By Associated Press, 09/25/02

| 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.

BOSTON -- A judge has ordered the Boston Archdiocese to give lawyers representing alleged victims of the Rev. Paul R. Shanley documents regarding allegations of abuse by 85 priests, the lawyers said Wednesday.

The records include those the Roman Catholic archdiocese turned over to the attorney general's office earlier this year, as well as any actions taken by the archdiocese, including investigations, said Jeffrey Newman, an attorney for alleged Shanley victim Gregory Ford.

Newman did not know the identities of the priests, 15 of whom are deceased, but the existence of the documents was revealed earlier this year during the deposition of the Rev. Charles Higgins, the archdiocesan delegate for handling sexual abuse allegations against priests.

Newman received Suffolk Superior Court Judge Constance Sweeney's order Wednesday.

"My sense is that we're finally going to get to see some of the underside of the iceberg now," Newman said. "I believe that what we've seen so far is a small fraction, not only of the numbers of individuals that are molested, but the extent of the supervisory decisions to essentially cover things up, and that's what I think these documents will show."

Information on allegations against 12 priests, including Shanley and defrocked priest and convicted child molester John J. Geoghan, have already been released.

Shanley, 71, has pleaded innocent and is currently in jail awaiting trial on child rape and indecent assault charges.

A message left with a spokesman for the archdiocese was not immediately returned Wednesday.

In another development, Bristol District Attorney Paul F. Walsh said his office would announce the indictment on sexual assault charges of a priest formerly with the Fall River Diocese on Thursday. Prosecutors would not release the priest's identity Wednesday.

In April, Walsh's office announced it was investigating sexual misconduct allegations against 25 priests who served in the Fall River Diocese, some dating to the 1950s. Prosecutors said then that prosecuting the cases would be difficult because the allegations are so old.