May 2002:Pedophilia scandal
On May 8, Cardinal Bernard Law of Boston testified in a pretrial hearing about the pedophilia scandal swirling around the Boston Archdiocese of the Catholic Church. He will be the first Cardinal compelled to testify under oath about his oversight of priests accused of sex crimes, according to the Boston Globe
On May 7, former Boston priest Ronald Paquin was arrested and charged with rape of a child under 16. On the same day, bail was set at $750,000 for Rev. Paul Shanley, who faces three counts of child rape. One of Shanley's accusers, now 24, said the priest had sex with him between 1983 and 1989. Shanley has not commented publicly on the charges (see "Priest Accused..." in the bibliography).
The crime is sexual abuse, but the mental condition behind it is called pedophilia, a sexual attraction to prepubescent children. The Boston Archdiocese has been at the center of the scandal, with "scores" of priests and former priests now standing accused of pedophilia (see "Priest Abuse..." in the bibliography).
As the Vatican and U.S. society both try to come to grips with pedophilia, the public seems to believe that most of those convicted will repeat their crimes; with such an intense compulsion, some must be locked away forever. This is expensive. And while some argue that continuing to punish offenders after they serve their prison time infringes civil rights, others say releasing incorrigible predators endangers innocent children.
By 2000, the impression that sex offenders are untreatable prompted 16 states to pass "sexually violent person" laws permitting lifetime civil commitment for untreatable sex criminals. ..Source.. (See links at bottom of page for other pages)
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