Vatican Sex Abuse Case Dropped: Jeffrey Anderson, Prominent Lawyer Dropped Lawsuit, Vatican Welcomed Decision

By Alessandro Speciale
Religion News Service

VATICAN CITY (RNS) A prominent sex abuse lawyer has dropped a high-stakes lawsuit that sought to hold Pope Benedict XVI and other top church officials responsible for a clergy sexual abuse case.

The Vatican's U.S. attorney, Jeffrey S. Lena, welcomed the decision to drop the suit on Friday (Feb. 10), saying the case was "held together by no more than a mendacious web of allegations of international conspiracy."

The plaintiff's attorney, Jeffrey Anderson, said the case was withdrawn as a consequence of progress in a separate court case involving the bankruptcy bid of the Archdiocese of Milwaukee.

The case involved the victims of the late Rev. Lawrence Murphy, a priest who was accused of molesting some 200 boys at the Milwaukee-area St. John's School for the Deaf between 1950 and 1974.

Documents published by The New York Times in March 2010 showed that, in 1998, the Vatican's Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith -- led by then-Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, now Benedict XVI -- refused to defrock Murphy despite requests from U.S. bishops involved in the case.

The Vatican's top spokesman, the Rev. Federico Lombardi, explained at the time that the Vatican had taken into account Murphy's old age and ill health.

Anderson had argued that the documents demonstrated that the Vatican's leadership had direct responsibility in protecting abusive priests. His suit had named Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, the Vatican secretary of state, and his predecessor, Cardinal Angelo Sodano, as co-defendants in the case with Benedict.

Lena said "the Holy See is not responsible for the supervision of the more than 400,000 priests around the world." The Vatican declined to add further comment on the case, referring to Lena's statement.

Comments

[MrWilli]

11:46 AM on 02/18/2012

So, apparently the Church escapes prosecution for another of this long, TOO long, string of heinous crimes. Pity.

[cheekycat]

09:25 AM on 02/14/2012

...''the Holy See is not responsible for the supervision of the more than 400,000 priests around the world.''

so i guess that makes the RCC more of a loose franchise rather than the ''One Holy, and Apostolic Church '' like it says in all the brochures.

[Asmondius]

09:45 AM on 02/14/2012

Administratively, the Catholic Church is organized along the same lines as the old Roman civil service system which out of practical necessity was a decentralized structure. To think that the relatively small staff at the Vatican could personally oversee all the individudal parishes and priests in the world is outlandish. This has nothing to do with the religious concept of the Church as 'one body in Christ'.

Remember that the Church is first and foremost a religious entity, it has administrative components only out of practical necessity.

[June Annette]

12:26 PM on 02/14/2012

The outrageous claim made by the Roman Catholic "church" that they are the "one true church of Jesus Christ" is what's really outlandish!

The murderous campaigns of the Inquisition; the Crusades; the Croatian Massacre under the auspices of the RCC, along with the Vatican Bank Irregularities and the Clergy Abuse Scandal brought to light in our day militate against Roman Catholicism's claim to be Christ's Church and are wholly inconsistent with His doctrine as it is revealed in God's Word.
These are programs and policies that were deliberately (pre-meditated) put in place by the Roman Catholic church at various times throughout its' history which originated at the very top echelon of the RC hierarchy, namely the cardinals & popes, and presided over, carried out and implemented by her priests and bishops!

Many former Roman Catholics like myself have renounced the religion of Rome in order to wholeheartedly embrace the religion of Jesus Christ without contradiction.
May God grant grace and courage to many more Roman Catholics to do likewise!

JuneAnnette,
a sinner by birth; a Roman Catholic by tradition
made a Christian by God's grace by virtue of the “new birth” (John 3:3-8)

[socmed superman]

01:34 AM on 02/14/2012

No mention of the fact that there are 8,000 cases of Catholic priests child rape in Milwaukee LAST WEEK, and that that was one of the reasons the lawsuit was dropped??

[Asmondius]

09:59 AM on 02/14/2012

Get your facts straight.

This is a claim by an ambulance chasing attorney who has made a business out of the child abuse crisis, and it referred to abuse over decades past. He offered absolutely nothing to substantiate his statement.

In any event, it would have absolutely nothing to do with the Vatican lawsuit.

[Bob Schwiderski]

10:33 AM on 02/14/2012

you are a fool

[moneytree1001]

01:01 AM on 02/14/2012

Mr. Lena please consider filling a bar complaint against this guy, what's his face, Anderson.

[Frank-ly Speaking]

12:44 AM on 02/14/2012

Official motto of the RC clergy: No child's behind left.

[Asmondius]

09:46 AM on 02/14/2012

Offical motto of juvenile Church haters - 'No joke is too lurid'.

[Frank-ly Speaking]

10:37 PM on 02/17/2012

Ah, Asswipius. Long time no see. You have a blessed day, OK?

[CowboySandtoes]

10:52 PM on 02/13/2012

Jesus said its cool..

[hanspij]

10:11 PM on 02/13/2012

Wonder who's strings are pulled?