This timeline of the Catholic clergy abuse crisis runs from the late 19th century to the present, and it focuses on the United States. We do include some events from Europe, Latin America, Africa, and Asia, because global synergies are more and more evident among survivor movements, scholarship, journalism, and of course the Catholic church’s response.
This timeline is a work in progress, and we hope you will suggest events to add. Timelines and histories emphasize the wrongdoers – the abusers and the corrupt managers – but it’s the courage of individual survivors that has made the history happen. The photographs in this timeline emphasize the survivors’ contribution. We hope the timeline will be useful both as a very pared-down history and as a collection of helpful links to important documents and accounts. We’ll be building timelines for other countries and at various scales, including many timelines of individual priests. One of our earlier timelines focused on diverse opinions about the abuse crisis; we’ll be exploring that approach as well. Your advice is always welcome.
Before 1950
More than 1,360 US priests and religious ordained and vowed before 1950 are known to be accused of abusing children, including: Bishop Carroll T Dozier; Abbot John Eidenschink OSB; Fr George S Endal SJ; Sister Norma Giannini RSM; Fr Louis Toma PSSC.
1885-09-27 Fr. Louis Taelman SJ enters Jesuits; worked in Native communities and is accused of abuse
1903-08-04 Pope Pius X elected
1905-12-20 Decree of Pope Pius X on “frequent and daily confession”
1910-08-08 Decree of Pope Pius X on confession at “about the seventh year” before communion
1914-09-03 Pope Benedict XV elected
1918-05-19 Pio-Benedictine or 1917 Code of Canon Law takes effect
1922-02-06 Pope Pius XI elected
1922-06-09 Vatican issues its first instruction about soliciting sex in confession
1939-03-02 Pope Pius XII elected
1947 Servants of the Paraclete is founded by Fr Gerald Fitzgerald in Jemez Springs NM
1950s
More than 1,300 US priests and religious ordained and vowed in the 1950s are known to be accused of abusing children, including Fr Thomas Adamson.
1958-10-28 Pope John XXIII elected
1960s
More than 1,370 US priests and religious ordained and vowed in the 1960s are known to be accused of abusing children, including Fr John J Geoghan
1960-04-16 Fr John Feit rapes and murders Irene Garza at Holy Saturday confession in McAllen TX
1962-03-16 Vatican issues second instruction about solicitation in confession and sexual abuse
1963-06-21 Pope Paul VI elected
1966-03-25 Fr Andrew Ronan is an early laicization by Congregation for Religious for sexual abuse
1967-02-13 Servants of the Paraclete and Santa Fe archdiocese send accused priests into parishes
1969-11-07 Sr. Catherine Anne Cesnik SSND disappears; found murdered 1970-01-03
1970s
More than 1,100 US priests and religious ordained and vowed in the 1970s are known to be accused of abusing children, including
1971 Conrad Baars writes The Crisis in the Priesthood
1974-03-11 Survivors of Fr Lawrence Murphy leaflet Chrism Mass in Milwaukee WI
1978-08-26 Pope John Paul I elected
1978-10-16 Pope John Paul II elected
1980s
More than 500 US priests and religious ordained and vowed in the 1980s are known to be accused of abusing children, including
1981-03-10 Fr Donald Roemer of Los Angeles indicted; pleads no contest to abusing boys on retreats
1983-11-27 New Code of Canon Law takes effect; see can. 1395
1984-09-04 Minos Simon gets seal lifted on 6/27/84 Gastal lawsuit accusing Fr Gilbert Gauthe
1984 12-12 Jeff Anderson files suit in St Paul about abuse by Fr Thomas Adamson
1985-11-15 Fr Robert Friese of Chicago is convicted of abusing a boy
1985-12-09 Manual by Tom Doyle and Ray Mouton is sent by Fr Michael Peterson to every U.S. bishop
1987-04-12 Fr Michael Peterson RIP led St Luke Institute
1988-02-09 U.S. Catholic Conference issues Mark Chopko’s statement on clergy abuse
1988-05-22 Archbishop Hunthausen of Seattle reveals Fr McGreal after Jeanne Miller appears on TV
1988-11-14 Survivors appear on Geraldo Rivera show with Tom Doyle and Jason Berry
1990s
More than 240 US priests and religious ordained and vowed in the 1990s are known to be accused of abusing children.
