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Father Lee Bartlett
March 19, 2002
Anguish, outcry, support
By Dianne Williamson, Telegram & Gazette Columnist
For all the anguish and outcry, for all the support offered to a popular
Worcester priest who allegedly molested a young boy during drunken parties for
youths on Cape Cod, one response is notably missing from the Worcester diocese
and the cleric who now stands accused: denial. As in, these claims are untrue.
As in, the Rev. Lee F. Bartlett did not do these terrible things and will fight
to restore his reputation. When accused of behavior that could destroy a career
and shatter the faith of loyal supporters, what innocent man would not cry from
the rooftops that he has been wronged?
Instead, as disbelieving parishioners struggle to reconcile their love and
respect for Father Bartlett with allegations of child abuse, the priest promptly
took leave from his pastorship at Sacred Heart of Jesus parish and retreated to
his Cape home in Eastham. The diocese, meanwhile, released a statement
requesting prayers ``for all those who have faced upheaval in their lives due to
child abuse,'' even though many of these victims could have used more than
prayers -- and a lot less church cover-up over the years -- as they faced
belligerent and hostile diocesan lawyers.
Yesterday, I spoke briefly to Father Bartlett by telephone from his home in
Eastham and told him that I had received much feedback from supporters who
refuse to believe that the beloved priest was involved in any wrongdoing.
``That's nice to hear,'' he said.
I asked if he wished to deny the allegations recounted in Sunday's column by
Joseph P. Cote, 38, who said Father Bartlett sexually molested him at least
three times in the 1970s, beginning when Mr. Cote was 13. Mr. Cote said he
visited the priest about two dozen times at his Eastham home, where Father
Bartlett would entertain young boys by plying them with liquor and showing
X-rated movies on his projector.
``I'm not going on the record either way,'' Father Bartlett said. ``That will
be up to the bishop and up to my lawyer, if it gets that far.''
I also spoke yesterday to a California architect named Kevin Donnelly, 36,
who was raised in Leominster. He initially contacted me with the request that I
pass his name on to Mr. Cote so that Mr. Cote would know ``he is by no means
alone with this.'' After further conversations, Mr. Donnelly agreed to go public
with his own experience.
He said he was 15 years old in 1982 when he spent a weekend at the priest's
home in Eastham with four other boys. He said Father Bartlett ``provided a lot
of alcohol and encouraged the `Greek Olympics,' '' an event that involved the
boys running naked through the neighborhood.
``At some point I went to lie down and Father Bartlett climbed into the bed
with me,'' Mr. Donnelly said. ``I said `no,' got up and left. ... What struck me
after reading Mr. Cote's account was that (Father Bartlett's) actions appear to
be so premeditated. It sort of reeks of a pattern.''
Understandably, supporters of Father Bartlett are having a hard time
believing that a man who has done so much good could possess another side that
he allegedly kept hidden from parishioners. He has served as a strong advocate
for the south Worcester area and is widely credited with restoring a floundering
parish.
``This man has done more for the Cambridge Street area than the T&G, the city
or the state has in the last five years,'' wrote Don Mason of Winchendon.
``Guilty or innocent, he deserves due process and not the tripe Mr. Cote has
dreamed up and that you seem to want to broadcast in your own attempt for
notoriety. Sleep well knowing that you have weakened a community this day.''
Wrote another supporter, Thomas J. Fitzgibbons of Auburn: ``I spent a great
deal of time alone with Rev. Bartlett as a child and young adult and what I
received from him was his guidance and his time. I pledge my full support for
the Rev. Lee F. Bartlett and I publicly denounce any and all allegations of
sexual misconduct against him.''
On Saturday, Bishop Daniel P. Reilly sat for an interview and spoke of an
agreement reached with the district attorney, in which the diocese will turn
over the names of priests accused over the years of sexual abuse, but the names
will not be made public.
Since the statute of limitations likely has expired in many of these cases,
the possibility exists that the public will not learn the identity of pedophile
priests. But the deal is good for the bishop and good for District Attorney John
J. Conte, who won't have to wage a public fight against the church to which he
belongs.
``We're following the law,'' said Bishop Reilly, who has been named in more
than 30 lawsuits alleging sexual misconduct by priests under his charge in
Providence and Norwich, Conn. ``And I don't think we have to go beyond that.''
What a rousing call to moral action. I can only imagine the potential for
inspiration if a priest issued a similar challenge from the pulpit: go forth,
and do what is legally required. And surely you cannot fault diocesan leaders
for not abiding by law: When confronted with allegations of child abuse, they
hired an attorney so skilled at lawyerly intimidation that he would be publicly
rebuked by a judge for his stonewalling and savage grilling of victims.
Mr. Donnelly -- who, like Mr. Cote, was initially hesitant to come forward --
said he is not trying to destroy Father Bartlett's reputation by speaking out
now. Rather, he wants to encourage other alleged victims to tell their stories.
``People do good things and bad things and they make mistakes,'' he said.
``This is not about trying to erase the good things that Father Bartlett has
done. This is about trying to stop him from doing bad things.''
I have nothing but respect for people such as Joseph Cote, Kevin Donnelly and
many other brave victims who continue to face skepticism and even wrath by
naming their alleged abusers. Their courage should serve as an inspiration to
those who have chosen the reputation of the church over truth and morality, the
same people who, when faced with opportunities to promote leadership and
conciliation, now insist that their only obligation is to follow the law.
March 17, 2002
Telling on priest not easy
By Dianne Williamson, Telegram & Gazette Columnist
Joseph P. Cote sat somberly at a red-checkered booth in a New Hampshire
steakhouse. He toyed with his cigarettes and a glass of iced tea. He politely
waved away a waiter about to recite the daily specials. ``You have to understand
that it's very difficult for me to come forward,'' Mr. Cote said softly, his
words measured and his emotions guarded. ``I never really intended to. But with
all that's going on ... So many other people are willing to step forward, it's
given me the strength to do it, too.''
