BATON ROUGE – The Catholic Church serving this area of Louisiana is still working on how it will release the names of priests accused of sexual abuse.

A diocese spokesperson updated the situation Tuesday.

“This is of the highest priority to us,” the Diocese of Baton Rouge said in a statement.

WBRZ was first to report in September, the church was preparing plans to release church records related to misconduct.

“I don’t have a timetable right now. We are moving fairly quickly,”  Bishop Michael Duca told the WBRZ Investigative Unit then.

 Duca said the diocese is working with the archbishop of New Orleans to make a list of priests accused of sexual misconduct. That list will eventually be revealed to the faithful and the rest of the public.

This week, diocese leaders from other areas of the state revealed they were planning to release a list of priests who were “credibly accused” of sexual abuse in the past 50 years, The Advocate newspaper reported from its New Orleans newsroom.

The Diocese of Baton Rouge was formed in 1961. Leaders are going through church records and will release the names of priests “credibly accused of sexual abuse of minors,” the diocese vowed once again Tuesday.

It echoed the promise Bishop Duca made to WBRZ in September.

“We’re working on a process to research our files so that when we do publish the list it will be accurate and complete. Part of this process is to establish a timeline for the release of the list,” the diocese said.

The diocese wants to be “attentive to the issues of justice and show concern for victims in a way that is transparent, credible, honest and caring,” the bishop said.

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