Vatican exonerates bishop of Brooklyn accused of sexual abuse

The Vatican has concluded that the half-century sexual abuse charges against the Bishop of Brooklyn, United States, Nicholas DiMarzio, do not “appear to be the truth”, corn a lawyer for the accusers said they would continue with their civil cases.

Cardinal Timothy Dolan, Archbishop of New York, announced on Wednesday that the Vatican had closed its investigation into the separate allegations made by two men, who accused DiMarzio of abusing them half a century ago while he was a priest in New Jersey. DiMarzio has denied the allegations and the men have filed a civil lawsuit against him.

“I repeat what I said from the start. There is no truth in these accusations. In my 50+ years of ministry as a priest, I have never abused anyoneDiMarzio said in a statement. He further stated that he had “fully cooperated” with the investigation.

“I remain focused on leading the Diocese of Brooklyn as we emerge from the darkness of the coronavirus pandemic. I ask for your prayers as I continue to fight the lawsuits arising from these two allegations, and now I look forward to clearing my name in New Jersey State courts.”.

The Vatican’s handling of the case was closely watched because was one of the first to submit to new procedures established two years ago by Pope Francis to respond to allegations of sexual abuse against some of the church’s most senior clergy.

Critics, including lawyers for his accusers, have expressed concern that the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, made up of other bishops, would lack impartiality.

“The investigations into the credibility of my clients were subjective and biased because the investigators were controlled and paid by the Catholic Church”said the men’s lawyer, Mitchell Garabedian.

“The Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, which made the decision, is for the purpose of maintaining the secrecy of clergy sexual abuse by hiding the truthGarabedian said.

One of his accusers, Samier Tadros, said that the abuse began when he was 6 years old and a parishioner at Holy Rosary Church in Jersey City. Tadros, who is now 48 years old, claimed compensation for $ 20 million.

In response to the allegations, Dolan hired a law firm to investigate. This investigation was led by former FBI Director Louis Freeh. The findings were then sent to the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith for review, which determined the allegations were unfounded.

The Priest Abuse Survivors Network, better known as SNAP, said it was not surprised by the Vatican’s actions and urged New York Attorney General Letitia James to conduct his own investigation.

Given Bishop DiMarzio’s high rank in the Catholic Church, and especially given the fact that Vatican officials chose him to investigate other prelates accused of wrongdoing, we believe that true transparency and accountability must come from lay officials in New York and New York. Jersey, not RomeSNAP said in a statement.

Anne Barrett Doyle, co-director of BishopAccountability.org, a Boston-based group that has amassed a large online archive of documents and reports alleging sex crimes by Catholic clergy, questioned the transparency of the Catholic Church in the matter and asked the Church to disclose all documents related to its investigation.

“Even though his research was thorough,” he warned, “Only Cardinal Dolan had the power to filter and interpret evidence before sending it” to the Vatican.

Taking into account the findings of the Vatican body, Dolan said he “will not allow any further canonical process to deal with the allegations.”

(With AP information)

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