02/13/2004

By BILL ZAJAC Staff writer
wzajac@repub.com

SPRINGFIELD - The Hampden County District Attorney's Office has begun taking steps to investigate allegations that the recently retired bishop of the Springfield diocese sexually abused two minors beginning more than two decades ago.

As local diocesan leaders sought to ease the shock of thousands of Catholics in Western Massachusetts, they were also preparing a report on the allegations that will be sent to the archbishop of Boston.

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The Rev. Thomas L. Dupre, whose retirement was announced Wednesday, has yet to respond to the allegations first reported yesterday in The Republican. He checked himself into an undisclosed medical facility Tuesday night for an undisclosed, non-life-threatening illness after The Republican confronted him with a detailed list of questions regarding the alleged abuse.

The Roman Catholic Diocese of Springfield said Dupre first applied to the Vatican for retirement in November 2003 and he was notified that it was accepted on Tuesday. Dupre, who has a recent history of heart problems, cited health reasons for his retirement.

The accusations against the bishop came from a mother of one of the alleged victims. The woman, a longtime worker in a Catholic school in the diocese, said her son was abused by Dupre starting in her son's freshman year in high school and that her son's best friend was abused beginning when he was a preteen. The alleged abuse started in the 1970s and lasted into the 1980s.

The mother said she wrote Dupre a letter about the accusations last year. Several weeks later he told The Republican that he expected to retire before he reached the mandatory retirement age of 75. He is 70.

Neither alleged victim has filed charges although both have retained legal counsel. The mother unsuccessfully attempted to persuade her son to press charges after The Republican interviewed her about a tip it had received alleging the abuse.

The diocese expects to choose an interim diocesan administrator this afternoon when the eight-priest Diocesan Consultors meet.

The interim administrator will oversee the diocese until a bishop is chosen by the Vatican. That process could take more than a year.

The diocese yesterday completed a report about what it learned about the allegations and will forward it to Archbishop Sean O'Malley of Boston. Allegations of abuse against bishops must be reported to the head of an archdiocese, according to the Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People.

Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests, a victims' support group, is urging Archbishop O'Malley to explain why a call from a priest in the Springfield diocese about allegations of abuse against Dupre was not acted upon.

"We believe that O'Malley owes Massachusetts Catholics, victims and law enforcement officials a speedy and thorough explanation of this situation," a statement from the group read.

The Rev. James J. Scahill, an outspoken critic of Dupre's handling of clergy sexual abuse, told the attorney general of the allegations in November and attempted to tell the archbishop. Scahill yesterday provided a phone record of his call to O'Malley Nov. 14, 2003, at 11:41 a.m.

Scahill left an urgent message for O'Malley to call him but did not specify that it was about a sexual abuse allegation against the bishop. O'Malley never returned the call, according to Scahill.

The representative for the archdiocese didn't return phone calls yesterday seeking comment, but Springfield Diocesan spokesman Mark E. Dupont said he expects the archdiocese to clarify today what happened. O'Malley was expected to return last night from a trip to Peru.

Scahill also said yesterday he spoke with Attorney General Thomas F. Reilly about the allegations on the same day he called O'Malley. Reilly's office confirmed the meeting between the two men at Scahill's East Longmeadow parish rectory while Reilly was visiting the area.

Scahill said he contacted Reilly to make sure he complied with the state law that mandates him to report abuse of children. Reilly told Scahill if the victims came forward, the allegations would be handed over to the district attorney's office.

Scahill said he went directly to Reilly, rather than Hampden County District Attorney William M. Bennett, because he had developed a respect for and trust in Reilly after they met several times in the past two years.

Greenfield lawyer John J. Stobierski said he planned to write to Reilly urging him to conduct an investigation into the Springfield diocese.

Reilly's office will respond to the request once it receives it, according to Reilly spokeswoman Ann E. Donlan.

Bennett said his office will try to determine if the allegations against Dupre are true.

"If true, we want to look into implications they have for possible criminal prosecution," Bennett said.

Bennett said yesterday his office has already contacted the diocese and the Boston lawyer who spoke on behalf of the alleged victims Wednesday night.

"We were not aware of the allegations before the news report," Bennett said.

Bennett is encouraging anyone with information regarding the allegations to come forward to his office.

"We are also encouraging news organizations to help us," said Bennett.

The statute of limitations on sexual crimes has severely limited prosecutions during the national Catholic Church clergy sexual abuse scandal. No cases have been prosecuted in Western Massachusetts since the Springfield diocese handed over records of allegations to the region's three district attorney offices almost two years ago.

A diocesan statement was issued yesterday in which Monsignor Richard S. Sniezyk expressed shock over the allegations.

"I can only imagine how difficult the news of the last 24 hours has been for everyone. Those of us who work for the diocese are experiencing feelings of confusion, anger, doubt, outrage and disbelief, to name just a few. We know that the priests and the good people out in the parishes must be feeling these things, and more," Sniezyk's statement read.

Sniezyk reiterated that he had no knowledge of the allegations until presented with the inquiry from The Republican.

The diocese also announced it handed to Bennett's office The Republican's questions to Dupre and the names of the victims from The Republican's inquiry.