Priests' Files to Shed Light on Abuse Scandal in L.A.

[Ian David]

Black Collar Crime
Morning Edition, July 27, 2007 · Now that the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Los Angeles has reached a record settlement with alleged victims of clergy sex abuse, the next legal battle is heating up.

Under the settlement, the archdiocese is preparing to release personnel files of the accused priests. Plaintiffs' lawyers say these files could implicate Cardinal Roger Mahony in a widespread cover-up.

For Lee Bashforth, last week's settlement was a small price to pay for a cardinal he accuses of covering up years of sexual abuse. Immediately following the settlement, Bashforth held up an old photo of his first communion. Father Michael Wempe has his arm around Bashforth, who wears a proud smile.

"There's a picture of him here, with me as a 7-year-old boy, which is when my abuse began and lasted a decade," Bashforth says.

More:
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=12295352



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