At least 1,997 minors were sexually abused by 451 clergy and religious leaders in the Diocese of Illinois (USA), according to a new report published Tuesday by the State Attorney General, Kwame Raoul.
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According to research of about 700 pagesthe abuses were perpetrated by members of the clergy and other members of the Catholic Diocese of Illinois, which includes Belleville, Chicago, Joliet, Peoria, Rockford and Springfield.
The report adds 149 names to the list of child sexual abusers that the dioceses themselves had publicly identified before or during the investigation, which brings those identified to 451, in addition to multiplying them by four, the number provided by the church before 2018, when the State began its investigation.
The new names were provided by victims who told investigators about their abuse, in addition to interviews with religious leaders. More than 100,000 pages of documents held by the diocese were also reviewed. Of the 451 alleged abusers mentioned in the report, 330 have already died, according to Raoul..
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“These perpetrators may never be held accountable in court, but by naming them here, the intent is to offer public accountability and a measure of healing for survivors who have suffered for a long time in silence,” the attorney general said in a statement.
Among the documented cases is that of the priest Thomas Francis Kelly, who abused more than 15 children between the ages of 11 and 17 in various parishes in the 1960s and 1970s.
One of the testimonies, Joe, who was 11 years old when Kelly abused him, explains in the report that the priest invited him to see a movie and spend the night at the rectory, where he offered him beer.
Joe woke up in the middle of the night to find Father Kelly performing oral sex on him. Other victims of the abuse of Kelly, who died in 1990, also share their experiences in the report.
The report also contains 50 pages of recommendations to dioceses to be transparent and report abuses that may occur.
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*With information from EFE
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