The following document reflects the
policies and procedures of the Archdiocese of Portland in
Oregon with regard to child abuse.
This document is based upon the teachings of the Catholic
Church and its Code of Canon Law in
addition to concepts of civil and criminal law. Nothing in
this document is intended to create
or confer any additional legal or civil rights.
Child abuse is absolutely contrary
to the Gospel values of care and concern that Jesus
commands us to have for one another. Child
abuse is contrary to all that the Catholic
Church believes and professes about the
dignity of human persons. Thus, it is the policy
of the Archdiocese of Portland in Oregon
("Archdiocese") that child abuse of any kind is
never to be tolerated.
With respect to allegations of child sexual
abuse involving Archdiocesan personnel, the
Archdiocese has been following The
Five Principles established by the United States
Conference of Catholic Bishops in 1992.
These are:
1. Respond promptly
to all allegations of abuse where there is reasonable belief
that abuse has occurred;
2. If such an allegation
is supported by sufficient evidence, relieve the alleged
offender promptly of ministerial duties and make a referral for appropriate
medical evaluation and intervention;
3. Comply with obligations
of civil law to report the incident and cooperate with
any investigation by civil authorities;
4. Reach out to victims
and their families and communicate sincere commitment
to their spiritual and emotional well-being; and
5. Within the confines
of respect for privacy of the individuals involved, deal as
openly as possible with the members of the community.
Besides The Five Principles which
remain an essential part of this policy, the
Archdiocese fully subscribes to the June
2002 American Bishops' Charter for the
Protection of Children and Young People.
In stating the Archdiocese's policy on
child abuse, it is recognized that no policy of itself
prevents abuse or harm. It is vigilance
that prevents abuse and sees that no child, no one
at all, is victimized by such sinful and
hurtful behavior. The Archdiocese has
promulgated this policy to focus and aid
that vigilance.
Any protocols in this policy that are not
already in place will be implemented with all due
speed.
The Archdiocese renews its determination
to provide a safe environment for the children
and young people in its ministries and
to assist Archdiocesan personnel in recognizing,
reporting and attending to the needs of
abused children and their families.
All Archdiocesan personnel shall maintain
the integrity of the ministerial relationship at
all times. Abusive conduct of any kind,
including sexual conduct, between one who is
performing duties on behalf of the Archdiocese
and a minor, not only is criminal, but also
violates that relationship and Catholic
moral teaching. Such conduct is gravely sinful. It
is never permissible.
Child abuse is a crime. Archdiocesan personnel
shall report suspected child abuse to
civil authorities in accordance with the
procedures in Section III below.
Persons with reasonable cause to suspect
child abuse by any person acting on behalf of
the Archdiocese – whether clergy or lay,
employee or volunteer – are encouraged to
report directly to civil authorities.
The Archdiocese will cooperate fully with civil
authorities in their investigation.
The response of the Archdiocese in cases
of child abuse by any of its personnel must also
address the pastoral needs of the victim,
the well being of the community, and the
assessment and treatment of the offender.
Care is to be taken that all involved will
be treated in a manner that is consistent with the
Gospel values of dignity, compassion,
understanding, and justice, as well as those
standards that are normative in the wider
professional community. When an accusation is
made, the rights of all persons involved
must be protected. Prompt and incisive action is
essential and non-negotiable.
In situations where an investigation under
civil or canon law raises questions of an
individual's fitness for continued ministry,
the matter will be referred to the Ministry
Review Board described in Section VI below.
The Archdiocese is committed to preventing
and fully addressing child abuse by any
Archdiocesan personnel, and to recognizing
and responding to signs of child abuse in the
children it serves. The following evidence
this commitment:
A. Screening. Any cleric or religious
applying for or proposed for assignment to
ministerial services in a church, school
or other entity operated by the
Archdiocese must complete an application
process which conforms with the
guidelines of the United States Conference
of Catholic Bishops for such clerics
and religious. All Archdiocesan personnel
as defined in this policy must
complete the Archdiocesan Background Check
Request and Authorization forms
and undergo a criminal background check
through the Archdiocese's Human
Resources Office. Further background checking
(including fingerprinting) is
conducted through the State of Oregon
for various daycare and pre-kindergarten
positions, teachers and administrators.
Ordinarily, this screening will be initiated
on or before the beginning date of
conditional employment or volunteer service.
B. Education. All Archdiocesan personnel
whose ministerial duties regularly
involve minors will be required to attend
presentations or have other training
dealing with the recognition of and reporting
requirements for child abuse.
