An 884 page report from a statewide grand jury convened by the Pennsylvania Office of the Attorney General, examining six Catholic dioceses (Allentown, Erie, Greensburg, Harrisburg, Pittsburgh and Scranton, together ministering to more than 1.7 million Catholics) over a roughly 70 year span. It found credible evidence against 301 priests and documented more than 1,000 identifiable victims, while stating its own belief that the true number of victims could run into the thousands given lost records and victims who never came forward. Built directly from the dioceses' own secret internal archives, subpoenaed by the grand jury, which is what makes it a primary institutional record rather than a secondary account of one.
Facts
Citation
Author40th Statewide Investigating Grand Jury, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
PublisherPennsylvania Office of Attorney General
Publication Year2018
URLhttps://www.cbsnews.com/news/pennsylvania-priests-hid-sex-abuse-for-decades-attorney-general-says-grand-jury-report-press-conference-2018-08-14/
Source TypeGovernment report
Assessment
Reliability Tier1
Tier 1: a state grand jury with subpoena power, built from the dioceses' own subpoenaed archives. NotesTier 1: a state grand jury with subpoena power, built from the dioceses' own subpoenaed archives. The URL cited is contemporaneous news coverage of the report's release rather than the Attorney General's own report hosting page, which has not been independently confirmed at a stable url.
Cross-Tradition Connections
Associated With
This source names Harrisburg directly: "dioceses (Allentown, Erie, Greensburg, Harrisburg, Pittsburgh and Scranton, together ministering to more than 1.7 million Catholics) over a roughly 70 year span."
This source names Pennsylvania directly: "a statewide grand jury convened by the Pennsylvania Office of the Attorney General, examining six Catholic dioceses (Allentown, Erie, Greensburg, Harrisburg, Pittsburgh and Scranton, together..."
This source names Pittsburgh directly: "Erie, Greensburg, Harrisburg, Pittsburgh and Scranton, together ministering to more than 1.7 million Catholics) over a roughly 70 year span."
Claims Backed By This Source (36 claims)
This source backs 36 claims across the atlas. As facts: 24 well-attested. As cited relationships: 7 holds, 2 connected. Plus 3 entities citing it as a general reference with no single fact or relationship attached.
Disposition By Topic
- Abuse Inquiries and Response Policies, 15 claims: 10 well-attested, 4 holds, 1 general references.
- Sources, 11 claims: 8 well-attested, 3 holds.
- Articles, 9 claims: 6 well-attested, 1 connected, 2 general references.
- Denominations, 1 claims: 1 connected.
Well-attested
24Abuse Inquiries and Response Policies
Holds
7Abuse Inquiries and Response Policies
General References
3Abuse Inquiries and Response Policies
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