It would appear that police in New Orleans are targeting the Archdiocese for a massive child sex trafficking organization. The investigation into these allegations came after the Church had filled for bankruptcy protection after a number of victims had sued them for sexual abuse. The organization had failed to submit internal documents which would have implicated a number of their employees, who benefitted from financial compensation for decades. A judge put a quick end to this.

The details of the case are terrifying. The priests would regularly ferry their victims around to abuse them. This makes the crime fit the definition of child trafficking, which is an even more serious charge than the routine sexual abuse that was happening. These guys even had a habit of sending victims as “gifts” for one another:

“Additionally, it was reported that in some instances, ‘gifts’ were given to abuse victims by the accused [molesters] with instructions to pass on or give the gift to certain priests at the next school or church,” the warrant contended. “It was said that the ‘gift’ was a form of signaling to another priest that the person was a target for sexual abuse.”

One of the monsters facing justice is a 92 year old priest named Lawrence Hecker. Having enjoyed himself at the expense of his victims for decades, justice has been painfully slow. At best, this man will probably die before he even sets foot in prison. Fortunately for him, the hell he preached about doesn’t exist, because he would have a first class ticket if it did.

As is typical in these kinds of cases, the Church has released a statement which is an obvious lie:

On Tuesday, the church spokesperson said the archdiocese of New Orleans “has been openly discussing the topic of sex abuse” for years. And “in keeping with this”, the spokesperson said, “we also are committed to working with law enforcement in these endeavors.”

This statement seems to omit the fact that they actively suppressed information specifically to protect their own abusers. How is that a commitment to working with law enforcement? The statement should have read like this instead: “We have been forced to discuss openly the topic of sexual abuse despite our stonewalling. WE are committed to the rapists that make up our ranks, and will protect them at all costs from law enforcement endeavors”. See, doesn’t that seem a little more honest and consistent?