retraction

By Diogenes ( articles ) | Nov 30, 2004

The following notice appeared Tuesday in the Seattle Times:

Nicole Brodeur's column incorrectly reported that Spokane Bishop William Skylstad was one of the priests who escorted his predecessor, then-Bishop of Spokane Lawrence Welsh, from a bar in 1989 and sent him to alcohol treatment. The column also incorrectly stated that at the time, Skylstad publicly attributed Welsh's absence from the diocese to stomach problems; the Spokane diocese had provided that explanation in 1986, when Welsh earlier received alcohol treatment. And Skylstad's comment that he was unable to remember all the events surrounding abuse allegations against the Rev. Patrick Gerald O'Donnell Jr., a priest whom he supervised years ago, was made in a written statement, not in a court deposition. The Seattle Times apologizes for the errors.

Last week, your servant expressed some impatience with Bishop Skylstad, basing himself on the Seattle Times report that it was Skylstad who'd used the "stomach problems" pretext to provide cover for Bishop Welsh's detox. I regret the error and apologize for the harm done Bishop Skylstad's reputation.