A little more than half of accused clerics in the survey year were deceased, the report found, with others having resigned or been removed from active ministry; a small number were still engaging in ministerial duties.
Though the abuse allegations continue to fall year over year, Stonebridge noted that numerous dioceses came up short in how they manage mandated safe-environment programs.
Among those shortfalls were “dysfunction” in review board procedures, a lack of promulgation of reporting procedures, a lack of plans to “monitor the whereabouts or activities of clergy removed from active ministry,” and a failure to ensure that individuals were subject to background checks before contact with minors.
Nevertheless, the report states that the declining abuse allegations “are indicative of the cultural changes in our Church” and that the year-over-year trends “are encouraging as the number of current minor allegations within the Church in the U.S.A. remains low.”
Still, “the changes occurring within the Catholic Church are encouraging but are not the sole solution,” the report states, noting that the “failure to be vigilant leads to errors that could leave yet another child in harm’s way.”
The USCCB’s Office of Child and Youth Protection was launched following the 2002 promulgation of the bishops’ Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People. That measure is meant to serve as “a comprehensive set of procedures … for addressing allegations of sexual abuse of minors by Catholic clergy.”