Audit of Catholic orders finds few convictions for alleged child sex abuse
Reading time: 1 minute
Only 4 per cent of child sex abuse allegations against Catholic priests, brothers and nuns result in convictions, according to the head of the National Board for Safeguarding Children in the Catholic Church (NBSCCC).
Teresa Devlin, NBSCCC CEO, said the watchdog had determined the figure through audits of allegations made between 1941-2009 across 20 religious orders.
She told the Irish Independent: “Coming forward with an allegation is probably the hardest thing that anybody does because there are so many barriers in their way.”
However, she said it is often difficult to get a determination of guilt or innocence after an allegation has been made.
The final reports of reviews into the twenty congregations were published yesterday and include recommendations on child safeguarding practice.
The reports are available for download from the NBSCCC website.
Share this article:
Subscribe to our newsletter to not miss articles like this one:
SUBSCRIBE
