This time it is about the terms of office of the former Trier bishops Franz Rudolf Bornewasser (1946–1951) and Matthias Wehr (1951–1966), as the historians Lena Haase and Lutz Raphael announced on Tuesday.
The historical research project of the University of Trier has been running since November 2022.
It investigates sexual abuse by clerics and lay people in the area of responsibility of the diocese between 1946 and 2021, as well as the question of how church leaders dealt with known cases.
The investigation was commissioned by the Independent Commission of Reappraisal in the Diocese of Trier. At the end of November, the final result of the study is to be published and presented at a press conference.
So far, 734 affected people are investigating
So far, the researchers have presented partial studies on the terms of office of the bishops Bernhard Stein (1967–1981), Hermann Josef Spital (1981–2001), Reinhard Marx (2001–2008) and Stephan Ackermann (2009–2021).
They have identified 734 people affected and 248 accused and perpetrators.
According to them, this is only the known bright field.
In addition, they found deficits in the dealings of the diocese lines with abuse cases for decades.
Accused clergymen were partly transferred to other locations; especially under stone and hospital, the cooperation with the public prosecutor’s offices was deficient or not present.
Only since 2010 has the handling changed fundamentally and sexual abuse increasingly considered a structural problem.