RSS
News From Ireland


Home Page > News > News From Ireland > Priest steps down after mishandling of child sex abuse case

Priest steps down after mishandling of child sex abuse case

By
PATRICK COOPER,
Irishcentral.com Staff Writer
Published Sunday, June 27, 2010, 8:59 AM
Updated Sunday, June 27, 2010, 9:15 AM

print this article Print
email this articleE-mail
comment on article 3 Comments
 

Priest in charge of child protection resigns after mishandling of sex abuse case.


Fr Bill Bermingham, the child protection delegate of the Cloyne Diocese in County Cork, has resigned, saying his handling of a child abuse case “caused further distress to the complainant.”

Fr Bill Bermingham was appointed to the position by the Catholic Church's National Board for Safeguarding Children (NBSC) in 2008.

The resignation comes after controversy surrounding a report that claimed Fr Bill Bermingham took a statement from a woman alleging abuse and passed it along to the accused priest before he was questioned by the police.

The woman was made aware of the leaking of her statement and lodged a complaint to the NBSC.

Fr Bermingham claimed he reported the allegation immediately to the police and the Health Service Executive in the Irish Republic in accordance with Catholic Church guidelines, saying the guidelines required him to inform the accused person of the identity of the complainant and details of the allegation.

In a statement released on Saturday, Fr Bermingham said it was vital "any person" occupying his role within the Catholic Church should have the "complete confidence of victims of child sexual abuse" and that his "handling of this particular case has, despite my best intentions, served to undermine that confidence."

​
print this article Print
email this articleE-mail


3 Comments

See all comments

LITTLEGOAT | Aug 12, 2010, 02:48 PM EDT
we can not and will not give complete confidence to corruption we are not bthat stupid

Report abuse

Intercessor | Jun 28, 2010, 10:38 AM EDT
Survivors of Priest Pedophilia in Boston learned, early-on, not to cooperate with the Church's investigative commissions. Why? Quite simply the Church couldn't be trusted! Again, if you're asking, "Why?" Over 400 cases of pedophilia, along with the coordinated coverups by Cardinal Law's staff, made it pretty clear to Survivors that the Holy Roman Catholic Church in Boston was simply corrupt! When Cardinal Law finally quite, it had reached the point that many wanted to see him "tarred and feathered" and run out of Boston on a rail. Hopefully, all Survivors of Priest Pedophilia, worldwide, will learn from the "Father Bermingham" story, and never again will they be "Good, trusting Catholics," nor will they think that the Church has changed Her agenda. For the Church, the Survivors are "the enemy!" She doesn't want to help them. She wants to destroy them!

Report abuse

barneyjo | Jun 27, 2010, 07:07 PM EDT
Hmm. I wonder at what stage Father Bermingham would have indicated that he had given a copy of the statement to the priest of whom the allegation had been made. An unfortunate oversight, or a deliberate act to aid a brother priest? If Father Bermingham genuinely didnt know that he shouldnt have forwarded the statement in the way he did, then frankly his competence to fill this role within the Cork Diocese has to be questioned. Furthermore, this may give cause to scrutinise the competencies of others similarly appointed in other Irish Diocese.

Report abuse

 


IrishCentral logo
"Like" IrishCentral
IrishCentral Mobile QR code


Connect to IrishCentral with your Facebook account

or Sign-Up directly

Already Registered? Sign-In!

Welcome to IrishCentral!
Please provide the following information in order to create your account

Username:
E-Mail Address:
Password:
Confirm Password:
I agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy


Already Registered? Sign-In!
Forgot my password

Welcome to IrishCentral!
All we need is the following information and you will be part of the #1 Irish community in the US

E-Mail Address:
First select a unique username:
Username:
Now choose a password:
Password:
Confirm Password:
I agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy
Thank you!

Just one more step and you will be part of the largest Irish community in America! Tell us a little more about you to start enjoying all the features of IrishCentral.

Additional Information:

First Name:
Last Name:
Date of Birth:
Zip:
Gender: Male  Female 
Country:
Degree of Irishness:
Household Income:
Level of Education:

Subscribe to our newsletters:

The Best of IrishCentral - Daily Newsletter
Special Offers from our sponsors

or
Skip

You can edit your information at any time, just go to "my account" when you're logged in.

Log into IrishCentral with your Facebook account

or sign-in directly

E-Mail:
Password:
 Remember me Forgot my password
Not a member? Register Now!
submit to reddit
print this article Print
email this articleE-mail