As of April 11, 2011, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) has counted 5,948 clerics ‘not implausibly’ and ‘credibly’ accused in 1950-2010 of sexually abusing minors. The USCCB total omits allegations made in 2003.

As of April 11, 2011, the USCCB has counted 15,736 individuals who have alleged that they were abused as minors by priests. The USCCB total omits persons who made allegations in 2003.

The USCCB hired the John Jay College of Criminal Justice to evaluate data submitted by member bishops regarding the sexual abuse of minors by Catholic priests, bishops, deacons, and seminarians. In its 2004 report, the John Jay College found that, according to survey forms completed by the bishops, they had received in 1950-2002 ‘not implausible’ allegations of sexual abuse of minors committed by 4,392 priests, including 12 bishops.

In 2004, the USCCB commissioned the Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate (CARA) at Georgetown University to begin collecting annual data on allegations and settlements, and starting in Spring 2005, CARA has published a report each year. (See Bendyna’s 2/15/05 letter to Skylstad describing the commission, in the 2005 Report, PDF p. 12.) Among other data, that report counts the number of diocesan and religious order priests […]