern of covering up the misdeeds by church officials - even when priests and bishops knew without a doubt that someone was a child predator.
In Boise, Idaho these concerns reached a high profile in 2018 after a local bishop, Thomas Faucher was arrested in February 2018 for possessing child pornography.
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Another bishop within the diocese has stated that prior to this incident, the church had never received reports about Faucher relating to sex crimes. But the diocese does have policies in place for handling any such accusation that does come in, the details of which were revealed in a 2018 Idaho Statesman article.
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Decisions are made by a diocese review board which has 5 to 12 members, including an expert in treating sexual abuse of minors. The board is currently led by a prosecuting attorney, and must include members who do not work for the church, ensuring a degree of neutrality.
If anyone alleges that a priest or deacon molested a child, they must meet to address the allegations. They investigate and make a recommendation to the bishop, who is not bound to follow the board’s recommendation. The investigation can be done by the diocese’s director of child, youth and adult protection, or a private detective. They conduct interviews and take a statement from the accused.
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If the board finds there are “reasonable cause to believe” the allegations, they will notify the relevant law enforcement agency. A spokesman for the diocese would not reveal how many complaints had come to the board since it was formed in 2003. However, one such complaint was serious enough that law enforcement was notified. The person named in the complaint is no longer involved in the diocese, although further details are not available since the actions of the board are confidential.
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In 2003, when this board was formed, public outrage about Catholic church sex scandals was at a high point, prompting many dioceses to take measures to protect children. This review board is one such, since it ensures that accusations will be looked at by people who are not clergy members or allies of the accused. In the past, tragically, many priests’ acts of child abuse became known to other church officials, but those officials were more concerned with protecting the perpetrator than the child.
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