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| Archdiocese Responds to Secrecy Letter - Monday, May 18, 2009 at 09:49 |
| April 29, 2009 Dear John, Thank you for your e-mails to me and your letter to Archbishop Gregory. Your questions gave us the opportunity to reflect on our response to the people of the Archdiocese of Atlanta as regards the protection of children and prompted research that took a bit of time to answer conclusively. First, a bit of background. The Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People, the comprehensive set of procedures established by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops in June, 2002 for addressing allegations of sexual abuse of minors by Catholic clergy, includes guidelines for the membership of diocesan Review Boards and requirements for a diocese to be in compliance with implementing the Charter. In June 2003, the national Secretariat of Child and Youth Protection began an independent audit process conducted by the Gavin Group, Inc. of all dioceses throughout the United States to determine if they are implementing the practices required by the Charter. In the Archdiocese of Atlanta, the Archbishop's Advisory Board membership and procedings are both confidential. As a result of our research we have found that some dioceses do reveal the names of members, others do not. We also asked the Archdiocese of Atlanta Advisory Board under what conditions they agreed to serve. They have and continue to request confidentiality as a condition of their service on the Advisory Board. The Archdiocese of Atlanta, along with the other dioceses of our country, guarantees the proper fulfillment of the guidelines and directives of the Charter as regards the make-up of the Advisory Board and compliance of the parishes by participating in the independent audits as outlined above. In fact, it was the express intent and purpose of these audits to provide an external, impartial,and regular review of how a diocese is in compliance with the norms of the Charter. We have passed the four audits conducted since they began in 2003 and await a fifth in the fall of this year. A summary of these audits are posted on the Archdiocese of Atlanta website at www.archatl.com/offices/cyp/audit/. Also, an Annual Report on the Implementation of the Charter prepared by the national Secretariat of Child and Youth Protection is available on their website at www.usccb.org/ocyp. Thank you again for sharing your concerns with me. May God continue to bless you and those you represent. Sincerely in Christ, Sue Stubbs MS, NCC Director, Office of Child and Youth Protection |
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