Maryland Attorney General Conducting Investigation of Child Sex Abuse at Catholic Churches and Schools

A notice on the webpage of Maryland Attorney General Brian Frosh suggests that state authorities are conducting an investigation similar to one in Pennsylvania that found decades of child sex abuse by Roman Catholic clergy and cover-ups by church leaders.

Following standard practice, the attorney general’s office declined to confirm or deny that an investigation is under way. But a spokeswoman said the notice inviting victims to report offenses “associated with a school or place of worship” has been on the website for about a month.

That means Frosh’s office posted it shortly after Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro released an explosive grand jury report on Aug. 14 that said more than 300 “predator priests” in that state had been credibly accused of sexually abusing more than 1,000 children.

The report concluded that for decades church officials, including the leaders of archdioceses, covered up crimes such as the rapes of children.

Gov. Larry Hogan, a Republican, has at times clashed with Frosh, a Democrat. But Hogan spokeswoman Amelia Chasse said the governor would welcome a probe.

“The governor has said that, as a Catholic, he believes all allegations of this nature must be taken seriously and fully investigated,” Chasse said.

Read more at Baltimore Sun

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