This is so sad! It makes me so upset that this is the first thing some people think of when someone mentions the Catholic church.

Why is there no mention of criminal proceedings?

Re: no mention of criminal proceedings, the first few pages of the report provide history and speculative explanation. I won't repeat the specific offense here, but the first reported offense in 1979 was certainly something criminally prosecutable and should have resulted in felony criminal charges. Because the offense occurred at a church function, a counselor reported it to archdiocesan clergy, even to the bishop, all of whom intimidatingly said that the 13 year-old girl was responsible and she should be ashamed. The dismissive clergy were all later revealed to have been deeply involved in covering up clergy sexual abuse of minors in the archdiocese. Why the counselor who assisted the girl didn't go to the police? I don't know. It's unclear whether the victim's parents knew.

The speculative part that follows is that David might have been coached by those same clergy about how to be more selective and discreet and to play the long bonding game in order to reduce the likelihood that a victim would report an assault or that an assault would be prosecutable. Evidence also appears to reveal that David would groom minors in their teens, becoming markedly more aggressive after their 18th birthdays as a tactic to avoid prosecution because the victims were of legal age and the offenses not as clear-cut nor felonious as the first 1979 offense. Lack of witnesses in many cases also reduced the likelihood of being prosecuted even if an assault had been reported to law enforcement.

My choir had a bonfire made of all of David Haas’s music. And they did so without my prompting. Made me proud.

I think that's why he's gone away quietly, and I bet he also got a nice settlement check from GIA to go away quietly and to allow his music to be buried. The ride's over, but he doesn't need it anymore.

I was confused by his contradictory behaviors, but he explained it by saying that God allowed us to love more than one person intimately, and that his ability to feel love toward more than one woman was part of that.

... On the way there, he apologized, but again said that God did not intend us to be monogamous...

Over the years, David talked to me about some of his beliefs and thoughts about love and relationships. The ideas he talked about the most were:
1) that God did not create us to love only one person, and that we were called to express that love in physical, as well as spiritual, ways...

On the positive side, the theologically vapid works of someone who theologically opposes the moral dogma of Christian monogamy have been stricken from the Catholic repertoire.

Now let us wait, however, for the other shoe to drop: the cancellation of some great hymn writers from the past on spurious grounds like having held now-outmoded political opinions back when viable alternatives were worse.

NCR: https://www.ncronline.org/news/accountability/new-report-details-44-accounts-alleged-abuse-david-haas

Haas has said "I have come to realize that I have caused great harm to a variety of people. I make no excuses for any harm that I may have caused. I take responsibility for my behavior and I am truly sorry." That is not an admission of any particular incident, but it is an admission of serious sin. It was published, by Haas, on July 9. As Bishop Stika wrote "a person has a presumed innocence until the person either admits guilt or ...". Is accepting responsibilty the same as admitting guilt, not perhaps in US law.

Everything in this report about Haas's behavior is truly disgusting, but I'm surprised nobody has mentioned two parts that really stuck out to me about his music!

Page 16: "Many survivors reported to us that, “David played by his own set of rules.” For the most
part, it seems, every institution that might have constrained or disciplined his abusive
behaviors, whether in the church, the Catholic educational system, or the liturgical
publishing industry, allowed “David’s rules” to override other considerations: financial
norms, musical quality, and of course, the physical and spiritual safety of women and
children."

BINGO. It's unclear if the demand for his music existed before GIA promoted it heavily, but it is clear that at any rate, they made him what he was, and I believe help cement his (unearned IMO) "celebrity status" within the community, and inflate his own ego.

Page 19, quoting an unnamed "composer colleague":
“For the last 25 years or so, DH put out an *obscene* amount of music and other publications, more than any other composer I know by a very long shot. It was pretty universally accepted that the music was of terrible quality (almost all the songs people mourn were written early on, most people couldn’t name any of the recent ones). He would even re-record old songs for no apparent reason multiple times. I always wondered why he put so much stuff out (it doesn’t make financial sense) and why he didn’t care about the quality. I’m realizing that his whole life was structured around this pattern of abuse. At recording sessions and conferences he would abuse. But when he was home, he would manically create projects because they gave him access to the studio and to conferences to promote it. It was an obsession. This is also why he would get so upset when Kate [Kate Williams, Senior Managing Editor at GIA Publications] would try to slow him down. Ego, sure. But I think it was more akin to a serial predator who saw his access to victims being taken away.”

Sobering, sad, and disgusting to say the least. I hope the Catholic music publishing industry learns a big lesson from this. I will withhold any further comment.

Charles... it is spelled, god, with a small G.

Like I said long ago before being “silenced” for reporting the truth,
It was only matter of time. And I will continue to say what it needs to be said so no one will be subjected to these predators in the future.

I will continue to say that many knew and many more will need to respond for this so we can clean up all of the our so-called music libraries and toss so many “modern” hymnals.
This individual wrote music and played with many composers, singers that knew. No one can deny that.
And hopefully one day we’ll really play and listen to the music that is sacred by nature that moves our souls rather than our bellies and the wallets.
I wonder who can “cancel” now all of those that have spoken the truth for years but only found rejection l, walls in front of them and people too scared to stand for the truth.

I've been a part of this forum since it's inception and I know it's always been a place of "no thought unexpressed." But some of the comments above have crossed the line. I had a rebuke composed in my head, but there was no way I could I write it while staying charitable, so I'll just share this firsthand account from a victim and hope it brings some perspective for those in short supply:

http://www.ourstoriesuntold.com/i-am-mine-undoing-the-19-year-hold-that-david-haas-had-on-my-life-part-1-of-3/

UPDATE: A couple of the more inane comments that I was referring to were taken down. Thank you, Richard.

Maybe purple bold is less helpful in some threads than others.

I'd suggest that the following dynamics are just a few of the things worth thinking and talking about while reflecting on this cautionary tale.

-Older people interacting with younger people in the Church.
-Spiritual leaders and their relationships with those who look up to them.
-Discipling vs. Grooming, and how to tell the difference from the outside. And then, what to do about grooming.
-Systematic preferences for church celebrities and moneymakers.
-The characterization of multiple abusers as dynamic, charismatic, vibrant, etc.
-The size and/or strength differences between most men and everyone else, that is women and the young.

Many good church musicians want to pass along the craft to younger people. So what are the concrete, measurable practices and safeguards that make this possible without any danger to the young, or for that matter unfounded suspicions being aimed at the old?

This diocese is good at insisting on chaperones for any kind of conference involving children or vulnerable adults. Those chaperones have also gone through training on protecting those vulnerable folks. When I actually gave lessons before retiring, I asked that a parent or guardian be present during those lessons. Even when teaching school I made sure that others were around when coaching reading after school. The library door was always open during those times. I wouldn't want to create a climate where everyone is under suspicion but one can't be too careful these days. I have to think that in the original posts, that composer who shall not be named, depended on many people looking the other way and not getting involved.

That environment you mentioned is called Heaven. It doesn't exist on earth.

there are very few places (and people), i will grant you that,

Yep. Very few.

I am interested in GIA's stance on Lori True after reading this report. . .

See what can happen to you when you stray from Gregorian chant.

One word for you. Silverstream.

Pax is referring to Silverstream Priory.

At my parish on Sunday, the priest's homily mentioned the sins of the tongue, such as gossip and detraction; and I'm aware of when I've failed in this area. Please let's not extend this thread into other cases of personal failings among the clergy. That's not what we're here for.