Last week, Mr. Cote called the Catholic Diocese of Worcester to report that as
an altar boy he had been sexually abused by the Rev. Lee F. Bartlett, the
popular and high-profile pastor of Sacred Heart of Jesus parish on Cambridge
Street in Worcester. Beginning in 1977, when he was 13, he said, he spent many
weekends with Father Bartlett and other boys at the priest's Cape Cod ranch in
Eastham, where the pastor would ply them with liquor and show pornographic
movies on his 8 mm projector.
On at least three occasions, Father Bartlett took Mr. Cote into his bedroom and
sexually molested him, he said. The priest also organized an event dubbed ``the
Greek Olympics,'' which involved the boys running naked through the neighborhood
at night, according to Mr. Cote.
Mr. Cote said he reported his allegations on Thursday in a phone call to the
Rev. Rocco Piccolomini, vicar for priests, who has requested a meeting with Mr.
Cote. Meanwhile, a diocesan spokesman said Father Bartlett has taken a leave
from his pastorship.
``The person who called was invited to come in and present his allegations,''
said spokesman Raymond L. Delisle. ``The report will be forwarded to the
district attorney's office for appropriate action.''
Mr. Delisle said he did not know whether the complaint was the first the diocese
had received regarding Father Bartlett, or whether the priest's name was among
those that the diocese agreed to forward to the district attorney's office for
possible prosecution.
Father Bartlett, 57, did not respond to requests for a comment last week, and
his recorded message at the rectory said he was ``no longer available'' to
return phone calls. He has been pastor of the blue-collar Sacred Heart parish
since 1985. He is also a member of the Worcester Redevelopment Authority and a
former member of the city's Citizen's Advisory Council.
Mr. Cote, 38, is president of a school supply distributorship in New Hampshire.
He is married and has three children. In an interview last week in Portsmouth,
N.H., he said part of the reason he came forward now is because one of his
children is the same age he was when the alleged abuse began.
Mr. Cote was raised in Leominster and was attending St. Leo's Elementary School
in the 1970s when Father Bartlett joined the parish. He said the priest
befriended his family and was a frequent dinner guest at their home.
When Mr. Cote became an altar boy, the priest took special interest in him and
would single him out to serve at funerals and other church events that occurred
during school hours.
He said Father Bartlett would invite about a half-dozen young boys to the
rectory, where they would watch Monty Python movies and drink beer and mixed
drinks. On weekends, he began bringing the boys to his home in Eastham, where he
would set up a projector in the living room and show X-rated movies, Mr. Cote
said.
While the other boys would sleep on the floor in the living room, Mr. Cote said,
Father Bartlett would demand that the boy sleep with him in his bed.
``At some point, he began to fondle me,'' Mr. Cote said. He said the priest also
performed oral sex. ``This happened at least three times,'' Mr. Cote said. ``It
could have been more. I'm just not sure.''
He said the priest also took Mr. Cote and another boy to an X-rated drive-in and
encouraged the boy to masturbate in the back seat. He said he visited the priest
in Eastham about two dozen times.
His relationship with the priest ended the summer after Mr. Cote's junior year
at St. Bernard's Central Catholic High School in Fitchburg, when Father Bartlett
took Mr. Cote and a friend on a 10-day trip to Europe, he said. One night,
Father Bartlett made a sexual advance at Mr. Cote, who was then 16, he said.
``I resisted, and that was pretty much the end of our relationship,'' Mr. Cote
said. He said he called the priest about three years later and warned him
against abusing other boys.
He told his mother about the alleged abuse when he was 24 as she was planning to
invite the priest to a family function, he said. Shortly after, he sought
counseling in Fitchburg. He stopped attending church, and no longer considers
himself a Catholic.
``Mostly, though, I haven't allowed this to have an effect on my life,'' Mr.
Cote said, his eyes filled with tears. ``I know it wasn't my fault. This man was
a priest, and we were just kids. Priests could pretty much walk on water.''
Mr. Cote said he never reported his allegations because he assumed no one would
believe him. That assumption changed recently as the Catholic Church has been
forced to confront increasing evidence of widespread pedophilia and sexual abuse
within the priesthood.
Two weeks ago, Mr. Cote's older brother, Brian Cote, said he called Father
Bartlett and angrily confronted him about the alleged abuse. He said the priest
neither acknowledged nor denied the allegations, but told him he was thinking
about taking a leave of absence.
``He said he was going to try to seek help, and he said he was going to meet
with the bishop and see what the bishop thought he should do,'' according to
Brian Cote.
Word of the allegations spread quickly last week through the tight-knit parish,
where Father Bartlett has been credited with rejuvenating a 123-year-old church
once plagued by money woes and dwindling attendance.
``We're just so devastated, but we're all supporting him,'' said one longtime
parishioner who asked that her name not be used. ``No matter what happens, we
love him, and we'll continue to pray for him. This will make our faith even
stronger. We've all done wrong, and the past is the past. We have a forgiving
God.''
Joseph Cote is not as forgiving. But he said he has no plans to file a civil
lawsuit and is aware that the statute of limitations for possible criminal
prosecution has expired. He said he makes a comfortable living, and any
settlement he seeks would not be for financial gain.
``Everyone has their reasons for coming forward, but I'm not after any money,''
he said. ``I've wondered all these years if other children have been victimized.
... I can't control what happened in the past. But I can try and see that this
man is brought into the open. The church always says, `Love the sinner, hate the
sin.' To me, they're one and the same.''
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