Poll finds U.S. priests disapprove of bishops' action on abuse

LOS ANGELES -- Two-thirds of the nation's Roman Catholic priests disapprove of the way U.S. bishops have handled sexual abuse allegations against members of the clergy, a nationwide poll has found.

A survey of 1,854 priests nationwide by the Los Angeles Times found that 65 percent feel the bishops have done a fair to poor job in providing for the discipline of bishops who cover up for abusive priests.

As part of the survey, priests were given an opportunity to add written comments along with their answers.

Many priests wrote that bishops delayed dealing with the crisis, then compounded the problem by adopting a "zero-tolerance" policy that denies accused clerics their rights to due process.

Fifty-five percent said the bishops' plan for dealing with the scandal will restore confidence in the church.

Meanwhile, 45 percent characterized the plan's fairness to priests as "fair" or "poor," with 35 percent rating it as "good" or "excellent."