The office of the New York attorney general has issued civil subpoenas to every Catholic diocese in the state as part of the expansive investigation into the alleged sexual abuse cases purportedly committed by members of the clergy on minors and which were continuously covered up by Catholic higher-ups.
According to ABC News, New York Attorney General Barbara Underwood is now setting her eyes on the alleged issues of sexual abuses committed against young individuals as her office subpoenaed all eight Roman Catholic dioceses in the state.
A source within the NY law enforcement agency first tipped the Associated Press on Thursday about the issuance as well as the on-going investigation conducted on the aforementioned misdemeanors.
As further detailed over at Time, the writ ordering these religious establishments to attend the court also seeks pertinent documents that could prove the accusations such as but not limited to payment transactions made with victims. The subpoena from the Attorney General may further demand submission of findings from the investigations conducted by the sect's internal committee.
More to Follow
The report from the Washington Post indicated that other than New York, other states in the country will soon be following suit.
According to the publication, the respective attorneys general of at least five states are now prodding into the investigations of misconduct and there are several more others who expressed their intention to once again open up the old secret files detailing the crimes purportedly committed by the dioceses in their jurisdictions.
New Jersey, for instance, is announcing the creation of a criminal task force whose sole purpose is to investigate the sexual misdemeanors of the Catholic priests in their area. Several other states such as New Mexico, Nebraska, and Missouri were also reportedly scaling up their inquiry efforts on the same matter.
The "Predator Priests" from Pennsylvania
This nationwide inquisition conducted on the Roman Catholic Church in America was believed to be fired up by the news of the Pennsylvanian grand jury discovering a mind-numbing number of sexual abuses committed against children by the so-called "predator priests."
As detailed over at Vox, the Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro revealed that there are more than 1,000 children believed to be abused by over 300 priests coming from six of Catholic dioceses in the state.
What makes the issue even worse is the supposed silence of Pope Francis. Concerned parties coming from the government, the public, and even among the followers of the religion have been calling for the pontiff's response on the accusations.
