The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com Monday, April 15, 2013 - 5A Despite molestation acuainpriest ministered in Texas' Court battle ensues over release of personnel records LOS ANGELES (AP) - When the Rev. John Anthony Salazar arrived in Tulia, Texas, in 1991, he was warmly welcomed by the Roman Catholic community tucked in the Texas Panhandle. What his new parishioners didn't know was he'd been hired out of a treatment program for pedophile priests - and that he'd been convicted for child molestation and banned from the Archdiocese of Los Angeles for life. Over the next11years, Salazar would be accused of abusingfour more children and young men in Texas, including an 18-year-old parishioner who suffered teeth marks on his genitals. Today he awaits trial on one molestation charge, while his accusers and former followers seek a way to move forward. Many details of Salazar's past are contained in a confidential personnel file that was among 120 such files the Archdiocese of Los Angeles made public this year after a legal battle with abuse victims. But those records tell only part of the story. On Tuesday, attorneys return to court to argue over the release of records for about 80 priests, including Salazar, who belonged to Roman Catholic religious orders that kept their own per- sonnel files on accused clergy- men. The hearingwill address in what form and when those files will be made public, and involves orders such as the Jesuits, Sale- sians, Vincentians and Domini- cans. The documents are critical to understanding the full scope of the clergy abuse scandal, said Ray Boucher, who represents Los Angeles-areavictims. As part of a separate settle- ment, the Franciscans were forced last year to release confidential records on their members who'd been accused of molestation. The papers revealed a culture of abuse that affected generations of students at the seminary dedi- cated to training future Fran- ciscans. Among the documents was a "sexual autobiography" penned by one priest as part of a therapy assignment that spelled out how he groomed children for molestation from a boys' choir that he founded. "These orders really have a primary role and responsibil- ity in the transfer of pedophile priests," Boucher said. About 25 percent of priests accused of abuse in Los Ange- les belonged to religious orders. Many had been loaned out to the archdiocese to help with a perpetual shortage of priests. In some cases, Boucher said, the orders may have sent known pedophiles to work in the arch- diocese in the same way that the larger church has been accused of shuffling around problem priests. J. Michael Hennigan, an archdiocese attorney represent- ing more than a dozen orders involved in Tuesday's hearing, said the orders operate as sepa- rate entities from the archdio- cese in financial and disciplinary matters. "I don't think even practic- ing Catholics have a very clear understanding ofwhere the lines of authority are drawn," he said. Salazar belonged to the Pia- nist Fathers, a tiny order that focuses on educating poor chil- dren and administers several parishes in East Los Angeles. The order, Boucher said, still has records on Salazar that could fill in holes in his archdiocese file, which begins in 1986 when Sala- zar first was charged with abuse. The priest was assigned to work in the archdiocese two years ear- lier. Salazar was accused of molesting children from East LA parishes, sometimes during camping trips and at a Piarist residential house, according to notes in his archdiocese file. After Salazar was arrested, the Piarists solicited character let- ters from his fellow priests and contacted an attorney who had helped another accused priest strike a deal to serve part of his sentence in a residential facil- ity. The Piarists did not return calls and emails to their LA parish or their headquarters in Miami. Salazar pleaded guilty in 1987 to one count of oral copu- lation and one count of lewd or lascivious acts with a child for molesting two altar boys, ages 13 and 14. He served three years of a six-year prison term before being sent in 1990 to a residen- tial program in New Mexico that treated pedophile priests. He was also required to register asa sex offender. One year later, the Diocese of Amarillo hired Salazar and assigned him to a vast, rural par- ish in the Panhandle while he was still on parole. Los Angeles Cardinal Roger Mahony, who has been criti- cized for not doing more to stop abuse when he led the archdiocese, acted swiftly with Salazar. He revoked the priest's right to work within the arch- diocese in 1986, the same day he learned of molestation accu- sations. However, Mahony was unable to prevent Salazar's transfer to Texas because he belonged to the Piarists and ultimately fell outside of the cardinal's author- ity. Mahony did write Bishop Leroy Matthiesen in Amarillo to warn him of Salazar's conviction but couldn't dissuade his col- league. "You must thinkI don't screen applicantswell. I assure you I do, and that I have rejected a num- ber of them," Matthiesen wrote Mahony in a Jan. 28, 1992, letter contained in Salazar's archdio- cese file. "The Diocese of Ama- rillo has 38 parish priests and 38,000 registered Catholics. ... I am able to keep careful tabs on all our priests." Matthiesen died in 2010, but in an autobiography he defended his decision to hire molesting priests from the aftercare pro- gram, sayingtheyhad "repented, paid the price, were