CNN reports that 21 Roman Catholic priests in Philadelphia have been put on leave after review of suspected child sexual abuse.
Twenty-one priests have been placed on administrative leave following a review of suspected child sexual abuse by members of the Catholic Church in Philadelphia, according to a statement from the city’s archbishop.
The church investigated 37 priests identified in a grand jury report as remaining in “active ministry with credible allegations of child sexual abuse,” according to Cardinal Justin Rigali.
In addition to the 21 announced Tuesday, three other priests have already been placed on administrative leave after the report was released in February, Rigali said.
Five others would have been subject to administrative leave, he added, but one was already on leave and two others are considered “incapacitated” and have not been in active ministry. Two other priests no longer serve in the Archdiocese of Philadelphia, but the church has “notified the superiors of their religious orders and the bishops of the dioceses where they are residing,” he said.
“I want to be clear: These administrative leaves are interim measures,” Rigali said in a written statement. “They are not in any way final determinations or judgments.”