Bishops approve 2004 child sex abuse policy audits

Published: 2004-06-16

DENVER (CNS) -- The U.S. bishops have approved on-site audits this year of all U.S. dioceses and Eastern-rite eparchies to monitor compliance with child sex abuse prevention policies. The vote was 207-14 in favor with one abstention, according to a June 15 news release issued in Denver by the communications department of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. The approval came after controversy as to whether some bishops wanted to postpone the 2004 audits. The vote was taken during the bishops' June 14-19 closed-door spring meeting, held this year in the Denver suburb of Englewood. Kathleen McChesney, executive director of the bishops' Office of Child and Youth Protection, which conducts the audits, told Catholic News Service June 16 that the vote leaves enough time to do the 2004 audits. "Last year's audits began at the end of June. This leaves us approximately the same amount of time," she said.

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