Kirchenakte Documented events from judgments, reports and church documents
1975-1989 · 14 years · show in timeline

Abuse by priests in the Archdiocese of St. John's, Newfoundland (Winter Commission)

At the end of the 1980s several priests in the Archdiocese of St. John's in Newfoundland were charged with and convicted of sexual abuse of boys. In 1990 the Winter Commission set up by the archdiocese found that the diocesan leadership had known of allegations since 1975 but did nothing decisive until 1989 to stop the abuse or warn the parents. The archbishop did not follow the guidelines of the Canadian Bishops' Conference. According to the commission, the almost absolute authority of the Church in daily life made it possible that nobody believed a boy who said something bad about a priest.

Period
1975-1989 (14 years)
Country
Canada
Institutions
Archdiocese of St. John's
Category
Sexual abuse, Cover-up
Level of evidence
A Primary source · what does this mean?
Persons
James Hickey (priest of the Archdiocese of St. John's, sentenced in 1988 to five years in prison for 20 sexual offences against children)
John Corrigan (priest of the Archdiocese of St. John's, sentenced in 1988 to five years in prison after pleading guilty)
Gordon Walsh (priest of the Archdiocese of St. John's, sentenced in 1990 to 18 months in prison)
Cathedral Basilica of St. John the Baptist in St. John's, Newfoundland, cathedral church of the archdiocese
Cathedral Basilica of St. John the Baptist in St. John's, Newfoundland, cathedral church of the archdiocese Image: Paul from Hacketts Cove, Canada, CC BY-SA 4.0, Source

What happened to the people

Who was affected? Victims and numbers

  1. The victims were male adolescents, the perpetrators Catholic priests. According to the commission, this was an abuse of power and trust, a profound violation of the person and a crime. Perpetrators used alcohol to make the victims compliant.
    Evidence: Archdiocesan Commission of Enquiry (Vorsitz Gordon A. Winter), Erzdiözese St. John’s, Kap. 7, Einleitung, S. 135
    „the victims were adolescent male children, and the offenders were Roman Catholic clergy.“
    The Report of the Archdiocesan Commission of Enquiry into the Sexual Abuse of Children by Members of the Clergy, Volume One, Kap. 7, Einleitung, S. 135. Original
    Evidence: Archdiocesan Commission of Enquiry (Vorsitz Gordon A. Winter), Erzdiözese St. John’s, Kap. 7, Term 1, S. 137
    „There is evidence that alcohol was offered to many of the victims for this purpose“
    The Report of the Archdiocesan Commission of Enquiry into the Sexual Abuse of Children by Members of the Clergy, Volume One, Kap. 7, Term 1, S. 137. Original

How were they charged and sentenced?

  1. After a victim came forward in 1987, charges were brought against the priest James Hickey; in September 1988 he pleaded guilty to 20 counts of sexual offences against children and was sentenced to five years in prison. Afterwards five more priests of the archdiocese and two laicised priests were charged. John Corrigan was sentenced to five years, Gordon Walsh to 18 months in prison.
    Evidence: Archdiocesan Commission of Enquiry (Vorsitz Gordon A. Winter), Erzdiözese St. John’s, Kap. 1, S. 1 (PDF-S. 18)
    „In September 1988 Hickey pleaded guUty to 20 sexual offences involving children and was sentenced to five years in jail.“
    The Report of the Archdiocesan Commission of Enquiry into the Sexual Abuse of Children by Members of the Clergy, Volume One, Kap. 1, S. 1 (PDF-S. 18). Original
    Evidence: Archdiocesan Commission of Enquiry (Vorsitz Gordon A. Winter), Erzdiözese St. John’s, Kap. 1, S. 1 (PDF-S. 18)
    „charges of child sexual abuse were brought against five other priests then serving in the Archdiocese and against two other priests living in the lay state within the Archdiocese“
    The Report of the Archdiocesan Commission of Enquiry into the Sexual Abuse of Children by Members of the Clergy, Volume One, Kap. 1, S. 1 (PDF-S. 18). Original
    Evidence: Archdiocesan Commission of Enquiry (Vorsitz Gordon A. Winter), Erzdiözese St. John’s, Kap. 1, S. 1 (PDF-S. 18)
    „On December 15, 1988 John Corrigan pleaded guilty to five charges of gross indecency and to two charges of sexual assault against boys from two parishes near St. John's.“
    The Report of the Archdiocesan Commission of Enquiry into the Sexual Abuse of Children by Members of the Clergy, Volume One, Kap. 1, S. 1 (PDF-S. 18). Original
    Evidence: Archdiocesan Commission of Enquiry (Vorsitz Gordon A. Winter), Erzdiözese St. John’s, Kap. 1, S. 1 (PDF-S. 18)
    „sentenced to five years in jail. Gordon Walsh was found guilty of one count of gross indecency and one count of indecent assault on May 19, 1990 and was sentenced to eighteen months in prison.“
    The Report of the Archdiocesan Commission of Enquiry into the Sexual Abuse of Children by Members of the Clergy, Volume One, Kap. 1, S. 1 (PDF-S. 18). Original

What happened to those affected?

