Metuchen, N.J., Sep 5, 2018 / 13:31 pm
Bishop Emeritus Paul Bootkoski of Metuchen said last week that claims of abuse against then-Cardinal McCarrick made to his diocese were reported to the then-nuncio in a timely manner. Accounts from some alleged victims suggest the diocese had been aware of McCarrick's misconduct long before it was reported.
An Aug. 28 statement from the office of Bishop Bootkoski said Archbishop Carlo Maria Viganò "was mistaken in his recollection of facts regarding abuses committed by Archbishop McCarrick."
Archbishop Viganò, the former apostolic nuncio to the US, had written that Bishop Bootkoski, as well as Archbishop Emeritus John Myers of Newark "covered up the abuses committed by McCarrick in their respective dioceses and compensated two of his victims. They cannot deny it and they must be interrogated in order to reveal every circumstance and all responsibility regarding this matter."
According to the statement from Bishop Bootkoski's office, "the Diocese of Metuchen received the first of three complaints against Archbishop McCarrick in 2004," after McCarrick had been transferred to Washington and made a cardinal.