The Archdiocese of Seattle has published a list of 77 child-sex abusers who served or lived in Western Washington over the past several decades.
Seattle Archbishop J. Peter Sartain on Friday apologized for the actions by clergy and religious brothers and sisters who abused minors. He said in a letter that he is disclosing the names “in the interest of further transparency and accountability” and to continue to encourage victims of sexual abuse by clergy to come forward.
The list includes cases where allegations of child sex abuse have been admitted, established or determined to be credible. The list took nearly two years to develop with the help of independent consultants and a review board of professionals who advise the archbishop on child sex abuse.
The 77 named in the list lived or served in Western Washington between 1923 and 2008.
“Most of the individuals on the list were past the statute of limitations,” said Greg Magnoni, Archdiocese of Seattle. “Although, they were all reported to law enforcement.”
“Bringing it out in the open is one giant step to help diminish the number and to hold predators accountable and to help keep children safe,” said Mary Dispenza, spokeswoman for the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAP).
“People want to think that this crisis of priest abuse is over. It isn’t. And there have been some gains and we need to celebrate those. But it would be a great big failing to think everything’s just fine now,” Dispenza added.
Sartain said the archdiocese has made efforts to respond to victims since the mid-1980s and thanked abuse survivors who have come forward.
The Archdiocese of Seattle asks anyone who has knowledge of sexual abuse or misconduct by a member of the clergy to call the archdiocesan hotline at 1-800-446-7762.
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