Cloyne child protection officer quits in bishop row

The first lay person to assume the position of child protection officer in the Catholic diocese of Cloyne has resigned in a dispute over the handling by Bishop William Crean of the case of defrocked priest Dan Duane.

Bill Meagher, a former HSE social worker who was appointed the designated liaison person for the diocese in 2011, quit his post yesterday after Bishop Crean sought clarification from the Vatican over the position of the former 75-year-old Mallow priest who has continued to celebrate Mass in defiance of the Church ruling.

Mr Duane, who was laicised after being found to have sexually abused minors, had appealed directly to Pope Francis and the Church’s Supreme Court, the Apostolic Signatura, the decision of the Canonical Court in Ireland to dismiss him from the priesthood.