Bishop Murray To Resign Today

Succumbing to weeks of pressure, the Bishop of Limerick Donal Murray is expected to resign later today.

Bishop Murray, who was heavily criticised in the recent Murphy report, is expected to address a gathering in St. John's Cathedral, Limerick at 11am.

The Bishop came under intense fire when the report into clerical sex abuse in the Archdiocese of Dublin found he had taken inadequate action against a paedophile priest, most notably in relation to one priest, Fr Tom Naughton in 1983.

In May 1998 Naughton pleaded guilty to six counts of indecently assaulting three boys in 1985 and 1986. He was jailed for three years, reduced on appeal to two and a half years.

On Wednesday, Naughton was jailed again - this time for three years for sexually abusing an altar boy between 1982 and 1984.

Bishop Murray accepted publicly in 2002 that he had not dealt well with the situation.

After the publication of the report however, a number of vocal critics called for his resignation. On December 6, Bishop Murray travelled to Rome where he is believed to have held discussions with the Pope over the matter.

The Irish Catholic newsletter reported the imminent resignation last night, quoting Vatican sources.

Speaking after the jailing of Naughton yesterday, retired Garda sergeant John Brennan, who was involved in the original case said: "I think that it should now be taken a step further. Fr Naughton, I’ve always maintained, is a human being with a problem.

“It was his superiors who, aware of this weakness, sent him around to other places, and I think they shouldn’t be allowed at this stage to resign or retire. They should be the subject of a criminal investigation. If there is neglect and evidence of a cover-up, it shouldn’t be a question of somebody resigning. They should be the subject of a criminal charge.”

(DW/KMcA)