  1. Almost all the parents of the victims spoke of a deep loss of trust in the Church because it had not offered them pastoral and clinical help when it was most needed. For some this meant a complete loss of faith. In communities "warring camps" formed; one man said families hated each other over what had happened.
    Evidence: Archdiocesan Commission of Enquiry (Vorsitz Gordon A. Winter), Erzdiözese St. John’s, S. 124 (PDF-S. 132)
    „principally because their Church did not reach out to offer pastoral and clinical help when it was most needed“
    The Report of the Archdiocesan Commission of Enquiry into the Sexual Abuse of Children by Members of the Clergy, Volume One, S. 124 (PDF-S. 132). Original
    Evidence: Archdiocesan Commission of Enquiry (Vorsitz Gordon A. Winter), Erzdiözese St. John’s, S. 124 (PDF-S. 132)
    „For some parents their disillusionment with the Church has meant a complete loss of faith.“
    The Report of the Archdiocesan Commission of Enquiry into the Sexual Abuse of Children by Members of the Clergy, Volume One, S. 124 (PDF-S. 132). Original
    Evidence: Archdiocesan Commission of Enquiry (Vorsitz Gordon A. Winter), Erzdiözese St. John’s, S. 124 (PDF-S. 132)
    „As one man put it, "Families hate each other over what has happened".“
    The Report of the Archdiocesan Commission of Enquiry into the Sexual Abuse of Children by Members of the Clergy, Volume One, S. 124 (PDF-S. 132). Original

Witness accounts and records

From the case files A victim on the perpetrator's pressure (court transcript, quoted in the Winter Report)

He parked and began to talk to me and said, "You're not some dumb kid that was taken advantage of. You knew what you were getting into all along. If I get in trouble with the police then you're going to be in just as much trouble, and if I go to jail they'll put you in a place for boys that's not very nice." And that was the end of that. We went back to the normal routine. (Court Transcript)

Archdiocesan Commission of Enquiry (Vorsitz Gordon A. Winter), Erzdiözese St. John’s: The Report of the Archdiocesan Commission of Enquiry into the Sexual Abuse of Children by Members of the Clergy, Volume One, S. 46 (PDF-S. 59). Original

Background

Why? Justification and motives (according to the sources)

  1. The priests had unsupervised access to boys and used the special power of their office. The Church had almost absolute authority in daily life in Newfoundland; this prevented healthy scepticism and encouraged the suppression and denial of indications.
    Evidence: Archdiocesan Commission of Enquiry (Vorsitz Gordon A. Winter), Erzdiözese St. John’s, Kap. 7, Term 1, S. 137
    „they were given unquestioned and“
    The Report of the Archdiocesan Commission of Enquiry into the Sexual Abuse of Children by Members of the Clergy, Volume One, Kap. 7, Term 1, S. 137. Original
    Evidence: Archdiocesan Commission of Enquiry (Vorsitz Gordon A. Winter), Erzdiözese St. John’s, Kap. 7, Term 1, S. 137
    „where it reached a position of nearly absolute authority in everyday life.“
    The Report of the Archdiocesan Commission of Enquiry into the Sexual Abuse of Children by Members of the Clergy, Volume One, Kap. 7, Term 1, S. 137. Original
    Evidence: Archdiocesan Commission of Enquiry (Vorsitz Gordon A. Winter), Erzdiözese St. John’s, Kap. 7, Term 1, S. 138
    „encouraged suppression and denial of the disclosures. Who would believe a mere boy who said bad things about a priest?“
    The Report of the Archdiocesan Commission of Enquiry into the Sexual Abuse of Children by Members of the Clergy, Volume One, Kap. 7, Term 1, S. 138. Original

Who received the assets, who profited?

