What’s wrong with us?

Share Button

Not a stellar day for victims in the courts yesterday:  

Ex priest and convicted molester Don Grecco’s scheduled appearance in Picton yesterday was adjourned to 03 November 2010. Grecco faces charges for  breaching his residency requirements while awaiting sentencing .  Since his arrest on the breach he has been held in the Quinte Detention Centre.  He has had several bail hearings but was not released because he couldn’t get surety.

Grecco’s sentencing hearing is scheduled for Friday 29 October 2010 in Hamilton, Ontario. 

Meanwhile in Windsor Ontario Father Hod Marshall’s court date of yesterday was adjourned to 24 November 2010 (09:30 am, courtroom # 6).  According to “former student”the request for adjournment was to effect transfer of Sudbury files to Windsor. 

 There are also charges from Toronto and a Toronto court date of  03 November 2010 pending.  I am uncertain if those charges have been transferred to Windsor or are in the process of transfer.  Marshall’s lawyer Andrew Bradie has said that the charges from all three cities will be transferred to Windsor.  He also said that that could take “months.”  

******

I have finally added several articles related to the sex abuse trial of Father James Kneale.  Kneale, some will recall, is Don Grecco’s friend.  Grecco was living with Kneale when he, Grcoo, breached his residency requirements.

Here is a link to the articles:

1997-1999:  “Priest guilty:  Father James Kneale admits sexual assault” & other trial-related articles

Note that “Kneale told the court that following the incident with the Fort Erie teen, he attended counselling at Southdowne in Aurora, a facility for Catholic priests, to discover his ‘spirituality and sexuality.’” 

Discover his ‘spirtuality and sexuality’?  Meaning what?

Note too that Kneale is yet another known molester who was dispatched to minister to the sick and dying as a hospital chaplain. And note that he was then recycled right back into parishes. (That was before his conviction.  After his conviction Bishop Henry recycled him into the Diocese of Calgary, Alberta.  When parishioners found out that he was a convicted molester they were furious.  He was eventually and reluctantly removed by Henry)

The word from St. Catharine’s is that Kneale has been pushing to get back into a parish there – thankfully, to date, without success. 

*****

I have seen nothing on the appeal of convicted molester Father Charles Picot’s acquittal.  (Picot was convicted on prior sex related charges, acquitted at a second trial which is now under appeal, and is facing a third sex abuse trial) 

I did however post the following 

27 October 2010:   N.B. Catholic clergy sex assault report due soon  

This conflict resolution approach being adopted by various dioceses certainly serves to keep things hushed up and under the rug.  As is the norm in such deals the names of all clerical molesters reported are kept hush hush.  Be the predator dead or alive, mum’s the word.. 

I really am having trouble with this.  We are talking about criminal activity here.  If we were talking murderers would it be alright to keep the identities of known murderers secret?  If we were talking bank robbers would it be alright? 

Is it just me, or do things regardingcriminals and criminal activity change when it comes to these clerical molesters?

Why is it alright for Justice Bastarache and Church officials to allow a known clerical molester to be out and about without any demand on anyone to so inform the public? Why is alright to willingly leave children at risk?

And, if a molester is dead, why should the pubic be deprived of the knowledge that Father So-and-So was a known predator, particularly when that information can be invaluable to family members who may finally understand the cause of the radical change in a brother, or son – and be in a postion to help him? or to Catholics confused, for example, by advice given in confession by this man?

I don’t believe such deals should be allowed.  Settle with the victims by all means, but part of the settlement should be a requirement that the name of every priest – dead or alive –  with ‘credible’ allegations against him should be made public.

What is wrong with us here in Canada that this kind of cover-up can go on right under our noses?

Enough for now

Sylvia

This entry was posted in Accused or charged, Acquitted, Bishops, Canada, Clerical sexual predators, recycled, Scandal, Trials and tagged , , , , , , , , . Bookmark the permalink.

7 Responses to What’s wrong with us?

  1. Reality Checker says:

    Sylvia….I couldn’t figure out for the life of me why Kneale’s lawyer – George Walker – from Niagara Falls sounded familiar to me.

    A – Karla Holmaka’s lawyer in the initial stages of that saga!!!

    Other things I know about him too!!!

  2. Sylvia says:

    Very intersting! Kneale chose well, did he not? Nine months house arrest!

  3. Reality Checker says:

    Walker is obviously – a wheeler dealer – especially with the AG’s office but there’s ‘something’ else about him I just can’t put my finger on at the momment. It will come to me.

  4. Newfoundland Dog says:

    Sylvia, as I understand it, here in Newfoundland Labrador for at least the past twenty years if someone has even a suspicion that a child is being abused that person by law has to report it to the appropriate authorities. If they do not and this becomes known to the police or social services, the person concealing the knowledge can be charged. This applies to everyone with suspicion or knowledge be they Pope, Bishop, priest or even us ordinary members of the raggedy arsed artillery. What’s the law in Ontario? Do you not have to report abuse if you have knowledge of it? How can the Church legally enter into conflict resolution without reporting the abuser to authorities once it becomes knowledgeable of the crime? This totally confounds me unless I’m missing something.

  5. Sylvia says:

    The most recent conflcit resolution session involving clerical sexual abuse is in New Brunswick. I don’t know their laws regarding duty to report. I am sure they have some obligation, as do we in Ontario and you in Nefoundland. But, for some reason that duty to report seems to fall through the cracks when it comes to these settlements.

    I know some will claim that it’s different when the abuse is deemed “historical.” Not so, at least not in Ontario. Thnaks to Perry Dunlop we know that the duty to report (to CAS) covers all instances in which a child or children may be at risk.

    Bottom line, I, like you Newfoundland Dog, am confounded.

  6. Reality Checker says:

    Ken Peters from the Hamilton Spectator has done one remarkable job reporting on Grecco- as usual!!!
    (Awesome Reporter!)

    http://www.thespec.com/news/local/article/271812–jail-abusive-priest-victim

  7. Sylvia says:

    Right you are Reality Checker. Thnaks for the link. It is now posted

Leave a Reply