Vatican ruling imminent on accused Guam archbishop
October 02, 2017
A Vatican tribunal has reached its verdict on Archbishop Anthony Apuron, who was removed from his post in Guam after multiple complaints of sexual abuse.
Archbishop Michael Byrnes, the coadjutor who has replaced Archbishop Apuron in Guam, disclosed that the verdict has been reached. It will be announced to the public, he said, as soon as tribunal judges have formally signed the verdict.
If the archbishop is found guilty, the canonical penalty would likely be severe. In 2014, after a canonical trial of Archbishop Jozef Wesolowski, who had been the apostolic nuncio in the Dominican Republic, the Vatican stripped the prelate of his rank and laicized him.
If Archbishop Apuron is found not guilty of the charges, he could be reinstated as Archbishop of Agana—a possibility that Archbishop Byrnes has already said would be a “disaster.”
Archbishop Apuron also faces civil charges.
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