Sexual abuse scandal in the Catholic diocese of Palm Beach
The sexual abuse scandal in Palm Beach diocese is a significant episode in the series of Catholic sex abuse cases in the United States and Ireland.
Bishop Joseph Keith Symons resigned as ordinary in 1998 after admitting he molested five boys early in his career.
Symons' successor Anthony O'Connell resigned in 2002 after admitting to molesting an underage seminarian. O'Connell held a press conference to admit his wrongdoing and publicly apologized to the man.
In an effort to quell the scandal, Sean O'Malley was appointed bishop of Palm Beach on September 3, 2002. He was installed on the following October 19. He served the Diocese of Palm Beach for less than a year before being appointed to return to Massachusetts to succeed Cardinal Bernard Law in Boston and put out the firestorm of controversy caused by Law's conduct.
Bishop Gerald Barbarito has repeatedly pledged to remove from ministry any priests found to have abused a child and to help abuse victims in any way the Church can, but he has seen no need to publicly name accused priests.
