Yesterday's Boston Globe reports that the Catholic Archdiocese of Boston has entered an unprecedented settlement with federal authorities. To avoid a federal indictment for misleading the federal government in a 1999 background check of a priest who had been appointed a Veterans Affairs chaplain, the archdiocese agreed to provide detailed background on all priests who currently serve or who in the future apply to serve as chaplains in the military, in the federal prison system, or in Veterans Affairs facilities. It will also report any suspected violations of federal child abuse and child exploitation laws to federal authorities, and the federal government will review its proposed program for training employees to report federal crimes.
The archdiocese agreed to continue to audit parishes and schools for implementation of child protection programs and to finance a committee of specialists to study the effectiveness of child protection programs. It will be report publicly on its efforts to improve child protection policies every six months for three years. Finally it waived the statute of limitations so that if it does not implement the agreement, the federal government can still prosecute. Both sides say that the agreement does not intrude into prohibited separation of church and state.
