By Rhina Guidos
Catholic News Service
WASHINGTON — Former Cardinal Theodore E. McCarrick pleaded not guilty Sept. 3 in a Massachusetts court, where he is facing three counts of sexually assaulting a teenager in the 1970s.
Local news reporters posted video on Twitter of the 91-year-old McCarrick, wearing a face mask and slowly heading toward Dedham District Court with the aid of a walker as protesters shouted, “Go to hell, McCarrick,” and “How many lives, how many children?”
He was not taken under custody but was ordered to post $5,000 bail and have no contact with the alleged victim or children. The former high-ranking, globe-trotting church official also was ordered not to leave the country and surrendered his passport.
His next court appearance is Oct. 28.
The day before the arraignment, a former employee and a former priest of the Archdiocese of Newark filed lawsuits alleging unpermitted sexual contact by McCarrick for incidents in 1991.
The Massachusetts case is the first time, however, that McCarrick has faced criminal charges for assault of a minor, which is alleged to first have taken place at a wedding reception in 1974 and continued over the years in different states. Massachusetts allows for a pause of the statute of limitations in criminal cases “when (the) defendant is not usually and publicly resident,” says the website Findlaw.com
“This is to prevent criminals from avoiding the consequences of their crimes by simply running, hiding and waiting out the authorities,” it explains. Because McCarrick, who didn’t live in Massachusetts, left the state, it put in place the “pause” needed for authorities to file charges against him for incidents that allegedly took place almost 50 years ago.
The state prosecutor, addressing the judge hearing the case, said McCarrick had immersed himself into the fabric of the victim’s family, using his status as a priest to access and prey on the boy.
“He specifically used the act of confession to get the victim away from his parents and from his siblings and then would sexually assault the victim during that time frame,” the prosecutor said.
In a statement on the day of the arraignment, the Archdiocese of Boston praised the legal action.
“Today’s legal proceeding is an important step in revealing the truth in a just and consequential manner,” it said, noting that McCarrick’s canonical conviction resulted in his dismissal from the priesthood.
