Spokane Diocese Bankruptcy

A Catholic religious order that trained former priest Patrick O'Donnell can be sued by dozens of sexual abuse victims who contend the group knew O'Donnell was a pedophile and should not have recommended him for the priesthood, an appeals court has decided. The Associated Sulpicians of the United States had asked that two lawsuits be dismissed on the grounds it cannot be held responsible for O'Donnell's predations against children.

Attorneys for the Roman Catholic Diocese of Spokane filed legal documents Wednesday in an attempt to block The Spokesman-Review from gaining public access to court records listing priest-abusers and damage claims expected to be paid as part of a $48 million bankruptcy settlement. The newspaper lacks "clean hands" and legal standing to ask a U.S. Bankruptcy Court judge to release the individual settlement amounts to be set by an independent claims reviewer, diocese attorney Shaun Cross said in a 14-page motion.

Bishop William Skylstad released this statement Friday to The Spokesman-Review: The Diocese of Spokane has been, and continues to be, dedicated to transparency and openness. Any time a credible accusation of abuse is received against a living priest of this diocese, the diocese has in place a specific procedure and protocol for handling such a claim. That includes reporting to the proper law enforcement authorities, review by our own independent Diocesan Review Board, and suspension of the priest from ministry until such time as the accusation can be investigated and acted upon. If the accusation is substantiated, and the Review Board makes the recommendation, I remove that priest permanently from ministry. If the priest is exonerated, as was the case with Father Dan Wetzler in 2003, the priest is returned to ministry. If a victim makes a credible accusation against a deceased priest, at the request of the victim, that priest's identity is announced publicly.

Extraordinary measures ordered to protect the identity of victims in the Catholic Diocese of Spokane bankruptcy have been undermined because of a technical gaffe that allows people to easily view victims' names in records online. More than 50 victims' names appear in records filed on the electronic docket of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court of Eastern Washington.

The public may never know how many Catholic priests sexually abused children in Eastern Washington. Nor will parishioners know how their money is being spent, despite being asked to contribute $10 million to settle sex-abuse claims. Perhaps most alarming, however, is that priests accused of sexual abuse remain within the diocese ministry.

Parishes have been told to bring blank to be prepared to sign papers and pay license fees turning each congregation into a separate nonprofit corporation.

The clergy sex-abuse scandal in the Spokane Catholic Diocese will cost the church at least $50 million. The diocese has pledged $48 million to pay about 180 sex-abuse claims in bankruptcy court. Abuse-related costs to the Catholic Church have exceeded $1.5 billion since 1950, according to a national report released by church leaders last week. There have been more than 13,000 molestation claims – most of which were alleged to have happened decades ago.

In a development one attorney for the Catholic Diocese of Spokane called "a miracle," every victim of clergy sex abuse involved in the diocese's bankruptcy and every one of its Catholic parishes has voted in favor of a $48 million bankruptcy settlement. The surprising vote tally filed in court records Tuesday indicates that serious reservations church members have expressed about high-dollar payouts and the potential sale of churches and schools couldn't outweigh the appeal of a mediated exit from the crisis.