C. School curriculum. The Archdiocese
includes in the curriculum of the
elementary schools it operates, a component
teaching children about safe touch,
appropriate boundaries with adults, and
other issues related to child physical and
sexual abuse.
D. Child Protection Officer. A Child
Protection Officer will be available to assist
parishes and schools in implementing this
Child Abuse Policy and developing
"safe environment" programs.
E. Distribution of policy statement.
This policy statement will be distributed to all
Archdiocesan employees. It will also be
available to all interested parties on the
Archdiocesan website (www.archdpdx.org)
and from the Child Protection Officer
(503-416-8810). A basic summary will be
widely available.
The term "child abuse" may refer to
the physical abuse, neglect, sexual abuse or
exploitation, mental injury, or threat
of harm to a minor. Child abuse of any kind is a
violation of state law. Some Church personnel
(e.g., school personnel and clergy) are
mandatory reporters under Oregon law and
must report suspected abuse to civil
authorities. (See Appendix
A, ORS 419B.005 and ORS
419B.010.)
A. Reporting by Archdiocesan personnel.
Mandatory Reporters. Clergy, school
employees, registered or certified child care
providers and other mandatory reporters
are required by law to report (or cause to
be reported) suspected child abuse to
the Department of Human Services ("DHS")
or to a law enforcement agency. (See Appendix
B for local telephone numbers
for reporting child abuse.) The Archdiocese
expects all mandatory reporters to
fulfill this legal obligation.
If such a report has been made and the
suspected abuser is Archdiocesan
personnel, the Vicar General should be
informed.
There is a special situation with the clergy-penitent
privilege. A priest or deacon
is not required to report information
he acquires in a privileged conversation.
Further, the sacramental seal of confession
is inviolable. A priest is absolutely
prohibited from revealing, in words or
in any manner for any reason, information
acquired from a sacramental confession.
This confidentiality is recognized under
Oregon law. (See Appendix
A, ORS 419B.010(1); ORS
40.260(3).)
Nonetheless, clergy are encouraged not
to accept confidential communications
concerning child abuse outside of a sacramental
confession.
Voluntary Reporters. The Archdiocese
encourages its personnel who are not
mandatory reporters voluntarily to report
suspected child abuse when they have
reasonable grounds to do so. Such reports
should be made to the Department of
Human Services ("DHS") or to a law enforcement
agency. (See Appendix B for
local telephone numbers for reporting
child abuse.)
Moreover, though not required by law, it
is the policy of the Archdiocese that any
employee of the Archdiocese – whether
mandatory or voluntary reporter – who
has reasonable cause to believe that child
abuse has been committed by any
Archdiocesan personnel shall report the
suspected abuse to civil authorities. After
the report has been made, the Vicar General
should be informed.
B. Reporting by members of the public.
Present abuse. Anyone who has reasonable
cause to believe that child abuse
involving Archdiocesan personnel is a
present concern should report the
suspected abuse directly to civil authorities.
Archdiocesan personnel shall
encourage such direct reporting.
Past abuse. The Archdiocese seeks
to promote healing and reconciliation for
those who have suffered abuse by Archdiocesan
personnel in the past. When the
abuse is not reportable under Oregon law,
such persons are encouraged to contact
the Archdiocese's Assistance Coordinator
at (503) 416-8810. The Archdiocese
will provide pastoral or other assistance
when appropriate on a case-by-case basis.
The Archdiocese encourages direct reporting
of child abuse. Nonetheless, if it
should receive information providing reasonable
grounds to believe that child
abuse may have been committed by Archdiocesan
personnel, the Archdiocese will
report this to civil authorities in all
cases in which a report is required under
Oregon law.
A sacred relationship exists between
the Catholic Church and its members, whether they
are children or adults. Child abuse of
any kind and certainly child sexual abuse are
matters of gravest concern. Knowledge
of such abuse calls for a special response so that
the safety of the child and the community
is assured and healing can take place.
The first response must always be immediate
and direct reporting to the proper civil
authorities. The next response should
be assistance to bring healing and pastoral care
wherever that is possible. With this in
mind, the Archdiocese of Portland has designated
a special Assistance Coordinator to coordinate
response in situations of reported sexual
abuse of minors by Archdiocesan personnel.
