Here we go again. Same old shit again.
USCCB Chairman of the Bishop's Task Force on the Life and Dignity of the Human Person has been indicted protecting an accused priest in his diocese.
Hey, what's the big deal? It is only a misdemeanor.
"The indictment is the first ever of a Catholic bishop in the 25 years since the scandal over sexual abuse by priests first became public in the United States.
Bishop Finn is accused of covering up abuse that occurred as recently as last year – almost 10 years since the nation’s Catholic bishops passed a charter pledging to report suspected abusers to law enforcement authorities.
The bishop has acknowledged that he knew of the existence of the photos last December but did not turn them over to the police until May.
The indictment was announced yesterday by the Jackson County prosecutor, Jean Peters Baker. It had been under seal since October 6th because the bishop was out of the country. He returned on Thursday.
“This is about protecting children,” Ms Baker said…."
"KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Kansas City's Catholic bishop has become the highest-ranking U.S. Catholic official indicted on a charge of failing to protect children after he and his diocese waited five months to tell police about hundreds of images of child pornography discovered on a priest's computer, officials said Friday.
Bishop Robert Finn, the first U.S. bishop criminally charged with sheltering an abusive clergyman, and the Kansas City-St. Joseph Catholic Diocese have pleaded not guilty on one count each of failing to report suspected child abuse.
Jackson County Prosecutor Jean Peters Baker said Finn and the diocese were required under state law to report the discovery to police because the images gave them reason to believe a child had been abused.
"Now that the grand jury investigation has resulted in this indictment, my office will pursue this case vigorously," Baker said. "I want to ensure there are no future failures to report resulting in other unsuspecting victims."
The indictment, handed down Oct. 6 but sealed because Finn was out of the country, says the bishop failed to report suspicions against the priest from Dec. 16, 2010, when the photos were discovered, to May 11, 2011, when the diocese turned them over to police…."
From Wikipedia:
"…Then-Father Finn was named by Blessed Pope John Paul II a Chaplain to His Holiness in August 2003, upon the recommendation of the then-Archbishop of St. Louis, Justin Francis Rigali, later the Cardinal Archbishop of Philadelphia, who had named him to the posts he was then exercising (the honor was bestowed while he was still serving as CFP Director and editor of the St. Louis Review; Father Finn received the title of Reverend Monsignor).
Having applied for membership in Opus Dei in January 2004, Monsignor Finn was named two months later as coadjutor bishop (with right of succession) of the diocese of Kansas City-Saint Joseph.
Father Finn was consecrated to the episcopate on May 3, 2004, at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Kansas City. He is also a member of the Knights of Columbus. On May 24, 2005 the Vatican accepted Bishop Boland's request for retirement. As Coadjutor, Bishop Finn automatically succeeded him as sixth bishop of the Diocese of Kansas City ~ St. Joseph.
Bishop Finn became a member of Priestly Society of the Holy Cross in April 2005, which is linked to the Catholic personal prelature Opus Dei. In an interview with the Catholic Key, Msgr. Finn told of how Opus Dei had helped open his heart to the work of the Holy Spirit. Finn is not technically a member of the Opus Dei prelature, as he is a diocesan priest, but he is able to receive spiritual formation from the prelature in a similar way as its members do.
…Bishop Finn currently serves on the Administrative and the Priorities and Plans Committees for the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. He is Chairman of the Bishop's Task Force on the Life and Dignity of the Human Person.
The Board of Directors of the Institute on Religious Life (IRL) at their September annual meeting elected the Most Rev. Robert W. Finn, Bishop of Kansas City–St. Joseph as the organization’s new president. …"
