Portland’s Roman Catholic bishop released the names last weekend of four priests accused of sexual assault, three of whom had served in Westbrook churches.

At the same time, Bishop Richard Malone announced the results of abuse allegations against two 79-year-old priests. He said the Vatican had assigned the two priests – Peter Gorham and former Cape priest, Francis Kane – to a life of “penance and prayer.”

Although the Vatican is still reviewing the cases of the four priests, Malone released the names because he feared one of them might re-offend. All four have already been removed from the ministry.

Malone was right to release the names of the four priests in advance of a decision that was taking too long to come from Rome. The church, at all levels, needs to take whatever steps possible to ensure the safety of children.

However, if the accusations against the other two priests were true, then a life of penance and prayer would seem an unjust consequence of their actions. It’s hard to know what would be fair punishment, however, for crimes that would stay with victims for the rest of their lives.

Malone released the names of priests George Beaudet, 77, who served in nine parishes before he was removed from the ministry in 2000; Michael Plourde, 56, who served at eight parishes and the Augusta Mental Health Institute before being removed from the ministry in 1994; Ronald Michaud, 60, who served in five parishes before being removed from the ministry in 1989; and Fredrick Carrigan, 70, who served in seven parishes before being removed from the ministry in 2002.

In explaining his decision to release the names, Malone cited the case of a Delaware priest who was allowed to retire in 1993 after accusations of sexual abuse against him surfaced. The priest then relocated to his native Syracuse, N.Y. That priest, Francis G. DeLuca, was arrested in October on charges that he had been sexually abusing a boy for several years.

There’s no doubt the church is in a precarious situation. Many of these priests have not been charged with any crime, despite the fact that church officials released information about accusations to law enforcement authorities several years ago after the sex-abuse scandal made national news. DeLuca, for example, was never charged in connection with the original allegations against him, which dated back to the 1960s.

However, DeLuca’s case demonstrates why the church has an obligation to release any information that could help protect the public. It’s not enough to remove priests from the ministry, because the church cannot ensure that they will not re-offend. Releasing information about these priests is, in some cases, the only way to avoid more incidents of sexual abuse.

Releasing the information might also lead to more victims coming forward. Those victims can only hope that one day, more priests who committed such crimes will face more than a life of prayer and penance.

Brendan Moran, editor