By Rachel Zoll, Associated Press, 07/01/02

| Complete coverage |  AG'S REPORT Attorney General Thomas F. Reilly released the results of a 16-month investigation into clergy sex abuse in the Boston archdiocese. Download report [PDF, 1.4 MB] (File requires Adobe Acrobat)  TODAY'S GLOBE A new leader reaches out 3 faces in crowd bound in hopeh At BC, students watch with awe O'Malley's homily reveals frank man Near cathedral, voices of protest 'Good priests' moved to tears Text of Archbishop O'Malley's homily Sandwiches, chips were bill of fare An angry protest, and prayers  GRAPHICS The moment of installation Viewer's guide Ceremony TV coverage  Processional O'Malley's vestments O'Malley's coat of arms Cathedral of the Holy Cross  REALVIDEO | NECN.com | Help with video | O'Malley to be installed today Great expectations of O'Malley Video clips require RealPlayer and Windows 98 or higher.  INTERACTIVE FEATURE An interactive timeline of the developing church crisis, featuring photos and audio.   View timeline  IN-DEPTH Boston's new archbishop Bishop Sean Patrick O'Malley has been chosen to succeed Cardinal Law as leader of the archdiocese. Reaction to O'Malley appointment Accused priests are vindicated Three priests have been exonerated after being suspended from their posts over abuse allegations.  CARDINAL BERNARD LAW Coverage of his resignation Career timeline: Priest to cardinal Changing statements on abuse Coverage of his tenure in Boston Photos: Law through the years Boston.com readers' comments  CONTACT SPOTLIGHT If you have information on child abuse by priests, call (617) 929-3208 Or leave a confidential message at this number (617) 929-7483 The Spotlight Team e-mail address is spotlight@globe.com.

A top U.S. Roman Catholic bishop said Monday that he traveled to Rome last week to give Vatican officials the ambitious policy American prelates approved in Dallas to bar sexually abusive priests from church work.

Bishop Wilton Gregory, president of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, confirmed the trip through a spokeswoman, but released no further details.

"He went to personally deliver to the Holy See the work of the Dallas meeting," said Sister Mary Ann Walsh, a spokeswoman for the bishop's conference in Washington.

The bishops need Vatican approval to make the plan binding on every U.S. diocese. Some Vatican officials have expressed concern that the plan is too sweeping -- raising the possibility that the Holy See would reject it. The American bishops, struggling to restore trust in their leadership, have assured U.S. Catholics they'll comply with the policy.

Under the plan, bishops are required to remove abusive priests from public ministry and form boards comprised mainly of lay people to monitor how the church handles misconduct allegations.

A full Vatican review could be lengthy, since it would involve several departments, including those dealing with clergy, bishops and doctrinal orthodoxy. Those are the same departments the U.S. cardinals sounded out in April when they came to Rome for urgent talks with Pope John Paul II about the abuse scandal.

The bishops adopted the new policy in June following months of revelations that Cardinal Bernard Law of Boston and other church leaders moved abusive priests from assignment to assignment without warning parishioners.

Rank-and-file Catholics have responded by demanding more say in how the church is run. Prosecutors in at least nine states have called grand juries to investigate the conduct of bishops, church officials or priests.