rehabilitat- ed, stayed within the boundaries laid out for them." "These are the types of priests I accepted into the diocese," he wrote. "I have no regrets for having done so." While not mentioning Sala- zar specifically, Matthiesen said he took in problem priests from three dioceses, as well as several other "self-admitted" molesters. A spokesman for the Amarillo diocese did not return a phone message. Salazar also declined comment. In Texas, Salazar served as pastor of the Church of The Holy Spirit in Tulia, a cattle and cot- ton farming community of about 5,000 people in Swisher County, and also oversaw Catholic mis- sions in the nearby towns of Kress and Silverton. A religious figure serves an important role in such places, said Kirk Wil- liams, criminal investigator for the county attorney. "In these small towns, you don't have the money for psy- chiatrists, marriage counselors and things that a priest and a preacher could take care of," he said. Four parishioners have accused Salazar of molesting them in Texas. A civil lawsuit filed by three victims dates the earliest abuse to 1991, not long after Salazar's arrival. The claims, which were settled con- fidentially in 2006 and 2007, allege Salazar molested two boys in the Tulia church rec- tory. The third plaintiff's allega- tions, made after Salazar had been removed from active ministry in 2002, were tried criminally. In 2005, Salazar was convicted of sexually assaulting the 18-year-old man at a wedding in Dallas County. Salazar denied the claim, but the man got a hospital rape exam and had bite marks and bruises on his genitals. Salazar was sentenced to life in prison and, soon after, was defrocked by the Vatican. PATRICK BARRON/Daily Former football players Denard Robinson, Desmond Howard and Dhani Jones speak at the third Annual Appreciate+Reciprocate Benefit Dinner in Palmer Commons Friday. LEGENDS From Page 1A be absent due to an unexpected NFL event - said he had a similar confession to make: he's addicted to candy. "Any kind of candy, I love. My mom had a problem with me eat- ing candy, so I like sneaking it now," Robinson said. Howard said over time, he has really learned the importance of giving one's time to others. "I think one thing that we take for granted when we're younger is time and the time that people give to us," Howard said. "I think when I was younger Ijust took for granted the amount of time that maybe coaches, people of that ilk, spent with me, and now I value it much more." Curzan later asked the three panelists how they decided on the form of their large-scale philan- thropic work. Howard said his desire to help children came from his younger BURKE From Page 1A "He probably thought about it from time to time, when coach had him going to study hall or up in the morning running, but at the same time, his focus in prac- tice and the games was, 'How can I help Michigan now?' "It was the right formula to help his career in the long run." Burke is the second point guard in three years to leave Ann Arbor early, joining Darius Mor- ris, who left after the 2010-11 season. Morris fell to the second round before being drafted by his current team, the Los Angeles Lakers. FOOTBALL From Page 1A community." Current and former patients from Mott were invited to attend the game, where they were seat- ed on the field with parents and friends. Andrea Quigg's son, Jett, 8, is brother and his mother's in-home daycare. "Coach Schembechler always had us go to Mott Children's Hospital and volunteer, and even when we were going to the Rose Bowl, we would spend Christ- mas day at the children's hospital before we got onthe plane," How- ard said. "I wish I had the money like Stephen M. Ross, so I really could give back to the University," Howard joked. "There are dif- ferent ways to give back though, without writing the check, and you can connect the dots and whether it's Denard, whether it's Dhani, whether it's Charles Woodson - you can connect the dots and financially we've helped to raise a whole lot of money for a whole lot of causes at the Univer- sity of Michigan." Jones, who runs his own char- ity named The Bowtie Cause, echoed Howard, noting that his time at the University taught him about the need to always give back. With a draft class that's expected to be much weaker this year than last, it makes sense that Burke decided to leave. This is also the case for the other three Wolverines with an NBA Draft decision to make - freshmen for- wards Mitch McGary and Glenn Robinson III, as well as junior guard Tim Hardaway Jr. - who are expected to make their deci- sions in the next two weeks. "Trey Burke's decision today is more of a reason for celebration," said assistant coach Bacari Alex- ander. "Trey's done a tremendous job of gathering information and making an educated decision with the people he trusts, and quite frankly, coach Beilein is very transparent in the process, being treated at Mott for hydro- cephalus, a condition- in which an abnormal amount of fluid is present in the brain. Quigg said Jett and his family couldn't pass up the opportunity to be with friends and support their team. "We were always Michigan fans, but when your son is cared for here, you kind of bleed blue," Quigg said. "Getting involved with Mott Children's Hospital really set the groundwork for a lot of stu- dent athletes that are here at the University, something that Lloyd Carr definitely instilled within us," Jones said. "I think from a