New Hampshire Bishop John McCormack says he’s confident that last year’s audit of the diocese and one planned for this year will show that the church has made great strides in protecting children.
McCormack says he’s confident this year’s audit — the fourth — combined with the positive results from other reviews, will show that New Hampshire’s parishes, schools and institutions are safe for all, particularly children and young people.
He says a great deal of personnel and resources have been dedicated to train thousand of employees and volunteers in child protection, and background checks are performed on them.
Under a 2002 agreement, the diocese agreed to annual checks in exchange for avoiding criminal prosecution. The agreement came after the diocese acknowledged its conduct had harmed children and that it probably would have been convicted of child endangerment had it not settled with the state.