BOSTON (AP) - A grand jury has been investigating whether Boston's Roman Catholic cardinal and other church leaders broke the law by quietly shuffling priests accused of molesting children from parish to parish.
The grand jury, convened by Massachusetts Attorney General Thomas Reilly, wants to know if Cardinal Bernard Law and his associates failed to keep accused sex abusers away from contact with children.
A law enforcement source who spoke on condition of anonymity confirmed the grand jury investigation Wednesday.
Legal experts said the probe won't likely result in charges. Reilly said state laws make it difficult to prosecute someone for putting another person in a position to commit a crime. Also, for some of the offenses, the statute of limitations has run out.
Donna M. Morrissey, a spokeswoman for the Boston Archdiocese, said, "We respect the right of the attorney general to pursue the investigation with any means that are appropriate."
Also Wednesday, attorneys for 275 people who claim they were molested as children by 20 priests said they would initiate talks with the Boston Archdiocese aimed at settling the lawsuits.
Morrissey confirmed that the two sides planned to enter preliminary discussions. That means a deposition of Law that had been scheduled for Thursday will not take place, attorney Roderick MacLeish said.
Other depositions and similar discovery will be postponed for at least 30 days while the lawyers and the archdiocese attempt to set a framework for a settlement, MacLeish said.
By law, Reilly cannot confirm whether a grand jury investigation is under way. But Reilly told The Associated Press on Wednesday that his office is using "every investigative tool available to us, including interviews and demand for documents and records."
In April, Reilly said that he had not ruled out bringing charges against Law.
Also on Wednesday, a Catholic school principal filed a sexual harassment lawsuit against the Diocese of Brooklyn, in New York City.
Barbara Samide, the principal of St. Elizabeth's parish in Queens, alleged that the Rev. John Thompson used sexually explicit language to intimidate her.
The suit names Thompson, Queens vicar Msgr. James Spengler and Brooklyn Bishop Thomas Daily as defendants and seeks $5 million in damages.
Daily declined to comment on the suit, according to Frank DeRosa, a spokesman for the Brooklyn diocese.
Samide has alleged that Thompson was sexually involved with an 18-year-old man who lived in the parish rectory. She charges that Thompson misused church school funds, spending some of the money on trips and gifts for the young man.
In other developments:
_ The Los Angeles Archdiocese is creating an independent advisory board to review accusations of sexual misconduct brought against its priests, the archdiocese announced. The board will make recommendations directly to Cardinal Roger M. Mahony.
_ At least two priests in the dioceses of Pueblo, Colo., and Cheyenne, Wyo., will be suspended under a new, restrictive policy adopted last week by American bishops concerning sex abuse, diocese officials said.