University perspective, under- standing that it is a greater good, and it's something that's not about you, it's something that's bigger than yourself." Robinson also discussed the fulfillment he gets from helping others, adding that his path from growing up in a low-income fami- ly to becoming a star quarterback for Michigan has taught him to give back. "Like breathing, it's something that you expect to do all the time," Robinson said. "I know I grew up in a family that was unfortunate, so anytime that I have a chance to give back to anybody that's not fortunate, to give back to anybody I can talk to or be around, I want to make their day. I want to make somebody's day everyday." Jones said A+R represents a so I think those guys have great clarity when they decide." Added Beilein: "If you recruit well enough, and develop players well enough, this is inevitable. We embrace it. We have no other choice but to embrace it and try to guide young men through it." Burke's height is a draft con- cern - listed at just 6-feet tall, he's short for an NBA point guard. But Burke more than makes up for it with an explosive first step and terrific quickness. Burke said that he's expecting to go in the top 15 of the draft, but several mock drafts have him in the top 10, and some even in the top five. "He's always been a winner," said assistant coach Lavall Jor- Before Team 134 took the field, the fifth annual Victors Clas- sic Alumni football game drew a crowd of family and friends to the Big House. Alumni from five decades of Michigan football competed, including Billy Taylor, Russell Davis and Chuck Win- ters. 1981 graduate and former Michigan quarterback Jim way to be bigger than yourself. "I think that we are all in this room because we believe that it's about Michigan," Jones said. "I think regardless of whatever position or whatever place you've been in this University, it's about the school. It's about the differ- ence that our University makes throughout the entire world, our entire community." LSA seniors Meredith Wester- lund, the President of A + R, and Jasmine Mae Poler-Pawlicki, a recipient of the LSA Emergency Scholarship, also spoke at the event. once the dinner plates had been cleared, Jones went over to the large handmade Michi- gan quilt that he had won in the event's auction and rolled it up to stuff in its accompanying quilted Michigan handbag. Guests lined up around all three Michigan football alumni, posing with the men for pictures and offering up their permanent markers, foot- balls and postcards in the hopes of receiving an autograph. dan. "That's one of the qualities that nobody can teach. If Trey has anything to do with it, his team is likely to come out on the winningside." He entered Ann Arbor as a relatively unknown talent, but after two short, yet dominating seasons, Trey Burke is leaving as one of the best basketball players in the history of the Michigan basketball program. "Trey never wavered on his dedication to the program," Alexander said. "From the time he walked through the doors to today's press conference, here's a young man who was demon- strated what poise personified is. It's almost as if he's destined for greatness on some level." Breaugh said after the game that he played because of the cama- raderie he feels not only with his former teammates, but with the University community in general. "You come back because from the day we were all here, Michi- gan football has been a family," Breaugh said. "That's what makes this place special. That's what's made Michigan, Michigan." K-GRAMS From Page 1A activities put on by University student organizations. In accor- dance with the theme of this year's fair, "K-Zoo," organizers created habitat-themed zones, such as jungle, safari, arctic and underwater. This year, 60 student orga- nizations hosted booths at the event, down from last year's total of 80 student organizations. Thirteen elementary schools from Detroit, Ypsilanti, Willow Run and Ann Arbor participat- ed in the pen pal program and attended the Kids Fair. Education senior Amanda Webster, executive director of K-grams, said the intent of the Kids Fair is to show the students the benefits of higher education in a fun environment. "A lot of the schools we work with are lower socio-economic status, Title 1 schools with free or reduced lunch," Webster said. "It's sort of a self-fulfilling prophecy that these kids don't have family members who went to college, they don't see it." The Michigan Marching Band hosted a booth where children could try out a horn, trombone, trumpet or piccolo. The Uni- versity's chapter of the Ameri- can Chemical Society hosted a booth that showed the children how to make lava lamps, and the University's Dance Team taught them dance routines with pom- poms. Webster said she wanted to show the kids that college is pos- sible for them. She said the pen pal program and Kids Fair will help the kids imagine them- selves on a college campus. LSA junior Michelle Franklin coordinates the K-Grams pen pal program for West Quad Resi- dence Hall, where she is a Resi- dent Advisor. "I have a passion for learning," Franklin said. "It is cool because I get to write to them every week and rub off on them." Ten-year-old Olivia- Lee, a student at Mitchell Elementary School in Ann Arbor, said she loved the Kids Fair because it was the culmination of her cor- respondence with her pen pal. "I get to see my pen pal and learn lots of cool stuff," Lee said.