A former New York state bishop has admitted in court that he has shut down a large number of child sexual abuse cases, with perpetrators of 11 priests between 1997 and 2002, denouncing a victims’ union on Monday.
In April 2021, Howard Hubbard, the former bishop of Albany, testified for four days in court in New York State and admitted that for 25 years, from 1977 to 2002was aware of the sexual abuse of minors by priests.
Without ever reporting them to the police or dismissing them.
The 680-page recording was released Friday by court order and excerpts from US media.
In response, the Chicago-based Survivors Network of Victims of Abused Priests (SNAP), based in Chicago, expressed satisfaction that “from now on, parishioners and the general public will know it was proven that their former bishop was actively involved in covering up the abuses “.
In a press release issued Monday, SNAP added that it “hopes that this information will encourage those in charge of law enforcement to study this case and prosecute all the crimes committed.”
Asked by law enforcement why he was silent, Howard Hubbard said he was not “obliged” to inform the authorities about child sexual abuse cases, according to excerpts from his testimony cited by local broadcaster WNYT Channel 13, part of the national network.
According to the same television station, the former bishop of Albany, who left the post in 2014, did not want to break out a new “scandal” of pedophilia that would affect the American Catholic Church. However, in an email, he acknowledged last August that the church was not fully aware of the impact of the crimes committed on the victims.
Reacting, the Albany diocese assured in a press release that it “can say with absolute confidence” that it is considering “all allegations of ill-treatment seriously and remains committed to contributing to the revelation of the truth in an impartial manner”.
For years, the American Roman Catholic Church has been rocked by revelations and allegations of sex crimes by priests. In December 2019, the pope announced that he had accepted the resignation of Richard Malone, Bishop of Buffalo (New York State), who was facing charges of handling a huge scandal of child sexual abuse by priests.
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