Montreal archdiocese hires retired judge to conduct independent probe of priest

Montreal archdiocese hires retired judge to conduct independent probe of priest
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Montreal’s archdiocese has hired a former Quebec Superior Court justice to investigate the case of a priest found guilty of sexually abusing two boys.

Pepita G. Capriolo will conduct the independent investigation into Rev. Brian Boucher, a priest who was sentenced in March to eight years behind bars.

The archdiocese says in a statement it wants to get to the bottom of how the complaints and concerns about Boucher were handled.

Boucher worked in 10 Montreal-area churches between 1985 and 2015.

The abuse took place at two churches, between 1995 and 1999 in the case of one victim and between 2008 and 2011 in the other.

Capriolo will need to determine a timeline of who knew what and come up with recommendations to improve procedures.

The diocese also says it is looking for a someone to conduct an audit of its archives after another retired judge appointed to do so in March died in July.

But it elected to name Capriolo to the Boucher probe so as not to delay it further.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 25, 2019.

The Canadian Press

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