1990-07-18 Winter Report (1, 2, 3) on Mount Cashel abuse forces Archbishop Penney to resign
1992-05-07-Frank Fitzpatrick accuses his abuser Fr James Porter, playing tape; also on Larry King
1992-07-24 About 50 survivors gather in Boston for SNAP conference organized by Barbara Blaine
1992-09-01 Jason Berry publishes Lead Us Not into Temptation about Tom Doyle and early activism
1992-10-16 VOCAL/Linkup’s conference outside Chicago organized by Jeanne Miller draws 300
1993-03-19 Archbishop Robert Sanchez of Santa Fe resigns before accusers appear on 60 Minutes
1993-03-25 Phil Donahue Show (1, 2) on clergy abuse with Barbara Blaine, Jason Berry, David Clohessy
1993-06-11 Pope John Paul II writes a letter to the US bishops about scandal and the “sins of clerics”
1993-06-15 Adobe releases Acrobat to store and share files in Portable Document Format (PDF)
1993-11-13 Stephen Rubino files suit for Stephen Cook, alleging abuse by then-Archbishop Bernardin
1993-11-17 US bishops ask Vatican to change canon law to make it easier to remove offending priests
1994-02 Sr. Maura O’Donohue MMM reports to Vatican on AIDS/nun abuse; made public in 2001
1994-02-28 Judge Spiegel grants Cook’s motion to drop Cardinal Bernardin from his case
1994-10-31 Stephen Rubino files RICO suit alleging abuse of 34 children by 30 Camden NJ priests
1994-11-14 National Conference of Catholic Bishops releases Restoring Trust, Volume I
1995-02-21 Sr. Maura O’Donohue MMM writes follow-up memo to her 1995 report on nun abuse
1995-11-13 National Conference of Catholic Bishops releases Restoring Trust, Volume II
1996-07-09 Mitchell Garabedian files first lawsuit alleging abuse by Fr John Geoghan of three boys
1997-02-23 Allegations against Fr Marcial Maciel made public by Gerald Renner and Jason Berry
1997-07-25 Jury in Dallas awards survivors $119 million in Fr Rudy Kos case, as detailed in final judgment
1998-06-02 Bishop Keith Symons of Palm Beach diocese admits abuse and resigns
1998-11-20 Sr Marie McDonald MSOLA reports on abuse of nuns in Africa and Rome
1998-12 Chibnall et al publish survey on the sexual trauma of Catholic nuns
1999-10-29 Survivor Eric Patterson RIP
2000s
More than 60 US priests and religious ordained and vowed in the 2000s are known to be accused of abusing children, including
2001-04-30 Abuse cases consolidated at the CDF by Sacramentorum Sanctitatis Tutela
2002-01-06 Boston Globe article on Fr John Geoghan begins Spotlight series (1/6/02)
2002-03-15 Poynter Institute begins Clergy Abuse Tracker
2002-03-23 Linkup President Tom Economus RIP
2002-06-12 Dallas Morning News finds “two-thirds of bishops let accused priests work”
2002-06-13 Survivors meet with cardinals and speak at USCCB General Assembly 1, 2, 3, 4
2002-06-14 USCCB General Assembly in Dallas approves Charter and Norms
2002-06-21 Tucson diocese releases first church list of accused
2003-01-01 SOL window of one year opens in California; bishops complain; about 800 file claims
2003-02-10 Suffolk County Grand Jury releases report on Rockville Centre diocese
2003-03-03 New Hampshire Attorney General releases report on Manchester diocese
2003-07-23 Massachusetts Attorney General releases report on Boston archdiocese
2004-07-06 Bankruptcy filing, a first, by Portland OR archdiocese; $75M settlement in 2007
2004-09-20 Bankruptcy filing by Tucson diocese; $22M settlement in 2005
2005-04-19 Pope Benedict XVI elected
2005-09-15 Grand Jury releases report on Philadelphia archdiocese
2006-10-10 Bankruptcy filing by Davenport diocese; $37M settlement with 156 in 2007
2007-01-16 Hand of God film about Birmingham survivor Paul Cultrera airs on Frontline
2007-02-27 Bankruptcy filing by San Diego diocese; $198M settlement with 144 in 2007
2007-06-04 Milwaukee’s Dolan asks Rome’s permission to shelter $57M; Vatican approves
2007-07-14 Los Angeles archdiocese settles with 508 survivors for $660M
2008-03-01 Bankruptcy filing by Fairbanks diocese; $9.8M settlement with 258 in 2010
2008-04-17 Pope Benedict meets with survivors during his visit to the US
2009-02-17 Bankruptcy filing by Oregon Jesuits; $166M settlement with 480 in 2011
2009-05-20 Ryan Report on the Irish industrial schools is released
2009-06-10 Survivors of institutional abuse and Dublin supporters march in solidarity
2009-10-18 Bankruptcy filing by Wilmington diocese; $77M settlement with 150 in 2011
2009-11-26 Murphy Report on the Archdiocese of Dublin is released
2010s
More than 30 US priests and religious ordained and vowed in the 1960s are already known to be accused of abusing children, including
2010-01-19 Canisius College rector’s letter prompts German abuse reckoning and Raue report
