The effort to try the 93-year-old Catholic Cardinal, Theodore McCarrick, on charges of criminal sex assault ended today in a Wisconsin courtroom when the former archbishop of Washington was deemed incompetent because of dementia. He did not attend today’s hearing, instead hanging out at Missouri facility for troubled priests. https://www.washingtonpost.com/religion/2024/01/10/ex-cardinal-mccarrick-declared-incompetent-criminal-assault-case-wisconsin/
Earlier this year a Massachusetts court dismissed a criminal sex abuse case involving the same victim, also ruling that the former Catholic cleric was unfit for trial. Way to run down the clock with the help of the Catholic church and your legal team, ex-Cardinal.
“There is no case that has ever emerged in the 40-plus years I’ve been in the trenches that is a better illustration or more powerful example of the Vatican choosing to protect one of the most powerful predators,” said Jeff Anderson, a lawyer who represents multiple McCarrick accusers in New Jersey. For survivors, he said, the decision Wednesday shows “that McCarrick has been given a free pass by the Vatican and legal systems; it sends the message that they and he are getting away with it again. Everyone is led to believe the coverup continues. Because it does.”
Washington Post, January 10, 2024 (see above link)
McCarrick is the highest-ranking cleric/pope soldier in the United States to be charged in the Catholic church’s sexual abuse crisis. Also from the Post article:
“In 2020, the Vatican released an unprecedented 450-page report about McCarrick that detailed how he continued to rise in the ranks even as his superiors knew there were problems. The report concluded that Pope John Paul II knew about and overlooked sexual misconduct claims against McCarrick, who amassed power and prestige in the face of rumors and sometimes written evidence of his sexual misconduct.” That report is extremely troubling. Here we are some four years later and the oldster continued to get old and apparently demented. Oh well, we issued a report–fuck it.
McCarrick may or may not be competent, but he will continue to chill at his bad priest fraternity. The church knew what this monster did and dragged its feet until he, now frail and allegedly useless to his own defense, takes the nutter off-ramp. I hope the civil suits continue. McCarrick was deposed a few years ago as part of these actions. Of course the deposition is sealed. Who knew what, when, along with this deposition, will guide the inquiry into liability.
Cardinals are apparently considered “princes” in the Catholic church and are addressed as “Eminence.” Spare me.
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This news caused me to utter an expletive. Sick that these creeps evade justice.
And how f’ed is it that most Poles think it’s wrong to report about JPII’s enabling of these creeps. They think it sullies the name of their hero. Maybe they need to rethink who’s a hero and who is someone who enables sex predators. Manifestation of god on earth, my xxx.
No words …..so sorry that this happens. Wishing you peace
Thanks, Margaret. One of the many things I have learned since polygrapher Larry Wasser’s excited utterance in July 2006, is how very prevalent the sexual victimization of children is, particularly and ultimately unsurprisingly, by the “well-heeled” and how hard institutions fight to protect these predators (and their own reputations and wallets). Imagine if the Catholic church had spent a fraction of this effort to stop pedophile priests? Instead, their cyberbullying goon squad and legal teams ramp up to block every effort on behalf of victims. Hopefully society is getting past the cognitive dissonance of a priest or cardinal doing whatever they want to their flock. Another thing I have learned is that prosecutors and judges will often treat these defendants better than they do other criminal defendants. Every public official will say they want to protect kids. But they don’t often walk the talk when it comes to pedophiles and child pornmeisters represented by half-way decent counsel and backed by big institutions. It’s David and Goliath without the David.