Audit: Diocese follows rules to prevent abuse

By Janet I. Tu
Seattle Times staff reporter

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The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Seattle is complying with the standards put forth more than a year ago by the nation's bishops to prevent sexual abuse of minors by clergy, according to a national report to be released today.

The report, conducted by an independent auditing firm, the Boston-based Gavin Group, on behalf of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, surveys how well the nation's 195 dioceses are complying with the standards passed by the bishops and approved by the Vatican in 2002.

Victims' groups, however, said the Gavin report is being "mischaracterized and oversold."

The auditors interviewed church officials, civil authorities, some victims and members of review boards composed primarily of lay experts. They also evaluated whether each diocese was complying, such as establishing liaisons with civil authorities; having an outreach program to victims; and conducting background checks of employees.

The Seattle Archdiocese, along with several other dioceses around the country, released advance summaries of their audit results. The full report is to be released and posted on the U.S. Conference of Catholics Bishops Web site (www.usccb.org) today.

The Gavin Report is one of three to be released in the next few months dealing with the sexual-abuse crisis that has rocked the church since January 2002.

A report expected in February, conducted by the John Jay College of Justice, will attempt to quantify the number of victims and offenders nationally, and the financial fallout. Another report, also scheduled for release in February, will attempt to determine the causes of the sexual-abuse crisis.

The Gavin report commended the Seattle Archdiocese for "excellence" in its sexual-abuse policy and for establishing lay review committees in the late 1980s and early 1990s. One committee advises the archbishop on sexual-abuse policies; another evaluates whether accused clergy are suitable to continue in ministry.

According to local church officials, the Gavin report also said Seattle's program could serve as a "national model for the Catholic Church in the United States," commended Archbishop Alexander Brunett, and praised his predecessors "who laid the foundation for this exceptional program."

"While we are gratified by this recognition, we are also humbled," Brunett said. "Despite our best efforts, our task is not complete if even one victim or family member needs compassion and care as a result of these terrible events."

David Clohessy, executive director of Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAP), said "these are not independent audits. Two things comprise an audit, I think: You can compel access to records and you get objective data. Our strong impression is that these are interviews. Let's call it what it is: It's glorified self-reporting based on interviews largely with church leaders."

Local SNAP leader Jim Biteman said he was surprised by the report's praise of the Seattle Archdiocese. "We're extremely dismayed by the comments about Brunett's predecessors as having laid groundwork for these policies, especially when they have allowed such abuse to persist with their full knowledge for decades."

For years, the Seattle Archdiocese has had in place the standards passed by the bishops in 2002, including contacting civil authorities when accusations of abuse arise, and having review boards composed primarily of lay experts. Some aspects of the Archdiocese's policies, first implemented in the late 1980s, were considered groundbreaking at the time. But questions have arisen over how closely those policies were followed and how well they worked.

The Seattle archdiocese revealed last year that 47 priests serving in the archdiocese since the mid-1950s have been accused of sexual abuse of minors. Thirteen of those cases — all diocesan priests who are now either retired or on administrative leave — have been or are being reviewed by a special review panel.

The archdiocese says it is not aware of any allegations of sexual abuse of minors committed by its clergy since new policies on sexual abuse were put into place in 1988.

Janet I. Tu: 206-464-2272 or jtu@seattletimes.com

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