Sex abuse claims in the Catholic Church in Massachusetts

Massachusetts was ground zero for the Catholic clergy abuse crisis following the Boston Globe Spotlight investigation in 2002. Massachusetts subsequently extended its civil SOL for childhood sexual abuse to 35 years after the survivor turns 18 — effectively age 53. This is one of the longest standard SOL periods in the country and means that many Massachusetts survivors of historical clergy abuse have viable claims without a lookback window. The Archdiocese of Boston, Diocese of Worcester, Diocese of Springfield, and Diocese of Fall River have all published credibly accused clergy lists.

For the overall process and updates, read the Sex abuse claims in the Catholic Church overview. This page covers the local information available for Massachusetts.