Pope says to remove bishops if found negligent in sex crime cases

[June 04, 2016]  MILAN (Reuters) - Bishops found to be "negligent" when dealing with priests accused of sexual abuse of minors will be investigated and could be removed from office, a papal decree said on Saturday.

Pope Francis reacts as he is greeted by Cardinals at the end of a mass for the Jubilee of Priests at St. Peter's Square at the Vatican June 3, 2016. REUTERS/Alessandro Bianchi

Pope Francis in 2014 established a Vatican commission intended to establish best practices to root out abuse in parishes.

The Roman Catholic Church has been rocked for the past 15 years by scandals over priests who sexually abused children and were transferred from parish to parish instead of being turned over to authorities and being defrocked.

(Reporting by Agnieszka Flak; Editing by Alison Williams)

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