Probe: Catholic Church in France had 3,000 child abusers

PARIS (AP) — An independent commission examining sex abuse within the Roman Catholic Church in France believes that 3,000 child abusers, two-thirds of them priests, have worked in the church over the past 70 years. The estimate was given by the commission president, Jean-Marc Sauvé, in a newspaper interview published Sunday. The commission has been investigating for 2 1/2 years. Its full findings are scheduled to be released on Tuesday. The commission head said 22 cases have been forwarded to prosecutors for alleged crimes that can still be pursued. More than 40 cases of alleged crimes that are too old to be prosecuted but that involve suspects who are still alive have been forwarded to church officials.