The Roman Catholic Diocese of San Diego has lost a bid to seal any documents that would detail sex abuse allegations against priests. But the judge overseeing its bankruptcy reorganization ruled the accusers' names can be kept secret.
Judge Louise DeCarl Adler says bankruptcy proceedings are inherently public.
The Associated Press and Copley Press challenged the diocese's request to seal financial disclosures and "pleadings, reports and other documents" if they identified victims.
An attorney for the news organizations says the breadth of the diocese request could prevent abuse allegations from being made public.
After yesterday's ruling, attorney Susan Seager said, "Secrecy tends to grow like Topsy, and we're trying to stop that."