When the Archdiocese is informed of allegations
of child abuse by any of its personnel,
the Archdiocese must address the needs
and rights of all involved – the person alleging
abuse, the accused, and the parish/school
community affected. The Assistance
Coordinator will respond promptly to persons
who contact the Archdiocese concerning
child abuse and will offer to meet with
the caller. If it appears that the report concerns
present abuse by any Archdiocesan personnel,
the caller will be encouraged to report the
suspected abuse directly to civil authorities.
As appropriate, the Assistance Coordinator
will offer whatever outreach will best
promote the healing and reconciliation of the
person reporting abuse. This outreach
may include professional counseling, spiritual
assistance or other services.
After this call/meeting, the Assistance
Coordinator will contact designated Archdiocesan
officials to review the information provided
by the caller. If the allegation is subject to
reporting under ORS
419B.010, and the caller has not already done so, the Archdiocese
will make a report to an appropriate authority
under that statute. The Assistance
Coordinator will inform the complainant
that a report was made to civil authorities.
The Archdiocese will cooperate fully with
civil authorities in their investigation of the
charges. To ensure that there will be
no interference or perceived interference in the
investigation by civil authorities, no
further internal investigation will take place while
that investigation is pending, except
what may be required for compliance with canon
law.
Unless civil authorities request otherwise,
if this has not already occurred, the accused
individual also will be informed of the
allegation by the Archbishop or his delegate and
will be given every opportunity to respond
to the charges.
In the case of a cleric, member of a religious
institute or holder of ecclesiastical office,
ordinarily the Archbishop will place the
person accused on administrative leave and will
encourage an outside professional assessment
of the person accused. Should this be a
cleric, canon law will be followed. (These
three categories of persons are singled out
because of their unique relationship to
the bishop or superior and because they are subject
in a particular way to canon law. Decisions
regarding such individuals will be guided by
procedures of canon law.)
An accused employee or volunteer who is
not a cleric, member of a religious institute or
holder of ecclesiastical office ordinarily
will be placed on administrative leave pending
the outcome of the internal and/or civil
investigation or will be terminated. Archdiocesan
officials will coordinate with the accused
individual's supervisor on this decision.
When allegations of child abuse have been
made and the Archdiocese is providing
outreach to persons affected, the Assistance
Coordinator will keep in contact with the
individual (or the parent or guardian
of a minor), and his or her family, if appropriate.
Psychological counseling and/or pastoral
care may be offered in the spirit of Christian
justice and charity. When counseling is
paid for by the Archdiocese, the therapist must
be authorized by the Archdiocese. Whenever
possible, the therapist will be one who
specializes in the treatment of victims
of child abuse.
Within the confines of respect for the
privacy and the reputations of the individuals
involved, the Archdiocese will deal as
openly as possible with members of the
community, providing assistance and support
to communities directly affected by alleged
ministerial misconduct with minors.
Since the need to protect children who
may be at risk and the safety of the community is
always paramount, the Archbishop, at his
discretion and according to the norms of civil
and canon law, may take further action
when there has been an allegation of child abuse
to ensure that safety, considering also
the rights and reputation of the person accused.
There are three possible outcomes of
the civil and/or internal investigation and
assessment process:
1. The allegation may be substantiated or found credible either through
the
admission or lack of denial of the perpetrator or through the investigation
or
the assessment process.
2. The allegation may be unsubstantiated, disproved or found not credible.
3. The evidence supporting the allegation may be inconclusive to support
a
finding either way.
1. Allegation substantiated. If an allegation of child abuse is substantiated
or
found credible, the person accused will
have been reported to a governmental authority
and is subject to the sanctions of criminal
and/or civil law. When any cleric, member of
religious institute or holder of ecclesiastical
office is found guilty under secular law of
child abuse (or when it appears that an
allegation of child abuse against such a person is
true), the Archbishop shall proceed according
to the norm of canon law. An offending
priest or deacon will be permanently removed
from ministry.
When any employee or volunteer of the Archdiocese
who is not a cleric, member of a
religious institute or holder of ecclesiastical
office is found guilty of child abuse (or when
it appears that an allegation of child
abuse against such a person is true), the individual
will be terminated from employment, volunteer
service, or any other position of
responsibility within the Archdiocese,
if termination has not earlier occurred.
Additionally, when an allegation of child
abuse is substantiated or appears to be true, the
following applies. In all possible cases,
the offender should be responsible for paying the
costs of the victim's therapy. In some
instances, the Archdiocese may pay for the
therapy, and the offender will reimburse
the Archdiocese.
