Documents: Church Leaders Knew of Abuse

The shamelessness of the Catholic Church leadership truly knows no boundaries. The latest evidence of conscious decisions to throw the interests and safety of children and youths to the wind comes out of the Archdiocese of Indianapolis where church documents show that two former Indianapolis archbishops -- the Most Rev. George J. Biskup and the Most Rev. Edward T. O'Meara -- were aware of abuse allegations against former priest, Harry Monroe, and that he was a child molester. What did they do? Nothing other than continued to assign Monroe to new parish positions, where he preyed on other children. These guys - and their bosses at the Vatican - give moral bankruptcy a new meaning, yet the Nazi Pope thinks Catholics much less everyone else should give a damn about he statements on morality. Here are some highlights from the Indianapolis Star:

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The Archdiocese of Indianapolis has admitted that one of its former priests, Harry Monroe, was a child molester. But church officials have never acknowledged they knew anything about the abuse while it was happening. Now, a host of new documents obtained through a court petition by The Indianapolis Star reveal that church officials knew about allegations against Monroe by 1976 -- early in an era of sex abuse that lasted from 1974 to 1984.

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The documents also make it clear that two former Indianapolis archbishops -- the Most Rev. George J. Biskup and the Most Rev. Edward T. O'Meara -- were aware of abuse allegations at the time, never reported them to police and continued to assign Monroe to new parish positions, where he preyed on other children.

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The newly revealed records -- coupled with others already public -- show a church hierarchy that twice sought medical evaluations and care for Monroe through a clinic that treated abusive priests from across the country.

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"This is a smoking gun," said David Clohessy, national director for the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests. "It is a clear indication that the hierarchy knew very early on, not about one incident, not about mere suspicions, but they knew enough and were worried enough that they sent him out of state for treatment."

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Monroe would sexually abuse boys on camping trips, in motel rooms and in parish rectories -- all while serving as a priest in Indianapolis, Terre Haute and in Perry County, along the Ohio River. Frequently, he would offer the boys -- ages 10 to 15 -- beer, liquor or marijuana as an enticement.

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Since 2005, 13 accusers have filed lawsuits against Monroe and the archdiocese claiming the unchecked abuse has caused them a variety of problems. Some say it led them to abandon their church and their faith or to struggle against authority. Several resorted to drug and alcohol abuse. Some have problems with physical intimacy. And one Terre Haute mother who hasn't filed a suit blames her son's suicide on the abuse he suffered at the hands of Harry Monroe.