Vatican Grapples with Responsibility for Abuse of ‘Vulnerable Adults’

 A key Vatican department charged with prosecuting sexual abuse against minors since 2001 said this week that while it’s also responsible for cases of abuse against adults with mental deficiencies, offenses against adults considered “vulnerable” for different reasons falls outside its jurisdiction and must be handled by other departments. In a Jan. 30 “Clarification on Vulnerable Adults,” the Vatican’s Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith (DDF) noted that a series of 2010 amendments to Pope John Paul II’s 2001 motu proprio Sacramentorum Sanctitatis Tutela on series crimes reserved to the DDF gave the department competence over the abuse of persons with mental deficiencies.