The Assistance Coordinator will inform
the parties regarding the outcome of the
investigation. Arrangements for the ongoing
psychological and pastoral care of the
victim may be made.
2. Allegation unsubstantiated. If an allegation of child abuse is
unsubstantiated, disproved, or found not
credible, the Assistance Coordinator will inform
the parties of the outcome of the investigation.
If necessary, continued efforts will be
made to maintain the good name of the
accused and provide for his or her well-being. If
there are any future steps that can be
taken to assure a return to normal relationships in
the parish, school, or entity involved,
the Assistance Coordinator will consider these
steps.
3. Evidence inconclusive. If the evidence is inconclusive as to the
validity of an
allegation of child abuse, or it is determined
that the conduct complained of does not
constitute child abuse, two factors must
be balanced. First, the safety and well being of
the alleged victim and the community must
be protected. Second, the rights of the
accused must be considered.
Based on the charge and the nature of the
evidence, lay employees or volunteers may be
placed on corrective action or terminated
under the personnel policies of the Archdiocese
in effect at that time. Clerics may be
issued a warning as understood in canon law. It lies
within the prudential judgment of the
Archbishop or his delegate to require psychological
evaluation and treatment of the person
accused. The Assistance Coordinator will also
inform the parties of the outcome of the
investigation and may make efforts to minimize
the impact on the alleged victim and the
community. In these cases, the Assistance
Coordinator may refer the alleged victim
for follow-up pastoral care and psychological
counseling, as appropriate.
Whenever the investigation under civil
or canon law raises questions of the continued
fitness for ministry of a priest or deacon,
the matter will be referred to the Ministry
Review Board for further review and recommendation
to the Archbishop.
To ensure the full implementation of
this Child Abuse Policy and to provide a vehicle for
accountability, the following will be
in place.
1. Parish/School coordinator. Each
church and school will designate one person to
coordinate and ensure implementation of
the policies and procedures required by
this policy (e.g., background checks,
training for personnel, etc.). The pastor or
principal, if not the designated person,
is ultimately responsible for child abuse
policy matters at the parish/school.
2. Child Protection Officer. The
Archbishop will appoint a Child Protection Officer
to assist parishes and schools in implementing
the Child Abuse Policy and
developing "safe environment" programs.
The Child Protection Officer may also
serve as Assistance Coordinator.
3. Ministry Review Board. The Archdiocese
will establish a Ministry Review
Board. The Ministry Review Board will
assist the Archbishop in assessing
allegations and fitness for ministry,
and will regularly review Archdiocesan
policies and procedures for dealing with
sexual abuse of minors. The Ministry
Review Board may also advise the Archbishop
on other related matters, at his
request.
For purposes of this policy statement,
the following terms have the meaning indicated:
Archbishop means the Archbishop
of Portland in Oregon. For purposes of this
document, references to the Archbishop
assume that in his absence the Vicar General (or
in his absence the Vicar for Clergy) has
the necessary authority.
Archdiocese means the Archdiocese
of Portland in Oregon, including the churches,
schools, cemeteries and other entities
it owns and operates. The term Archdiocese does
not include entities operated by religious
orders or other Catholic organizations,
corporations, associations or persons.
Archdiocesan personnel means all
seminarians, clerics (priests and deacons),
members of religious orders, lay employees
and volunteers who have direct personal
contact with minors, insofar as they are
performing ministerial or other duties at a parish,
school or other entity of the Archdiocese.
Assistance Coordinator means an
individual designated by the Archbishop to
receive and coordinate the handling of
allegations of child abuse by Archdiocesan
personnel.
Child means an unmarried person
who is under 18 years of age. (See Appendix
A,
ORS
419B.005(2).)
Child abuse includes all conduct
involving a child which constitutes "abuse" under
Oregon law. (See
Appendix A, ORS 419B.005(1).)
Child Protection Officer means the
person designated by the Archbishop to assist
parishes and schools in implementing this
Child Abuse Policy and developing "safe
environment" programs.
The Archbishop retains the right at
all times to modify this protocol on a
case-by-case basis in order to respond
to specific situations and issues
which may require an alternate response,
with due respect for the
requirements of civil and canon law.
ChildAbusePolicy (10/02)
To: Appendix
A
CHILD ABUSE
REPORTING
Selected
Oregon Statutes
To: Appendix
B
COUNTYWIDE
DAYTIME AND AFTER HOURS NUMBERS
FOR REPORTING
CHILD ABUSE
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