Church critics not satisfied

last updated 8 January 2015

Boston

Activist groups in Boston asked the state to launch an independent investigation of sexual abuse in the Roman Catholic Church, saying a newly released church survey did not tell the whole story. The national study, commissioned by a lay watchdog panel, concluded that from 1950 to 2002, 4 percent of priests were accused of molesting children. Half of the 10,667 victims were abused for more than a year, and in 17 percent of the affected families, more than one child was abused. The panel said it was “shameful” that bishops had failed to stop the abuse. Bishop Wilton Gregory, leader of the nation’s bishops, pledged not to repeat past mistakes. He said with the public airing of the survey, the scandal was now over, and part of church “history.”