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Murphy Report

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The Murphy Report is the result of the public inquiries conducted by Ireland into the sexual abuse scandal in Dublin archdiocese. It was released a few months after the report of the Commission to Inquire into Child Abuse (Ryan Report) chaired by Seán Ryan, a similar inquiry which dealt with abuses in industrial schools controlled by Catholic religious orders.

The report was publicly released[1] on 26 November 2009.[2] As charted by the Murphy commission, the complaints of parents and their children were ignored and other families placed in immediate danger as prelates from John Charles McQuaid onwards suppressed scandals and took refuge in canon law to protect offenders at the expense of innocent children. The vast majority of uninvolved priests turned a blind eye.

Status of the Garda investigation

Representatives of victims of abuse are quoted as saying that the status of the investigation conducted by Ireland's police service, the Garda Síochána, must be fully scrutinized by the Dublin commission. "It is a huge concern that, given the resources that were provided to the gardaí when the investigation began four years ago, it hasn't produced anything of substance," said Colm O'Gorman, director of the One in Four victim-support charity.[3]

On 18 September 2006, an article in the Irish Independent stated that a four-year Garda inquiry into allegations that the Catholic Church covered up child sex abuse in the Dublin Archdiocese had failed to produce sufficient evidence to lay charges against any senior Church figures. Journalist Dearbhail McDonald wrote that "Twenty detectives have been assigned to the so-called 'God Squad' since 2002. But despite evidence that priests were transferred to other parishes, where they continued to abuse, and despite public admissions by senior figures that not all relevant information was passed to the civil authorities, no charges will be laid against senior members of the church."

Release of the report in November 2009

On 15 October 2009, the High Court ruled that the report could be released except for Chapter 19, which contained material relating to three upcoming cases.[4] The earliest of the three cases was expected to be heard in April 2010 and the High Court will reconsider the issue of publishing Chapter 19 in May 2010.[4] The report considers how the Catholic Church handled allegations of sexual abuse against a sample of 46 priests between 1 January 1975 and 30 April 2004.[4]

On 19 November 2009, the High Court authorized the release of an edited version of the report, with references to three people removed.[5]

On 26 November 2009, the report was published.[6] The report consisted of three volumes and cost a total of €3.6 million. The investigating commission identified 320 abused people between 1975 and 2004, and 120 from May 2004.[2] It stated that the four archbishops, John Charles McQuaid, Dermot Ryan, Kevin McNamara, and Desmond Connell, who were serving during that time, handled complaints badly.[7] One of the priests who admitted abuse, stated he did so more than 100 times. Another did so fortnightly for 25 years.[8] Another died in 2002, professing that he had done nothing wrong.[9] Along with clergy, the Gardaí were accused in the report of covering up the scandal.[10]

Public reactions

Cardinal Connell, the only living archbishop of the four, expressed his "bitter regret that failures on my part contributed to the suffering of victims in any form."[9]

"Because of acts or omissions, individuals who sought assistance did not always receive the level of response or protection which any citizen in trouble is entitled to expect," said Ireland's police commissioner, Fachtna Murphy. Murphy added he was "deeply sorry".[9]

The government of Ireland said it would make amends to the victims. Dermot Ahern, the justice minister, promised that "the persons who committed these dreadful crimes — no matter when they happened — will continue to be pursued".[9]

See also

References

  1. ^ Report by Commission of Investigation into Catholic Archdiocese of Dublin
  2. ^ a b "Abuse 'covered up' by Dublin Archdiocese". RTÉ News and Current Affairs. 26 November 2009. Retrieved 26 November 2009.
  3. ^ Dearbhail McDonald (2006-09-18). "Abuse probe grinds to halt". {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  4. ^ a b c Court orders partial release of Dublin child abuse report, Mary Carolan, The Irish Times, 15 October 2009
  5. ^ Edited report on Dublin abuse cleared for release, The Irish Times, 20 November 2009
  6. ^ "Dublin clergy covered up child abuse". The Washington Times. 26 November 2009. Retrieved 26 November 2009.
  7. ^ "Irish Catholic Church covered up child abuse, report says". CNN International. 26 November 2009. Retrieved 26 November 2009.
  8. ^ "Irish church obsessively hid child abuse: report". Reuters. 26 November 2009. Retrieved 26 November 2009.
  9. ^ a b c d Lyall, Sarah (November 26, 2009). "Report Says Irish Bishops and Police Hid Abuse". The New York Times. Retrieved 2009-11-26.
  10. ^ McDonald, Henry (26 November 2009). "Irish church and police covered up child sex abuse, says report". The Guardian. Retrieved 26 November 2009.
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