WORCESTER, MA — More than 270 Catholic clerics abused nearly 1,000 children across the Worcester, Fall River and Springfield dioceses, a multi-year state investigation found.
The Attorney General's Office investigation, which began in 2019, found decades of institutional failures to address allegations, report suspected abuse to law enforcement and protect children. Investigators said they reviewed more than 300,000 pages of records and interviewed more than 100 survivors, advocates, attorneys, clergy members, diocesan officials and employees.
The nearly 200-page report, which was released on Tuesday morning, is the first public accounting comparable to previous investigations of the Archdiocese of Boston's handling of abuse allegations, according to Campbell's office.
Investigators found cases in which diocesan leaders failed to respond to allegations and warning signs, transferred accused or offending priests without disclosing why, returned priests to ministry without adequate supervision and concealed the reasons clergy members were removed.
"For decades, survivors of clergy sexual abuse, including those who are no longer alive, have carried the devastating consequences of abuse, while the institutions entrusted with their care too often failed to protect them," AG Campbell said in the Tuesday announcement.
The report recognizes reforms adopted after widespread clergy sexual abuse became public in 2002, including new child-protection offices, victim assistance programs, background checks and procedures for reporting allegations. But investigators found that the dioceses did not consistently follow their written policies.
The Worcester Diocese is the only Catholic diocese in Massachusetts that does not publish a list of credibly accused clergy, according to the report.
AG Campbell's office called on the three dioceses to use trauma-informed practices when responding to survivors, independently investigate allegations, enforce restrictions on accused clergy and provide greater public access to information about credibly accused clergy.
The office also recommended that state lawmakers consider eliminating the $20,000 charitable immunity cap and statute of limitations for civil claims involving child sexual abuse. The report calls for an indefinite lookback period that would allow survivors with expired claims to pursue legal action.
The investigation produced no new indictments. Three cases were referred to district attorneys, including one referral that resulted in charges in Worcester District Court, according to Campbell's office.
Prosecution was not possible in some cases because the alleged conduct was not illegal when it occurred, the statute of limitations had expired or the people identified were dead, investigators said.
AG Campbell is scheduled to discuss the findings during a 10:30 a.m. press conference on Tuesday.
The full report and survivor resources are available through the Attorney General's Office.
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