SALT LAKE CITY – The Diocese of Salt Lake City released the names of priests facing credible allegations of sexual misconduct with minors since 1950. The report details allegations, when the incidents were brought to the attention of the diocese and law enforcement, and the actions taken in response to the allegations.
The nineteen clergy members listed in the report are deceased, retired, laicized, incarcerated, or have left the priesthood or seminary. Not one clergy member with credible allegations is currently in active ministry.
Two clergy members named in the report were ordered to a life of prayer and penance by the Vatican in 2002.
To be considered a credible allegation, the diocese was provided with “sufficient evidence” to be able to verify the location of the incident and confirm the accused and the accuser were in the same place at the same time.
The diocese explained that credible allegations are not “a final determination of guilt, but are grounds for further exploration.”
“As shepherd of the Catholic Church in Utah, together with the Bishops of the United States, I express my personal shame, distress, and anger concerning the sexual abuse committed by some of our priests, bishops, and other Church leaders to our children, young people and adults whom we are supposed to serve and protect,” Bishop Oscar Solis wrote in a statement released by the diocese.
The diocese currently serves over 300,000 Catholics, and comprises the entire state of Utah.
The Diocese of Salt Lake City pledged to take action to the best of their abilities to review policies and programs in hopes to prevent abuse incidents from happening again.
Bishop Solis asked parishes, missions, and Catholic schools to join him in a day of prayer, reparation, and penance on September 7, 2018.
“As believers in God’s mercy and compassion, let us be people of hope, that by the grace of God, light may come out of this darkness and that this crisis will bring conversion of heart, renewal of our faith and reconciliation with God and one another, and most of all peace in our Church and in every heart,” the Bishop said in the closing comments of his official statement.