  1. The commission was told that two of the convicted priests had used parish funds for their lifestyle; it then examined the financial controls of the parishes concerned.
    Evidence: Archdiocesan Commission of Enquiry (Vorsitz Gordon A. Winter), Erzdiözese St. John’s, Kap. 4, S. 79
    „It was alleged that because of the financial control system used by the Archdiocese, the convicted priests had been able to use parish funds to support their deviant sexual lifestyle.“
    The Report of the Archdiocesan Commission of Enquiry into the Sexual Abuse of Children by Members of the Clergy, Volume One, Kap. 4, S. 79. Original

Response of the Church

  1. Allegations were reported to the archdiocese as early as 1975. Between 1975 and 1989 the diocesan leadership heard of rumours, reports or formal accusations many times but did nothing decisive to investigate, stop the abuse or warn the parishioners.
    Evidence: Archdiocesan Commission of Enquiry (Vorsitz Gordon A. Winter), Erzdiözese St. John’s, Kap. 7, Term 2, S. 138
    „accusations of child sexual abuse were reported to officials of the Archdiocese as early as 1975“
    The Report of the Archdiocesan Commission of Enquiry into the Sexual Abuse of Children by Members of the Clergy, Volume One, Kap. 7, Term 2, S. 138. Original
    Evidence: Archdiocesan Commission of Enquiry (Vorsitz Gordon A. Winter), Erzdiözese St. John’s, Kap. 7, Term 2, S. 138
    „neither the current nor the previous Archdiocesan administration took decisive or effective steps to investigate further, to halt the abuse, or to inform parishioners of the risk to their children.“
    The Report of the Archdiocesan Commission of Enquiry into the Sexual Abuse of Children by Members of the Clergy, Volume One, Kap. 7, Term 2, S. 138. Original
  2. Even in the mid-1980s the diocesan leadership pursued a policy of minimal response, even when a man personally told the archbishop that he had been abused as a child by a priest who was still active. The archbishop did not follow the 1987 guidelines of the Canadian Bishops' Conference. Some priests suspected something and looked away.
    Evidence: Archdiocesan Commission of Enquiry (Vorsitz Gordon A. Winter), Erzdiözese St. John’s, Kap. 7, Term 2, S. 138
    „Archdiocesan authorities seem to have continued following a minimal response policy“
    The Report of the Archdiocesan Commission of Enquiry into the Sexual Abuse of Children by Members of the Clergy, Volume One, Kap. 7, Term 2, S. 138. Original
    Evidence: Archdiocesan Commission of Enquiry (Vorsitz Gordon A. Winter), Erzdiözese St. John’s, Kap. 7, Term 2, S. 138
    „This was the case even when an individual known to the Archbishop came forward and disclosed to him that he had been abused as a child by one of the Archdiocese's still-active priests.“
    The Report of the Archdiocesan Commission of Enquiry into the Sexual Abuse of Children by Members of the Clergy, Volume One, Kap. 7, Term 2, S. 138. Original
    Evidence: Archdiocesan Commission of Enquiry (Vorsitz Gordon A. Winter), Erzdiözese St. John’s, Kap. 7, Term 2, S. 139
    „it has concluded that Archbishop Penney did not follow procedures recommended by the CCCB.“
    The Report of the Archdiocesan Commission of Enquiry into the Sexual Abuse of Children by Members of the Clergy, Volume One, Kap. 7, Term 2, S. 139. Original
    Evidence: Archdiocesan Commission of Enquiry (Vorsitz Gordon A. Winter), Erzdiözese St. John’s, Kap. 7, Term 2, S. 139
    „but simply chose to look the other way.“
    The Report of the Archdiocesan Commission of Enquiry into the Sexual Abuse of Children by Members of the Clergy, Volume One, Kap. 7, Term 2, S. 139. Original
  3. After the first charges, the Church declared publicly that the accused priests were innocent until proven guilty. This disappointed all those who expected a pastoral response for the victims and families.
    Evidence: Archdiocesan Commission of Enquiry (Vorsitz Gordon A. Winter), Erzdiözese St. John’s, Preface, S. vii
    „Church officials chose to adopt the public position that the charged priests were innocent until proven guilty.“
    The Report of the Archdiocesan Commission of Enquiry into the Sexual Abuse of Children by Members of the Clergy, Volume One, Preface, S. vii. Original
    Evidence: Archdiocesan Commission of Enquiry (Vorsitz Gordon A. Winter), Erzdiözese St. John’s, Preface, S. vii
    „this approach to the crisis disappointed those who expected a strong pastoral response directed toward the victims and their families.“
    The Report of the Archdiocesan Commission of Enquiry into the Sexual Abuse of Children by Members of the Clergy, Volume One, Preface, S. vii. Original

See also

Original documents to read

  1. Commission report
    Archdiocesan Commission of Enquiry (Vorsitz Gordon A. Winter), Erzdiözese St. John’s: The Report of the Archdiocesan Commission of Enquiry into the Sexual Abuse of Children by Members of the Clergy, Volume One. Original (retrieved 12 Oct 2026)
Change log (4)

The change log is kept in German only.

  • : Aktualisiert: Englische Übersetzung
  • : Aktualisiert: Tatsachen
  • : Aktualisiert: Zeitzeugen und Originaltexte, Tatsachen, Personen
  • : Aufgenommen

Last changed on 22 October 2026. Is something missing or wrong? Suggest an addition or correction.