In response to a surge of more than 500 lawsuits claiming child sexual abuse, San Francisco's conservative-leaning Archdiocese has started a Chapter 11 bankruptcy petition.
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Known for his vocal opinions within the ultraconservative branch of the American Catholic Church, Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone emphasized that the filing is a move to compassionately treat abuse survivors while maintaining important missions.
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This legal action is in line with the 2019 extension of the California state statute of limitations for accusations of child sexual abuse.
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While the dioceses of Oakland and Santa Rosa have also filed for bankruptcy this year, San Francisco is the third archdiocese in the state to do so.
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Legal professionals estimate that about a dozen dioceses and archdioceses in the US are presently going through bankruptcy.
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Many of the allegations center on long-ago abuse instances involving priests who are no longer active. The Archdiocese's financial claims and efforts to be transparent have drawn criticism.
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The only diocese in the state that hasn't yet made public a list of clergy members who can be credibly accused of sexual assault is the Archdiocese of San Francisco, which serves around 450,000 Catholics in the counties of San Francisco, San Mateo, and Marin.
-MyNibandh
Instead, the archdiocese keeps a roster of priests and deacons who are in good standing and strikes the names of those who are being looked into for child sex abuse off the list.
-MyNibandh