The Vatican has dismissed accusations of sexual assault against Cardinal Gérald Lacroix, Archbishop of Quebec (Canada) and member of Pope Francis’ Council of Cardinals, having found no evidence of “misconduct or abuse” on the part of the cardinal.
The Press Office of the Holy See has reported that on February 8 of this year the Holy Father entrusted André Denis, a retired judge of the Superior Court of Quebec, with the mandate to clarify “an accusation formulated in a class action lawsuit” filed against the archdiocese of the Canadian city.
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According to this Tuesday’s statement, the judge concluded the report of the preliminary canonical investigation on May 6 and subsequently delivered it to Pope Francis.
The Vatican confirmed today that, “in light of the facts examined by the judge, the report does not identify any actions as misconduct or abuse on the part of Cardinal Gérald Lacroix.” Consequently, “a deeper canonical procedure is not foreseen.”
For his part, the Holy Father has authorized Judge André Denis to issue a statement summarizing the elements of his investigation and has also authorized him to answer any questions about the matter.
The Vatican also expresses the Pontiff’s deep gratitude to the judge for having concluded, within the expected deadlines, “the mandate that was entrusted to him and that he carried out impartially in the context of the lawsuit.”
The accusation against Cardinal Lacroix
El Cardenal Gerald Lacroix He was accused of abusing a teenager 17 years old almost four decades ago, as part of a lawsuit against his Archdiocese, something that the cardinal denied “categorically” from the beginning.
The accusation dates back to 1987 and 1988, when the alleged victim was 17 years old, according to what was stated by lawyer Alain Arsenault, who was handling the case against the Archdiocese of Quebec, which began in 2022.
On January 26, the Archdiocese of Quebec published a statement in which it was indicated that the cardinal was withdrawing “provisionally from his activities until the situation becomes clear.”
It should be noted that despite the ongoing investigation, the Canadian cardinal participated in the latest meetings of the Council of Cardinals, also known as C9, in the Vatican alongside Pope Francis.
Almudena Martínez-Bordiú
I am a graduate in Journalism and Advertising from the CEU San Pablo University in Madrid. Specialized in religious information in Spain since 2015. I have been a senior correspondent for ACI Prensa and EWTN Noticias in the Vatican for two years and I am currently a European correspondent based in Spain.