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Gavin Group, Inc.
on behalf of Office of Child and Youth Protection, USCCB

Compliance Audit Report for Archdiocese of Philadelphia
12 November 2003

See also the Letter of Cardinal Rigali concerning this Report.

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Compliance Audit Summary Report

The Archdiocese of Philadelphia, established in 1875, encompasses Philadelphia, Bucks, Chester, Delaware and Montgomery counties, and serves a Catholic community of 1,488,000 parishioners in 279 parishes. There are 743 Archdiocesan priests and 211 permanent deacons. The Archdiocese has 206 parish elementary schools and 22 high schools. His Eminence, Anthony Cardinal Bevilacqua, who led the Archdiocese at the time of the audit, was installed as Archbishop in February 1988 and is assisted by five Auxiliary Bishops. A compliance audit was conducted during September 8-12, 2003.

The following describes conditions evident during the week of the audit. Information on corrective actions taken by the Diocese subsequent to the audit will be found in the last paragraph.

"To promote healing and reconciliation"

The Archdiocese of Philadelphia has established policy and outreach responding to allegations of sexual abuse of minors by clergy. The Cardinal, or his designee, has met, or offered to meet with, victims or their family, since June, 2002. The Archdiocese has a qualified Victim Assistance Coordinator and an Archdiocesan Review Board comprised of diverse, highly-qualified experts who provide confidential counsel to the Cardinal. A former federal investigator is used to assist the board on their investigations. Procedures for reporting allegations of sexual abuse are readily available and publicized. It was recommended that the Archdiocese work more closely with the Review Board to expedite the resolution of the remaining procedural issues in order to satisfy its commitment to bring prompt and just closure to outstanding allegations. No confidentiality agreements have been entered into by the diocese since June, 2002.

" To guarantee effective response to allegations of abuse of a minor"

The Archdiocese has reported every allegation of abuse of a minor by clergy to public authorities, regardless of when the abuse occurred. Victims are advised of the right to report allegations of abuse to civil authorities. Standards for ministerial behavior and appropriate boundaries have been adopted, clearly articulated and well publicized for clergy and other church personnel who have regular contact with children. The Archdiocese has a communications policy reflecting the Cardinal's pledge to be open and transparent on issues regarding the sexual abuse of children. There is a program to deal with parishes directly affected by clergy misconduct.

"To ensure accountability of procedures"

The Archdiocese has participated in the research study regarding the "nature and scope" of the problem of sexual abuse of minors by Catholic clergy.

"To protect the faithful in the future"

The Archdiocese has created a Safe Environments Office to implement "safe environment" training for clergy, educators, parents, youth and others on child-centered safety. Approximately 50% of the elementary school children have received training and the remaining schools will receive training by the end of the current school year. The Archdiocese used the "Virtus" program to provide a standardized teaching platform and has also been assisted by Parents Anonymous of Philadelphia. A recommendation issued that the Archdiocese offer relevant training and produce informative documents in the various languages of parishioners. The Archdiocese has implemented aggressive procedures to screen all those within the Archdiocese who have regular contact with children and young people by utilizing the services of the Pennsylvania State Police, the state Department of Public Welfare, and the FBI. Screening and evaluation protocols are used to consider the fitness of candidates for ordination. The Archdiocese has not transferred any priests who have had credible allegations of abuse lodged against them for ministry or residence since June 2002. It was recommended that the Archdiocese determine the residence of offenders who retain their priestly status and implement a system to periodically insure they are conforming to the requirements of the Charter. There is systematic ongoing formation of priests.

COMPLIANCE WITH THE PROVISIONS OF THE CHARTER

At the conclusion of this audit, the Archdiocese of Philadelphia was issued three recommendations as follows:

Recommendation #1 - That the Archdiocese determine the residence of offenders who have been removed from ministry and implement a system to periodically insure they are conforming to the provisions of the Charter.

Recommendation #2 - That the Archdiocese offer relevant training and informative documents in the various languages of parishioners.

Recommendation #3 - That the Archdiocese work with the Review Board to expedite resolution of remaining procedural issues to satisfy its commitment to bring prompt and just closure to outstanding allegations.

As of December 1, 2003, all three recommendations had been addressed. The Archdiocese of Philadelphia is found to be compliant with the provisions of the Charter as measured by the process described in Chapter Two