Superior Court Judge Emilie Elias ruled on Jan. 7 that when the Archdiocese of Los Angeles releases the documents from priest files with information related to allegations of child sexual abuse, the release should include the names of church hierarchy. Attorneys for media organizations had sought to gain release of those names included in the files. “The Archdiocese has been committed to the release of the files as part of our continued efforts to inform the public of what had occurred and our efforts to prevent abuse and protect children in our parishes and schools,” said Carolina Guevara, archdiocesan associate director for Media Relations. In 2007, the archdiocese and lawyers for the plaintiffs agreed to a process concerning the release of the files as part of a “global settlement” of abuse cases. Retired U.S. District Court Judge Dickran Tevrizian ordered that portions of Archdiocesan priest files containing information about child sexual abuse be released with names edited, or redacted, so the names of victims and church employees would not be revealed. The archdiocese and lawyers for the plaintiffs had been reviewing the files to comply with Judge Tevrizian’s order.Archdiocesan officials noted that Judge Elias’s revision to the original Tevrizian order acknowledges that much of the information in question has already been made public by the Archdiocese in the 2004 “Report to the People of God” and in updates released in the subsequent proffers.Attorneys for the archdiocese confirmed that they intend to abide by the revisions made by Judge Elias and will continue to work with all parties involved to facilitate the release of the documents as promptly as possible.
