Pope Francis replaces bishop at center of misconduct probe
VATICAN CITY — Pope Francis on Saturday replaced an Australian bishop who stepped down amid a Vatican investigation into what Australian media have described as allegations of sexual misconduct.
The Vatican said Francis accepted Bishop Christopher Alan Saunders’ resignation as head of the Broome diocese in western Australia. Francis appointed another prelate, Bishop Michael Henry Morrissey of the Geraldton diocese, to temporarily administer the sprawling Catholic diocese in Broome.
The Vatican, in keeping with its custom for announcing bishop resignations, did not cite a reason for replacing Saunders. At 71, he is four years younger than the age when the Vatican requires bishops to offer their resignations to the pontiff.
Australian media have quoted Saunders as strongly denying any wrongdoing and voluntarily offering to step aside. The Australian Broadcasting Corp. reported earlier this year that police and prosecutors decided against filing criminal charges.
Parishioners in the diocese were informed in May that the Vatican investigation was ongoing, according to Australian media reports.
Details of the case weren’t immediately available. Saunders has reportedly been on sabbatical.
After decades of sexual abuse scandals in many nations, Pope Francis has vowed to root out predator clergy. Cases involving bishops who systematically covered up for such priests also led Francis to try to rebuild the collapsed trust of many faithful by pledging to bring accountability to the
church hierarchy.
Russia COVID-19 deaths:
A new report from Russia’s state statistics agency shows the country recorded a record number of deaths in July of people infected with coronavirus.
The report from the Rosstat agency said 50,421 people suffering from COVID19 died during the month, sharply higher than the previous record of 44,435 in December.
However, the agency said in the report that only 38,992 deaths were directly attributed to the disease. In another 5,206 deaths, the virus was assessed as likely the main cause but that more investigation would be need; in 1,449 other cases, the virus contributed to the deaths but was not the main cause.
The report said the total of virus-related deaths in Russia by the end of July was 215,265 — well higher than the 180,840 cited by the national coronavirus task force. Russian officials ascribe that to different counting methods, saying the task force only includes deaths where COVID-19 was the main cause
Ex-sheriff quits over KKK photo:
A former metro Atlanta sheriff has resigned from a state judicial watchdog agency after questions rose about a decades-old photo of him wearing a Ku Klux Klan robe and hood.
House Speaker David Ralston appointed former Cherokee County Sheriff Roger Garrison to the state Judicial Qualifications Commission on Aug. 19.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports it asked Ralston’s office on Thursday if the speaker was aware of the photo.
“Sheriff Garrison has resigned from the JQC,” Ralston spokesperson Kaleb McMichen later responded, without elaborating. “The speaker will appoint a replacement as soon as practical.”
Garrison declined comment on Friday.
The photo was widely noted when it surfaced in 2012. Garrison said he had no affiliation with the KKK and said he wore the costume to a Halloween party when he was in his early 20s.
“I don’t deny it wasn’t stupid, looking back now, but there again I say what 21- or 22-year-old in this world hasn’t made some stupid mistakes?” Garrison told WSB-TV then.
He said he and a friend wore the KKK costumes to the party as characters from the movie “Blazing Saddles.”
Hurricane forms in Pacific:
Hurricane Nora formed Saturday in the eastern Pacific on a forecast track that would bring it near the Puerto Vallarta area and then head toward a close encounter with resorts at the tip of Baja California Peninsula.
Nora had maximum sustained winds of 80 mph Saturday morning, with tropical storm force winds extending out 175 miles from the center in some places.
The storm’s large wind field and heavy rains mean much of Mexico’s central and northern Pacific Coast could see floods, mudslides and perilous surf even if it misses the very heart of the hurricane.
Vermont city to salute 1st Black sheriff:
A Vermont city is planning to erect a monument to Vermont’s first known Black sheriff and chief of police.
The city of Vergennes is planning to unveil and dedicate the monument to former Sheriff Stephen Bates on Oct. 3.
Bates was first elected sheriff and chief of police in Vergennes in 1879.
Bates had been formerly enslaved in Virginia. He gained his freedom and served Union soldiers during the Civil War. He first came to Vergennes in 1866 with Vermont U.S. Rep. Frederick E. Woodbridge.
Bates served as sheriff of Vergennes for 25 years. He raised a family in Vergennes before his death in 1907, and some of his descendants will be attending the event.
A local team of historians and others spent the past year researching Bates’ life and rediscovering his story in Vergennes.
Just 1 candidate for Estonia presidency:
Estonia is gearing up for an unusual presidential election in parliament. There will be only one candidate in Monday’s vote, a situation unprecedented since the Baltic nation regained its independence 30 years ago.
President Kersti Kaljulaid’s five-year term expires on Oct. 10, and lawmakers in the 101-seat Riigikogu parliament must elect a new head of state to replace her in the largely ceremonial post.
As no further candidates registered by the late Saturday deadline, the director of the Estonian National Museum, Alar Karis, will be the sole contender. Karis, a former state auditor, is the only one who has managed to get support from the required minimum of 21 lawmakers.
Holding a vote with only one candidate has flummoxed the country, and several politicians have called for a complete overhaul of Estonia’s complex presidential election system. Some Estonians have even suggested that the small European nation, where the prime minister holds most political power, should abolish the head of state post altogether.
Jaak Joeruut, a former defense minister and diplomat, said in a recent opinion piece that “it is unethical, but, strangely enough, legal.”