Disclaimer: The article contains mentions of child sexual abuse. Reader discretion is advised.
RTÉ’s latest documentary, Bishop Casey’s Buried Secrets, explores the abuse allegations against the former Bishop of Galway Eamonn Casey. The documentary claimed that multiple women came forward to accuse the bishop of sexual abuse. One of the women to accuse him is his niece, Patricia Donovan, who opened up about the abuse in the documentary. Donovan revealed horrifying details about what happened to her and how Bishop Casey abused her for several years.
BBC reported that Bishop Eamonn Casey began sexually assaulting his niece when she was five. Per Donovan, the sexual abuse continued for many years, and Casey did a lot of unthinkable things to his niece. Donovan said, “Some of the things he did to me, and where he did them. The horror of being raped by him when I was five, the violence. And it just carried on in that vein.” Moreover, she noted that Bishop was never scared of getting caught.
Bishop came into the headlines for fathering a child with an American woman named Annie Murphy. At the time, he resigned from his position. Then, in 2005, a woman accused him of sexual abuse that took place 30 years ago. The Irish Times reported that authorities never charged Bishop Casey for these charges. Moreover, the documentary revealed that the Diocese of Galway received five complaints of child sex abuse against Casey.
Who is Bishop Eamonn Casey’s niece Patricia Donovan?
In the documentary, Patricia Donovan, Bishop Eamonn Casey’s niece, stated that her efforts to stand up for herself did not seem to matter to him. She said, “He was almost, like, incensed that I would dare fight against him, that I would dare try to hurt him, I would dare try to stop him. It didn’t make any difference.” Moreover, she criticized the church for not doing anything for her.
In 2006, the Vatican received at least two allegations of child sex abuse against Bishop Eamonn Casey, reported Irish Independent. Although the Vatican removed the Bishop from the public ministry after the child sexual abuse allegations in 2007, he continued his practice until he died in 2017.
The documentary is available for streaming on RTÉ Player.
