"Events impose on Keeler new sensitivity about abuse." The Baltimore Sun, 13 December 2002.

Events impose on Keeler new sensitivity about abuse;
After coming face to face with victims, cardinal embraces full disclosure

By John Rivera
Sun Staff

December 13, 2002

Nine months ago, Cardinal William H. Keeler declined to publicly address the spiraling sexual abuse scandal as church officials claimed the Archdiocese of Baltimore had taken care of the problem.

Yesterday, Keeler found himself in a courtroom, confronted with his most glaring mistake in dealing with that issue: his decision in 1993 to reinstate suspended priest Maurice Blackwell to St. Edward's in West Baltimore after a young parishioner named Dontee Stokes accused the priest of molesting him.

The intervening months since Blackwell's shooting have seen Keeler move from a reluctance to publicly address the issue to become the churchman most cited as an example of openness and transparency.
Unprecedented event

His appearance yesterday also made Keeler perhaps the first American cardinal to testify in a criminal trial.

Since the sexual abuse crisis erupted in January, several bishops have been required to testify under oath in depositions. But Keeler is the first cardinal in this crisis, perhaps in the history of the church in this country, to take the stand in a criminal proceeding, according to one expert.

"I never want to say never when talking about the history of the entire Catholic Church, but certainly I don't recall any," said the Rev. Thomas J. Reese, editor of the Catholic weekly America and the nation's leading chronicler of the church hierarchy.

Keeler's stint on the witness stand yesterday highlighted the evolution over the past year in his stance on public disclosure of sexual abuse in the Baltimore Archdiocese.

After the first revelations came out of Boston that Cardinal Bernard F. Law had allowed priests accused of sexual abuse to remain in ministry, transferring several from parish to parish, dioceses across the country began reviewing their files to determine whether anyone accused of sexual abuse was still in active ministry.

Some bishops made strong statements denouncing the abuse and apologized for the actions of a few priests.

But Keeler did not immediately address the crisis publicly. Instead, a spokesman, who has since been replaced, issued a statement in March saying the archdiocese did not need to because it had been vigilant in ferreting out all accused abusers.
Blackwell shooting

Two months later, the sexual abuse scandal arrived in Baltimore in a big way, with the May 13 shooting of Blackwell. Keeler, a bishop loyal to his priests, followed his first pastoral instinct and visited Blackwell at his hospital bedside.

That triggered a fusillade of criticism from advocates for sexual abuse victims and from Stokes' family, who demanded that Keeler apologize to Dontee Stokes for the alleged abuse he suffered.

Over the course of a week, Keeler slowly, seemingly grudgingly, came to the decision to apologize to Stokes.

He first apologized during his sermon at a noon Mass. Then he visited the home of Stokes' grandfather. The next day, he called Stokes' mother to express his regret. Finally, nearly two weeks later, Keeler met for about 40 minutes with Stokes at the Reisterstown home of the young man's aunt, where he is confined to house arrest.
Prayer and tears

Warren Brown, Stokes' attorney, described the meeting as emotional, with "a great deal of prayer" and "a lot of tears."

Several people close to Keeler said that event was one of several that sensitized the cardinal to the pain felt by victims of sexual abuse. At the June meeting of the U.S. bishops in Dallas, Keeler was one of just a few cardinals to meet personally with victims of sexual abuse.

And earlier this year, the torment of sexual abuse hit Keeler personally, when he learned that a member of his family had been victimized by a relative.

Keeler acknowledged as much in a statement he released yesterday in response to an inquiry for this article.

"The horrible event in May and speaking with Dontee Stokes deepened my appreciation of just how intense the pain is that victims of abuse live with every day. Also, the witness of survivors at our Dallas meeting and the effects of an incident of abuse in the family of a cousin reinforced this understanding," he said.

"Over the succeeding months, I came to the conviction that we must be more transparent to serve victims and their families, to protect children, and to remove suspicion from our wonderful priests. Healing starts with truth."

That experience has given way to a steely resolve to publicly confront the church's sexual abuse scandal. He became a vocal proponent of zero tolerance.

In September came the most dramatic step, the release of the names of 56 priests accused of sexual abuse in Baltimore and a complete financial disclosure of the $5.6 million in settlements and other expenses that sexual abuse has cost the archdiocese.

The disclosure was praised at the time by advocates for abuse victims. Those same groups, such as the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, are now unhappy that the list has been removed from the Baltimore Archdiocese Web site.

Church officials said the posting was never meant to be permanent.

Keeler's actions were also hailed by groups that promote church financial disclosures.

"He's among the best in our books, and certainly he has shown enormous courage in doing what he has done," said Francis J. Butler, president of Washington-based Foundations and Donors Interested in Catholic Activities. "We wish the rest of the nation's dioceses would follow his example."
Personal cost

But Keeler has paid a price. The disclosure was criticized by many priests - some publicly, many more privately - as a betrayal.

The Rev. Richard Lawrence, pastor of St. Vincent de Paul Catholic Church at Front Street and the Fallsway, said he can see the toll in Keeler's face:

"I can see a fair amount of distress in him in all of this. But he seems pretty well resolved. He knew that it would cause pain in 12 different directions, but he's determined to keep the ship on the right course. I almost get a sense of him leaning onto the wheel keeping the bow of the boat into the wave. He's going to take it straight on."

Perhaps Keeler was affirmed in that evolution as he left the witness stand yesterday.

Tamara Stokes, Dontee's mother, who months earlier was harshly critical of the cardinal, jumped up to give him a hug and a kiss.

CORRECTION:

Because of erroneous information provided by an archdiocesan spokesman, The Sun incorrectly reported yesterday that Tamara Stokes, mother of Dontee Stokes, embraced Cardinal William H. Keeler as he left the courtroom after testifying in her son's trial for shooting a priest. It was Charline Stokes, Tamara Stokes' sister, who hugged the cardinal. Tamara Stokes, who was not in the courtroom, remains critical of Keeler's handling of her son's allegation of abuse by the priest. The Sun regrets the error.