Bishop says that as pastor he was not lax in supervising priest

Published: 2004-10-29

SPOKANE, Wash. (CNS) -- Bishop William S. Skylstad of Spokane said that 30 years ago, when he was a parish pastor, he was not lax in dealing with a priest under his supervision who has since admitted that he sexually abused at least 30 boys. The bishop was responding to an article in the Oct. 27 issue of the Seattle Times daily newspaper that quoted several people as saying they warned then-Father Skylstad during the 1974-76 period he was pastor of Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary Parish in Spokane that another parish priest was abusing boys. "In court records, parishioners and victims have portrayed Skylstad as a pastor who failed to supervise his troubled assistant," said the article. But Bishop Skylstad, in a response published subsequently by the Seattle Times, said, "If I had received such reports, I would have taken action." The case involves Father Patrick O'Donnell, a priest who was removed from active ministry in 1986 because of child sex abuse allegations. Father O'Donnell was assigned to Assumption Parish in 1974-76 and then sent for treatment outside the diocese before returning to Spokane in 1978 and being given other parish assignments.

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