2011-01-04 Bankruptcy filing by Milwaukee archdiocese; $21M settlement with 330 of 570 in 2015
2011-01-21 Grand Jury releases report on Philadelphia archdiocese
2011-04-28 Bankruptcy filing by Christian Brothers; $16.5M settlement with 400 in 2013
2011-07-20 Ireland’s Taoiseach Enda Kenny speaks before Dáil Éireann about the Cloyne report
2012-03-26 Trial of Msgr William Lynn begins in Philadelphia; convicted; vacated on appeal in 2013
2012-04 SOL window of two years opens in Hawaii
2012-12 Catherine Corless describes the Tuam Mother and Baby Home; story breaks; podcast
2013-03-13 Pope Francis elected
2013-11-12 Bankruptcy filing by Gallup diocese; $21M settlement with 57 in 2016
2014-01-15 Bankruptcy filing by Stockton diocese; $15M settlement with 34 in 2017
2014-01-31 Bankruptcy filing by Helena diocese; $20M settlement in 2015 with 360 many Native victims
2015-01-16 Bankruptcy filing by Twin Cities archdiocese; $210M settlement with 450 in 2018
2015-10-28 Spotlight film about the Boston Globe investigation premieres in Boston
2015-12-07 Bankruptcy filing by Duluth diocese; $40M settlement with 125 in 2019
2016-03-01 Grand Jury releases report on Altoona-Johnstown PA diocese
2016-09-23 SOL permanent window Bill B326-33 for Guam signed into law
2017-03-03 Bankruptcy filing by New Ulm diocese; $34M settlement with 100 in 2020
2017-03-13 Catherine Corless’ list of Tuam deceased is published; another version
2017-03-31 Bankruptcy filing by Great Falls-Billings; $20M settlement with 86 in 2018
2017-05-19 The Keepers documentary about Sr. Cathy Cesnik premieres on Netflix
2017-06-01 Bankruptcy filing by Crozier order and pre-negotiated $25.5M settlement with 43
2017-09-24 SNAP President Barbara Blaine RIP
2017-10-28 Dan Barry’s Lost Children of Tuam is published; technical report issued
2017-12-15 Australian Royal Commission’s Final Report is released
2018-04 SOL window of two years opens in Hawaii
2018-06-24 Journalist and Abuse Tracker Editor Kathy Shaw RIP; video tribute
2018-08-08 Scholar A.W. Richard Sipe RIP; see his website
2018-08-14 Pennsylvania Grand Jury report with responses 1, 2; other AGs begin investigations
2018-09-24 Zach Hiner succeeds David Clohessy and Barbara Dorris as SNAP’s executive director
2018-12-02 Doris Reisinger speaks at Voices of Faith; then CDF’s Fr Hermann Geissler FSO resigns
2018-12-28 James Grein testifies in Vatican investigation that McCarrick abused him in confession
2019-01-25 Peter Steinfels’ “Vehemently Misleading” about PA Grand Jury is published; a response
2019-02-16 Cardinal McCarrick is laicized
2019-02-21 Vatican summit on clergy abuse
2019-04-04 Survivor and Linkup President Gary Hayes RIP
2019-05-11 Polish documentary Tell No One by Sekielski brothers premieres; reckoning begins
2019-08-14 SOL window of one year for New York begins; Bill S2440 extended one year by S7082
2019-08-27 Michael Rezendes’ article on abuse of Black children in Greenwood MS is published
2019-09-12 Bankruptcy filing by Rochester NY diocese
2019-09-17 Thesis on dark networks in Victoria, Australia submitted by Sally Muytjens
2020s
2020-01-01 SOL window of three years is opened in California by AB-218
2020-01-30 France’s Cardinal Barbarin’s conviction was overturned in case of convicted priest
2020-02-19 Bankruptcy filing by Harrisburg PA diocese
2020-02-22 L’Arche report on Jean Vanier and Fr Thomas Philippe is released 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6
2020-02-28 Bankruptcy filing by Buffalo NY diocese
2020-05-01 Bankruptcy filing by New Orleans archdiocese
2020-05-16 Polish documentary Hide and Seek by Sekielski brothers prompts Vos Estis filing
2020-06-15 Bankruptcy filing by St Cloud diocese, after $22.5M settlement with 70
2020-06-19 Bankruptcy filing by Syracuse NY diocese
2020-10-01 Bankruptcy filing by Rockville Centre NY diocese
2020-10-01 Bankruptcy filing by Camden NJ diocese
2020-10-14 Vatican trial begins of 2 priests for abuse and cover-up at Pius X youth seminary
2020-11-10 Vatican’s McCarrick report analyzes some mismanagement but skirts child abuse
2020-11-23 NY AG Letitia James sues the Buffalo diocese, with memorandum on naming
2021-01-25 Bishop Joseph Hart “rebuked” and cleared by CDF, despite 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9
2021-02-25 Denise Lajimodiere, Kathleen Holscher & Jack Downey’s forum on Native abuse
2021-01-30 Study of three accused religious priests and the NY Child Victims Act
2021-03-01 Irish Mother and Baby Homes Commission of Investigation publishes report
2021-03-18 Report on Cologne archdiocese released; resignations follow
2021-05-24 Fr Michael Pfleger reinstated after Chicago archdiocese found 3 claims insufficient