Denver, Colo., Feb 29, 2004 / 22:00 pm
Two days before the release of the national survey on sexual abuse of minors by clergy in the U.S. Church, the Archbishop of Denver issued a letter indicating the number of substantiated abuse cases in the diocese.
The Feb. 25 letter, signed by Archbishop Charles Chaput and Auxiliary Bishop Jose Gomez, also emphasized the diocese’s commitment to maintain a zero-tolerance policy regarding allegations of abuse.
The results of the unprecedented national survey, conducted by the John Jay College of Criminal Justice and released Feb. 27, indicated that 109,694 clergy served in the U.S. between 1950 and 2002. Of these, about four percent or 4,392 were accused of sexual abuse. The total number of abuse claims in that period was 10,667.
The letter, issued by the Archdiocese of Denver, offered the faithful here a better understanding of the prevalence of sexual abuse in the diocese and the ways in which the problems were being handled.