Archdiocese Finds Old Abuse Records
After a new "search" of its files, the Archdiocese of Minneapolis-St. Paul has found records indicating that a victim of sexual abuse did indeed tell church authorities about the criminal behavior. In handling these clergy abuse cases, I've often heard that "we don't have any records" or "Father has no other allegations of abuse". While this is a common refrain that shields the church from further scrutiny, it's very often not the case. The church, per its canon law, has files of abuse that are kept in the "Secret Archives". The only people who have access to such files are the bishop and his chancellor. When a file is destroyed in the Secret Archives, church law requires that a notation be made about the destroyed record, why it was destroyed, and what it contained.