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A powerful new force has emerged in the fight against child sexual abuse and the protection of predator priests in the Catholic Church.  This week, as profiled by Laurie Goodstein, in the New York Times, a group of Catholic Whistleblowers composed of nuns and priests have come together to provide an alternative viewpoint from inside the Church hierarchy concerning the state of child protection within the Catholic Church.  Despite assertions to the contrary, the Catholic Church still suffers from poor decision-making and the failure to prioritize children over the priesthood.  A...

On Tuesday, May 14, 2013, our clients, Jane Doe 173 and her parents, settled a historic lawsuit against the Diocese of Kansas City – St. Joseph and its Bishop, Robert Finn.  Their case was significant for two reasons. First, through the lawsuit, Jane Doe 173, with the brave support of her family, sought justice for the damages caused by Bishop Finn’s actions in supporting Father Shawn Ratigan, a child pornographer, at the expense of numerous children from the Diocese, including Jane Doe.  Second, Jane Doe 173 brought her claim under Masha’s Law, a federal statute which allows survivo...

We are once again saddened and alarmed to learn of the news of the arrest of a visiting priest from Colombia working in the Diocese of Stockton for child sexual abuse.  Time will tell what was known of Rev. Guarin-Sosa’s history and safety in working with children.  What is known to us already is that numerous priests have been transferred globally with the aid of the catholic hierarchy after being credibly accused of abusing children. Fr. Nicolas Aguilar is just one example. Aguilar abused kids in Mexico and then was shipped to Los Angeles, where he abused at least 26 other kids, before being sent ba...