The new grand jury report flatly stated that even the current leadership under Cardinal Justin Rigali has not lived up to its promise to protect children by weeding out predatory clergy, keeping as many as 41 priests "in ministry despite solid, credible allegations of abuse."
The panel issued two felony charges against Msgr. William Lynn, who handled all priest personnel issues, including abuse accusations, as Bevilacqua's secretary of the Office for Clergy from 1992 to 2004. Since then, he has been pastor of St. Joseph Church in Downingtown.
Lynn, 60, is not accused of physically abusing minors but of turning a blind eye to complaints about three priests and a parochial-school teacher who then raped two altar boys in 1996 and 1998 at St. Jerome's Church in Northeast Philadelphia. The four men also were indicted on felony charges Thursday and, like Lynn, arrested.
The Philadelphia District Attorney's Office said Lynn is believed to be the first member of a Catholic diocesan hierarchy in the United States charged criminally for his alleged role in concealing or enabling clergy abuse of children. He faces 14 years in prison if convicted on both third-degree felony charges.
"Let this be a clarion call," said District Attorney Seth Williams, himself a Catholic, at a news conference Thursday. "I love my church, but I detest the criminal behavior of priests who abuse, or allow the abuse, of children."
Issued under then-District Attorney Lynne M. Abraham, the 2005 grand jury report dealt harshly with both Lynn and Bevilacqua, accusing them of an "immoral cover-up" in abuse cases generally. However, neither was charged with any crimes.
