Attorneys representing alleged victims of sexual abuse by priests in the Roman Catholic Diocese of San Diego Tuesday criticized Pope Francis' appointment of Cardinal Robert W. McElroy, bishop of San Diego, to become the new Archbishop of Washington, D.C.
McElroy, 70, will succeed retiring Cardinal Wilton D. Gregory in March. Until a new bishop is named, a Diocesan administrator will oversee the San Diego diocese on an interim basis, according to the Diocese of San Diego.
McElroy was named bishop of San Diego in 2015 and elevated to cardinal in 2022.
"I am grateful for the opportunity to serve the Catholic community in our nation's capital and for the confidence His Holiness has placed in me, but I have truly loved the last ten years I've spent as bishop of San Diego," McElroy said in a statement. "I have never in my life felt more welcomed, more supported or more rewarded than I felt sharing my ministry with the priests, the women religious, and the faithful parishioners of our diocese."
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However, critics said McElroy has been an institutional defender of sex abuse in the Catholic Church and his appointment will only continue bringing scandal to the beleaguered Washington, D.C. archdiocese.
"Cardinal McElroy has been attacked by conservatives in the Catholic Church and the political right for his progressive views. This ignores the fact that he has been anything but progressive when it comes to protecting victims of child sexual assault in San Diego," said attorney Morgan Stewart. "Hundreds of children were raped and sexually abused by priests in the San Diego diocese, and many are now seeking justice. These victims have suffered pain for a lifetime because of their horrendous sexual abuse by San Diego priests."
The attorneys said that unlike Los Angeles Archbishop Jose Gomez who reached a settlement of 1,353 childhood sexual abuse claims, McElroy put the San Diego Archdiocese into bankruptcy last year "hoping to delay or deny compensation to more than 500 victims."
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In 2023, McElroy announced the possibility of bankruptcy, writing then that the Diocese "must face the staggering legal costs" in response to lawsuits alleging abuse dating back as far as 1945.
In 2007, the Diocese settled lawsuits brought by 144 victims, but recently more than 450 claims have been made against the Diocese, according to a statement. The Diocese said more than 60% of the latest claims are for incidents that occurred more than 50 years ago. According to McElroy in a statement last year, settling the remaining cases at the same rate they were in 2007 would cost the church upwards of $550 million.
Now, alleged victims looking for a settlement with the church will find themselves in bankruptcy court.
McElroy has been an outspoken critic of President Donald Trump and has expressed support for immigrants and the LGBTQ community, drawing criticism from conservative Catholics. He was born in San Francisco in 1954 and after attending Saint Joseph Minor Seminary, he obtained a bachelor's degree from Harvard University and a master's degree in history from Stanford University, according to a statement from the Vatican.
