| > back | Bishop's Statements Diocese of San Jose data on clergy sexual abuse The following information was prepared for distribution in all parishes the weekend of Feb. 14–15 for inclusion in parish bulletins. It was part of related information regarding how the Diocese of San José has been dealing with the issue of clergy sexual abuse. On Feb. 27 a national report on the nature and scope of sexual abuse of minors by clergy will be made public by the National Review Board which was established in compliance with the Charter and the Norms. This study was conducted by the John Jay College of Criminal Justice in New York. It is anticipated that the report will give an aggregate accounting of the numbers of allegations, victims and perpetrators for the dioceses in the United States since 1950. In as much as the Diocese of San José was established only 23 years ago, the information that was reported in the John Jay study corresponded to that time frame. Statistics for the years 1950-1980 were reported by the Archdiocese of San Francisco because San José was a part of the Archdiocese until 1981. For the sake of clarity and completeness, The Diocese of San José is reporting two sets of statistics: 1) those pertaining to the Diocese of San José (1981-2003); 2) those allegations against priests who served in Santa Clara County between 1950 and 1980. Since 1981: Not included in this total are Religious order priests who served or resided at schools and other institutions operated by a Religious order. The number of priests accused of sexual abuse of a minor since 1981 is 6. Of these 6 priests, 1 is deceased and 4 have permanently been removed from ministry. An allegation against 1 priest was found to be unsubstantiated. The 5 priests accused of credible allegations of sexual abuse involving a minor from 1981 to the present represents 1.2 percent of the total number of priests in ministry for the Diocese of San José for that 23 year period. To date, the diocese has paid $20,000 in settlements (not counseling, which is noted below) related to sexual abuse of minors by priests. There are no pending lawsuits against the Diocese of San José related to any of these allegations. Prior to 1981: Between 1950 and 1981, the number of priests accused of sexual abuse of a minor was 11. Three of these priests are deceased, and an allegation against 1 priest was unsubstantiated. These cases were reported to the John Jay study by the Archdiocese of San Francisco. The number of known (pre-1981) lawsuits pertaining to allegations of child sexual abuse that are pending against the Diocese of San José is 24. The Archdiocese of San Francisco has also been named in these cases. These cases were filed in the last calendar year. The pending lawsuits involve a total of 4 priests, 1 of whom is deceased. |
